February 14, 2020
By: John Woodrooffe and Peter Zajonc
For some years now Professor Patricia Chow-Fraser, Department of Biology at McMaster University has been studying aquatic life in McGregor Bay and greater Georgian Bay. This past summer she became aware that the endangered Blanding’s turtle has been found in McGregor Bay. This was a pleasant surprise because there is no record of these federally endangered species in the region. With this discovery, Dr.Chow-Fraser and the McGregor Bay Association have joined together to submit a proposal to Canada’s Habitat Stewardship Protection (HSP) Funds, to support a scientific study of the endangered Blanding’s turtle in McGregor Bay.
The proposal contains budget to financially support four Whitefish River First Nation youths to assist with the research project. The McGregor Bay Association is contributing significant in-kind support for the study including transportation and lodging for her research team.
The objectives of the project are as follows:
Using the HSP funds, Professor Patricia Chow-Fraser plans to work with the McGregor Bay Association to create an educational and training program so that seasonal and permanent residents in McGregor Bay could be trained to maintain a long-term monitoring program of the turtles and their habitats. Her research team will provide group workshops and one-on-one training for serious volunteers to track turtles using radio telemetry and to record relevant habitat information. They propose to create a web-based archive that can be accessed by any stakeholder and used freely for planning and management purposes. As an educator, Dr. Chow-Fraser knows the importance of engaging and empowering the youth. To accomplish this the proposal includes funds to create four youth environmental internships to be awarded during the two-year program. We welcome community involvement in this project. Members of the McGregor Bay Association who wish to participate in the important work can contact John Woodrooffe, Peter Zajonc or any member of the MBA Executive.