This gallery contains 12 photos.
In the early morning hours of January 14, a new elephant seal pup was born at the Race Rocks Ecological reserve. This was the 5th pup born to a female called Bertha since January 2009. Ecoguardian on the island Alex … Continue reading
By Garry Fletcher, Metchosin, British Columbia
The yellow dots show the margin of the Gooch Creek Estuary. The populations of native Phragmites are shown in red. Location: 48deg,22′,11.01″N—123deg 31’52.19″ W.
Introduced species are no doubt one of the most serious challenges for us in the effort to preserve ecological integrity*. Occasionally however we can mete out a death sentence to an innocent which can have serious consequences. This post is about one such occurrence with the native marsh/estuary grass Phragmites australis (Cav.) Trin. ex Steud. subsp. americanus
When we first bought our property on William Head Road, I was intrigued with the variety of ecosystems that could fit into one small 4 hectare piece of land. One such ecosystem was the seasonally flooded salt marsh at the foot of the property. In that marsh were two populations of a very tall (2-3 metre) marsh reed grass.
In the mid-1980s, I asked one of our members of * MEASC, Robert Prescott-Allen to identify the species for me and he came up with the genus name Phragmites. He indicated that it used to be more common in our coastal estuaries, but it had been destroyed in the early years with cattle trampling and grazing. Now it only occurs in limited populations in BC and in some populations along the Oregon Coast.
When I made the website MetchosinCoastal , I included a profile on the marsh with images of this plant on the Taylor Beach/Gooch Creek page . 
Fast forward twenty years or so until 2009. I received a call from the Invasive Plant EDRR Coordinator | B.C. Ministry of Forests, Lands & Natural Resource Operations
PO Box 9513, 8-727 Fisgard St, Victoria B.C. CANADA V8W 9C1. She indicated that there were 9 populations of the introduced species Phragmites australis (Cav.) Trin. in BC and it was their mandate to control all of them. She came out to the farm, took samples and pictures and I sent her pictures of the extent of the grass in the marsh over the last few years indicating it really hadn’t spread that much. She made reference to a sample in the RBC museum which had been collected from our pond in 1992 which was identified as the introduced variety.
She indicated she would be out with a crew in the fall to cut the plants to the ground and spray with the herbicide Glyphosate . (and this being next to a sea-run cutthroat stream!)
On their website, the locations of this plant in BC were identified . When the call came that they were coming out, I started to do research on the species. I valued this plant as a great nesting habitat for red-winged blackbirds, and in the summer they get infested with aphids, providing food to wasps, marsh wrens and other birds. In addition, the hollow stems made excellent homes for Mason Bees.
The red stems mentioned on the Oregon ID website are visible in the growing season on our population of reeds. I checked in early Dec.2013 and the red color is still visible.
I referred to a website from the Government of Oregon, which gave a comparison on the physical features of native , (Phragmites australis subsp.americanus) and introduced species samples. It looked very much like the native species to me, with most of the morphological characteristics corresponding. It also indicated that DNA analysis of tissue samples was the only definitive way to determine the genotype of the species.
This species reproduces both asexually by underground root-stalks as well as sexually by seeds born on panicles such as this.
water with heavy winter rains, but only gets flooded with a salt water intrusion at high tides driven by a east-wind driven storm surge. (winter only)
I tend to think that the salt water controls its distribution somewhat in this particular marsh. Interestingly, in recent years cattails have spread in the pond and they were previously also controlled by salt water. The main invasive in the marsh is reed canary grass.
Phragmites australis subsp. americanus growing in the Gooch Creek marsh (in November) of the year
In December of 2013, I was contacted by a wetlands restoration company from Nanaimo, BC about the population, as they found out from the RBC museum that our population was the native variety. I had not heard this yet so I contacted Dr. Ken Marr at the museum, and he indicated that DNA tests had been done and that it was indeed the native species.
REFERENCES:
Kingdom Plantae – plantes, Planta, Vegetal, plants
Subkingdom Viridaeplantae – green plants
Infrakingdom Streptophyta – land plants
Division Tracheophyta – vascular plants, tracheophytes
Subdivision Spermatophytina – spermatophytes, seed plants, phanérogames
Infradivision Angiospermae – flowering plants, angiosperms, plantas com flor, angiosperma, plantes à fleurs, angiospermes, plantes à fruits
Class Magnoliopsida
Superorder Lilianae – monocots, monocotyledons, monocotylédones
Order Poales
Family Poaceae – grasses, graminées
Genus Phragmites Adans. – reed
Ed. Note: Species subspecies americanus is the native species
in North America. Phragmites australis (Cav.) Trin. ex Steud. – common reed
-introduced species in North America
See posts on the use of Phragmites stems for culturing Mason Bees here:http://www.gfletcher.ca/?tag=phragmites
http://www.llbc.leg.bc.ca/public/pubdocs/bcdocs/368207/
The four PDFs linked to this government site have also been included here since we find that external URLs often change:
Part 1: Coastal Shore Stewardship A Guide for planners, Builders and Developers on Canada’s Pacific Coast: part1
Part 2 Coastal Planning and Approvals, Who does What: part2
Part 3 Don’t disrupt, Don’t harden, Don’t pollute: Land Development, Marine Facilities, Seawalls and Revetments, etc. Links to many Stewardship resources; part3
Internet resources: internetaddresses
This area has in the past been modified significantly from the natural shoreline. Several seawalls have been installed in the past to deal with drainage problems or erosion threats , or to improve sea views or add to usable property on the foreshore. Typically land owners do not like to be criticized for actions on their properties which they believe will be constructive. However current standards as outlined in the documents “BC Government Publications Index for Stewardship Centre on Coastal Planning and Land Use” would probably not allow such impacts any more.
The images below were from earlier aerial photos of other modifications in the area.
Aerial views courtesy of the CRD NATURAL AREAS ATLAS
If one goes to the CRD Natural Areas Atlas and uses the measurement tools, you can find out some interesting facts about the extent of Metchosin’s Coastline.
The total land based shoreline of Metchosin : 48,660 metres (48.6 km)
Total length of shoreline around islands off Metchosin’s shore:
23,118.5 metres (23 km)
Total length of the shoreline of the Race Rocks Islands: 3500 metres. (3.5 km)
Values and Views
Island Trust Communities
Marine By Nature
The Islands within the Salish Sea have been shaped by ancient glaciers and modern oceanic forces. Whether you visit the islands seasonally or live here year round, Islanders treasure the marine environment. The North Pender Local Trust Committee has developed this brochure to introduce you to where sensitive marine habitats exist, how you can recognize them, and what simple steps you can take to ensure our local waters continue to support a vibrant and abundant marine ecosystem.
This PDF has been produced by the North Pender Island Local Trust Committee: Sharing Our shorelines_lowres
Contents:
Clean Water
Shoreline erosion
Coastal Bluffs and Shoreline beaches
Marine Riparian Vegetation
Intertidal Habitats
Beach-spawning Forage Fish
Eelgrass habitats
Kelp Forests and Rocky Reefs
Marine shorelines as critical fish habitats
Note: All shorelines except the First Nations reserves are included in the DPA:
See the full PDF at http://www.northsaanich.ca/Assets/Maps/OCP+Maps/DPA+1.pdf
Other DPAs inclusing sensitve Ecosystems are indexed here:
Eel grass along our coastline provides a valuable habitat for juvenile fish, crabs and other invertebrates. This week on October 28 and 29th, there was a wind from the North West which resulted in some debris deposition on the beach. The pictures show the eel grass deposits and the map shows the location where it came from in the shallow water offshore. Eel grass turned up in the strand line almost the full length of the Taylor beach sector:
It is also important to note that the rocks along the beach at 0.5 M tide level just to the north of Taylor road are covered in Surf grass – Phylospadix sp.
View from the south end of Taylor Beach showing Eel grass in the strand line
View from the North end of Taylor Beach showing Eel grass in the strand line
|
METCHOSIN’S PROTECTED TREES You can download this in a PDF:TREE BROCHURE print ANY NATIVE TREE ONE METRE DBH AND ABOVE DBH = diameter at breast height (1.3m) Almost any native tree that is measured at one metre dbh will be at least 150 years of age. Large, old trees supply critical habitat for woodpeckers, bears, and many other species, and older trees have a crucial relationship with fungal root systems (mycorrhizae) that are critical to supporting forest health. GARRY OAK Poster child for our endangered Garry oak ecosystems and British Columbia’s only native oak tree, its calcium rich bark hosts abun- dant moss, lichen and insect communities. PACIFIC DOGWOOD BC’s provincial flower, its late spring floral display is breath-taking. The bright red clusters of berries are eaten by numerous birds including the blue-listed, band-tailed pigeon. ARBUTUS The only native, broadleaf evergreen tree in Canada, its white flowers are used by many pollinators and hummingbirds. Steller’s jays and others flock to its red or orange berries. ANY Arbutus tree 50 cm and above receives increased protection. MANZANITA This attractive bonsai-like shrub with red, peeling bark and ever- green leaves provides food for many bees, butterflies, humming- birds and other animals. CASCARA Over-harvested as a natural laxative, only the occasional young tree can still be found. Leaves turn a beautiful clear yellow in fall. Grouse and songbirds harvest the berries. WESTERN YEW Slow growing, it is the original source of taxol, a cancer-fighting drug. Many birds eat the bright red fruit (poisonous to humans) and the leaves supply food for black-tailed deer. SEASIDE JUNIPER Very rare, tree-sized juniper that has recently been recognised as a new species; appearance is similar to Rocky Mt. juniper. TREMBLING ASPEN Uncommon on Vancouver Island, although common in the BC Interior, there is a healthy population that shows a beautiful, yellow, fall colour at Witty’s Lagoon. OREGON ASH A red-listed, species-at-risk typically found in poorly drained, humus rich soil, in swamps, estuaries and seasonally flooded habitats. |
|
Please contact Metchosin District staff with any questions on the amended Tree Management Bylaw. 250-474-3167 or email www.metchosin.ca |
All articles and posts on the MetchosinCoastal website under the title Forage Fish may be found here:
In 2008 and in 2013, Ramona de Graaf, a biologist with the Public Education Program at the Bamfield Marine Station gave presentations on Forage Fish on our beaches and the need to Document their occurrence. In 2008 on the Saturday after the presentation, we rejoined for a walk and a session on the process involved in sampling for Forage Fish on Taylor Beach. Ramona is also the principal and founding marine scientist of Emerald Sea Research and Consulting.
Our thanks from the Blue-Green Spaces committee to Ramona and Wen-Ling for this informative session on the importance of monitoring and preserving forage fish habitat.
See also the post: Overhanging Vegetation, Invertebrates and Forage fish
See also Forage Fish of Metchosin and Beyond by Moralea Milne with an article by Briony Penn : The herring, the Chinook and the Orca…At the Brink. Moralea also documents a second training session by Ramona on Taylor Beach in March of 2009. Inclued is an article she wrote for the January Issue of The Metchosin Muse.
Throughout the Strait of Georgia, fish stocks have dramatically declined. Lingcod, rockfish and some Pacific salmon species are only some of the major commercial fish species in decline. Seabird populations throughout British Columbia and Washington State are also decreasing. As well, marine species such as the southern resident killer whale, dependent on salmon runs, have been listed as endangered. Many of these species depend on bait or ?forage? fishes as prey. Spawning habitat of forage fishes is located in nearshore marine environments, an environment heavily impacted by human development.
Documenting and protecting forage fish spawning habitats must be a priority for the Metchosin Coastline.
There is little information on the current extent and health of the spawning habitats of herring and no information on the spawning habitat of surf smelt and Pacific sand lance. Surf smelt and sand lance spawn in gravel/sand beach habitats in the upper one third of the intertidal zone (Figure 1). Current spawning habitats of surf smelt and sand lance have been documented throughout the US coasts of the Juan de Fuca Strait, San Juan Islands, and Puget Sound (Penttila 2000, 2001). In Canada, eelgrass beds are protected as critical fish habitat under Fisheries and Oceans Canada ?no-net? loss policy (Federal Fisheries Act). Protecting forage fish spawning and rearing habitats will have positive benefits by protecting a vital food source for numerous marine predators. Fisheries and Oceans Canada recognizes the need to obtain information on the habitat requirements of forage fishes in Coastal areas.
| Intertidal zone spawning locations. |
| WHAT ARE WE CONCERNED ABOUT WITH METCHOSIN’S BEACHES?
Diversion of sediment-bearing streams through culverts, and the backshore and intertidal placement of seawalls, outfall pipes and riprap armouring interrupt natural coastal processes (such as erosion) that supply terrestrially-borne gravel sediments to beaches crucial to spawning surf smelt and Pacific sand lance. Seawalls are physical barriers that block the seaward transport of eroding gravels from feeder bluffs. Impediment of the long-shore transport of sediments by groins, outflow pipes, piers, boat ramps and docks have all contributed to the sediment-starved state of some beach faces. In general, the placement of seawalls and riprap armouring in the backshore and in the intertidal continues the process of sediment deprivation due to the action of wave scouring. Wave scouring can result in the loss of fine sands and gravels (appropriate for spawning) and the dominance of coarser (larger) gravels and cobble beaches inappropriate for use as spawning gravels for both surf smelt and Pacific sand lance. Seawalls such as those onPreliminary Habitat Assessment for suitability of intertidally spawning forage fish species, Pacific sand lance (Ammodytes hexapterus) and surf smelt (Hypomesus pretiosus) Esquimalt Lagoon, Colwood , British Columbia and Tower Point are often placed in the backshore, supralittoral and high intertidal zones (the uppermost portion of the high tide range) which can result in the loss of spawning habitat area, a decrease in beach elevation, an increase in beach slope, interruption of the sediment-transport drift cell, and the loss of sediment retaining logs. Not only are these ?hard? approaches to storm protection negatively impacting forage fish populations, but they can fail to deliver the protection intended. Around the world and locally, there are growing incidences of seawalls and other armouring failing to protect land owners. Modern engineering approaches, or ?soft? approaches work with coastal processes to provide safety for human populations and industries as well as maintaining marine ecological functions. While this report will not address this topic in detail, several informative websites and consultants include http://www.greenshores.ca, http://www.coastalgeo.com, and http:// www.sanjuans.org.
Googlethe PDF : Preliminary Habitat Assessment for suitability of intertidally spawning forage fish species, Pacific sand lance (Ammodytes hexapterus) and surf smelt (Hypomesus pretiosus) Esquimalt Lagoon, Colwood , British Columbia |
