|
| NAME | SCIENTIFIC
NAME | CATEGORY | THREAT |
Southern Flying Squirrel
 | Glaucomys Volans | SC | Habitat loss and degradation are the main factors contributing to this species decline. In Ontario, its habitat has been drastically reduced and fragmented. Pesticide use may also affect this species because it also feeds on insects. |
|
| 
| NAME | SCIENTIFIC
NAME | CATEGORY | THREAT |
Channel Darter
| Percina Copelandi | T | This species requires access to areas with moderate to rapid flowing waters for spawning. Any barriers preventing movement to their preferred breeding habitat limits their reproduction success. Fluctuations in flow and water temperature during the spawning season are also negative factors. Extensive sedimentation and deteriorating water quality associated with poor agricultural practices and urban land development may also contribute to this species decline. |
Lake Chubsucker
| Erimyzon Sucetta | T | Wetland drainage, agriculture-induced siltation, increased water turbidity and pollution has contributed to this species decline, which depends on healthy wetland ecosystems. |
Northern Madtom
| Noturus Stigmosus | SC | Pollution appears to be a factor affecting this species. The Northern Madtom is sensitive to poor water quality as indicated by the absence of the species from the most strongly polluted sides of the St. Clair and Detroit rivers. Exotic fish species may also have a negative impact. |
Pugnose Shiner
| Notropis Anogenus | SC | The Pugnose Shiner requires clear waters with an abundance of aquatic vegetation. The main threats include siltation and reduction of and changes to its preferred habitat. |
Spotted Sucker
| Minytrema Melanops | SC | Ontario is the northern limit of this species’ range, so it may always be rare in this region. Habitat degradation from siltation and deteriorating water quality are contributing factors across its range. |
|
| NAME | SCIENTIFIC
NAME | CATEGORY | THREAT |
Eastern Fox Snake
| Elaphe Vulpina Gloydi | T | Habitat loss, drainage of wetlands and shoreline development has contributed to the Eastern Fox Snake’s decline. It is often mistaken for a rattlesnake or a copperhead and killed out of fear. Other factors include road kill and environmental pollution. |
Queen Snake
| Regina Septemvittata | T | Habitat loss is the main threat to the Queen Snake mainly because their habitats are being drained or disturbed. Other threats include human persecution and water pollution, which kills off their primary food source - crayfish. |
Eastern Spiny Softshell Turtle
| Apalone Spinifera Spinifera | T | Habitat loss and degradation as a result of shoreline development are the main factors responsible for the decline of the Eastern Spiny Softshell Turtle. Other factors include environmental pollution, predation on eggs and young by raccoons, foxes and coyotes, and natural environmental factors such as fluctuating water levels. |
Butler's Garter Snake
| Thamnophis Butleri | T | The loss, alteration and fragmentation of suitable habitat have most likely contributed to this species decline. Drainage of wetlands is another contributing factor. |
Five-Lined Skink
| Eumeces Fasciatus | SC | Loss of habitat has contributed to this species decline in Ontario. Further degradation of their habitat and poaching of wild skinks for the pet trade are continuing to threaten populations. |
Spotted Turtle
| Clemmys Guttata | SC | Habitat loss is the major factor contributing to the decline of this species. Habitat alteration, pollution and nest predation by raccoons are other contributing factors. |
Northern Map Turtle
| Graptemys Geographica | SC | Habitat loss, pollution and road kill are some of the most common threats affecting this species. |
Eastern Milksnake
| Lampropeltis Triangulum | SC | The Eastern Milksnake is subject to high levels of road kill and is often deliberately killed by humans because of its resemblance to venomous snakes. |
|
| NAME | SCIENTIFIC
NAME | CATEGORY | THREAT |
Monarch Butterfly
| Danaus Plexippus | SC | Environmental conditions, herbicide use on milkweed plants and loss of breeding habitat pose the main threats to all Monarchs. Logging and other human disturbances to their over-wintering sites in Mexico are continuing to threaten this species. |
|
| NAME | SCIENTIFIC
NAME | CATEGORY | THREAT |
Northern Bobwhite
| Colinus Virginianus | E | Harsh winters, habitat loss and intensive agricultural practices have all but wiped out the Bobwhite in Ontario. Other threats include pesticide use, which damages their food supply, heavy snowfall and ice storms, which cover their food supply, and predatory animals. |
Acadian Flycatcher
| Empidonax Virescens | E | Habitat loss resulting from forest clearing and fragmentation is the primary reason for this species decline in Ontario. Unsustainable forest logging practices and residential development in or near woodlots continues to have negative consequences for this species. |
King Rail
| Rallus Elegans | E | Habitat loss as a result of wetland drainage and agricultural conversion is the major threat to this species. Other factors include pollution and water level changes. |
Henslow's Sparrow
| Ammodramus Henslowii | E | Habitat loss is the main factor contributing to this species’ decline in Canada. The drainage of wet grasslands and successional change of grasslands to shrubland is also another factor. Succession changes the specific habitat conditions that the Henslow’s Sparrow depends upon. |
Hooded Warbler
| Wilsonia Citrina | T | Habitat loss is a major reason for the decline of this species in Canada. Ongoing forest loss and defragmentation of suitable forest habitat is continuing to limit this species. |
Least Bittern
| Ixobrychus Exilis | T | Habitat loss because of the drainage of wetlands for conversion to farmland and urban development is the main reason for this species decline. Human recreational uses near the Least Bittern’s nesting areas are another contributing factor and are causing further population declines. |
Eastern Yellow-Breasted Chat
| Icteria Virens Virens | SC | Habitat availability is the main reason for the Eastern Yellow-breasted Chat’s decline. It prefers successional habitats where the clearings are overgrown with shrubby thickets. These habitats are threatened by intensive agriculture, reforestation and development. |
Cerulean Warbler
| Dendroica Cerulea | SC | Habitat loss resulting from deforestation, forest fragmentation and degradation is the main reason for this species’ decline. Its wintering grounds in South America are threatened by logging, which is also contributing to population declines. Brood parasitism by the Brown-headed Cowbird may also be limiting its reproductive success. |
Louisiana Waterthrush
| Seiurus Motacilla | SC | Loss of habitat resulting from logging and forest fragmentation is the main factor contributing to this species declines in Ontario. |
Red-headed Woodpecker
| Melanerpes Erythrocephalus | SC | The Red-headed Woodpecker’s population has declined in Ontario primarily because of habitat loss, which is a result of intensive logging and agricultural practices. |
|
| NAME | SCIENTIFIC
NAME | CATEGORY | THREAT |
Gattinger's Agalinis
| Agalinis Gattingeri | E | Loss of habitat is the primary threat to the Gattinger’s Agalinis’ survival. Other threats include human encroachment and agricultural expansion. |
Skinner's Agalinis
| Agalinis Skinneriana | E | The decline of this species throughout its range is the result of habitat loss resulting from the conversion of prairie and savanna habitats to farmland. Other factors include invasion by competitive species and changes to its habitat because of fire suppression. |
White Prairie Gentian
| Gentiana Alba | E | Habitat loss is the main limiting factor for the White Prairie Gentian. The suppression of fire within its habitat also threatens this species. Limiting fire allows the growth of shrubs and trees (natural plant succession) that create shady conditions that are unsuitable for this species and other prairie plants. |
Showy Goldenrod
| Solidago Speciosa Var. Rigidiuscula | E | Showy Goldenrod was likely found in prairie habitats of southwestern Ontario, which have since been lost. Its decline is likely the result of that prairie habitat being converted to agriculture and urban development. On Walpole Island, the populations continue to be at risk from development. |
Small White Lady's Slipper
| Cypripedium Candidum | E | The Small White Lady’s Slipper has declined throughout its North American range primarily because of habitat loss and the suppression of fire, which allows competitive species to shade it out. Other threats include habitat degradation, trampling of plants and possibly illegal collection of this orchid. |
Pink Milkwort
| Polygala Incarnata | E | The destruction and modification of habitat for the purposes of agriculture and urban development has contributed to the decline of the Pink Milkwort. Other factors include habitat degradation, the collection of specimens and the suppression of fire within its preferred habitats. Periodic fire is important to maintaining the open habitat conditions that the Pink Milkwort favours. |
Kentucky Coffee Tree
| Gymnocladus Dioicus | T | Extensive deforestation and wetland drainage are the primary reasons that this species has declined. In Ontario, infrequent seed production may also be a factor because the trees are widely spaced throughout their existing range. |
Colic Root
| Aletris Farinosa | T | Habitat loss from the conversion of prairie to farmland is the biggest factor to its decline in Ontario. The main threat to the existing populations is limiting fire within its preferred habitats. As a result natural plant succession occurs, which allows shrubby growth to establish within the open habitat that it requires. |
Goldenseal
| Hydrastis Canadensis | T | Deforestation and the collection of Goldenseal greatly contributed to its decline throughout its range. In the extreme southwestern Ontario, forests have been reduced to less than five percent of what existed in pre-sttlement times (Pearce, 1997). Today, only remnants of these woodland communities remain. |
Dense Blazingstar
| Liatris Spicata | T | The main factor to Dense Blazingstar’s decline is the loss of habitat resulting from agricultural expansion and urban development. Today, the remaining populations of this species in Ontario are threatened by the overgrowth of trees and shrubs within its habitat and the lack of fire and other naturally occurring disturbances that maintain the open conditions it prefers. |
Climbing Prairie Rose
| Rosa Setigera | SC | Habitat loss is the main factor to this species’ decline, which has mainly been caused by intensive agricultural expansion within its habitat. |
Willow Aster
| Symphyotrichum Praealtum | SC | Habitat loss has mainly contributed to this species decline in Ontario. Changing drainage patterns within its habitats is also a factor. |
Hop Tree
| Ptelea Trifoliata | SC | Loss of habitat through cottage development and other structures has greatly contributed to this species decline in Canada. |
Swamp Rose Mallow
| Hibiscus Moscheutos | SC | Wetland drainage and the development of coastal wetlands are the main threats for the Swamp Rose Mallow. |
Shumard Oak
| Quercus Shumardii | SC | Habitat loss is the primary factor to its decline in Canada. |
Eastern Prairie White-Fringed Orchid
| Platanthera Leucophaea | SC | Habitat loss as a result of urban development, agricultural conversion and drainage are the primary threats to this species. Other threats include illegal collection and fire suppression within its habitat. |
Riddell's Goldenrod
| Solidago Riddellii | SC | The main factor to this species decline is likely the result of the conversion of prairie habitat to agriculture and urban development. Today, the remaining populations of this species in Ontario are still threatened by development and also by the lack of maintaining the open conditions it prefers. Where it is found along railways it is threatened by the impacts of recreational uses and natural succession. |
|
| NAME | SCIENTIFIC
NAME | CATEGORY | THREAT |
Wavy-rayed Lampmussel
| Lampsilis Fasciola | E | The main limiting factors to this species include siltation, pollution, and the negative impacts from zebra mussels and muskrat predation. |
|
| NAME | SCIENTIFIC
NAME | CATEGORY | THREAT |
Eastern Massasauga Rattlesnake
| Sistrurus Catenatus Catenatus | T | Loss of habitat, human persecution and wetland drainage has contributed greatly to the decline of this species in Canada. |
Greater Prairie Chicken
| Tympanuchus Cupido | EX | Habitat loss resulting from the extensive conversion of prairie and grassland habitat to agriculture has eliminated this species from Canada. |
|
What
is a Species at Risk?
“Species at Risk” refers to wildlife species
that are considered threatened or in danger of becoming extinct. In Canada, a
wildlife species is deemed at risk if its population is determined threatened
to a point where it declines in numbers. Species of wildlife that are currently
reviewed include: mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, insects and other invertebrates,
fish, and plants. A 'species' is defined as any indigenous species, subspecies,
variety or geographically defined population of wild flora (plants) and fauna
(animal-life). How Do Species Become at Risk?
There
are many reasons why certain species decline and become endangered. Some of the
most prevalent environmental factors contributing to species decline include:
habitat loss and degradation, environmental contamination, genetic and reproductive
isolation, suppression of natural events, over harvesting, climate change, disease,
and invasive species.
Who Decides If a Species
is at Risk?
Each year, the Committee on the Status of Endangered
Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) compiles a species at risk list of all recorded species
of wildlife in Canada. The committee is composed of federal, provincial, and territorial
wildlife officials, non-government wildlife experts and representatives from conservation
organizations. They determine and review the national status of wild species that
are considered to be at risk in Canada and assign each species in one of the following
risk categories: Not at Risk, Special Concern, Threatened, Endangered, Extirpated,
or Extinct.
| 
What
Do the Risk Categories Mean?
Data Deficient: A species
for which there is insufficient scientific information to support status designation.
Not
at Risk: A species that has been evaluated and found to be not at risk.
Special
Concern: A species whose characteristics make it particularly sensitive to
human activities or natural events (formerly described as "Vulnerable"
from 1990 to 1999).
Threatened: A species likely to become endangered
if factors are not reversed.
Endangered: A species facing imminent extirpation
or extinction.
Extirpated: A species no longer existing in the wild
in Canada, but occurring elsewhere.
Extinct: A species that no longer
exists.Species at Risk on Walpole Island
There
are over 45 species at risk recorded for Walpole Island including
some that are not recorded elsewhere in Canada. These species at risk have been
identified through a life science inventory, wildlife population surveys and other
assessments conducted on Walpole Island over the past 15 years. |
|
| Data
Deficient(D) | Not At Risk(NR) | Special
Concern(SC) | Threatened(T) | Endangered(E) | Extirpated(EP) | Extinct(EX) |
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