3rd Bay of Fundy Science Workshop
Understanding Change in the Bay of Fundy Ecosystem
Discussions
Panel Discussion
Group Discussion
Liaison with the NGO's
PANEL DISCUSSION Peter Hicklin, Canadian Wildlife Service, Atlantic Division
Panelists
Peter Hicklin, Canadian Wildlife Service, Sackville
Graham Daborn, Acadia University
John Kearney, St. Francis Xavier University
Rodney Bradford, Department of Fisheries and Oceans
The panelists chosen for this discussion group brought expertise which represented an array of biological components of the Bay of Fundy which underwent various levels of change in recent years. John Kearney has long been involved in the fishery in the Bay of Fundy and represented the interests of the fishers but also, as a former fisher and presently a social anthropologist at a small maritime university, understands the many changes which have taken place in the fishery, and associated communities, over the past few years. Rodney Bradford focused specifically on known changes in fish populations and Peter Hicklin, speaking on behalf of Tony Diamond who was unable to attend, discussed changes in bird populations. Graham Daborn outlined oceanographic changes (i.e. "everything else") in the Bay of Fundy which, in one way or another, could have affected many of the changes described by the other participants above. Each panelist focused on changes noted within his area of special interest in the Bay of Fundy with the objective of initiating further discussion from the audience.
Peter Hicklin first described the most significant change in bird abundances in the Bay of Fundy as being the complete disappearance of two species of phalaropes (marine shorebirds), during their fall migration, which once numbered between one and two million birds. In 1982, Mercier and Gaskin (1985) estimated that over 1 million Red-necked Phalaropes Phalaropus lobatus staged in the Quoddy region in Eastport and Lubec on the coast of Maine and Deer island and Campobello Island in New Brunswick during the birds' southward migration from mid-July to mid-September. And, at the same time of year but on the other side of the bay in Nova Scotia, approximately 20,000 Red Phalaropes Phalaropus fulicarius concentrated near Brier Island. But starting in 1986 and ending around 1990, both species disappeared from that portion of the Bay of Fundy in late summer and no explanation has been available to explain why both species have so suddenly disappeared from the mouth of the Bay of Fundy at the time of their post-breeding migration.
The distribution of other species of migrant nearctic shorebirds underwent some changes in their distributions and abundances in the Bay of Fundy during their southward migration and the reasons for this remain unclear. In the late 1980s, bait harvesters came to the bay to harvest polychaetes from the Bay's mudflats during low tide, causing considerable disturbance on some mudflats where birds foraged. Harvesting of the polychaetes reduced their densities and caused considerable disturbance to foraging sandpipers. At about the same time, Peregrine Falcons Falco peregrinus, an endangered species in Canada and one which favours shorebirds as a main prey, was re-introduced to nesting sites in Chignecto Bay. They've bred there successfully ever since. These falcons' activities in Chignecto Bay caused considerable disturbance to the birds. Consequently, since 1976 when the first aerial surveys of shorebirds in the Bay of Fundy were conducted, Semipalmated Sandpipers Calidris pusilla are now significantly more abundant in Minas Basin than in Chignecto Bay, opposite of what was described 20 years previously.
Other changes in the avifauna in the Bay of Fundy include the arrival of a new breeding species in the bay: the Black-legged Kittiwake Rissa tridactyla which started as a small colony ( 15 birds) in 1980 on South Wolf Island in The Wolves archipelago in Passamaquoddy Bay and presently numbers >100 pairs. Furthermore, in 1998, another small colony (4-5 pairs) of Black-legged Kittiwakes got established on Whitehorse Island (off Campobello Island). A new colony of Razorbills Alca torda also started breeding on South Wolf Island in 1995. And the breeding numbers of Razorbills on Machias Seal Island (south of Grand Manan) increased almost twofold since 1994.
Around the Bay of Fundy, the numbers of breeding Herring Gulls Larus argentatus over the last 20 years declined by 50% while the numbers of Great Black-backed Gulls L. marinus increased by about 150% along the coast of New Brunswick between Saint John and Grand Manan.
With regards to other species of seabirds, a substantial increase in the numbers of Common Terns Sterna hirundo breeding on Machias Seal Island has occurred since the early 1990s. And similarly, the numbers of breeding Common Eider Somateria mollissima increased since 1995 from 40 pairs to > 100 pairs.
Over a longer time scale, 17th century accounts by explorers show that Gannets Morus bassanus, Puffins Fratercula arctica and Terns Sterna spp. used to nest on The Wolves archipelago. None of those species now breed within 50 km (Puffins and Terns) or several hundred km (Gannets) of The Wolves archipelago today.
In the fishery, John Kearney indicated that the most striking changes to the fishery have been that caused by deregulation of the fishery and the consequent privatization of the resource. The transfer of quota has proven not to help conservation. One major consequence of change has been the de-population of many coastal communities which once depended on the fishery. With cutbacks in the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, science now has less influence in the management of the fishery. Management boards have been created which maximize the benefits to the community rather than individuals. These management boards have come together to adopt an "ecosystem approach" to speak for industry and the bay. Although management is now community-based, these same communities need scientists to work with them. Management of the fishery requires a strong scientific oversight function in the interest of all Canadians. Hence, fisheries management now needs function not only with respect to natural sciences but also the social sciences.
With respect to fish populations, Rodney Bradford began by noting that no one person can fully appreciate the ‘pulse' of all the changes which have taken place. Where we perceive a change in the population of fish, we must eliminate the direct human element. This must be looked at first and once it can be eliminated as a significant factor, focus on the ecosystem. There are now fewer personnel at the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) and, consequently, fish species of lesser economic value are poorly studied and changes in fish distributions are poorly understood. The ocean is a complex ecosystem and more scientists are required to better understand it and to identify the gaps in our knowledge.
Graham Daborn pointed out that oceanographic changes are only noted "from a distance": indicators such as fish and birds and changes in sediment distributions and concentrations all indicate that some broader changes are taking place. But, as indicated by Bradford, we must separate the human and natural components which are involved in these changes. We must consider long-term cycles, like the 18-year tidal cycle in the Bay of Fundy, which can play a major role in some of the changes we observe in the bay over time.
There are various natural changes taking place in the bay like sedimentary changes which appear to be due primarily to anthropogenic influences such as barriers in tidal rivers. We must not forget the potential cumulative changes that can take place in the bay as a result of numerous small changes over time. And the effect of these cumulative changes cannot be assessed at this time. The potential impacts of small cumulative changes in the Bay of Fundy have not been addressed before. Do we have information and long-term data to use to make predictions? In the formal scientific sense, no such useful data is available. Furthermore, we face major difficulties in tackling these problems in light of the decline in scientific personnel in order to undertake the necessary research that needs to be done to fill these gaps.
Because of the biological connections between the Bay of Fundy and other parts of the world (migratory birds and fish for example) we have an international responsibility to better understand the changes that are going on in the bay. There are now examples in Atlantic Canada, such as the ACAP program in place in many parts of Atlantic Canada, which can show how governments, universities and communities can work closely together to understand changes in rivers and coastal areas and communities for example, and act upon them.
What needs to be done at this time is for members of this group to put together a list of all known and recognized changes going on in the bay and "mine" all the data that is available on these subjects. Following this effort, the gaps that need to be filled could be identified and short and long-term research needs listed and prioritized so that funding needs can be clearly identified.
Following these presentations, an interesting and lively debate ensued.
GROUP DISCUSSION Jeff Ollerhead, Mount Allison University
David Coon asked Bay of Fundy stakeholders to: "Think Strategically and Act Opportunistically". Let us now ask ourselves: what are our research needs and goals for the next millennium? How can we as scientists better understand change into the 21st century?
Key Points Discussed
Change
- How do we approach an understanding of change? How do we measure change?
- How do we account for the spatial and temporal scales of change?
- In order to measure change, we need a baseline, but where do we start?
- From a geologist's point of view, change has occurred over thousands of years; which temporal scale(s) matter?
- Changes are never neutral. They either are positive or negative.
- Understanding thresholds (of acceptability or harm) is a key part of understanding change.
The Bay of Fundy ecosystem
- Is the Bay of Fundy in acute crisis? Could we detect each (and every) crisis? If yes, what is our role? If no, how many years away is the crisis? Will there be a crisis? Are we prepared?
- Some crises have already arisen (e.g. depletion of wild salmon, wide-spread closures of shellfish beds).
- As a whole, our ecological system is robust. It will evolve and survive. However, its evolution may not suit human needs/desires, and major change(s) may be unavoidable.
Long-term monitoring
- Our scientific community needs long-term monitoring programs, measuring consistently key variables.
- Politicians work on a short-term basis. This difference can create problems when setting policy and/or research objectives.
- Do Canadians value long-term monitoring? We need to convince our local politicians that time-series observations are crucial to understanding the well-being of our ecosystems.
- We need to think about new ways to support longer-term research projects. Could we consider third party foundations? Endowment funds? Corporate sponsors? Atlantic lottery?
The need to be inclusive
- There are many community groups are out there. BoFEP needs a working group to develop strategies to build collaborative research efforts with as many community groups as possible.
- There is a need to gather groups of people with similar interests (e.g. the Corophium working group). Perhaps other working groups could be established through BoFEP?
Communication
- We are still missing a strong scientific community around the Bay of Fundy.
- We as scientists need to set up a communications system. For example: an exceptional marine data bank where observations can be made readily available.
- The role of the scientist is to gather information, then communicate that information.
- Scientists are not very good lobbyists. Lobbyists have no time to be scientists.
- One resource we have lost is a voice. The science community lacks a high profile representative for the Bay of Fundy.
We have an opportunity as a scientific group to offer solutions addressing the lack of time-series observations:
- the research stations are in place
- we have university honours students willing to do research
- we should be suggesting hypotheses that deal with impacts and begin long-term monitoring
- we need regular sampling programs across the Bay of Fundy. We should use Falk Huettmann's study of seabirds from the Saint John-Digby ferry as an example
Research and strategy ideas
- Create some new BoFEP working groups to encourage collaboration on specific issues.
- Build better resource inventories.
- Use BoFEP as a mechanism to improve communications with other groups.
- Collect better migratory fish data.
- Give more attention to the sub-tidal environment.
- Should we advocate a trial saltmarsh restoration in the upper Bay of Fundy? How would such a project be monitored?
LIAISON WITH THE NGO'S Jeff Ollerhead, Mount Allison University
The Conservation Council of New Brunswick
The Conservation Council of New Brunswick is a province-wide, membership-based environmental organization. CCNB was founded in 1969 by concerned citizens to promote public policies that recognize the importance of a healthy environment.
CCNB is a non-profit organization with charitable status. Its core funding is provided by donations from its members and supporters, and income earned from special events. A Board of Directors, consisting of 24 volunteers from across New Brunswick, oversee the organization's work. CCNB has an office based in Fredericton, a permanent staff of three, and project staff as its programming permits.
In 1990 the Conservation Council was appointed to the United Nations Global 500 Roll of Honour in recognition of its outstanding contribution to the improvement and protection of the environment. CCNB was one of the founders of both Friends of the Earth Canada and the Canadian Environmental Network. It continues to be a member of the Canadian Environmental Network and the Environmental Liaison Centre International.
Priorities for Action:
1. Promotion of ecological approaches to fishing, farming and forestry.
2. Establishment of more community control over resource management and economic
development.
3. Decontamination of our atmosphere, waterways and food chain.
4. Restoration and protection of marine habitat.
Resources:
Conserver House houses CCNB's offices and an extensive environmental resource centre for use by the public.
Tula Farm, located on Keswick Ridge, is 29 acres of land held in trust by CCNB to promote sustainable agriculture. It includes an interpretive trail and self-guided tour.
CCNB produces videos and publishes books and booklets on a wide variety of environmental topics.
CCNB Addresses Current Issues:
- Ecological deterioration and the decline of biodiversity in the Acadian forest.
- Depleted fish stocks and habitat destruction.
- Toxic chemical pollution.
- Environmental enforcement.
- Endangered spaces and endangered species.
- The Conservation Council is an active participant in the Canadian Climate.
Action Network and the World Wildlife Fund's Endangered Spaces.
Campaign and a member of CEN's toxics, biotechnology and forest caucuses.
For further information:
Conservation Council of New Brunswick
180 St. John Street, Fredericton, NB, Canada E3B 4A9
Ph: (506) 458-8747 Fax: (506) 458-1047
email:ccnb@nb.aibn.com
website: www.web.net/~ccnb/ccnbHP_about.html
Petitcodiac Watershed Monitoring Group
As industries expand, and as our population increases, the need for water monitoring grows. It used to be that the government handled all monitoring of water quality, however with increased environmental interest, private individuals and organized groups with the help of volunteers, have been collecting water quality data. An association called the Petitcodiac Watershed Monitoring Group was formed in the Moncton area for this purpose.
The Petitcodiac Watershed Monitoring Group runs a water quality monitoring program, which includes 36 freshwater sites in the Petitcodiac River watershed. Also there are 4 tidal sites, at the Hopewell Rocks and at Mary's Point in Shepody Bay.
The group, with the help of manuals and training sessions, prepares volunteers to collect and analyze water samples. The information collected is valuable and much needed, as the data collected by volunteers lead to an assessment of water quality and identification of existing or potential problems of the Petitcodiac River.
The volunteers are given test kits along with a standard water quality data sheet. Each volunteer has responsibility for their own specific test spot and takes a bi-weekly sample as well as noting the following water quality parameters;
1. Air temperature
2. Water temperature
3. pH
4. Dissolved oxygen
5. Turbidity
6. Conductivity/Salinity
The data collected by the volunteer must be of top quality in order to provide the basis for making informed decisions to protect the environment. The criteria and conclusions must be based on sound science and good data.
What Happens to the Data Collected By the Volunteers?
Data from each water sampling is provided by the volunteers and placed into the group's LaMotle database. A second database is maintained containing lab results for each sample as received from the New Brunswick Department of the Environment (NBDOE) and Environment Canada.
This information is made available to the public, universities, local/provincial/federal government agencies, and other stakeholder groups having an interest or responsibility for establishing guidelines and programs related to water quality in the Petitcodiac watershed.
Data collected can be used to:
- establish baseline data
- increase public awareness
- reveal long and short-term trends in water quality
- identify pollution sources
- assist scientists and regulators in planning and policing development
- determine the over-all health of the Petitcodiac River ecosystem
It is required that the water quality monitoring program establish background conditions for water quality in the Petitcodiac watershed. Once the watershed status is assessed, we can then prioritize, develop, and act to restore areas to their natural beauty. It can also provide us with the information needed to help prevent further problems with water quality, and all that is affected by it, down the road.
For further information:
Georges Brun
Petitcodiac Watershed Monitoring Group
P.O. Box 23046
Moncton, NB E1A 6S8
Ph: 506-384-9354
Resource Management Associates
Tom Young spoke about his organization's current projects in the eco-tourism field.
For further information:
Thomas Young
Resource Management Associates
P.O. Box 818 Parrsboro, NS B0M 1S0
Ph: 902-254-2772
Page designed by Kate Ramsey,
ktramsey@hotmail.comlast modified: September 16, 1999