This article is over 5 years old and may contain outdated information.

Wildlife

Nature Conservancy protects island 'bird hotel' near P.E.I.

A small island off the western coast of Prince Edward Island that once housed a resort will now be a 'hotel for birds.'
  • May 24, 2016
  • 353 words
  • 2 minutes
An aerial view of Holman's Island in Bedeque Bay Expand Image
Advertisement

A small island off the western coast of Prince Edward Island that once housed a resort will now be a “hotel for birds.”

The Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) has acquired Holman’s Island in Bedeque Bay, protecting a significant habitat for migratory birds as well as a unique piece of P.E.I.’s history.

The island, located less than two kilometres from Summerside, was once home to the Island Park Hotel, the province’s first summer resort. The hotel burned down in 1904 and nature quickly took over, transforming Holman’s Island into a refuge for great blue herons, belted kingfishers, Canada geese, and the endangered red knot.

Julie Vasseur, program director for the NCC in P.E.I., says the acquisition of Holman’s Island is an important step toward the organization’s ultimate goal of protecting all of the province’s 19 coastal islands.

“P.E.I.’s islands are a biodiversity hot spot,” she explains. “They’re pockets of isolation away from the densely-populated mainland, which makes them so important for breeding birds.”

Because the island’s former owners, the Clark family, left the property mostly untouched, Holman’s Island is also home to almost 36 hectares of old-growth Acadian forest, adding to its attractiveness as a nesting ground for colonial seabirds.

“It’s really cool to go out there and see mature American beech and sugar maples and yellow birch and know that you’re in a forest that has been left alone for so long,” Vasseur says. “It’s like a snapshot of pre-settlement P.E.I.”

The island is publicly accessible and an easy paddle from Summerside, though Vasseur cautions there are no hiking trails or other infrastructure, and overnight camping and campfires are strictly prohibited.

The NCC has now set its sights on protecting P.E.I.’s Cascumpec Sand Hills, a barrier of sand dunes that divides Cascumpec Bay from the Gulf of Saint Lawrence and is also an important habitat for shore birds.

Related:

Advertisement

Are you passionate about Canadian geography?

You can support Canadian Geographic in 3 ways:

Ultimate Quiz

This story is from the September/October 2019 Issue

Related Content

Travel

Rare birds

Spread your wings with birdwatching’s elite guard in south Texas

  • 2583 words
  • 11 minutes
Arctic tern on Machias Seal Island, New Brunswick

Wildlife

Should we kill one bird to save another?

On New Brunswick’s Machias Seal Island, predatory gulls are pushing endangered Arctic tern colonies to the brink, creating a dilemma for wildlife managers

  • 2151 words
  • 9 minutes
illegal wildlife trade, elephant foot, ivory, biodiversity

Wildlife

The illegal wildlife trade is a biodiversity apocalypse

An estimated annual $175-billion business, the illegal trade in wildlife is the world’s fourth-largest criminal enterprise. It stands to radically alter the animal kingdom.

  • 3405 words
  • 14 minutes
A northern cardinal in a tree

Wildlife

7 ways to enjoy birds in your backyard this summer

You’ll be amazed at the feathered friends you can attract to your yard by following these simple tips

  • 1580 words
  • 7 minutes