Connecting with the Neighbours
The Hamilton Naturalists’ Club
By Brittany Killingbeck, Stewardship Technician
31 July, 2023
The Hamilton Naturalists’ Club (HNC) had a busy spring with educational programming, the launch of the draft Biodiversity Action Plan (BAP) for Hamilton, and of course our projects associated with the Cootes to Escarpment EcoPark System Ecological Corridors Pilot Program. While our main focus for the HNC partner-led pilot project was and continues to be invasive species management, as well as the installation of deer-exclusion fencing (more to come on that topic in a September blog post!), we also wanted to connect with our neighbours and share the work that we do.
Our intern hand-delivered invitations to the neighbours directly adjacent to our two properties within the Cootes to Escarpment EcoPark System, Cartwright Nature Sanctuary and Sheelah Dunn Dooley Nature Sanctuary Sanctuary, for a tour of the sanctuaries to learn about the stewardship work underway. Many of the neighbours have lived on their land for a long time and have watched the landscape change throughout the years but were not familiar with how these changes came about or who was responsible.
Participants listen to Jen Baker, Hamilton Naturalists’ Club’s Land Trust Manager, speak about invasive species management. Photo by Kat Forbes.
Cartwright Nature Sanctuary is a 46 acre property located in the Pleasant View area of Dundas and is managed in partnership with Conservation Halton. It is bordered by the Royal Botanical Gardens’ (RBG) Berry Tract to the north, RBG’s Berry Tract South to the west, Conservation Halton’s Nicholson Resource Management Area and private property to the east, and York Road to the south. Together these protected areas form a key part of one of the primary ecological corridors linking the Niagara Escarpment and Cootes Paradise.
Ten participants attended the tour of Cartwright Nature Sanctuary in late May. Jen Baker, HNC’s Land Trust Manager, discussed the history of the site and the invasive species management activities that occur today. Several of the neighbours shared memories of the property and commented on the changes that have occurred.
Sheelah Dunn Dooley Nature Sanctuary is a 53 acre property located in Aldershot within the Bridgeview Valley Environmentally Sensitive Area, protecting an important north-south connection between the Niagara Escarpment and Cootes Paradise. The property was obtained in February 2020 and has been the focus of much of our stewardship work over the past three years, so there were many topics to discuss.
Despite the deteriorating air quality due to wildfire smoke, six participants attended the tour of Sheelah Dunn Dooley Nature Sanctuary in early June. Jen talked about invasive species management with goats vs humans, the deer-exclusion fencing and monitoring plots, planting projects, and more.
Just as the Cootes to Escarpment EcoPark System partners strive to be good neighbours to one another, we wanted to connect with the neighbours to share our work and highlight actions they can take on their own properties to be good neighbours to the nature sanctuaries. At both walks we talked about the impacts and management of invasive species on their own properties (including not planting them) so that they do not spread to the nature sanctuaries. We also discussed how stormwater management on residential properties can help alleviate the pressure of heavy precipitation events on our waterways and how individuals can advocate for environmental protection and healthy ecosystems.
