Nov 12, 2024
OTTAWA, Ont., Nov. 12, 2024 - New research by the Canadian Wildlife Federation (CWF) shows a large and increased conversion of perennial pasture/forage to annual cropland across the Mixedwood Plains Ecozone in Ontario and Quebec. CWF’s research linked this change to declines in the Eastern Meadowlark population and is calling for improved policies to support producers who retain natural habitat on farmland and reduce the impacts of urban sprawl.
“We found that there has been a loss of more than 25 per cent of perennial pasture and hay lands between 2011 and 2022. During this same time, an area of agricultural land the size of Toronto was lost to urban development, and thousands of hectares of forest and wetland were converted to agriculture,” said Vincent Fyson, lead author of the study.
The paper, titled “The changing agricultural landscape in Canada’s Mixedwood Plains Ecozone (2011–2022) and the implications for biodiversity,” is published in the October issue of FACETS, the official journal of the Royal Society of Canada’s Academy of Science.
Canadian farmland hosts thousands of species of birds, mammals, insects and plants, Fyson explained. The Eastern Meadowlark is one such species that breeds in grasslands such as pastures or hay fields throughout the Mixedwood Plains Ecozone. The paper by Fyson and colleagues showed that the hypothetical carrying capacity of Eastern Meadowlarks for the entire study area decreased approximately 20 per cent and correlated with Eastern Meadowlark declines observed in breeding bird surveys.
“Land use policies should limit the expansion of urban boundaries onto farmlands and natural land covers. In addition, development of federal and provincial agricultural policies incentivizing the retention of biodiverse habitats on farms as a public good provided by agricultural producers in the Mixedwood Plains Ecozone could contribute to slowing or halting biodiversity loss.”
About the Canadian Wildlife Federation
The Canadian Wildlife Federation is a national, not-for-profit charitable organization dedicated to conserving Canada’s wildlife and habitats for the use and enjoyment of all. By spreading knowledge of human impacts on wildlife and the environment, carrying out actions to conserve and restore species and habitats, developing and delivering conservation education programs, advocating for changes to government policy and programs, and co-operating with like-minded partners, CWF encourages a future in which Canadians can live in harmony with nature. For more information, visit CanadianWildlifeFederation.ca.
-30-
Contacts:
Heather Robison
Media and Community Relations Officer
heatherr@cwf-fcf.org 613-599-9594 x 212
or
media@cwf-fcf.org