Animal Protection Party of Canada

Thu, April 14, 2022, 3:21 PM.2 min read

<https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/_CQ656eIr7KHDlhgtnJalw–/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxh
bmRlcjt3PTQyMDtoPTQ3OQ–/https:/s.yimg.com/uu/api/res/1.2/riOXxmcxJiyw0lL7GH
QHxQ–~B/aD0zMDA7dz0yNjM7YXBwaWQ9eXRhY2h5b24-/https:/media.zenfs.com/en/glob
enewswire.com/2b1d07d1c976dd77380c1266ef4f4619>

Animal Protection Party of Canada

TORONTO, April 14, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — While families prepare to
celebrate this time of year, a season of rebirth, Parks Canada staffers are
preparing yet another round of killing Double-crested cormorants, on Middle
Island in Point Pelee National Park.

“None of this makes any sense,” says Liz White, Party Leader. “The science
does not support any of the Parks claims about negative impacts of the
birds. If Middle Island were pushed 100 metres to the south, into US
territory, there would be no endangered species to protect. Yet, despite
there being no species at risk and COVID numbers in Ontario on the rise, the
park will pack a number of people into a boat with the sole purpose of a
four-day cormorant cull. Why is Parks Canada spending thousands of taxpayer
dollars, risking the health of their staff and area residents, and killing
these beautiful animals, in what is supposed to be a bird sanctuary? Whoever
is making these decisions should be ashamed.”

For years Parks Canada has claimed killing the birds is necessary to
maintain the ecological integrity of the island. “The ecological fact is
that the cormorants, herons and egrets constitute the ecology of the island,
as would the white pelicans that seem to be trying to nest there, but are
frightened away by the disturbance,” says Barry MacKay, naturalist and
Canadian Representative for Born Free USA. “And now that the Ford government
has allowed, essentially, an open season on cormorants for Ontario hunters,
the population could be in real danger of extirpation.”

Human persecution and pesticide poisoning drove Double-crested cormorants to
the brink of extinction over 60 years ago. Thanks to government efforts,
this species has rebounded and is now repopulating parts of its former range
in the United States and Canada, fulfilling a valuable ecological role. Not
only do they benefit biodiversity, they help generate healthy fish
populations and should be considered an integral component of the area’s
natural heritage.

“There are so many other initiatives that Parks Canada could be taking to be
leaders in park management,” continued White. “But instead they choose the
archaic approach of killing animals in their parks. What a waste, wasted
money and wasted opportunities.”

Park managers in the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority (TRCA) have
conducted innovative studies in non-lethal management of cormorants at Tommy
Thompson Park, home to one of the largest waterbird colonies in the Great
Lakes basin. “The TRCA staff are pioneering techniques that are not only low
cost, but also humane and effective. We are grateful for their work and for
their willingness to try new methods so that humans can co-exist peacefully
with this species,” said MacKay.