Time for Nature

Managing the Crowds

November 14, 2005

Point Pelee National Park of Canada

Point Pelee National Park of Canada is a bird watcher's paradise. Some 380 bird species have been recorded in the park, and people come from all over the world to see them.

On a May weekend during the spring migration , up to 1000 cars may be in the park at one time. This can be quite a burden for Canada's smallest national park. Roads and parking lots are busy; park trails become crowded. Often people are tempted to wander off the trails, in search of solitude or tracking the elusive worm-eating warbler .

Point Pelee is a bird watcher's paradise.
© Parks Canada, R. A. Watt, 1977

Watching our steps

For Parks Canada, these enthusiastic crowds pose a challenge. Park managers want to provide a memorable experience for visitors. Yet protecting the park's ecological integrity is essential. If people wander off the trails, they can damage Point Pelee's fragile vegetation and disturb wildlife habitat.

The number of Pelee's visitors increased steadily after World War II to a maximum of 781 000 in 1963, making Point Pelee the most heavily used national park in Canada. Parks Canada consequently took measures to control use, removing cottages and restoring damaged areas.

While overall visitation decreased in the park, the restoration efforts made it even more attractive to birdwatchers. Site damage became increasingly evident. Park interpreter Sarah Rupert has watched the changes. "When I was a little kid," she says, "you could go anywhere you wanted in the park. But by the early 1980s, we could see the problems."

Birders became Park advocates

Use of the site had to be controlled, and Parks Canada took action. First, they contacted the birding community. Parks Canada approached prominent birders to inform them of the need to protect Point Pelee's fragile habitats. When leading birders saw the need to keep to marked trails, they became advocates for the park, informing others of the need for site protection.

Taking the pressure off

By sticking to the trails, visitors help protect fragile vegetation.
© Parks Canada, A. Guindon, 1981

In the mid-1980s, Point Pelee began Operation Spread-Out, which encouraged visitors to consider less crowded bird watching areas outside the park. Hillman Marsh , Kopegaren Woods Conservation Area and Wheatley Provincial Park are exceptional nearby birding areas. With publicity, they became increasingly popular.

Parks Canada also promotes a bird watching code of ethics , which helps protect migrating birds and their habitat. The code, developed by the American Birding Association , calls for birders to stay on trails and avoid stressing birds or exposing them to danger.

Peaceful coexistence

Parks Canada informs visitors of the need to stay on marked trails.
© Parks Canada, W. Lynch, 1991

Point Pelee's site protection measures are clearly working. The park has provided visitors with a network of seasonal birding trails, which offer many sighting opportunities. This encourages birders to keep to designated trails. And nearby birding areas are taking the pressure off Point Pelee.

Off-trail use is now minimal in the park. And of course, the amazing annual migration of both birds and birders continues!

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