Rideau Canal National Historic Site of Canada
Species at Risk
The Rideau Canal, with its many rivers, lakes and wetlands is home to numerous species at risk. Finding all of these rare species along the 202km canal can be a fun challenge!
Be part of the solution
If you spot any of the species in this field guide, you can help us protect them.
Look- Use this guide to identify species at risk along the canal.
Record - Note the species, date, time and location on the form provided.
Submit - Drop off the attached observation form at any Rideau Canal lockstation, or e-mail your observations to: SAR.EEP.Rideau@pc.gc.ca.
Status (accurate as of 2011)
Endangered - A species facing imminent extirpation or extinction.
Birds - Endangered
Plants - Endangered
Amphibians and Reptiles - Endangered
Fish - Endangered
Threatened - A species that is likely to become endangered if nothing is done to reverse the factors leading to its extirpation or extinction.
Birds - Threatened
Plants - Threatened
Mammals - Threatened
Amphibians and Reptiles - Threatened
Special Concern - A species that may become threatened or endangered because of a combination of biological characteristics and identified threats.
Birds - Special Concern
Plants - Special Concern
Mammals - Special Concern
Amphibians and Reptiles - Special Concern
Fish - Special Concern
Birds - Endangered
Loggerhead Shrike ©Bill Bouton / Flickr
Loggerhead Shrike
Key features - Robin-sized, a black mask covers the eyes to the back of the head
Look for them - in large open fields with occasional trees and shrubs
More info on the Species at Risk Public Registry
Birds - Threatened
Golden-winged Warbler ©Karl Egressy
Golden-winged Warbler
Key features - a yellow patch on its wings and a black throat (grey throat in females)
Look for them - in swamp forests or near hydro lines and field edges
More info on the Species at Risk Public Registry
Peregrine Falcon ©Tom Lusk
Peregrine Falcon (anatum race)
Key features - Crow-sized, very pointed wings, dark 'moustache' on the face
Look for them - on cliffs, bridges and buildings near wetlands, rivers and lakes
More info on the Species at Risk Public Registry
Chimney Swift ©Mike Veltri
Chimney Swift
Key features - very dark, shaped like a 'cigar with wings', rapid stiff wingbeats
Look for them - mainly near towns and cities where they nest in chimneys
More info on the Species at Risk Public Registry
Red-headed Woodpecker ©U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Red-headed Woodpecker
Key features - crimson head, neck, throat and upper breast, large white wing patches
Look for them - in swamp forests, forest edges and fencerows
More info on the Species at Risk Public Registry
Birds - Special Concern
Louisiana Waterthrush ©Bob Moul
Louisiana Waterthrush
Key features - white eyebrow stripe, dark narrow lines on both sides of the throat
Look for them - in densely wooded swamps, ravines and gullies near running water
More info on the Species at Risk Public Registry
Short-eared Owl ©Karl Egressy
Short-eared Owl
Key features - a large, round head, with small tufts of feathers that look like ears
Look for them - in grasslands, marshes and old pastures at dusk
More info on the Species at Risk Public Registry
Yellow Rail ©Gordon Court
Yellow Rail
Key features - small wetland bird, black and buff markings on back, yellow beak
Listen for them - in wetlands dominated by sedges; very rarely seen, call: 'tic-tic, tic-tic' like two stones being tapped together
More info on the Species at Risk Public Registry
Plants - Endangered
Butternut ©Jardin botanique de Montréal
Butternut
Key features - a tree with green, oval-shaped nuts, leaves have 11-17 leaflets on
a central stalk with a terminal leaflet
Look for them - in most forests along the canal
More info on the Species at Risk Public Registry
Eastern prairie fringed-orchid ©Gary Allen
Eastern prairie fringed-orchid
Key features - a spike of showy, creamywhite flowers, each having a prominent lower petal and fringed tips
Look for them - in wetlands and old fields
More info on the Species at Risk Public Registry
Ogden's pondweed ©Dept. Agriculture, Ottawa
Ogden's pondweed
Key features - a stiffly branched stem and long greenish-brown narrow leaves
Look for them - in clear, slow-moving streams and rivers, beaver ponds and lakes
More info on the Species at Risk Public Registry
Plants - Threatened
Plants - Special Concern
Broad beech fern ©Dr. Gunn Collection
Broad beech fern
Key features - overall triangular shape, the underside of the leaves are fuzzy
Look for them - in shady forests where the soil is moist or wet
More info on the Species at Risk Public Registry
Mammals - Threatened
Grey Fox ©U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Grey Fox
Key features - grey to cinnamon coloured fur with a black stripe along the back
Look for them - in areas of dense brush in forests near water or marshes
More info on the Species at Risk Public Registry
Mammals - Special Concern
Southern flying squirrel
©Canadian Wildlife Service, EC
Southern flying squirrel
Key features - grey-brown fur; skin flap stretching from the front to back legs
Look for them - in forests along the canal
More info on the Species at Risk Public Registry
Amphibians and Reptiles - Endangered
Amphibians and Reptiles - Threatened
Blanding's turtle ©Parks Canada
Blanding's turtle
Key features - bright yellow lower jaw and throat, domed shell with yellow speckles
Look for them - basking along shallow waterways and wetlands with dense vegetation or crossing roads
More info on the Species at Risk Public Registry
Black/Eastern/Gray ratsnake ©Parks Canada
Black/Eastern/Gray ratsnake
Key features - large size, black back with a white throat
Look for them - in spring, basking on rocky outcrops and in trees
More info on the Species at Risk Public Registry
Stinkpot / Musk turtle ©Parks Canada
Stinkpot / Musk turtle
Key features - domed shell and two light stripes on both sides of the head and neck
Look for them - in shallow water with little or no current and lots of aquatic vegetation, rarely seen out of water
More info on the Species at Risk Public Registry
Amphibians and Reptiles - Special Concern
Five-lined skink ©Parks Canada
Five-lined skink
Key features - 5 cream to bronze-coloured stripes along the body; bright blue tail in young
Look for them - almost exclusively on rock barrens or outcrops with open water nearby
More info on the Species at Risk Public Registry
Map turtle ©Ryan M. Bolton
Map turtle
Key features - yellow lines on the shell that resemble a topographical map
Look for them - basking on sunny rocks or logs in lakes and rivers with slow moving water
More info on the Species at Risk Public Registry
Ribbonsnake ©Brian Morin
Ribbon snake
Key features - pale half moon-shaped marking in front of the eye, very slender body
Look for them - along the edges of streams and swamps bordered by dense vegetation
More info on the Species at Risk Public Registry
Snapping turtle ©Parks Canada
Snapping turtle
Key features - long neck and tail, large size, can be defensive if harassed
Look for them - on gravel roadsides or in slow-moving water with dense vegetation
More info on the Species at Risk Public Registry
Fish - Endangered
Fish - Special Concern
Bridle Shiner ©Dept. of Fisheries and Oceans
Bridle Shiner
Key features - a black band from the tail to the snout (max. length 6cm)
Look for them - in quiet, clear streams and occasionally in lakes
More info on the Species at Risk Public Registry
River Redhorse ©Brian Gratwicke / Flickr
River Redhorse
Key features - a broad, flat head and light red fins and tail (max. length 45cm)
Look for them - in medium to large rivers with a fast current
More info on the Species at Risk Public Registry
Grass Pickerel ©Konrad Schmidt
Grass Pickerel
Key features - dark, vertical bars along the sides of the body (max. length 38cm)
Look for them - in warm, slow-moving streams, ponds and shallow bays
More info on the Species at Risk Public Registry