A local family has donated a 46-hectare property near Mountain Lake, southeast of Wiarton, to the Nature Conservancy of Canada, ensuring the land’s protection for future generations.
The property features a mix of forests, wetlands, and regenerating fields that provide habitat for at-risk species, including black ash, bobolink, eastern meadowlark, and nesting bald eagles.
"The Nature Conservancy of Canada is deeply grateful to the donors for their generous gift," said Esme Batten, Program Director for Midwestern Ontario. "This ecologically rich property strengthens an important movement corridor for wide-ranging mammals and migratory birds on the Saugeen Peninsula."
Batten says the land’s protection will also benefit nearby communities. "These forests and wetlands clean our air and water and provide really important ecosystem services," she said. "We’re excited about the protection of this property, not just for the species that call it home, but for the people in the area as well."
The anonymous donation was made through the federal Ecological Gifts Program, which offers enhanced tax incentives to those who donate ecologically sensitive land.
Batten adds the property contributes to a growing network of protected areas across the Bruce Peninsula. "It helps ensure resilient landscapes., conserving enough connected habitats so that all species and ecological functions can persist today and into the future."
