Îles-de-Boucherville National Park
 | You can help expand this article with text translated from the corresponding article in French. (October 2009) Click [show] for important translation instructions.
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| Îles-de-Boucherville National Park | |
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| Location | Boucherville / Longueuil, Quebec, Canada |
Îles-de-Boucherville National Park is a provincial park along the Saint Lawrence river in the province of Quebec.[1] Located on the South Shore of Montreal, near the suburb of Boucherville, the park comprises a handful of islands formerly used for agriculture and vacationing and now home to wetlands, bike paths, kayak circuits, cross-country ski trails, and public golf courses. Wildlife can be readily observed in all seasons, including the white-tailed deer, red fox, and the grey squirrel.
After the area was targeted for real-estate development in the 1970s, the provincial government acquired the islands and created the park in 1984. It is administered by Sépaq, the Société des établissements de plein air du Québec, which manages several Quebec parks and wildlife refuges. All provincial parks in Quebec have used the term "national park" since 2002, but there is no connection to the federal national park system, administered by Parks Canada.
Toponymy
[edit]The Boucherville Islands have gone by several different names throughout their history. At the time of the establishment of the seigneury encompassing the territory of the islands in 1664, they were known as the Percées Islands (îles-Percées). In the 18th century, owing to the presence of a commune on the islands, the name Common Isle (Isle Commune) came into use. It was only in 1858 that the modern-day name first appeared on a map, though only in its English form of Boucherville Islands. Its French version, Îles-de-Boucherville, was eventually adopted in the 20th century, and the islands have remained under that name ever since.[2]
The name Boucherville was taken from the town of the same name located just 400 metres from the islands, itself named after the man who was granted the seigneury, Pierre Boucher. Boucher, one of the most respected Canadians of his time, was a jack-of-all-trades, having served at different times as a soldier, an interpreter, a linguist, a judge, a municipal governor, a civil and criminal lieutenant, a pioneer, and an urban planner.[3]
Geography
[edit]
The national park covers an area of 8.14 km2 and forms part of the Hochelaga Archipelago.[4] It includes eleven islands, collectively termed the Boucherville Islands:
- Île Charron
- Île de la Commune
- Île Dufault
- Île Grosbois
- Île Lafontaine
- Île Montbrun
- Île à Pinard
- Île Saint-Jean
- Île Sainte-Marguerite
- Île Tourte Blanche
- Île aux Raisins
The park, accessible via Autoroute 25, is located entirely within the official city limits of Boucherville, which itself is part of the urban agglomeration of Longueuil, just outside Montreal. The park is also accessible in summer via river shuttle and in winter by snowshoe and ski across the frozen river, when the thickness of the ice permits. Pine trees are planted on the river when the ice is safe enough to cross and removed when it poses a danger.
Geology
[edit]The park's schist subsurface is composed of calcareous Utica Shale from the middle and late Ordovician period.[5] The low-relief islands are composed of marine clay left by the retreat of the Champlain Sea 12,000 years ago and shaped by the St. Lawrence river.
Hydrography
[edit]The Boucherville Islands are located in the St. Lawrence river and are separated by numerous channels, the largest of which are the Grande Rivière and La Passe channels. Since the islands are low-lying, they are subject to spring flooding, with the aux Raisins and Saint-Jean islands completely flooding in the spring.
Climate
[edit]The climate of the park is similar to that of nearby Montreal, with only slight seasonal differences. In the spring, the presence of ice on the river, as well as the shade provided by evergreen trees, slows down the warming. The autumn is temperate. As in Montreal, the temperature range is significant, around 40°C. Precipitation is abundant throughout the year, including snow, which falls from December to May. The park receives approximately 220 cm of snow per year. However, the snow cover is relatively low, with an average of 33 cm in February. The cold wind blows strongly during the winter season.
Ecology
[edit]Ecoregions
[edit]The park is located in the Great Lakes–St. Lawrence Lowlands ecoregion, characterized by mixedwood forests with sugar maple, yellow birch, eastern hemlock and eastern white pine trees.[6]
Flora
[edit]More than 450 plant species can be found in the park, seven of which are considered to be at-risk species: the dragon tree, the shagbark hickory, the Virginia claytonia, the rough bugleweed, the white walnut, the bloodroot, and the sand violet.[7] The flora of the islands is representative of riparian zones. In terrestrial areas, owing to the past development of the archipelago, fallow agricultural land is predominant. However, the park still contains a few wooded areas, namely the Grosbois woodland, which is composed of red ash and silver maple trees. Aquatic areas, meanwhile, are dominated by willows, poplars, dogwoods, and staghorn sumacs.[8]
Fauna
[edit]The park includes twenty species of mammal, including the white-tailed deer, the red fox, the striped skunk, the raccoon, the groundhog, the American mink, the eastern grey squirrel, the muskrat, the field mouse, and the North American beaver.[8] Four of the park's animal species are considered to be at-risk: the silver-haired bat, the hoary bat, the eastern red bat, and the tricolored bat.[7] By contrast, the deer is considered to be overabundant in the park, engendering substantial negative impacts on the flora of the park, the regeneration of the forest, the transmission of diseases, including Lyme disease, and road collisions.[9]
Bird life in the park is much richer and diverse in comparison, with over than 240 species present. Among these species, the Barrow's goldeneye, the horned grebe, the least bittern, the bald eagle, the golden eagle, the peregrine falcon, the Caspian tern, the short-eared owl, the grass wren, the Bicknell's thrush, the common nighthawk, and the chimney swift are considered at risk.[7]
Six species of reptile, including three species of snake and three of turtle, can be found in the park. Among these are the snapping turtle, the painted turtle, the map turtle, the garter snake, the common watersnake, and the brown snake.[10] The map turtle, the water snake and the brown snake are considered at risk.[7]
Species of frog include the mudpuppy, the American toad, the leopard frog, the green frog, and the American bullfrog.[10]
There are 45 species of fish in the park, four of which are considered at risk: the American eel, the lake sturgeon, the black sturgeon and the bridle shiner.[7]
History
[edit]Evidence of human occupation of the islands dates as far back as 500 BCE. Until around 1500 CE, the St. Lawrence Iroquoians used Île Grosbois as a seasonal hunting ground. Following the arrival of Europeans on the continent, the islands became part of New France and were offered to Pierre Boucher in 1664 as part of his acquisition of the seigneury of Boucherville. They were then used as agricultural land.[8]
In the 19th century, Île Charron and Île Sainte-Marguerite were used as vacationing spots, the latter of which was purchased in 1810 by prominent businessman John Molson, founder of the Molson Brewery.[8] Molson constructed a property on the island, eventually dying there in 1836.[11]
In 1910, an amusement park named after the recently deceased King Edward opened up on Île Grosbois. Unlike its competitors at the time, the park was only accessible by boat. In the summer, it offered rides, kiosks, dance halls, a racetrack for horse racing, roller coasters, and carousels. In the winter, meanwhile, it offered horse-drawn carriage rides. The same year of its opening, the park hosted Canada's first aviation competition, attracting noted aviators Jacques de Lesseps, who used the park to build and repair airplanes, and Louis Blériot, who ran test flights on the island.[12][13] In 1928, the collapse of a pier killed several people, spelling the beginning of the end for the park. Competition from Montreal's other amusement parks, namely Dominion Park and Belmont Park, eventually caused the closure of King Edward Park in 1928.[14]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- This article was initially translated from the French Wikipedia.
- ^ Registre des aires protégées du Québec, Ministère du Développement durable, de l'Environnement et des Parcs. (in French)
- ^ Gouvernement du Québec. "Banque de noms de lieux du Québec: Îles de Boucherville". Commission de toponymie. Retrieved September 19, 2009.
- ^ Gouvernement du Québec. "Banque de noms de lieux du Québec: Boucherville". Commission de toponymie. Retrieved September 19, 2009.
- ^ Gouvernement du Québec (2009). "Registre des aires protégées au Québec: Parc national du Québec" (PDF). Ministère du Développement durable, de l'Environnement et des Parcs. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2024-09-15. Retrieved September 19, 2009.
- ^ Ministère des Ressources naturelles et des Forêts. "Carte géologique du Québec". Ministère des Ressources naturelles et des Forêts. Retrieved 2024-09-16.
- ^ Government of Canada. "St. Lawrence Lowlands". Environment Canada. Archived from the original on 2022-10-05.
- ^ a b c d e Sépaq. "Liste des espèces en péril" (PDF). Sépaq. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2024-06-04. Retrieved October 17, 2009.
- ^ a b c d Sépaq. "Portrait du parc". Sépaq. Archived from the original on 2011-02-24. Retrieved February 2, 2013.
- ^ Shields, Alexandre (2021-12-18). "250 cerfs de trop au parc des Îles-de-Boucherville" [250 deer too many in the Îles-de-Boucherville park]. Le Devoir (in Canadian French). Archived from the original on 2024-09-21. Retrieved 2024-09-21.
- ^ a b Sépaq. "Liste des amphibiens et reptiles" (PDF). Sépaq. Retrieved October 18, 2009.
- ^ "John Molson (père)". Assemblée Nationale du Québec (in Canadian French). Government of Québec. Archived from the original on 2024-04-25. Retrieved 2024-09-24.
- ^ "Le parc King Edward". La Société d’histoire des Iles-Percées–Boucherville (in French). Archived from the original on 2024-03-05.
- ^ Gouvernement du Québec. "Banque de noms de lieux du Québec: Île Grosbois". Commission de toponymie. Retrieved 2024-09-25.
- ^ Coaster Enthusiasts of Canada. "Parc King Edward Park". Closed Canadian Park. Archived from the original on 2023-11-21.
External links
[edit]
Media related to Parc national des Îles-de-Boucherville at Wikimedia Commons
- Îles-de-Boucherville National Park - official site
45°37′05″N 73°28′23″W / 45.618°N 73.473°W
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