Species at Risk

Within Ontario, more than 175 species of plant and animal are currently designated "at risk" by the Ministry of Natural Resources. The Lake Simcoe watershed, extending from the Oak Ridges Moraine in the south and enveloping Lake Simcoe northwards to Orillia, is home to at least 32 of these species. They are in our wetlands, forests, farmland, in streams and even in Lake Simcoe itself, but all are rare or declining.

For more information you can visit the following sites:

Ontario: Species at Risk
Canada: Species at Risk
Royal Ontario Museum: Species at Risk Website

You can also contact us

The following is a list of the designated ‘Species at Risk’ which have been recorded in the Lake Simcoe watershed in the last 15 years. To find out more about a species, click on the name to link to its information page on the Royal Ontario Museum website.

Birds

Name	Habitat	Current Status
Loggerhead Shrike Lanius ludovicianus	Open country/ Pasture/ Limestone Plains	Endangered - Regulated
King Rail Rallus elegans	Shallow freshwater marshes	Endangered - Regulated
Henslow’s Sparrow Ammodramus henslowii	Old fields/ Wet meadows	Endangered - Regulated
Acadian Flycatcher Empidonax virescens	Mature Maple-Beech forest	Endangered
Least Bittern Ixobrychus exilis	Freshwater marshes	Threatened
Hooded Warbler Wilsonia citrina	Large upland tracts of mature deciduous and mixed forest	Threatened
Black Tern Chlidonias niger	Shallow Marshes with floating vegetation for nesting	Special Concern
Cerulean Warbler Dendroica cerulea	Mature deciduous forest	Special Concern
Louisiana Waterthrush Seiurus motacilla	Steep, forested ravines with fast-flowing streams	Special Concern
Red-shouldered Hawk Buteo lineatus	Forest	Special Concern
Yellow Rail Coturnicops noveboracensis	Shallow wetlands	Special Concern
Golden-winged Warbler Vermivora chrysoptera	Open country/ Scrub	Special Concern
Red-headed Woodpecker Melanerpes erythrocephalus	Open deciduous forest	Special Concern

Reptiles

Name	Habitat	Current Status
Spotted Turtle Clemmys guttata	Ponds, Marshes & Bogs with abundant aquatic vegetation	Endangered
Wood Turtle Glyptemys insculpta	Clear rivers, streams or creeks with a moderate current and sandy or gravelly bottom	Endangered
Eastern Hog-nosed Snake Heterodon platyrhinos	Sandy, well-drained habitats such as beaches and dry woods close to swamps for hunting	Threatened
Blanding’s Turtle Emydoidea blandingii	Wetland complexes	Threatened
Eastern Milksnake Lampropeltis triangulum triangulum	Wide range of habitats, especially old fields and farm buildings where rodents are common	Special Concern
Five-lined Skink Eumeces fasciatus	Sandy areas and beach	Special Concern
Eastern Ribbon Snake Thamnophis sauritus	Close to water, especially in marshes	Special Concern

Amphibians

Name	Habitat	Current Status
Jefferson Salamander Ambystoma jeffersonianum	Deciduous forest – breeds in vernal pools	Threatened

Fishes

Name	Habitat	Current Status
Redside Dace Clinostomus elongatus	Clear, cool streams with a rubble and gravel bottom and a mixture of pool and riffle habitats	Threatened
Lake (Simcoe)Whitefish Coregonus clupeaformis	Lake Simcoe only	Threatened

Vascular Plants

Name	Habitat	Current Status
Spotted Wintergreen Chimaphila maculata	Red Oak-White Pine mixed forest	Endangered - Regulated
American Ginseng Panax quinquefolius	Mature deciduous forest	Endangered
Butternut Juglans cinerea	Forest	Endangered
Eastern Prairie Fringed Orchid Platanthera leucophaea	Swamp and wet tall grass prairie	Endangered
Purple Twayblade Liparis liliifolia	Oak savannah/ Open, successional mixed wood and hardwood habitats	Endangered
Hill’s Pondweed Potamogeton hillii	Clear, cold ponds and slow-moving streams where the water is alkaline	Threatened

Mammals

Name	Habitat	Current Status
Southern Flying Squirrel Glaucomys volans	Deciduous forest	Special Concern