|
The moose, successfully re-introduced to the
area in 1947, the snowshoe hare, the white-
tailed deer and the red squirrel are all typical
boreal species. The elusive Canadian lynx enjoys
protected status here and it is thought that
the endangered eastern panther may have also
found refuge in the wilderness regions of the
high plateau. Other mammals in the park include
otter, muskrat, mink and beaver along the valley
streams, and the bobcat, raccoon and coyote
that migrated to the island after the Canso
Causeway joined Cape Breton to the mainland
in 1955. Freshwater Lake is the only known site
for the true valve snail. The rock voles found
in hardwood forests, the Gaspe shrew, a voracious
creature, the pygmy shrew and pine martins,
are all considered rare in Canada and all are
protected in the park. Also sheltered are Nova
Scotia's breeding population of bald eagles,
which build huge nests and feed primarily on
fish. Pilot whales approach the coastline in
search of herring and mackerel, their main food
source, and finback and minke whales, harbour
porpoise and seal may be observed from the shore.
Of the 229 species of birds, many are songbirds:
warblers, finches, the greater yellowlegs and
the uncommon grey- cheeked chickadees; some
birds of prey include hawks, owls, merlin and
kestrel; the seabirds in the park are gulls,
terns, guillermots, cormorants, and ducks; in
late summer, semipalmated sandpipers blacken
the beaches and mud flats fueling up before
migrating to South America. Along the Gulf shoreline,
the carefully monitored schools of Atlantic
salmon begin their return upriver on their spawning
runs. Cape Breton Highlands is one of only four
national parks in the world protecting breeding
habitat of this internationally threatened species.
|
