Puzzle Lake Provincial Park: a rare treasure

Sep 24, 2015

On October 7 in Arden, the Friends of the Salmon River host a special presentation on Puzzle Lake Provincial Park, a completely unique place, resplendent with rare plant and animal life.

Puzzle Lake Provincial Park is located in the Salmon River watershed between Tamworth and Arden. This area is an ANSI (Area of Natural & Scientific Interest) due to its diversity of upland and wetland habitats, and its abundance of provincially rare species and plant communities. This park is simply a fascinating place.

The Puzzle Lake area supports 16 provincially rare species: the highest known number of rarities found in an ANSI in eastern and central Ontario.

On a park outing, keep your eyes open for a five-lined skink, a Blanding’s turtle or a bald eagle.

The rugged, diverse terrain has created many unusual habitats that support this abundance of rare communities and species, including some found nowhere else in Canada.

The presentation by Corina Brdar, park ecologist, and Clark Richards, park superintendent, will highlight why it became a park, special features (such as scenic cliffs, bear oak communities and wetlands), species at risk (skinks, turtles, birds and more), and recreational activities, all accompanied by slides of the park.

Corina Brdar is the Southeast Zone Ecologist for Ontario Parks, including Puzzle Lake Park. She participated in the initial park planning work, the life science inventory, species at risk data for the park, and she continues the quest for new data. For personal recreation, she heads out on camping and canoe trips to – you guessed it - Puzzle Lake Park.

On October 7, the doors open at 6:30pm for coffee/refreshments, the show begins at 7pm, and it’s followed by the Friends of the Salmon River AGM & elections to the board. The location is the Arden Community Centre at 5998 Arden Road (County Rd. 15). All are welcome at no charge; donations are encouraged.

For more information, contact Gray Merriam at 613-335-3589 or Susan Moore at 613-379-5958, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. Also visit: friendsofsalmonriver.ca.