Vision

The vision for the lower reach of Cruickston Creek is to enhance the biodiversity in the diverse wetland habitats that presently exist. They include marsh, wet meadow, shrub thicket, deciduous and mixed swamp. The first step will be to determine the present-day flow path of the lower reach of Cruickston Creek. Human activity including the upgrading of Blair Road in the early 1980s, and more recently, ruts carved by off-road cycling have contributed to the disruption of the flow path of this creek. This disruption has resulted in braided streams and channels. On the south side of Blair Road, adjacent to Cruickston Creek, cropland on steep slopes will be taken out of production to preserve remaining topsoil. Widening the treed corridor along Cruickston Creek and reconnecting this corridor with the existing deciduous swamp along Blair Road will improve stream habitat.

What's Happening

During the 2001-02 field seasons, 17 Regionally Significant plants were found associated with or adjacent to wetlands of Cruickston Creek including yellow lady-slipper (Cypripedium calceolus var-parviflorum), showy orchis (Galearis spectablilis), Andrew’s closed gentian (Gentiana andrewsii), smaller fringed gentian (Gentianopsis virgata), rattlesnake manna grass, (Glyceria canadensis), Carolina grass-of-parnassus (Parnassia glauca), swamp rose (Rosa palustris) and several sedges including Carex schweinitzii. As well, two species were found that are not previously known to occur in Waterloo Region: creeping bent grass (Agrostis stolonifera) and a sedge (Carex crinita).

During summer 2002, University of Waterloo students, under the supervision of Larry Lamb, manager of the University of Waterloo ecology lab, undertook a wetland inventory and evaluation of Cruickston Creek with the assistance of the Cruickston Ecological Advisory Team. During autumn 2002, the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources (OMNR) followed up this study with a Provincially Significant Wetlands (PSW) evaluation which will extend the mapping of the PSW within CCRR from the upper reaches of Cruickston Creek within the Hogsback to include the extensive wetland areas north of Blair Road. This diverse wetland includes several ground seeps, wet meadows, cattail marshes, shrub thickets and a red ash swamp. As well, a continuous-flow coldwater stream that is apparently distinct from Cruickston Creek was discovered during the summer survey. This creek has been named Springbank Creek.

Several groundwater seeps occur throughout this sector of the property on both sides of Blair Road. The 1861 Tremaine map refers to the stone farmhouse on the south side of the road across from the main body of the wetland as Springbank Farm, an appropriate name today and most appropriate for the new-found creek.

Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources (OMNR) completed its wetland evaluation during autumn 2002 and in April 2003, designated the reaches of Cruickston Creek and the lower reach of the adjacent creek, Bauman Creek, as components of a new Class 1 Wetland Complex, the Barrie’s Lake-Bauman Creek Wetland Complex (see map below).

Barrie’s Lake-Bauman Creek Wetland Complex

Ministry of Natural Resources, Guelph District GIS Unit, February 6, 2003
Copyright Queen's Printer for Ontario

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