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Last Mountain Lake Bird Sanctuary National Historic Site of Canada

Regina, Saskatchewan, S0G, Canada

Formally Recognized: 1987/06/24

View of a migratory bird at Last Mountain Lake Bird Sanctuary.; Environment Canada / Environnement Canada, G.W. Beyersbergen, Canadian Wildlife Service.
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Other Name(s)

Last Mountain Lake Bird Sanctuary
Refuge d’oiseaux de Last Mountain Lake
Last Mountain Lake National Wildlife Area
Réserve d’espèces sauvages de Last Mountain Lake
Last Mountain Lake Bird Sanctuary National Historic Site of Canada

Links and documents

Construction Date(s)

1887/01/01

Listed on the Canadian Register: 2009/07/13

Statement of Significance

Description of Historic Place

Last Mountain Lake Bird Sanctuary National Historic Site of Canada is located at the northern end of Last Mountain Lake, just north of Regina. It is a natural landscape of shoreline, wetlands, native grasslands, cultivated fields, a lake and islands that is an important nesting place and stopover area for many migratory birds. It is a largely natural landscape with a subtle imprint of human management elements, such as cultivated fields, access roads and water management structures. The official recognition refers to the boundaries of the sanctuary.

Heritage Value

Last Mountain Lake Bird Sanctuary was designated a national historic site of Canada in 1987 for the following reason:
- it is the first sanctuary established in Canada to afford protection to migratory birds.

On the recommendation of Edgar Dewdney, Lieutenant-Governor of the North-West Territories, this sanctuary was set aside in 1887 for the protection of wildfowl, the first such reserve on the continent. It was established as a federal migratory bird sanctuary four years after Parliament passed the Migratory Birds Convention Act of 1917. Internationally recognized, this wildlife area is a migration stopover point in spring and fall for hundreds of thousands of waterfowl, cranes and countless smaller birds, and a summer nesting area for over 100 species, including several rare species.

Sources: Historic Sites and Monuments Board of Canada, Minutes, October 2005; Plaque text, February 1990.

Character-Defining Elements

Key elements contributing to the heritage value of this site include:
- the natural features of this landscape, including fields, forested areas, wetlands, shoreline and water, in their undisturbed condition;
- the managed elements of the landscape that contribute to conservation measures, including lure crop areas, access roads, paths, dams, and other water-control features, in their existing condition or altered as necessary in support of their function.

Recognition

Jurisdiction

Federal

Recognition Authority

Government of Canada

Recognition Statute

Historic Sites and Monuments Act

Recognition Type

National Historic Site of Canada

Recognition Date

1987/06/24

Historical Information

Significant Date(s)

n/a

Theme - Category and Type

Building Social and Community Life
Social Movements
Governing Canada
Government and Institutions
Expressing Intellectual and Cultural Life
Science

Function - Category and Type

Current

Health and Research
Animal Care Facility

Historic

Environment
Nature Element

Architect / Designer

n/a

Builder

n/a

Additional Information

Location of Supporting Documentation

National Historic Sites Directorate, Documentation Centre, 5th Floor, Room 89, 25 Eddy Street, Gatineau, Quebec.

Cross-Reference to Collection

Fed/Prov/Terr Identifier

747

Status

Published

Related Places

n/a

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