Urban WIldlife Habitats
- Introduction
Lagimodiere Historic Park
Introduction:
Located on the south-western side at the confluence of the Red and Seine Rivers in Winnipeg (Map1), Lagimodiere Park offers the City's residents an opportunity to experience what Hough (1995) calls "direct contact with nature and the animal world". This is one of the few 'wildernes' in the City where residents can get relieve from the stress associated with urban life. The park provides habitat for various species which cannot adapt to life in the urban built environment. Its recorded history dates to 1817 when Lord Selkirk granted land it currently occupies to Jean-Baptiste Lagimodiere, whom it is named after.
The preservation of these lands can be seen as a recognition that nature is part of urban life. Towns/cities need natural hydrological systems and vegetation cover to create good micro climatic conditions. Vegetation cover also acts as a natural flood control measure as it can intercept excess surface runoffs from the numerous impervious surfaces in towns (Hough 1995; Marsh 1997). Lagimodiere Park can therefore be seen as an attempt to create what Tyler (2000) calls a true urban ecology, which can only be achieved when the spatial and process interactions and functional relationships between urban and ecological systems are complementary and mutually reinforcing.
This commentary seeks to explore the characteristics of Lagimodiere Park in terms of its landscape structure (matrix, patches, and corridors), and its habitats. These will be explored with the view to establishing the extent to which this piece of natural area interacts with the built environment and how that interaction adds to quality of life to both wildlife and humans.