Eastern Sand Darter (West Lake population): Consultations on listing under the Species at Risk Act
Current status: Closed
Opened on March 8, 2023 and will close to new input on May 7, 2023.
Species at Risk Act (SARA) provides legal protection for wildlife species at risk to conserve biological diversity. It also acknowledges that all Canadians have a role to play in the conservation of wildlife species.
Before deciding whether Eastern Sand Darter (Ammocrypta pellucida) (West Lake population),will be added to the List of Wildlife Species at Risk as Threatened, we would like to hear your opinion, comments, and suggestions regarding the possible ecological, cultural, and economic impacts of listing or not listing this species under SARA.
Join in: How to participate
Share your ideas online
The Government of Canada is engaging with Canadians on whether Eastern Sand Darter (Ammocrypta pellucida) (West Lake population) should be added to the List of Wildlife Species at Risk.
Please fill out the online survey. Thank you.
Key questions for discussion
Adding a species to the List of Wildlife Species at Risk
The process of listing a species under SARA consists of several steps: it begins with a status assessment by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) and ends with a Government of Canada decision on whether or not to add a species to the List of Wildlife Species at Risk. Public consultations are conducted to gather the opinions of Canadians and are an important step in this process.
Facts about the Eastern Sand Darter
The Eastern Sand Darter is a small translucent fish (46 to 71 mm in length), with a pale white, yellowish or silvery colour, and a series of 10 to 14 dark spots along its side.
The Eastern Sand Darter is a warm water benthic species that is found in streams, rivers and sandy shoals in lakes. It is typically strongly associated with fine sandy substrates and fine gravel (greater than 90% sand) in which it burrows.
The Eastern Sand Darter (West Lake population) was first discovered in 2013 and is genetically distinct from the Southwestern Ontario and Quebec population units.
Eastern Sand Darter (West Lake population) is restricted to West Lake (Lake Ontario watershed), in southeastern Ontario.
Who assigns the Threatened status to Eastern Sand Darter (West Lake population)?
The level of protection and recovery actions undertaken for a species listed under SARA depends on its assessed level of risk for extinction. In 2009, COSEWIC split the Eastern Sand Darter population into two population units: Ontario populations and Quebec populations. In 2022, COSEWIC changed the name of the Ontario populations unit to the Southwestern Ontario population, and identified a new population unit in Ontario: the West Lake population. The Southwestern Ontario population (formerly Ontario population) was confirmed as Threatened, and the newly identified West Lake population was also assessed as Threatened.
Under SARA, a Threatened species is defined as one that is likely to become an Endangered species if nothing is done to reverse the factors leading to its extirpation or extinction.
Why is Eastern Sand Darter (West Lake population) at risk?
COSEWIC assessed Eastern Sand Darter (West Lake population) as Threatened because of its specific habitat preferences (sandy substrates), very small distribution, and the threat of the invasive Round Goby, which has invaded its preferred habitat.
If a species is listed under the Species at Risk Act
If Eastern Sand Darter (West Lake population) is listed as Threatened, the prohibitions under SARA would immediately come into effect in Canadian waters. It would be illegal to kill, harm, harass, capture, take, possess, collect, buy, sell, or trade Eastern Sand Darter (West Lake population). Critical habitat (the habitat necessary for the survival and recovery of Eastern Sand Darter [West Lake population]) would need to be identified, to the extent possible, in a recovery strategy or action plan and protected from destruction.
Related information
Contact us
Species at Risk Program,
Ontario and Prairie Region
867 Lakeshore Road
Burlington, Ontario, L7S 1A1
DFO.CASARAConsultations-CALEPConsultations.MPO@dfo-mpo.gc.ca