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Since 2015 the Ecomuseum Zoo has worked actively to showcase, protect and conserve the natural habitats of the Brown Snake, a rare species found on the island of Montréal and surrounding areas and whose conservation status in Québec is precarious. Thanks to this second grant from the Fondation Hydro-Québec pour l’environnement in the amount of $25,900, the Ecomuseum Zoo will develop and restore more quality habitats to help maintain Brown Snake populations, and will raise awareness among citizens of the importance of a healthy cohabitation with this species.

In the past the Ecomuseum Zoo’s conservation team worked diligently to restore Brown Snake habitats in the Bois-de-l’Île-Bizard, Bois-de-Liesse and Pointe-aux-Prairies nature parks. In 2017-2019 the activities associated to the project will take place in the Île-de-la-Visitation nature park, Refuge faunique de Deux-Montagnes and in the Îles-de-Boucherville national park, where Brown Snake populations are known and established. In order to restore habitats that were previously classified as degraded or sub-optimal, we will put in place structures and landscaping beneficial to the species.

In order to demystify false beliefs linked to the Brown Snake and to further raise awareness to the importance of protecting this species and its natural habitats, the Ecomuseum Zoo will produce educational videos destined for the Web. The Brown Snake being the most urban of the species found in Québec, it is vital to highlight the richness and importance of this species’ habitats within the Montréal agglomeration.

The one and only exterior zoo on the island of Montréal, the Ecomuseum Zoo has been offering its visitors a unique and natural experience for over 25 years. Open to the public for the first time in 1988, it is operated by the Saint-Lawrence Valley Natural History Society, a not-for-profit organization with a mission centered on education, conservation and applied research. Since its inception the Ecomuseum Zoo has developed an expertise in matters of research and conservation of Québec reptiles and amphibians. In 2011 the zoo was awarded the Thomas R. Baines prize by CAZA-AZAC (Canada’s Accredited Zoos and Aquariums) for its body of work with reptile and amphibian populations of Québec. The Ecomuseum Zoo wears proudly it CAZA accredited. For more information visit: www.zooecomuseum.ca.

The Fondation Hydro-Québec pour l’environnement supports organizations that work concretely toward the presentation, protection and restoration of natural habitats and who raise awareness within local communities of the particular environmental issues of their living space. From 2001 to 2016 the Foundation awarded 14.1 million dollars to 256 projects undertaken in all administrative regions of Québec. The overall value of these projects is estimated at more than 46 million dollars. To find out more about the various projects supported by the Foundation please visit www.hydroquebec.com/fondation-environment/.