Sir Winston Churchill Provincial Park is a
provincial park located in east-central
Alberta,
Canada, on the shore of
Lac la Biche. The park is renowned for its birding and for its
old-growth forest
An old-growth forestalso termed primary forest, virgin forest, late seral forest, primeval forest, or first-growth forestis a forest that has attained great age without significant disturbance, and thereby exhibits unique ecological featur ...
s. It is composed of a medium-sized former island that juts into the lake, as well as other islands in the lake. A road leads into the provincial park where there are washrooms and campgrounds.
History
Named in honour of
Winston Churchill
Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 187424 January 1965) was a British statesman, soldier, and writer who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom twice, from 1940 to 1945 Winston Churchill in the Second World War, dur ...
, the park was established on September 29, 1952.
Recreation
Fauna
During the summer and spring, many migrating warblers frequent the park, including
Black-throated Green Warbler,
Cape May Warbler
The Cape May warbler (''Setophaga tigrina'') is a species of New World warbler. It breeds in northern North America. Its breeding range spans all but the westernmost parts of southern Canada, the Great Lakes region, and New England. It is migrat ...
,
Chestnut-sided Warbler, and
Blackburnian Warbler. The park also hosts a large colony of
American White Pelican
The American white pelican (''Pelecanus erythrorhynchos'') is a large aquatic soaring bird from the order Pelecaniformes. It breeds in interior North America, moving south and to the coasts, as far as Central America and South America, in winte ...
located on the "Pelican Islands", a group of small sandy islets in the lake which can only be accessed by boat. Owls also frequent the park including
Northern Saw-whet Owl and
Great Grey Owl. Other birds in the park include
Greater Crested Flycatcher,
Double-crested Cormorant,
Wilson's Snipe,
Lesser Yellowlegs,
Rose-breasted Grosbeak, and
Sanderling. Amphibians in the park include
Wood Frog and
Boreal Frog. Mammals that frequent the main island of the park include
White-tailed deer,
American Beaver,
Snowshoe Hare,
American Red Squirrel
The American red squirrel (''Tamiasciurus hudsonicus'') is one of three species of tree squirrels currently classified in the genus ''Tamiasciurus'', known as the pine squirrels (the others are the Douglas squirrel, ''T. douglasii'', and the sou ...
, and
Deer Mouse.
External links
*
Official website of the parkfrom
Alberta Tourism, Parks and Recreation
The Ministry of Environment and Protected Areas of Alberta (also commonly called Alberta Environment and Protected Areas) is the Alberta provincial ministry of the Executive Council of Alberta responsible for environmental issues and policy as we ...
Sir Winston Churchill Provincial Parkon the
Alberta Environment and Parks website
Lac La Biche County
Provincial parks of Alberta
1952 establishments in Alberta
Protected areas established in 1952
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