The Zec de la Lièvre (English: "Zec of Hare") is a zone d'exploitation contrôlée (controlled harvesting zone) (ZEC) in the

unorganized territory Unorganized territory may refer to: * An unincorporated area in any number of countries * One of the current or former territories of the United States that has not had a government "organized" with an "organic act" by the U.S. Congress * Unorganize ...

of Lac-Ashuapmushuan, in Le Domaine-du-Roy Regional County Municipality, in the administrative region of Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean, in

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

, in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

Geography

The northeastern boundary of this forested area of of the ZEC starts at about twenty kilometers (direct line) southwest of Lac Saint-Jean or near the village of Sainte-Hedwidge. ZEC has nearly 400 lakes. On the east side, the ZEC is bounded by two major rivers, the rivers Ouiatchouaniche and Croche. The largest lakes in area are Panache Lake, "des Casques" (Helmets), "aux Eaux-Mortes" and "De la Baie" (the Bay). The latest delimitation of the ZEC was defined in October 1991. ''Rivers'' Segments of some streams and rivers crossing the west of the ZEC belong to the upper watershed system of

Saint-Maurice River The Saint-Maurice River (french: Rivière Saint-Maurice; Atikamekw: ''Tapiskwan sipi'') flows north to south in central Quebec from Gouin Reservoir to empty into the Saint Lawrence River at Trois-Rivières, in the province of Quebec, in Canada. F ...

, such as rivers Raimbault, "à la Corne" (to the Horn) and Croche. Having a length of about 60 km, the La Lièvre River rises in lake Giroux, formerly referred to as "Lac de la Lièvre" (Lake of the Rabbit). Flowing south, the La Lièvre River constitutes the western boundary of the ZEC over 40 km. Then the river flows into the Trenche river, a major tributary of the

where the waters flow to

Trois-Rivières Trois-Rivières (, – 'Three Rivers') is a city in the Mauricie administrative region of Quebec, Canada, at the confluence of the Saint-Maurice River, Saint-Maurice and Saint Lawrence River, Saint Lawrence rivers, on the north shore of the Sain ...

. ''Camping and services'' ZEC offers hundreds of campsites, of which three campgrounds around the lake Brosseau and one at lake Labonté. The main ZEC reception station is located near Saint-Hedwidge. The second entrance station is located south of the ZEC, near "Lac aux Goélands" (Lake of the Gulls). The snowmobile trail and mountain bike cross from east to west the territory of the ZEC.

Logging operations on "La Lièvre"

In the past, logging were the predominant economic activity in the territory of the ZEC, including the former logging camp "Dépôt-de-la-Lièvre" has been in operation for over 70 years. At the height of operations in the sector of rivière La Lièvre, "Veillet et Frères Limitée" contracted between 3000 and 3500 workers assigned to the timber (through sub-contractors). The work of cutting wood was distributed among 45 to 50 forest contractors. Following the death of

Jeffrey Veillet Jeffrey Veillet (May 21, 1881 - August 7, 1946) was a businessman in forestry and general trade in Mauricie, until his death in 1946.Gaétan Veillette, article "L'homme d'affaires Jeffrey Veillet (1881-1946) de Sainte-Thècle dirigea jusqu'à 6, ...

, which occurred in 1946, Consolidated Paper has taken over directly woodcutting. The company "Veillet & Frères Limitée" was dissolved in 1947.

Hunting and Fishing

In water bodies of Zec, aquatic fauna is composed mainly of

brook trout The brook trout (''Salvelinus fontinalis'') is a species of freshwater fish in the char genus ''Salvelinus'' of the salmon family Salmonidae. It is native to Eastern North America in the United States and Canada, but has been introduced elsewhere ...

and

northern pike The northern pike (''Esox lucius'') is a species of carnivorous fish of the genus '' Esox'' (the pikes). They are typical of brackish and fresh waters of the Northern Hemisphere (''i.e.'' holarctic in distribution). They are known simply as a ...

. In the ZEC, the wild animals are abundant and varied (mainly):

moose The moose (in North America) or elk (in Eurasia) (''Alces alces'') is a member of the New World deer subfamily and is the only species in the genus ''Alces''. It is the largest and heaviest extant species in the deer family. Most adult mal ...

american black bear The American black bear (''Ursus americanus''), also called simply a black bear or sometimes a baribal, is a medium-sized bear endemic to North America. It is the continent's smallest and most widely distributed bear species. American black bear ...

hare Hares and jackrabbits are mammals belonging to the genus ''Lepus''. They are herbivores, and live solitarily or in pairs. They nest in slight depressions called forms, and their young are able to fend for themselves shortly after birth. The ge ...

, ruffed grouse and grouse. The hunting quotas are depending on by periods of the year, sectors, hunting gear and sex of animals (moose). Based on zec's record, in 2011, a total of 100

(43 males, 54 females and 3 calves) were harvested in the territory of the ZEC.

Toponymy

The name of the ZEC has its origins in the former name of the main headwater lake, the Giroux Lake (formerly named "lac La Lièvre") which flows into the La Lièvre River running through the ZEC. Despite a temporary designation Raimbault River in 1917, the popular name for the river contained several variants: Little Hare River, River Little Hare, The Hare and The Hare Grosse. Although the French word "lièvre" (rabbit) is masculine, feminine remains by removing the term "river", to denote the "rivière La Lièvre" (Hare River). The name "Zec de la Lièvre" was formalized on December 18, 1986 at the Bank of place names in the

Commission de toponymie du Québec The Commission de toponymie du Québec (English: ''Toponymy Commission of Québec'') is the Government of Québec's public body responsible for cataloging, preserving, making official and publicize Québec's place names and their origins according ...

(Geographical Names Board of Quebec).Commission de toponymie du Québec (Geographical Names Board of Quebec) - Bank of place names - Toponym: Zec de la Lièvre
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References

External links