Taking Care of Ontario’s Provincial Parks
The Localer: Rachel Needham, chief park naturalist, explains what the job entails as she shares her passion for nature.
By Jackie Johnstone | Photography by Amanda Thirkill
Rachel Needham’s role as chief park naturalist of Murphy’s Point might be a little different than you’d expect. But then, Murphy’s Point isn’t your typical provincial park either.
Located in the Rideau Lakes Region, between Kingston and Ottawa, on the southernmost edge of the Canadian Shield, Murphy’s Point is a gem among Ontario’s provincial parks — and you can take that literally. Here you’ll find glittering bands of mica (naturally occurring coloured or transparent silicate minerals with a layered structure) embedded in the bedrock. The area was famous for the Silver Queen Mine, a small excavation site that was operational in 1903–1920. The mine employed fewer than 30 miners, primarily to produce sheet mica as insulation for small appliances, such as toasters, that were becoming popular at the time.
The history of the Silver Queen Mine is kept alive and shared with visitors to Murphy’s Point, where Needham actually started working as a Discovery ranger right after she finished high school. It was a summer job focused on engaging with visitors and assisting in wildlife and ecological monitoring programs, as well as resource-management tasks. And at Murphy’s Point, Discovery rangers also don period costumes and bring the mine’s history to life — an aspect of the job which Needham relishes to this day.
Hands-on: Rachel Needham expertly handles Gamma, a captive-bred ratsnake at Murphy’s Point.
An important part of the environmental stewardship work done by Discovery rangers and park naturalists is educating the public and encouraging respectful interactions with the wildlife that inhabits Ontario’s provincial parks.
Her career has evolved considerably since her Discovery ranger days. In her current role as chief park naturalist, she brings a depth of understanding, leadership, planning and overseeing much of the park’s activities. And she still gets to dress up in period costumes and create a guided experience for park visitors.
“I lead the interpretive and ecological monitoring programs,” says Needham, who also leads guided hikes of the mine and art programming geared to children. “Throughout July and August, every Sunday, I help visitors travel back in time to the early 1900s.” Come summertime, thousands of visitors tour the long-inactive mine, she reports, to watch the park’s team of interpreters relive a bygone era of miners, cooks and one-wagon drivers.
But what does a park naturalist do the rest of the year? Plenty, according to Needham. She directs Murphy’s Point’s ecological stewardship endeavours, which involve wildlife encounters hands-on, literally, to monitor, say, the nests of turtles and rat snakes, along with managing the removal of invasive animal species. Needham recalls feeling both nervous and excited the first time she dealt with a gray ratsnake that she had to scan, so she needed “to get up fairly close” to it. “The bite of a gray ratsnake is nothing to be concerned about,” she notes. “It’s kind of like a mosquito bite.”
An important part of the environmental stewardship work done by Discovery rangers and park naturalists is educating the public and encouraging respectful interactions with the wildlife that inhabits Ontario’s provincial parks. So, what’s her favourite aspect about the work? “Sharing my passion for nature with park visitors.” Plus, bottom line: Needham is still working at the best summer job she’s ever had. CAA
(From top) On the job: Rachel Needham surveys serene Hogg Bay, which feeds into Big Rideau Lake. Dressed in period costume, she leads interpretive tours, offering park visitors a glimpse of life in the early 1900s, when the Silver Queen Mine was active.
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Hands-on: Rachel Needham expertly handles Gamma, a captive-bred ratsnake at Murphy’s Point.
Taking Care of Ontario’s Provincial Parks
The Localer: Rachel Needham, chief park naturalist, explains what the job entails as she shares her passion for nature.
By Jackie Johnstone | Photography by Amanda Thirkill
Rachel Needham’s role as chief park naturalist of Murphy’s Point might be a little different than you’d expect. But then, Murphy’s Point isn’t your typical provincial park either.
Located in the Rideau Lakes Region, between Kingston and Ottawa, on the southernmost edge of the Canadian Shield, Murphy’s Point is a gem among Ontario’s provincial parks — and you can take that literally. Here you’ll find glittering bands of mica (naturally occurring coloured or transparent silicate minerals with a layered structure) embedded in the bedrock. The area was famous for the Silver Queen Mine, a small excavation site that was operational in 1903–1920. The mine employed fewer than 30 miners, primarily to produce sheet mica as insulation for small appliances, such as toasters, that were becoming popular at the time.
The history of the Silver Queen Mine is kept alive and shared with visitors to Murphy’s Point, where Needham actually started working as a Discovery ranger right after she finished high school. It was a summer job focused on engaging with visitors and assisting in wildlife and ecological monitoring programs, as well as resource-management tasks. And at Murphy’s Point, Discovery rangers also don period costumes and bring the mine’s history to life — an aspect of the job which Needham relishes to this day.
Her career has evolved considerably since her Discovery ranger days. In her current role as chief park naturalist, she brings a depth of understanding, leadership, planning and overseeing much of the park’s activities. And she still gets to dress up in period costumes and create a guided experience for park visitors.
“I lead the interpretive and ecological monitoring programs,” says Needham, who also leads guided hikes of the mine and art programming geared to children. “Throughout July and August, every Sunday, I help visitors travel back in time to the early 1900s.” Come summertime, thousands of visitors tour the long-inactive mine, she reports, to watch the park’s team of interpreters relive a bygone era of miners, cooks and one-wagon drivers.
But what does a park naturalist do the rest of the year? Plenty, according to Needham. She directs Murphy’s Point’s ecological stewardship endeavours, which involve wildlife encounters hands-on, literally, to monitor, say, the nests of turtles and rat snakes, along with managing the removal of invasive animal species. Needham recalls feeling both nervous and excited the first time she dealt with a gray ratsnake that she had to scan, so she needed “to get up fairly close” to it. “The bite of a gray ratsnake is nothing to be concerned about,” she notes. “It’s kind of like a mosquito bite.”
An important part of the environmental stewardship work done by Discovery rangers and park naturalists is educating the public and encouraging respectful interactions with the wildlife that inhabits Ontario’s provincial parks. So, what’s her favourite aspect about the work? “Sharing my passion for nature with park visitors.” Plus, bottom line: Needham is still working at the best summer job she’s ever had. CAA
(From top) On the job: Rachel Needham surveys serene Hogg Bay, which feeds into Big Rideau Lake. Dressed in period costume, she leads interpretive tours, offering park visitors a glimpse of life in the early 1900s, when the Silver Queen Mine was active.