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32-643: The Old Ausable Channel is a self-contained waterway in Lambton County , Ontario , Canada that runs through the Pinery Provincial Park and the community of Grand Bend . It is a 14 kilometre long river channel that was isolated from the Ausable River by the digging of canals for drainage in the late nineteenth century. Part of the Pinery Provincial Park's rare oak savanna , the channel

64-572: A number of companies announced plans to provide ethane from the Marcellus Shale in the United States to Lambton County industries, providing a potential new feedstock for the production of ethylene in Lambton County. Lambton County is the site of North America's first drilled commercial oil well at Oil Springs in 1858. Tourism is another important industry in Lambton County, especially along

96-526: A recreational area for nearby communities. During the creation of the park, it was decided to use the Old Ausable Channel for boating and fishing. To accomplish this, a dam was built in 1962, about 9 kilometres downstream from Grand Bend. The water impounded by the dam re-filled the channel to its original width, flooding the terrestrial plants that had colonized the banks and returning it to usable levels. Four drainage culverts under access roads maintain

128-696: A specimen collected in the Carolinas . He used the French name Le gobe-mouche cendré de la Coroline and the Latin Muscicapa Carolinensis cinerea . Although Brisson coined Latin names, these do not conform to the binomial system and are not recognised by the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature . When in 1766 the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus updated his Systema Naturae for

160-441: Is monotypic . The eastern wood pewee is 13.5–15 cm (5.3–5.9 in) in length and weighs around 14 g (0.49 oz). Wingspan ranges 9.1–10.2 in (23–26 cm). The sexes are alike. The adult is gray-olive on the upperparts with light underparts, washed with olive on the breast. Each wing has two pale wing bars, and the primary remiges are long, giving the wingtip a slim and very pointed appearance. The upper part of

192-503: Is 66,370. Of those, 9,760 (14.7%) are employed in manufacturing; 7,545 (11.4%) in retail trade; 5,080 (7.7%) in accommodation and food services; and 3,155 (4.8%) are employed in agriculture. Petrochemical and refining is the largest manufacturing sector in Lambton County's economy. Established during World War II , Sarnia and the area along the St. Clair River is home to a major processing centre for oil from Alberta . In late 2010 and early 2011

224-461: Is a small tyrant flycatcher from North America . This bird and the western wood pewee ( C. sordidulus ) were formerly considered a single species . The two species are virtually identical in appearance, and can be distinguished most easily by their calls. In 1760, the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson included a description of the eastern wood pewee in his Ornithologie based on

256-461: Is an important part of the region's ecosystem. The Ausable River source is a moraine near Staffa, Ontario and it empties into Lake Huron at Port Franks . Starting in the 1870s, the Canada Company engaged in large-scale drainage projects within its watershed and adjacent lakes to prepare the land for vegetable agriculture. In 1875-1876, a drainage canal called "The Cut" was dug, draining

288-834: Is one of three native reservations in Lambton County, is policed by the Anishinabek Police Service (APS) but dispatched by the OPP. Walpole Island , another first nations reservation has its own police service, the Walpole Island Police Service. The remaining first nations reservation, Aamjiwnaang First Nation , which falls geographically within the City of Sarnia , is covered by the Sarnia Police Service. Eastern wood pewee Muscicapa virens Linnaeus, 1766 The eastern wood pewee ( Contopus virens )

320-414: Is quite similar to the eastern wood pewee in plumage, but has a bold eye ring and much shorter primary projection, appearing rather blunt-winged. It also has a shorter bill and is smaller overall. The songs ( che-bec, che-bec ) and calls (a sharp whit ) are very different. Their breeding habitat is deciduous , mixed woods, or pine plantations in eastern North America. They migrate to Central America ,

352-441: Is similar, particularly in the worn plumage after breeding. It always lacks clearly defined wingbars, however, and bobs its tail frequently. It has a shorter primary projection. The eastern phoebe is also present on the breeding grounds by March, while eastern wood pewees do not arrive until very late April and early May. The songs ( fee-bee, fee-bee ) and calls ( chip ) are quite different. The least flycatcher ( Empidonax minimus )

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384-522: The Caribbean , and in the Andes region of northern South America . They feed on insects and other arthropods . Wood pewees wait on a perch at a middle height in a tree and fly out to catch prey in flight, sometimes hovering to pick it from vegetation. Eastern wood pewees arrive relatively late on breeding grounds (e.g., 18 May to 5 June in southern Ontario). They are rarely seen on their breeding grounds before

416-417: The altricial nestlings. Nestlings typically fledge 15–17 days after hatching, often ending up on the ground during the first flight out of the nest. The adults will perch on a nearby branch and call out to the nestlings, keeping contact and providing them with food until the young are able to fly to join them. The eastern wood pewee is common and widespread, and therefore not considered globally threatened by

448-482: The twelfth edition , he added 240 species that had been previously described by Brisson. One of these was the eastern wood pewee. Linnaeus included a brief description, coined the binomial name Muscicapa virens and cited Brisson's work. The specific name virens is Latin for "green". This species is now placed in the genus Contopus that was introduced by the German ornithologist Jean Cabanis in 1855. The species

480-476: The County of Lambton was formed. Lambton and Kent first shared the capital city of Sandwich (since renamed as Windsor, Ontario ). In 1852 the partnership was dissolved and Lambton become a full county. It is named in honour of John Lambton, 1st Earl of Durham , who visited the area in the late 1830s. Lambton County consists of 11 municipalities (in order of population): Independent of the County, but located within

512-543: The Lambton census division, are three First Nations reserves: As a census division in the 2021 Census of Population conducted by Statistics Canada , Lambton County had a population of 128,154 living in 55,205 of its 60,322 total private dwellings, a change of 1.2% from its 2016 population of 126,638 . With a land area of 2,999.93 km (1,158.28 sq mi), it had a population density of 42.7/km (110.6/sq mi) in 2021. Total employment for Lambton County

544-408: The St. Clair River at Lake Huron. The two Blue Water Bridges cross the river at Sarnia, connecting it to Port Huron, Michigan . The bridges are one of the busiest border crossings between the two countries. The river is also traversed by one passenger ferry further south, and a rail tunnel, also at Sarnia, runs underneath it. The CN rail tunnel accommodates double stacked rail cars. Along with Sarnia,

576-794: The St. Clair River, and a conservation area named Rock Glen Falls near Arkona along the Ausauble River internationally known for its Devonian period fossils. Lambton County has 2,346 farms with a total of 592,793 acres. The largest single use of farmland in Lambton is crop production, with 85% of total farmland reported as land in crops. Over the last 20 years, soybeans, wheat, and grain corn have accounted for over 80% of total area crop production in Lambton. The fourth and fifth leading crops are sugar beets and hay. Oats, barley and mixed grains are also produced. Top animal production includes dairy, beef, hog, and poultry. The County of Lambton Emergency Medical Services (EMS) provides land ambulance services to

608-639: The Thedford Marsh and Lake Burwell, diverting the course of the Ausable. In 1892, a second 400 yard trench was created to outlet Parkhill Creek (a tributary of the Ausable) into Lake Huron at Grand Bend, Ontario to provide Grand Bend with a harbour . This resulted in the isolation of a 14 kilometre channel from the course of the river, which became known as the Old Ausable Channel. As the new diversion carried pollutants and agricultural run-off into Lake Huron, bypassing

640-470: The bill is dark, the lower part is yellowish. The songs are basically a mournful whistled pee-a'wee given in a series, which gave this bird its name, and a "pe-wee" with a rising note at the end. The western wood pewee ( C. sordidulus ) is essentially indistinguishable visually. But its range is parapatric to the west of the eastern wood pewee and its song—a descending tsee-tsee-tsee-peeer —is entirely different. The eastern phoebe ( Sayornis phoebe )

672-506: The channel, it remained a mostly untouched section of natural environment while the surrounding areas were increasingly impacted by human industrialization. Isolated from the river, the Old Ausable Channel was fed only by groundwater from local sand dunes , precipitation , and small amounts of surface runoff . By 1936 it was reduced to only a small creek at its deepest parts. Both banks were subsequently colonized by terrestrial vegetation. In 1948, serious flooding impacted Port Franks and

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704-437: The dam the channel is slow flowing and minimally turbid , while downstream of the dam there is a backwash effect from the nearby cut. This channel is in its entirety 14 kilometres in length, 0.5-2.5 metres deep and 20-80 metres wide. Flow in minimal the spring and nearly non-existent by July. Following the return of pre-cut water levels via the dam, the channel remains an example of the landscape prior to alterations by settlers of

736-446: The lake and river. The community of Grand Bend and the Pinery Provincial Park are especially popular tourist destinations, attracting thousands of people each week throughout the summer to their long, uninterrupted beaches. The part of Lambton County along Lake Huron known as Lambton Shores depends almost entirely upon the seasonal industries of tourism and agriculture for its well-being. There are also popular conservation areas along

768-530: The land. Due to the minimal flow, the channel is slowly converting to a more pond-like ecosystem, and may eventually become less aquatic and more terrestrial. The Old Ausable Channel is an important area for biodiversity. Three species of at-risk fishes ( pugnose shiner , lake chubsucker and grass pickerel ) live in the channel, and the surrounding oak savanna is the largest in Ontario. Eastern wood-pewee , wood thrush , ovenbird , and scarlet tanager breed along

800-409: The larger end of the ovate egg. Males are territorial and defend the nesting area aggressively, often fighting with neighbouring conspecifics and even pursue attacks on other species (e.g., least flycatchers, American robins, chipping sparrows, red-eyed vireos, etc.). Males can sometimes be polygynous , mating with two females, simultaneously. The eggs hatch in 12–14 days and both parents bring food to

832-517: The last days of April further south. They migrate south at a more usual time, leaving sometimes in late August but most often in September. Migration times have stayed the same in the last 100 years. They migrate quickly for most of the journey, dispersing and moving at a slower speed when approaching breeding or wintering range. For example, in the Cayman Islands which are offshore the winter quarters,

864-501: The population centres in Lambton County are: Corunna, Petrolia, Grand Bend, Wyoming, Forest, and Watford. Lambton County started as a part of the District of Hesse . The district of Hesse included British territories west of Long Point (practically all of western Ontario). The district was later divided and renamed using English district names (Essex, Suffolk, Kent, etc.). Lambton was part of Kent county. In 1849 districts were abolished and

896-703: The residents of Lambton County. The County of Lambton EMS has stations in Brigden , Corunna , Forest , Grand Bend , Petrolia , Thedford , Watford , and two stations in Sarnia . Lambton EMS has ten ambulances and employs approximately 150 full- and part-time Primary Care Paramedics . Policing is provided by the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) , which has detachments in Grand Bend , Petrolia , Corunna , and Point Edward . The area of Kettle & Stony Point which

928-400: The riverside trail and yellow-throated vireo breeds along the banks of the channel itself. Butterflies include Delaware skipper , Leonard's skipper , and Olympia marble . 43°16′03″N 81°48′46″W  /  43.26750°N 81.81278°W  / 43.26750; -81.81278 Lambton County The largest city in Lambton County is Sarnia , which is located at the source of

960-611: The species is only rarely and briefly encountered, but passes through on its way north as early as mid-late February. The eastern wood pewee makes an open cup nest made of grasses , bark, and lichen , attached to a horizontal tree branch with spider webs. Nest sites range in height from 15 to 60 ft (4.6 to 18.3 m), but average around 30 ft (9.1 m). Common nest trees used include oaks ( Quercus ), pines ( Pinus ), birches ( Betula ), and maples ( Acer ). The female lays almost always three (sometimes two) translucent-white eggs with brown flecking concentrated towards

992-414: The surrounding area. The Ausable River Conservation Authority extended the original 1870s cut in 1952, resulting in a channel only 8 kilometres in length. A further 400 hectares of land in the Thedford Marsh, including Lake Smith, were drained and converted into agricultural land. The Pinery Provincial Park was created in 1957 to preserve unique natural landscapes including the dunes while also providing

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1024-476: The water level in the 4 km long stretch on the Grand Bend side of the channel. The sections in Grand Bend have residential homes built along the banks, resulting in pollutants entering the channel. Groundwater recharge in the channel is prominent in the southern sections, away from Grand Bend. Minimal flow has resulted in a build-up of nutrients and a subsequent growth of aquatic plants and algae . Upstream of

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