Size: 100 acres

Established: 2010

Status: Not Open to the Public

Protection: Purchased

Background:

With generous support from nature organizations, charitable foundations and more than 160 individuals, TTLT was able to purchase the Tanager Tract, a Carolinian hardwood forest near West Lorne in West Elgin. Tanager Tract is part of a 380-ha forest known as the West Lorne Woods, a Provincially Significant Wetland (PSW) and an Area of Natural and Scientific Interest (ANSI).

Description:

This woodland, widely regarded as one of the best examples of Carolinian forest in Elgin County and one of its top botanical sites, is a precious remnant of the region's original extensively forested landscape. The interior forest at Tanager Tract is home to some species-at-risk and rare breeding birds including the Cerulean Warbler and spectacular Scarlet Tanager. This rich forest nurtures the growth of many hardwood trees unique to the Carolinian Zone. Large specimens of Eastern Flowering Dogwood, Black Gum, Sassafras and Swamp White Oak are abundant. The forest's upland and swampy sections have a rich understorey of Spicebush, Witch Hazel and many varieties of ferns.