Section of rare forested land donated to Prince Edward Island nature reserve

SOURIS, P.E.I. – A nature reserve in Prince Edward Island is expanding thanks to a land donation to the Nature Conservancy of Canada.

Brothers Tony and Liam Dolan of Charlottetown are donating 14 hectares of rare forested land in Kingsboro to help expand the Camilla and Mel MacPhee Nature Reserve.

The reserve is now 126 hectares and includes a large, ecologically significant wetland.

In a news release issued today, the conservancy said the Kingsboro area provides vital forest and wetland habitat for wildlife listed under Canada’s Species at Risk Act, such as eastern wood-pewee and Canada warbler.

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The reserve is located about halfway between East Baltic Bog and Basin Head Marine Protected Area.

The conservancy says the donation was made possible through funding from the federal government’s Natural Heritage Conservation Program.

Tony and Liam Dolan, who moved to P.E.I. from Ireland 40 years ago, say the donation is a way of saying thank you to Islanders “for embracing us.”

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“Long after we’re gone, this land will remain, protected for nature and for people, and a tribute to this special part of the world,” Tony Dolan said in a statement.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 26, 2020.