20 million visits
PHOTO PATRICK SANFAÇON, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Each year, the mountain receives no less than 20 million visits.
Mount Royal is one of the smallest of the Monteregian hills, but certainly the most popular. It is estimated that there are 20 million visits to the territory each year. However, the mountain occupies an area of 10 km2 in the heart of Montreal. When such a large number ofHomo sapiens move in such a small territory, the consequences are quickly visible.
A conservation plan
PHOTO DAVID BOILY, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Mont Saint-Bruno is one of the 10 Monteregian hills.
A group of 12 conservation organizations recently unveiled a conservation plan that aims to “protect, restore and connect” each of the 10 Montérégie hills over the next five years. The Coalition of Montérégiennes brings together Mounts Royal, Saint-Bruno, Saint-Hilaire, Rougemont, Saint-Grégoire, Yamaska, Shefford, Brome and Mégantic, as well as the hills of Oka. Although it is not part of the same geological formation, Mont Rigaud is also a member of this coalition.
Four big challenges
PHOTO EDOUARD PLANTE-FRÉCHETTE, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
Many Mount Royal hikers venture off the marked trails.
- Traffic at Mount Royal
- Real estate subdivision
- Presence of invasive alien species
- Climatic changes
3 million
Estimated cost of the conservation plan, according to Les amis de la montagne and the Coalition des Montérégiennes
We first want to reverse degradation and then help enhance biodiversity.
Hélène Panaïoti, executive director of the non-profit organization Les amis de la montagne
A delicate balance
PHOTO HUGO-SÉBASTIEN AUBERT, THE PRESS
The Kondiaronk Lookout on Mount Royal
“It’s a small mountain with a public vocation. It is very intensively used,” explains Hélène Panaïoti, from the organization Les amis de la montagne. The popularity of Mount Royal somewhat complicates the work necessary to ensure its ecological balance. In particular, there are more and more trails that are created by users outside the trails already marked out for the public, which does nothing to help protect already fragile natural environments. According to Mme Panaïoti, it is not excluded in the future to temporarily close certain areas to allow nature to regenerate, a common practice in certain large parks.
A rich biodiversity in figures
PHOTO DAVID BOILY, LA PRESSE ARCHIVES
The famous Mount Royal barred owl is one of the 180 species of birds found on the mountain in Montreal.
700 species of vascular plants
Some are rare and endangered, such as may-apple (a perennial understory plant also called may apple) or bloodroot. Measures have been put in place in Mount Royal Park to protect them from humans, who too often pick them or trample them.
90 tree species
Sugar maple is particularly present at the foot of the mountain, while red oak and white pine dominate its peaks. On some sides, it is rather the white birch that we find.
More than 180 species of birds
In addition to the famous barred owl, the eastern screech-owl, the wood duck or the pileated woodpecker are among the most sumptuous feathered residents of the mountain.
Nearly 20 species of mammals
The ubiquitous raccoon rubs shoulders with the groundhog, the red fox and the chipmunk.
18 species at risk
The fauna and flora of Mount Royal include many species in a precarious situation, including the brown snake, the butternut or the Canadian hawthorn.