Stewardship Association of Municipalities

Flower's Cove

SAM Member Since: October 2002

Acres Protected: 158

The Town of Flower's Cove, once called French Island Harbour, is a small fishing community located on the west coast of Newfoundland, mid-way up the Great Northern Peninsula. In the early 1800s the Town brought many fishing ships to the area for its excellent cod fishing grounds and for the annual spring seal hunt. Today, Flower's Cove has a population of approximately 308.

Introduction to the Limestone Barrens

The Limestone Barrens comprise only a tiny portion of the Island of Newfoundland's surface area, but support a very high percentage of its rare plants. Geographically, the Limestone Barrens are restricted to a narrow strip of land along the western coast of the Great Northern Pensinula, extending approximately 300 km from Port au Choix in the south to Burnt Cape Ecological Reserve in the north. The Limestone Barrens are unique, not only in Newfoundland, but in the world. Of the 298 vascular plants considered rare in Newfoundland, 104 occur on the Barrens and 22 of these species are endemic to this ecoregion.

Conservation Area

Limestone Barren habitats of special significance which require added protected are designated as Conservation Areas. Several rare plants are found in these protected areas, including Fernald's braya, Wild chive and Wooly amica, as well as unique geological features such as stone stripes, limestone pavement and thrombolites (the rare, fossilized remains of primitive life forms).

Flower's Cove Conservation Plan