A2A
The Adirondack to Algonquin axis (A2A) is a wildlife corridor linking New York’s great Adirondack Park with Ontario’s great Algonquin Park. It roughly follows a geologic feature called the Frontenac Axis, which is essentially an extension of the Canadian Shield southeastward across the St Lawrence River through the Thousand Islands thence to and encompassing Adirondack Park. A2A is also a conservation collaborative dedicated to promoting a regional identity for this under-appreciated wildway and building support for its protection.
A2A is one of the few relatively safe ways for terrestrial wildlife in the eastern United States to migrate northward into Canada in response to global overheating. The Great Lakes and St Lawrence River – and even more, human development alongside – present formidable barriers for plants or animals needing to expand or shift ranges northward as climate warms. A2A was famously confirmed as a wildlife corridor fifteen years ago when Alice the Moose wandered from the middle of Adirondack Park to Algonquin Park, following the route mapped by biologists as an A2A link. Algonquin Park has one of the southern-most surviving populations of Wolves in eastern North America; and if the US Northeast is to enjoy the good fortune of Wolf recolonization, likely it would happen via A2A. Walker the Puma, subject of Will Stolzenburg’s powerful book Heart of a Lion, probably traversed A2A as he journeyed from South Dakota’s Black Hills to Adirondack Park, before continuing his quest to find a mate and tragically being killed trying to cross a busy highway in Connecticut. Adirondack Council is part of the A2A Conservation Collaborative, which is building appreciation for this huge but little-known wildlife corridor, in part by charting an A2A International Scenic Trail.