Tropical Fish in the Snow
by Grant Gussie
Originally published in The Calquarium, Volume 43, Number 7
Aquarticles
Now that winter is back again, we once more have the opportunity to see
one of the world’s truly unique vistas…tropical fish in a snow bound lake. Yes,
just 1½ hours from Calgary is the only place in the world that tropical aquarium fish
live outside, wild, all year long, in a natural body of water that has snow around it. It
is the marsh below the famous "Cave and Basin", in Banff National Park, just
west of the Banff townsite.
The Cave and Basin is an historic site and one of the major tourist
attractions in Banff. The site was first brought to public attention in 1883 by William
and Tom McCardell, and Frank McCabe; three railroad workers who followed a free-flowing
stream (that was still warm to the touch in the middle of winter) up to its source: a
collection of hot (well, warm) springs on the north side of Sulphur Mountain. One of these
springs was in a small but lovely cave set in the cliff face. Two other springs were open
to the sky. The men wanted to take ownership of the site and build a bathhouse/resort
there. However, the federal government saw fit to intervene and used the feature as a
cornerstone attraction for our first national park, which was incorporated in 1885.
The springs immediately became a popular swimming area. Warm, but not
nearly as hot as the springs on the mountain’s eastern flanks, the Cave and Basin
springs were a popular place of recreation. The warmest spring (in the cave) was a famous
"medicinal" spring. The coolest spring, with a temperature of about 27C, could
be used for a refreshing swim on a hot day, without being brain-numbingly cold like the
typical mountain lake is in even the hottest summer.
A resort was built on the site in 1886, to be later expanded in 1932.
But, although the resort was commercially successful, even the hardest nosed capitalist
would be hard pressed to call this development an improvement in any sense of the word. It
must be remembered however that the primary purpose of the national parks at that time was
recreation, not conservation. Banff was (as the park’s historians like to say) an
island of civilization in a sea of wilderness, and development – any development
– was welcome. But nowadays the park is an island of wilderness in a sea of
civilization, and development threatens the very thing that the tourists come to see. And
in the case of the Cave and Basin, all natural beauty is long gone. The Cave is now just a
room in the resort building and even the exterior springs are surrounded by walls. Sigh.
The desecration of these natural wonders was more than just an
aesthetic loss, as unnoticed in the springs lived a small, rather non-descript, pond
snail. The Banff Springs snail (Physella johnsoni) was originally endemic to five
springs and their outflow streams near Sulphur Mountain. It was known to occur in the
Upper Hot Springs, Kidney Spring, Middle Springs, the Cave and Basin, Vermilion Lakes
Spring, and a warm stream near the Banff Springs Hotel. Now they are found only in one
of the Cave and Basin springs, its outflow stream, and the Cave and Basin marsh below the
spring. The reason for its disappearance in the other locations is believed to be
development and human disturbance of the algal mats upon which the snail feeds. Now all
swimming in the Cave and Basin is forbidden in order to preserve the species, and so the
resort has lost its original reason for existence. Today it is a museum and interpretative
center.
Compared to the springs themselves, the stream and marsh below the Cave
and Basin are relatively pristine "warm water" ecosystems. However, human
interference has been at work here too, as residents of Banff released a variety of
tropical fish into the marsh after the war years (no one seems to know exactly when this
happened). At one time or another, angelfish, guppies, and tetras have all been spotted in
the marsh, but these failed to thrive and are probably no longer present. Now there are
three introduced tropical fish species known to live in the marsh; Gambusia affinis
(the mosquitofish), Poecilia latipinna (the sailfin mollie), and Hemichromis
bimaculatus (the jewel cichlid).
Getting to the see these fish is easy – the route to the Cave and
Basin is well signed. Follow the main drag through the town of Banff west until you cross
the Bow River, then turn right. Head down the road another mile. From the Cave and Basin
parking lot, walk up to the main building and around to the north side. Take the
"Discovery Trail" north of the main building (there is no reason to actually
enter the building). A boardwalk goes down to the marsh, culminating in a
"fish-watching" platform.
Along the way take note of the white algae growing in the springs’
outlet stream. I found this stuff fascinating (how does it photosynthesize without
pigment?) but could not find out anything about its biology.
Be careful heading down the boardwalk as it can be icy in winter. On
really cold days fog shrouds the marsh, making the scene very otherworldly, but although
beautiful, the fog doesn’t help you find any fish. The best place to see the fish is
(not surprisingly) the fish-watching platform. Lie quietly on the platform with your head
over the side, and in a few moments the fish will reappear. Pretty much all of the fish
you see will be introduced tropicals.
Personally, I found the mollies a bit of a disappointment. They are
much smaller than well-fed aquarium specimens. And although all were originally black,
they have over the generations reverted to their original spotted coloration. So from the
top (looking down on their backs) they aren’t too impressive. I saw one male however
with a lovely sail fin and a pleasant yellow cast to its fins. Quite nice. The jewel
cichlids are also small (about 6cm) but feisty and in nice color. And the male mosquito
fish court like male mosquito fish do.
Although the tropical fish are introduced, they now enjoy the full
protection of the national park authority. You can not legally catch, keep, feed, or
unduly disturb them.
It is hard for a tropical fish enthusiast to not to be impressed by
seeing these fish in the snow, but it must be remembered that they are introduced species
that had a profound impact on the native fishes of the marsh. The marsh was once the only
home of the Banff longnose dace (Rhinichthys cataractae smithi), which was
declared extinct in 1986. It is highly likely that it was competition with the introduced
species that led to its extinction.
So enjoy a walk through the marsh on a winter’s day. But give a
thought to what we have lost to greed and ignorance.
REFERENCES
Nelson, J.S. 1983b. The tropical fish fauna in Cave and
Basin Hotsprings drainage, Banff National Park. Can. Field-Nat. 97(3): 255-261 ?
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