Along Nova Scotia’s south shore—in the district of Kespukwitk, part of the traditional land of the Mi’kmaq—lies an ecosystem where Atlantic waters, white sandy beaches and lush greenery meet. Known as the Pemsɨk Mawa’tasikl Anko’tmu’kl or the Pemsɨk Conservation Mosaic, this region is also the heart of a recently proposed protected area co-led by the district’s two Mi’kmaq communities.

Covering more than 5200 square kilometres of both land and sea, the Pemsɨk project is a collaborative vision which brings existing conservation initiatives together while addressing gaps in the marine and terrestrial protection of the area. It combines archeological and scientific evidence with traditional knowledge, gathered over generations by Mi’kmaq oral history.

Melissa Labrador is the senior L’nu advisor on conservation and climate change at Oceans North, as well as a Mi’kmaq land and water guardian who has been spearheading the Pemsɨk initiative. Since time immemorial, the region has provided her people with food, economic opportunity and more. Today, however, this way of life is at risk: changes in ocean conditions are shifting the balance of the ecosystem, bringing unlikely species to Pemsɨk waters.

Surveys conducted by Melissa’s team in the summer of 2025 revealed the presence of several tropical fish, such as the spotfin butterflyfish, which is usually found in the warm, shallow waters of the Caribbean Sea. However, over the past decade, these fish have been observed in more northern parts of the western Atlantic, including in the waters off Nova Scotia. Whether they’re here to stay is unknown, but the presence of these warm-water dwellers in Pemsɨk could point to a worrisome trend.

“In the early spring, we’ll go back to these sites,” Melissa says. “If they are still there, then we are clearly at a point in time where conditions are favourable for these tropical species to survive in North Atlantic waters, which is not what we want to see.”

The long-term presence of these species in new areas could indicate a range shift, which happens when a species’ typical habitat range is altered in response to warming waters, changes in acidity or other climate-driven impacts. Many animals, such as the American lobster, are responding by extending the boundaries of their habitat and migrating north in search of more temperate waters. Others, scientists say, are seeking new habitats entirely, leaving their old homes behind for good.

“Species will have to find new habitats that are still within their range of tolerance,” says Amy Irvine, Oceans North’s climate advisor. “They have to expand their range, or they might become extirpated, meaning they can no longer live in a certain area at all.”

This is a global occurrence, Amy notes, and it looks different for each species. But how does the ecosystem change once these species arrive, and what happens to the habitats they’ve left behind?

“If an entirely new species comes in, it can really challenge how resources are shared in the environment,” Amy says. “It’s going to have some level of disturbance on the rest of the ecosystem that is there.”