20 December 2001 -- BSC is pleased to announce that it has received $10,000 from Wildlife Habitat Canada in support of the Marsh Monitoring Program. The funds will be used to develop prescriptive wetland management guidelines for marshbirds in the Great Lakes basin. In addition, Environment Canada has contributed $8,000 for the preparation of updated MMP reports for two Areas of Concern (Bay of Quinte and Detroit River).

16 December 2001 The results of Long Point's Christmas Bird Count, held on December 15th, are in: 119 species! This breaks Long Point's old record by 5 species. The count day was ideal with beautiful sunny skies, almost no wind, and mild temperatures. Clearly the best bird was Long Point's fourth ever Ross's Goose found at Big Creek Marsh. Also new for the count were Common Tern (Long Point's first ever winter record) and Double-crested Cormorant. Other highlights included 5 Red-necked Grebes, 2 Black-crowned Night-Herons, and singles of Trumpeter Swan, Eastern Phoebe, Northern Mockingbird, Chipping Sparrow, Lincoln's Sparrow and Brewer's Blackbird.

Meanwhile, BSC's Senior Scientist, Denis Lepage was interviewed on Radio-Canada's "D'un soleil à l'autre" program, which addresses environmental and agricultural issues and is broadcast nationally at 6:30 pm. Denis spoke about the origin of Christmas Bird Counts, the scientific value of the data, and about Christmas Bird Counts are organized.

12 December 2001 -- A paper entitled Landscape context and fragmentation effects on forest birds in southern Ontario has just been published in the latest issue of the ornithological journal "Condor" (Volume 103, pages 701-714). Authored by Madeline Austen, Charles Francis, Dawn Burke and Michael Bradstreet, the paper describes work on woodland bird species carried out by BSC showing that the extent of regional forest cover influences the numbers of forest dependent bird species in a woodlot, independent of the woodlot size.

10 December 2001 -- At a Symposium on Bird Research in the Okanagan Valley held in Penticton today, BSC's BC Program Manager, Dick Cannings, presented two talks, one on migration monitoring at Vaseux Lake and another on broader population monitoring programs such as the BC Nocturnal Owl Survey, the Breeding Bird Survey and Christmas Bird Counts. About 150 people attended.

Regional Programs, ON -- Barn Owl (Main Page, Fact Sheet, Nestbox Plans & Placement, FAQs, Rodent management on Farms);

Regional Programs, Atlantic (Bicknell's Thrush Monitoring, Cape Breton Beached Bird Survey);

24 November 2001 -- BSC's Executive Director, Michael Bradstreet, will attend meetings of the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada from 26-30 November in Ottawa, ON.

24 November 2001 -- BSC is hosting the Atlantic Canada Owl Monitoring Workshop today in Sackville, NB. 35 participants from all four Atlantic province will discuss issues related to survey power, analysis methods and protocol development.

23 November 2001 -- BSC is launching a significantly upgraded Bird Links to the World web site on Monday 26 November. With 13,000 links to bird science and birding web sites around the world, new design and new features that allow you to customize how you use the site, the new Bird Links will be a great tool for bird conservation.

22 November 2001 -- The Province of Newfoundland and Labrador's endangered species bill is now on the web at http://www.gov.nf.ca/hoa/business It is Bill 33. It is expected to go to second reading early next week.

22 November 2001 -- Christmas Bird Count kits were mailed to 317 Canadian compilers today. Christmas Bird Counts are a wonderful introduction to community birding and take place across the country from 14 December - 5 January. To contact the compiler in your area click: http://www.bsc-eoc.org/national/cbcmain.html

22 November 2001 -- The 2001 Baillie Birdathon has just achieved a new all-time fund-raising total. Thanks to the 485 participants who helped raise $176,125!

21 November 2001 -- The Long Point Waterfowl and Wetlands Research Fund has completed its Satellite Tracking Study of Tundra Swans. Results are summarized on our up-dated web page at: http://www.bsc-eoc.org/lpbo/swans/swans.html

20 November 2001 -- Results of the 2001 International Piping Plover Survey are now in for Ontario. Water levels at Lake of the Woods, a historic nesting area for Piping Plovers, were at flood levels, which greatly diminished the suitable nesting habitat. Only one lone adult plover was observed defending a territory at Windy Point, Lake of the Woods. This is disappointing news, because Lake of the Woods is the only site in Ontario where the nationally Endangered Piping Plover has been known to breed in recent years. On a more positive note, four unpaired Piping Plovers were seen in the Great Lakes region: one at Long Point, two at Presqu’ile Provincial Park, and one at Mission Island Marsh near Thunder Bay. Although no breeding pairs were found, the presence of lone birds is an encouraging sign. Furthermore, low water levels on the Great Lakes have created extensive areas of suitable habitat. Maybe next year, one of these lone birds will find a mate and decide to nest in the Ontario Great Lakes.

19 November 2001 -- BSC welcomes Beth Flanigan, a Mount Allison grad to our Sackville, NB office. Beth will scan all historical cards from the Martimes Nest Records Scheme into electronic data files.

17 November 2001 -- All Long Point Bird Observatory stations are now officially closed. The total of about 12,000 birds banded this fall was very good. In the end, the Tip's exceptional banding total was edged out marginally by Old Cut.

15 November 2001 -- Andrew Couturier, BSC's GIS Analyst, gave a presentation to the Guelph (ON) Environmental Advisory Committee on 14 November. The committee advises Guelph City Council on environmental matters. The purpose of the presentation was to familiarize committee members with the BSC-led "Ontario Conservation Priorities" project that helps planners, biologists, and municipalities across southern Ontario set priorities for bird and habitat conservation.

8 November 2001 -- The Bald Eagle is listed as endangered under Ontario's Endangered Species Act. Earlier this spring, cutting of trees near an active eagle nest near Long Point resulted in nest abandonment and the death of one young. Today, in the Ontario Court of Justice, Simcoe, DeCarolis Farms Limited pleaded guilty to willfully destroying endangered species habitat and was fined $6,250. This is the first successful conviction under Ontario's Endangered Species Act.

8 November 2001 --BSC's Atlantic Canada Programs Manager, Becky Whittam, is presenting first-year owl survey results from New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island Owl Surveys to the Atlantic Society of Fish and Wildlife Biologists in Sackville, New Brunswick today.

8 November 2001 --BSC's Program Manager, Jon McCracken, will be attending recovery team meetings for the eastern population of the Loggerhead Shrike on 10-11 November.

8 November 2001 --BSC's Development Manager, Steve Wilcox, will be in Jamaica from 13-20 November, meeting with individuals at BirdLife Jamaica, the University of West Indies, the Jamaican Forestry Department and the Southern Trelawney Environmental Agency Board, BSC's partners in Important Birds Areas work in Jamaica, supported by the Canadian International Development Agency.

6 November 2001 -- BSC is pleased to announce the inauguration of the Cape Breton Island Beached Bird Survey. 25 volunteers will survey designated beaches on a monthly basis to track mortality of seabirds and other wildlife. If you would like to participate, contact BSC's Atlantic Canada Programs Manager, Becky Whittam at: becky.whittam@ec.gc.ca

6 November 2001 -- Results are in from the 2001 BC Nocturnal Owl Survey. 177 volunteer surveyors tallied 308 owls of 8 species 2072 stops across BC and the southern Yukon. For more details or to volunteer, contact BSC's BC Programs Manager, Dick Cannings, at dickcannings@shaw.ca

5 November 2001 -- Results from the first year of the second Ontario Breeding Bird Atlas continue to accumulate. Over the Internet, 1076 Breeding Evidence forms from 919 atlas squares and 1465 Point Count forms from 124 squares have been received. This represents 8,051 hours of volunteer survey effort.

In addition, BSC welcomes Jon Gorniak, the Ontario Breeding Bird Atlas Data Manager, who is working at BSC headquarters. Jon is scanning additional Breeding Evidence and Point Count forms into the Atlas database. To date, Jon has scanned 596 Breeding Evidence forms from 532 atlas squares.

5 November 2001 -- Since 1994, 54 teens have attended BSC's week-long Doug Tarry Young Ornithologists Workshop, with a good mix of boys and girls. Participants have come from across Canada. The Young Ornithologists Workshop continues to be a stepping-stone for young people interested in pursuing a career in biology. At least eight are currently pursuing university studies in the natural sciences. Several of the earlier graduates have now graduated from university or community college: one is doing her PhD at Simon Fraser University on shorebird ecology in Latin America; one is completing his MSc degree in ornithology at Trent University. Others are now employed by stations in the Canadian Migration Monitoring Network, and the Canadian Wildlife Service.

3 November 2001 -- BSC's Atlantic Canada Programs Manager, Becky Whittam, has been appointed to the Roseate Tern Recovery Team. Recovery teams plan and implement recovery actions for endangered and threatened species in Canada.

2 November 2001 --BSC's BC Coastal Waterbird Program Coordinator, Stephanie Hazlitt, attended a 3-day workshop on shorebird population monitoring, held in Denver, Colorado.

2 November 2001 --BSC is a co-sponsor of the Silver Anniversary (25^th) Meeting of the Waterbird Society, being held in Niagara Falls, ON from 7-11 November 2001. Several BSC staff will be presenting 6 talks at the meeting: "Habitat associations of marsh-nesting birds in the Great Lakes basin: Implications for local conservation and management" (Charles Francis and Steve Timmermans), "Population trends and habitat use of Tundra Swans staging at Long Point, Lake Erie" (Scott Petrie, Shannon Badzinski and Kerrie Wilcox), "Migration Ecology of Eastern Population Tundra Swans" (Scott Petrie and Kerrie Wilcox), "Amphibian and bird indicators for Great Lakes wetlands: The Marsh Monitoring Program" (Steve Timmermans, Charles Francis, Jon McCracken and Kathy Jones), "Rapid increase in the southern Ontario population of feral Mute Swans" (Scott Petrie and Charles Francis), and "The British Columbia Coastal Waterbird Survey: A volunteer-based monitoring program" (Stephanie Hazlitt and Dick Cannings).

BSC will also give a poster presentation on preliminary results from the Great Lakes Colonial Marsh Bird Survey. Following the meeting, BSC staff (Jon McCracken and Steve Timmermans) will attend a two-day meeting where experts from across the country are assembling to provide input into the development of the Canadian Waterbird Conservation Plan.

2 November 2001 -- Thanks to the K. M. Hunter Charitable Foundation for a $5,000 grant in support of scanning 60,000 handwritten daily log sheets from Long Point Bird Observatory into electronic files.

31 October 2001 -- Thanks to new funding from the Biota of Canada Information Network, BSC will electronically scan all historical nest record cards from the Maritime Nest Records Scheme. Work will also involve preparing a digital catalogue of the scanned images in a format suitable for posting on Internet-based cataloguing and data retrieval systems.

30 October 2001 -- The 17^th International Ornithological Film Festival opens today in Menigoute, France, and runs until Sunday 4November as part of BirdLife International’s World Bird Festival 2001. Titles for this year’s films can be found on the official film festival website: http://www.menigoute-festival.org/

25 October 2001 -- BSC is pleased to announce that Doug Collister of Calgary, AB has become BSC's regional editor for Christmas Bird Counts in the prairie provinces and territories, assisted by Guy Wapple in SK and Rob Parsons in MB.

25 October 2001 -- Final tallies are in from the 2000 BC Nocturnal Owl Survey. BSC's volunteer citizen scientists counted 308 owls of 8 species reported on 156 routes, up from 233 owls on 138 routes last year.

25 October 2001 -- BSC announces a BirdsOntario update that includes new web material on Christmas Bird Counts, Important Bird Areas, Project FeederWatch and the Canadian Lakes Loon Survey. Check it out at: www.birdsontario.org

22 October 2001 -- Shannon Badzinski, Ph.D. candidate with BSC's Long Point Waterfowl and Wetlands Research Fund and the University of Western Ontario has recently published an article on Composition of Eggs and Neonates of Canada Geese and Lesser Snow Geese in the July 2001 issue of the Auk 118:687-697. The paper summarizes Shannon's M.Sc. research on Canada Geese and Lesser Snow Geese on Akimiski Island, Nunavut.

18 October 2001 -- From 12-14 October 2001, 29 people (representing 12 migration monitoring stations from across Canada), gathered at Atlantic Bird Observatory’s field station on Bon Portage Island, NS for the third meeting of the Canadian Migration Monitoring Network. The meeting was preceded by a 3-day bander training session, hosted by the Canadian Wildlife Service (Prairies and Northern Region). Previous CMMN meetings have been held at Long Point Bird Observatory, ON and Delta Marsh Bird Observatory, MB.

The meeting focused on a variety of scientific and technical questions that the Network is posing, and on laying plans for future collaborative research projects. In addition to updates on the activities of migration monitoring stations from across the network, there were presentations on results from recent research on: population trend analyses for nine network stations; the use of stable isotopes to determine geographic origins of birds captured during migration; the orientation of nocturnal migrants that are thought to have been blown off course; patterns of migration in the prairies in relation to regional landscape characteristics; timing of spring migration in relation to age; and how timing of spring migration is affected by climate change.

As well as being treated to a windy show of force from “Tropical Storm Karen,”the participants were enthralled by thousands of Leach’s Storm Petrels (which were still feeding young in their nesting burrows in the middle of October!), and wonderful views of Northern Gannets, Great Cormorants, Ipswich Sparrows, Black Guillemots, and even a Yellow-breasted Chat. Many thanks to Atlantic Bird Observatory staff and volunteers for hosting a terrific meeting!

17 October 2001 -- BSC staff are well-represented at this year's Leading Edge Conference in Burlington, ON, from 17-19 October. BSC's Aquatic Surveys Scientist, Steve Timmermans is presenting two papers: one on habitat associations of marsh-nesting birds in the Great Lakes basin and the other on amphibian and bird indicators for Great lakes Wetlands. Dr. Scott Petrie, Research Director of the Long Point Waterfowl and Wetlands Research Fund, is presenting a paper on population trends and habitat use of Tundra Swans at Long Point, Lake Erie. Kerrie Wilcox, Researcher for the Fund, is presenting a paper on long-term monitoring of Phragmites at Long Point. Presenters are working collaboratively with many other BSC staff and partners in preparing these talks.

16 October 2001 -- BSC's Atlantic Programs Manager, Becky Whittam, is traveling in Newfoundland this coming week, meeting federal, provincial and naturalist folks from across the island.

16 October 2001 -- BSC Senior Scientist, Dr. Charles Francis, will attend a National Boreal Gathering at the Quetico Centre, ON, from 19-22 October. Dr Francis and BSC's GIS Specialist, Andrew Couturier are collaborating with Dr. Reed Noss in a science panel highlighting some of the key ecological values and functions of Canada’s boreal forest.

15 October 2001 -- BSC Senior Scientist, Dr. Denis Lepage, is pleased to report that online data summaries for the Ontario Breeding Bird Atlas are now available. Want to know the current status of birds breeding in your square, region or the province as a whole? Click here: http://www.birdsontario.org/atlas/datasummaries.jsp

13 October 2001 -- BSC welcomes Herlitz Davis, from BirdLife Jamaica, to Long Point Bird Observatory where he will spend the next month in intensive hands-on training in bird banding and monitoring techniques. Afterwards, Hurlitz will take an active role in training fellow Jamaicans bird monitoring at the Cockpit Country Important Bird Area, Jamaica.

9 October 2001 -- The Canadian Migration Monitoring Network is meeting on Bon Portage Island, NS later this week. Representatives from 10 designated stations and 3 other banding stations will report on recent accomplishments, and discuss current challenges and opportunities for cooperative ventures.

2 October 2001 -- BSC has received support from the Prince Edward Island Development and Technology branch to prepare a report and recommendations on the possible effects of wind turbines and tower lighting on bird mortality at North Cape, PE.

1 October 2001 -- BSC's national coordinator of Christmas Bird Counts, Dick Cannings, is meeting with CBC compilers in Nova Scotia this week in Halifax, Wolfville and Truro-Pictou. On 5 October, Dick will be the guest speaker at the Chignecto Naturalists meeting in Sackville, NB.

30 September 2001 -- BSC is pleased to announce that it has completed the terms of a $250,000 challenge grant in support of our new headquarters. BSC members and friends have matched an anonymous donation dollar for dollar, meaning that $500,000 has been raised. A BIG thanks to the 821 BSC members who helped meet the challenge!

30 September 2001 -- BSC's Annual Members Meeting and BirdFest was a great success with 921 people registering for the 1-day event in Burlington, ON. Guided hikes, indoor talks and workshops, a birds of prey show and a bird banding demonstration kept BSC members and guests busy and entertained.

30 September 2001 -- At BSC's Annual Members Meeting the following Directors were elected to their first 3-year terms: Dr. Arne Boer, NB; Mike Cadman, ON; Dr. Fred Cooke, UK; Jim Murray, QC; and David Love, ON. In addition, Robert Carswell, ON was elected to his second 3-year term on the Board.

At the Board meeting following the Annual Members Meeting, the following officers of the Board were appointed for 1-year terms: Gerald McKeating, AB, Chair; Diane Griffin, PE, Vice Chair and John Spearn, ON, Secretary-Treasurer.

30 September 2001 -- Welcome to the following individuals who have been appointed to 3-year terms on BSC's National Council of science advisors: Geroge Clulow, BC; Dr. Jim Duncan, MB; Jackie Krindle (representing the Canadian Nature Federation), MB, and Dr. Jean Pierre Savard (representing the Society of Canadian Ornithologists), QC. Dr. Ken Abraham, ON, was appointed as Chair of National Council for a 1-year term, and Richard Elliot (NB) and Loney Dickson (AB) were appointed as Vice Chairs.

30 September 2001 -- Welcome to the following individuals who have been appointed to 3-year terms on BSC's Long Point Bird Observatory Committee: Dr. Dawn Burke (representing the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources), John Miles (representing the Ontario Bird Banding Association), Jeff Robinson (representing the Canadian Wildlife Service, and Dr. Ken Abraham. Dr. Abraham was also appointed to a 1-year term as Chair of the LPBO Committee.

30 September 2001 -- Welcome to the following individuals who have been appointed to 3-year terms on BSC's James L. Baillie Memorial Fund: Geoff Carpentier, ON; and Dr. Ian McLaren, NS. Mark Stabb, ON, was appointed as Chair of the Baillie Fund for a 1-year term.

29 September 2001 -- BSC's new headquarters continues to take shape. Footings, foundations and deck supports and much of the site grading are now complete. Staff and volunteers have completed the building of a viewing blind overlooking Long Point's Inner Bay.

27 September 2001 -- BSC's new interactive website for the Ontario Breeding Bird Atlas has been up and running for only one month, but already the statistics are encouraging: 197 atlassers have logged in and provided data; 784 breeding evidence cards have been submitted, representing 5800 hours of volunteer time (average of 29h/volunteer); 259 species have been reported, 206 (80%) of which have been confirmed as breeding in the province.

24 September 2001 -- BSC's Board and National Council met from 21-23 September in Edmonton, Alberta.

24 September 2001 -- BSC's Executive Director is meeting with the Board of BC's Wild Bird Trust today to discuss each organization's activities in the province.

20 September 2001 -- BSC's Executive Director, Michael Bradstreet, and Marc Johnson from the Canadian nature Federation gave a presentation on the Important Bird Areas program to staff of the Prairie and Northern Region of the Canadian Wildlife Service, in Edmonton, AB, today.

19 September 2001 -- BSC has received a $75,000 1-year grant from the Canadian International Development Agency to help develop the Important Bird Areas program in Jamaica. Activities will focus on training of Jamaican nationals in bird monitoring techniques, and protection of the Cockpit IBA, which holds all of Jamaica's endemic landbirds including the globally-threatened Yellow-billed Parrot. BSC's funding is supplemented by $120,000 (U.S.) of additional support from the U.S. National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and the Jamaica Environment Fund.

18 September 2001 -- BSC has received a donation from the John David and Signy Eaton Foundation in support of our headquarters capital campaign.

18 September 2001 -- BSC's BC Program Manager, Dick Cannings, hosted Dr. Jeremy Greenwood, Director of the British Trust for Ornithology, for a half day of birding at Vaseaux Lake, BC this week.

17 September 2001 -- "Echoes of the North," a loon documentary has been nominated for three Geminis by the Academy of Canadian Cinema and Television. BSC's Canadian Lakes Loon Survey was the official advisor for the film, which portrays a year in the life of a loon family. Congratulations to Steven and Ralph Ellis of Ellis Vision.

16 September 2001 -- BSC has received $30,000 from Environment Canada (Environmental Conservation Branch, Ontario Region) in support of the Great Lakes Marsh Monitoring Program.

15 September 2001 -- BSC has received a $50,000 grant from the McLaughlin Foundation in support of national programs.

14 September 2001 -- Congratulations to Dr. George Wallace, who has been appointed as Director of the Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory in Colorado. George was the Migration Program Manager at BSC's Long Point Bird Observatory for several years, and then managed BSC's Cuba research programs in conjunction with obtaining a Ph.D. on the use of secondary tropical wet and dry forests by migrant and resident Cuban birds.

12 September 2001 -- BSC National Councillor, Dr André Cyr has been appointed to the "Comité aviseur sur les espèces fauniques menacées ou vulnérables" by the Honorouble Guy Chevrette of the Quebec Gonvernment, for the next two years.

5 September 2001 -- BSC has begun to electronically scan and archive upwards of 60,000 daily log sheets from Long Point Bird Observatory's 3 field stations on Long Point. These priceless daily journals chronicle 4 decades of unusual bird records on Long Point, seasonal migration and station logistics and human events.

31 August 2001 -- Près de la moitié des textes présentant les quelques 100 ZICO du Québec sont maintenant disponibles en français sur le site "interrogez la base de données des ZICO canadiennes" http://www.bsc-eoc.org/iba/sitesZICO.html. La description des 600 sites canadiens est déjà disponibles en langue anglaise et elle le sera en français pour le reste des sites québécois et ceux du Nouveau-Brunswick d'ici la fin de l'année. La base de données des sites ZICO peut être interrogée pour trouver les sites qui correspondent à vos critères de recherches, tels que les espèces ou les habitats présents.

Almost half of the site summaries for 100 Québec IBA sites are now available in French. The remainder of the Québec and all New Brunswick site site summaries will be available in French by the end of the year. Meanwhile, the underlying database can be queried in French by species, habitat or other criteria.

31 August 2001 -- BSC is pleased to announce that population trends in landbirds at 9 member stations of the Canadian Migration Monitoring Network are now available over the Internet by clicking here. Stations with 5 or more years of data are displayed. Users can select the stations and species to be displayed as well as estimated trend values (% changer per year) and the statistical significance of those trends. Information is current as of the fall 2000 migration.

30 August 2001 -- BSC is hosting our BirdFest and Annual Members Meeting at the Royal Botanical Gardens in Burlington, ON on 30 September 2001. To download a description of indoor and outdoor events, click here.

30 August 2001 -- BSC welcomes Jose Zolotoff from Nicaraugua, . Alberto Castillo from Panama, and Jesus Almonte from Dominican Republic, this year's participants in BSC's Latin American Training Program. These three Latin American biologists will spend a month in intensive training at BSC's Long Point Bird Observatory, as part of BSC's contribution to BirdLife International activities in the Americas. BSC has just added information about the program in Spanish to our website. To view new information about BSC's Latin American Training Program, posted on our website, click here.

29 August 2001 -- BSC is pleased to announce that registered participants in the second Ontario Breeding Bird Atlas can now enter their survey data over the Internet. Data entry pages have been tested over the past few weeks by volunteer regional coordinators across the province. For more information on the Atlas, click here.

29 August 2001 -- Trent University MSc candidate Martha Allen has returned to BSC's Long Point Bird Observatory to complete her field work on origin and orientation in migrant landbirds.

29 August 2001 -- The following individuals will make presentations on their work to a joint meeting of BSC's Board and National Council, to be held in Edmonton, AB on 22 September: Brenda Dale, Canadian Wildlife Service (Integrated Bird Monitoring Program); Fiona Schmiegelow, University of Alberta (Boreal Forest Bird Monitoring); Glen Semenchuk, Federation of Alberta Naturalists (Nest Record Scheme, Checklist and IBA programs); Sue Hannon, University of Alberta (university bird programs); Sue Cotterill, Alberta Sustainable Resource Development (Province of Alberta bird programs); Brett Calverley, Alberta North American Waterfowl Management Plan (Biodiversity Program); Frank Fraser and Lisa Takats, (Joint presentation by Lesser Slave Lake and Beaverhill bird observatories.

28August 2001 -- Congratulations to David Hussell and Erica Dunn, winners of this year's Doris Huestis Speirs award for outstanding contributions to Canadian Ornithology. The award is made by the Society of Canadian Ornithologists. David Hussell was the first Executive Director of BSC's Long Point Bird Observatory and also served as Chair of the Board of Directors from 1990-92. Erica was the founder of the Ontario Bird Feeder Survey, which grew to become Project FeederWatch.

27 August 2001 -- BSC's 2001 Baillie Fund grants have been announced. Projects were funded in 9 Canadian provinces and in Venezuela. For a description of the projects supported this year, click here. For an application for 2002 awards, click here.

25 August 2001 -- Thanks to the generosity of members and supporters, BSC has recently supported two BirdLife International projects -- the Yanacocha project in Ecuador and the Bomenda Highlands Forest Project in Cameroon.

24 August 2001 -- NY state authorities have determined that Type E Botulism is responsible for thousands of dead fish to along the Lake Erie shoreline of New York and Pennsylvania. BSC's Long Point Bird Observatory volunteers are monitoring the occurrence of dead shore birds at the Tip of Long Point, and report increasing numbers of dead and dying gulls. If the outbreak continues into the fall, loons, grebes and bay ducks will also be affected.

23 August 2001 -- BirdLife International has launched its new global website. The site gives information on more than 100 BirdLife partners around the world, summary information on Important Bird Areas and detailed information on the world's most threatened bird species. To view the Canada page, click here. Bird Studies Canada and the Canadian Nature Federation are the Canadian partner in BirdLife International.

20 August 2001 -- The Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters has donated $10,000 to BSC's Long Point Waterfowl and Wetlands Research Fund in support of research on contaminant levels in scaup in the lower Great Lakes.

20 August 2001 -- BSC's Atlantic Canada Programs Manager, Becky Whittam, attended the first annual Dorchester, NB, Sandpiper Festival on 4 August. Dorchester Cape and Grand Anse, NB is a globally significant IBA that harbours up to 5.6% of the world population of Semipalmated Sandpipers. Becky will be speaking about BSC programs at Fundy National Park, NB (outdoor theatre) on 21 August.

20 August 2001 -- BSC staff Debbie Badzinski and Charles Francis have completed analyses of year 2000 migration data from Long Point and Thunder Cape bird observatories. Population indices for most species at LPBO and TCBO were lower in 2000 than in 1999. Based on combined spring and fall data from 1961-63 and 1998-2000, 64% of LPBO migrants were increasing, whereas 84% of TCBO migrants declined from 1991-2000. A copy of the full report can be downloaded from The Library section of BSC's home page.

20 August 2001 -- BSC Senior Scientist, Charles Francis, will present a paper on integrating monitoring with management: goals and challenges at a 3-day symposium to mark the retirement of Dr Fred Cooke, who has been the Senior Chair of Wildlife Ecology for the last 10 years at Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, BC. There are 2 Wildlife Ecology Chair initiatives in Canada, one in BC and one in Atlantic Canada (at New Brunswick, Acadia and Memorial universities). The Senior Chair of each initiative sits on BSC's National Council. Wildlife Ecology Chairs are jointly funded initiatives of the Canadian Wildlife Service, the National Science and Engineering Research Council and participating universities. The BC symposium will provide a forum to discuss the expansion of the Wildlife Ecology Chair initiative to other regions of Canada.

19 August 2001 -- BSC's Long Point Waterfowl and Wetlands Research Fund Director, Scott Petrie, and PhD candidate Shannon Badzinski will be attending an Institute for Wetland and Waterfowl Research Symposium at Oak Hammock Marsh, MB from 22-25 August. They will make presentations on a) the diurnal activities of Tundra Swans, b) migration chronology of eastern population Tundra Swans, c) rapid increase in the lower Great Lakes population of feral Mute Swans, and d) a general presentation on the Fund's research initiatives.

16 August 2001 -- BSC Senior Scientist, Charles Francis, co-chaired an afternoon Workshop on Migration Monitoring at the American Ornithologists Union meeting in Seattle, WA. About 80 people attended the workshop which consisted of 2 parts. The first part included 10 talks, including 3 talks on the Canadian Migration Monitoring Network, and the second part discussed the expansion of the network concept into the United States.

16 August 2001 -- BSC has been awarded a $35,000 contract from the North American Bird Conservation Initiative - Canada Council to gain a more precise understanding of the interdependency of Canada, the United States and Mexico for the well being of our shared bird populations of non-game birds and the maintenance of the economic benefits that accrue from them. BSC's Partners In Flight Senior Scientist, Peter Blancher, will undertake this project.

13 August 2001 -- BSC is ready to launch a new regional program in Nova Scotia. The Cape Breton Beached Bird Survey will begin this fall, with volunteers counting and identifying dead birds washing ashore coastal beaches. The data collected will establish background mortality levels to evaluate the impact of extraordinary events like oil spills. Volunteers interested in participating in the survey should contact BSC's Atlantic Canada Programs Manager, Becky Whittam, at becky.whittam@ec.gc.ca

12 August 2001 -- Long Point Bird Observatory's 3 field stations have opened for the fall season. Weekly information on banding results, migration chronology and rarities is posted on BSC's website every Monday morning. The first week of coverage has been typically slow, with movement of flycatchers and cuckoos.

11 August 2001 -- The Canadian Wildlife Service has published its 10-year strategic plan (2000-10), which can be downloaded over the Internet if you click here. The plan acknowledges that non-government organizations are increasingly recognized as integral partners in achieving conservation. "Some have carved out essential roles in conservation activities, such as the functions of Bird Studies Canada in national and regional surveys and volunteer monitoring projects."

10 August 2001 -- Project FeederWatch Coordinator, Becky Whittam, and Senior Scientist, Denis Lepage, are pleased to announce that online data entry in French will be available to project participants this fall through the BirdSource website.

9 August 2001 -- BSC has been awarded a $5,800 by the Nova Scotia Habitat Conservation Fund to help promote the Canadian Lakes Loon Survey in NS, including setting up an ambassador program, and publishing NS results from the survey in a popular format.

8 August 2001 -- BSC's Doug Tarry Young Ornithologists Workshop has had another great year. Six teenagers from Ontario, Québec and British Columbia spent a week at Long Point Bird Observatory and received intensive training in bird banding, and various bird censusing techniques. The best bird of the week was a Marbled Godwit, seen at Big Creek marsh. The kids, and the leaders, were wowed!

7 August 2001 -- Headquarters Construction Update: foundations for the new BSC headquarters in Port Rowan, ON were installed today. The headquarters is slated for completion in March 2002, and the grand opening is scheduled for 1 June 2002.

7 August 2001 -- BSC's Executive Director, Michael Bradstreet, will participate in a North American Bird Conservation Initiative (NABCI) meeting in Cuernavaca, Mexico on 13-14 August. The purpose of the meeting is to develop an international bird conservation agreement, originally to be signed by Canada, the United States and Mexico, but hopefully to extend throughout the hemisphere.

5 August 2001 -- BSC's Senior Scientists, Charles Francis, and C.J. Ralph, U.S. Forest Service, will co-chair a Migration Monitoring Round Table/Workshop on 15 August, in conjunction with the American Ornithologists Union meeting, in Seattle, WA.

4 August 2001 -- Build it, they will come! At noon yesterday, BSC lowered water levels in the shorebird cell of the restored wetlands on the headquarters site in Port Rowan, ON. By 8:00 am this morning 8 shorebird species were feeding on the exposed mudflats (Greater Yellowlegs, Lesser Yellowlegs, Least Sandpipier, Killdeer, Spotted Sandpiper, Pectoral Sandpiper, Stilt Sandpiper, Solitary Sandpiper). In addition, Wood Ducks, Blue-winged Teal, Green-backed Heron and Pied-billed Grebe were present.

3 August 2001 - Thanks to the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources for its support of the 3rd International Piping Plover Census in Ontario. This census is undertaken across North America, primarily by agency staff and volunteers. For the second summer in a row, a banded male Piping Plover summered in the Long Point area. Last year's plover was hatched at Whitefish Point on Lake Superior. This year's bird was hatched at the Platte River Mouth, in Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore.

2 August 2001 - BSC has received $88,730 in new funding from Environment Canada's Habitat Stewardship Program in support of recovery activities in southwestern Ontario for Hooded Warblers (listed as threatened by COSEWIC), Acadian Flycatchers (endangered) and Prothonotary Warblers (endangered). The federal government's contribution will be matched with financial contributions secured by BSC, totaling $76,620.

1 August 2001 - Archaeologists discovered an aboriginal encampment under the new headquarters site. For 2 days, a team of 10 researchers from the Ontario Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Recreation excavated the encampment site, finding pottery shards and a few projectile points. Preliminary results suggest the artifacts are from the Princess Point culture (500-1000 A.D.), a period when aboriginal peoples were developing a sedentary lifestyle. After the dig, the archaeologists cleared the site for continuing construction.

30 July 2001 - On 28 July, BSC's BC Programs Manager, Dick Cannings, reopened Vaseaux Lake Bird Observatory, in BC's Okanagan valley, after a hiatus of several years. During the first few days of banding, Gray Catbird, Willow Flycatcher, Song Sparrow and Cedar waxwing have been the most common birds banded. Todd Hunter, a former Innes Point bander, is arriving on 5 August to staff the station until late September. VLBO is being finacially supported by BSC's Baillie Fund, the Canadian Wildlife Service and the Vancouver Foundation. Volunteers wanting to assist in the operation of the station should contact dickcannings@home.com

29 July 2001 -- Thanks to the support of the Johnson Foundation, BSC will be able to partially subsidize travel costs for station representatives to attend a meeting of the Canadian Migration Monitoring Network, scheduled for 10-14 October 2001. The meeting is being hosted by Atlantic Bird Observatory on Bon Portage Island, off the coast of Nova Scotia.

28 July 2001 -- BSC Senior Scientist, Charles Francis, will be working in collaboration with Erica Dunn, CWS, to evaluate potential biases in daily Estimated Totals by comparing trends calculated from ETs with those calculated from the daily census. ETs and daily census results are two of the standard types of data collected by the 15 member stations of the Canadian Migration Monitoring Network.

27 July 2001 -- Thanks to the World Wildlife Fund and the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources for funding in support of a historical reconstruction of habitats in the St. Williams Crown Forest, ON, home of the largest Canadian population of Hooded Warblers, an endangered species.

24 July 2001 -- Construction of BSC's new headquarters begins today. An archaeologist from the Ontario Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Recreation is on hand to survey the site for archaeological remains as the topsoil is stripped from the site. The $1.5 million construction project is slated for completion in March 2002.

22 July 2001 -- BSC Program Manager, Jon McCracken and Aquatic Surveys Scientist, Steve Timmermans will travel to Denver Colorado on 20 August to participate in a continent wide Marsh Bird Workshop. This workshop will result in development of a document that collates, on a species basis, existing knowledge in a common format including conservation needs and goals, habitat goals, population goals, important sites, existing and needed monitoring, and information needs of several marsh bird species. Conservation action is well under way for some species, such as cranes and loons, under leadership of recovery teams and special interest groups. However, other species have limited information; for these species it will be desirable to identify continent-wide research and conservation goals.

21 July 2001 -- BSC's 2000-01 audited financial statements show a 82% 1-year increase in members' equity in the organization, from $2.1 to $3.9 million. This increase is largely due to increased capital reserves for the construction of the new headquarters. To download the audited financial statements, click here: 2000-01 audit.

20 July 2001 -- BSC Aquatic Surveys Scientist, Steve Timmermans, has completed an updated assessment of trends in marsh bird and amphibian populations across the Great Lakes basin. For many species that are highly dependent on prime marsh conditions, basin wide declines in abundance and occurrence have occurred, especially since about 1997. Conversely, species that tend to be found in drier marsh edge habitat have increased during the same time period.

19 July 2001 -- BSC has completed scanning all of the historical nest record cards for warblers and Rose-breasted Grosbeaks (about 6500 cards in total) in the Ontario Nest Records Scheme. Now, the Birds of Canada has awarded $42,000 in additional financial support to scan additional historical nest record cards in Ontario and Saskatchewan. BSC continues to develop a database into which the scanned records can be exported and analyzed.

15 July 2001 -- BirdLife International reports that seven fishing countries have signed an agreement aimed at saving southern hemisphere albatrosses, some of the world's most majestic seabirds. Australia, Brazil, Britain, Chile, France, New Zealand and Peru agreed to find ways to reduce the threats posed to albatrosses by pollution and longline fishing and hoped other countries would get involved. Australian Environment Minister Robert Hill, who first suggested an international agreement to help save the bird last year, said the 20 species of albatross found in the southern hemisphere would become extinct without action. Scientists estimate about a quarter of a million seabirds, including albatrosses and petrels, have died in the last three years as a result of fishing practices from the southern hemisphere countries.

8 July 2001 -- BSC field staff have just completed field work designed to assess the potential for volunteer monitoring of the endangered Bicknell's Thrush. Staff established 18 routes in Cape Breton Highlands National park, 15 of which had Bicknell’s Thrushes. In total, 106 surveys were completed along these 18 routes. Surveys were run in mornings, evening and using short or long protocols. This will allow comparisons of the results between morning and evening surveys, and between short and long protocols, to determine which is more suitable for the proposed High Elevation Bird Monitoring program. The average number of Bicknell’s Thrushes detected per survey route was 4.78, and ranged from 0 to 16. In addition to those birds detected on survey routes, staff also found five previously unrecorded locations for Bicknell’s Thrushes in the National Park. In total, including both incidental detections and birds detected on survey routes, we recorded 53 different locations for Bicknell’s Thrushes.

7 July 2001 -- BSC 's Atlantic Canada Program Manager, Becky Whittam, spent the last week helping out with the Nova Scotia tern restoration project and a Master's project currently underway. The island Becky visited hosted about 800 pairs of terns this year, mostly Arctic and Common. The bad news is that only one or two pairs of Roseate Terns are hanging around this year, and biologists are not even sure if they're nesting! This is a strange thing, as last year there were 53 pairs nesting. There are a couple of possible explanations for the Roseates' desertion of this site in 2001. First, a young Peregrine Falcon has been hanging around the island this spring/summer, and has been observed in the tern colony (and has taken at least one adult tern). Roseate Terns are particularly sensitive and may have abandoned the colony as a result. Second, bad weather at the very beginning of the season caused almost all of the terns to abandon the colony for one week in May. If this was the week that Roseate Terns first arrived at the island (they generally arrive a little later than other terns), they may have decided the site wasn't worth their while and moved on. On the up side, Roseate Terns are doing well at the other big NS colony, with over 60 pairs this year.

30 June 2001 -- BSC's BC Program Manager, Dick Cannings organized a rare/threatened/endangered bird blitz (15 participants) as part of the BC Field Ornithologists meeting in Dawson Creek from 22-24 June. From the target bird list the following were found: 1 pair of Sandhill Cranes with young, 1 Canada Warbler, 1 Connecticut Warbler, 4 Philadelphia Vireos, and 7 Black-throated Green Warblers. In other field trips associated with the meeting more of the warblers were found, plus a few Yellow Rails, N. Sharp-tailed and LeConte's Sparrows, Upland Sandpipers and, the biggest surprise, a displaying/signing Sprague's Pipit at the Fort Nelson airport.

29 June 2001 -- With assistance from the Canadian Wildlife Service, data entry from the 2000-01 field season of the BC Coastal Waterbird Survey is now complete. The project database now contains 32,000 records on the distribution and abundance of waterbirds in the coastal waters of southwestern BC. Look for a full report in the next issue of BirdWatch Canada.

28 June 2001 -- BSC has awarded a $1.5 million contract to Southside Construction (London) Limited for the construction of our new Headquarters and National Research Centre in Port Rowan, Ontario. Construction will begin in July and take 30 weeks. The Grand Opening of the new headquarters is scheduled for Saturday, 1 June 2002. Mark your calendars now!

26 June 2001 -- BSC's Atlantic Canada Owl Monitoring program has received funding from NB and PE. The New Brunswick Nocturnal Owl Survey has received funding from the NB Wildlife Trust Fund and the NB Environmental Trust Fund to continue this very popular survey in 2002. In 2001, over 80 routes were surveyed by volunteers, who detected 294 owls of six species! The most commonly detected owl was Barred Owl, followed by Northern Saw-whet, Great Horned, Boreal, Long-eared and Short-eared Owl. The PE Nocturnal Owl Survey has also received funding from the PE Wildlife Conservation Fund to help purchase CD players for volunteers in 2002. In 2001, 85 owls of five species were detected on 23 routes, with Barred Owls the most abundant. The Atlantic Region office of Bird Studies Canada has also received funding from the Baillie Fund to host an "Atlantic Canada Owl Monitoring Workshop" in the Fall of 2001. This workshop will be attended by local naturalists and owl researchers and enthusiasts from across Atlantic Canada.

25 June 2001 -- Becky Whittam, BSC's Atlantic Canada Program Manager, will be working on a small island in Nova Scotia from 28 June - 6 July to help train the new manager of the island's Tern Restoration Project. The island is home to approximately one-third of Canada's population of Endangered Roseate Terns, along with close to 1,000 pairs of Arctic and Common Terns. The Canadian Wildlife Service, in conjunction with Dalhousie University and the Nova Scotia Department of Natural Resources, is committed to maintaining the site free of gulls (that prey on tern adults and chicks) and monitoring tern breeding success.

23 June 2001 -- BSC's BC Coastal Waterbird Coordinator, Stephanie Hazlitt, will make a presentation on the Important Bird Areas program to Canadian Wildlife Service staff in Delta, BC on 27 June.

22 June 2001 -- The Vaseux Lake Bird Observatory in the southern Okanogan, BC has received a $3000 contribution from the Canadian Wildlife Service Pacific and Yukon region. Former Innes Point Bird Observatory bander Todd Hunter, will have this Canadian Migration Monitoring Network station fully operational by 1 August.

22 June 2001 --A SWAT team of BSC biologists spent three hot and sticky days at Point Abino and Fonthill Kame, ON last week in search of Hooded Warblers, listed as threatened by COSEWIC. The team found territorial males at both sites. Meanwhile, closer to BSC headquarters, 22 pairs found and a number of single males have been found in the St. Williams Forest.

22 June 2001 -- BSC biologists have found 2000 pairs of Forter's Terns nesting along the Canadian portion of Lake St. Clair. The finding is part of a Survey of Colonial Marsh Birds along the shorelines of the lower Great Lakes, funded by the Canadian Wildlife Service.

21 June 2001 -- BSC contractor, David Okines is completing the banding of endangered Ontario Loggerhead Shrikes in the Napanee, Carden and Bruce Peninsula areas. A new nesting site was discovered near Peterborough last week. A Loggerhead Shrike was also sighted at the Tip of Long Point this month. The Ontario and Manitoba populations of Loggerhead Shrikes are only about two-thirds of what they were last year.

20 June 2001 -- BSC National Council member, Dr. Fred Cooke has just been made a British Trust for Ornithology Research Fellow for 5 years beginning in September, 2001. Dr. Cooke hopes this newly created position will allow for useful interactions with BSC.

20 June 2001 -- Congratulations to the Federation of Ontario Naturalists for their $190,000 grant from Ontario's Living Legacy Trust in support of the Ontario Breeding Bird Atlas. BSC, FON, the Ontario Field Ornithologists, Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Canadian Wildlife Service are partners in this 5-year project to map the distribution and abundance of all of Ontario's breeding birds. For more information, click here.

20 June 2001 -- Thanks to Shell Environment Fund which has awarded a $5,000 grant in support of BSC's Loon Friendly Lakes Campaign.

19 June 2001 -- BSC welcomes Sherrene Keevan, a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Waterloo who is working with BSC Senior Scientist, Dr. Charles Francis, on radio-tracking fledgling Wood Thrushes to better understand dispersal behaviour.

18 June 2001 -- BirdLife International has published the most comprehensive assessment ever of bird numbers across Asia. Threatened Birds of Asia, compiled by over 160 experts in 23 Asian countries, includes a detailed analysis of the threats facing each species and specific conservation measures that could be taken to protect the birds. For more information, click here.

17 June 2001 -- BSC's Aquatic Surveys Officer, Kathy Jones was interviewed on CBC Radio's Fresh Air program yesterday. Kathy was questioned about the use and effectiveness of Loon Nesting Platforms, about the importance using sensitive boating practices, and about the Canadian Lakes Loon Survey and its need for participants.

17 June 2001 -- BSC's Senior Scientist, Dr. Denis Lepage, will make a presentation on the Important Bird Areas program to Canadian Wildlife Service staff in Quebec city on 19 June. BSC's Executive Director, Michael Bradstreet, will make a similar presentation to the national staff of the Nature Conservancy of Canada, in Toronto, on 21 June.

15 June 2001 -- BSC's Senior Scientist, Dr. Charles Francis, will be visiting the British Trust for Ornithology and the BirdLife International Secretariat in England next week to discuss nest-records and publications resulting from BirdLife's publication of Threatened Birds of the World.

13 June 2001 -- BSC's Executive Director, Michael Bradstreet, will chair a 2-day meeting of the Trinational Steering Committee of the North American Bird Conservation Initiative (NABCI) in Ottawa on 14-15 June. Attending the meeting were 3 representatives of the national NABCI committees from Mexico, the United States and Canada, the three national NABCI Coordinators and invited guests Herb Raffaele (US Fish and Wildlife Service) and Jurgen Hoth (Commission for Environmental Cooperation).

9 June 2001 -- BSC has just received $4,000 from the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and $1,000 from the McBride Foundation in support of recovery activities for the Prothonotary Warbler, an endangered species in Canada.

8 June 2001 -- BSC, in cooperation with Harbour Princess boat tours, is offering 1-day boat trips to the Tip of Long Point, on 24 June, 4 and 29 July, 1 and 26 August, and 5 September. Trips leave the main dock in Port Dover at 9:00 a.m. and return at 4:00 p.m. Cost ($65 per ticket) includes a hot meal at noon and interpretive presentations on the history and ecology of Long Point, given by BSC staff. No landing at the Tip is permitted. For reservations, call 519-583-0206.

4 June 2001 -- BSC's GIS specialist, Andrew Couturier, will present a paper at the Federation of Ontario Naturalists's 70th anniversary conference and "Woods Talk" on 14 June. The paper entitled "Landscape Ecology of Birds in Settled Environments," uses examples from BSC's South Walsingham, ON study and the Conservation Priorities project to illustrate the challenges of integrating the results of scientific studies with good planning practice.

4 June 2001 -- BSC's Executive Director, Michael Bradstreet, and University of Western Ontario Plant Scientist, Dr. Jane Bowles, are also presenting a poster at "Wood's Talk." The paper gives the results of monitoring the recovery of woody vegetation on Long Point, ON over a 10-year period following the removal of 500 white-tailed deer.

3 June 2001 -- BSC's Research Director of the Long Point Waterfowl and Wetlands Research Fund, Dr. Scott Petrie, will be attending a Wildfowl Trust Symposium (Mute Swans and their Chesapeake Bay Habitats) in Grasonville, Maryland on 7 June and giving a presentation on the status and management of Mute Swans on the lower Great Lakes.

2 June 2001 -- BSC stafff members Dr. Scott Petrie and Kerrie Wilcox will be attending the 44th annual International Association of Great Lakes Research Conference in Green Bay Wisconsin, 11-14 June. Scott will be chairing a session on Staging, Wintering and Breeding Waterfowl on the Great Lakes. Scott and Kerrie will be giving the following presentations.
Petrie, S.A., and C.M. Francis. Rapid increase in the lower Great Lakes population of feral Mute Swans: A review and a recommendation.
Petrie, S.A., and K.L. Wilcox. Satellite tracking of Eastern Population Tundra Swans.
K.L. Wilcox., and S.A. Petrie. Phragmites australis historical distribution, wildlife use and control at Long Point.

29 May 2001 -- BSC is pleased to announce a $7,500 grant for wetland restoration on our headquarters site and Common Loon conservation initiatives in Ontario. These initiatives were supported by the Helen McCrea Peacock Foundation, managed by the Toronto Community Foundation.

29 May 2001 -- For the next 2 weeks our BC Coastal Waterbird Survey Coordinator, Stephanie Hazlitt, will be busy collaborating with the Laskeek Bay Conservation Society (LBCS) on rocky intertidal shorebird monitoring efforts in Laskeek Bay, Queen Charlotte Islands, BC. Currently this joint effort (LBCS and BSC) is the only long-term monitoring project for breeding Black Oystercatchers, a resident species in coastal areas of BC.

28 May 2001 -- Bird Studies Canada and the Canadian Nature Federation are the Canadian national partner in BirdLife International. Latest figures (2000 calendar year), just compiled, show that BirdLife is active in over 100 countries around the world through a network of 95 national partners. Collectively, the partnership has over 2.5 million members worldwide, a global budget for conservation of $260 million US, over 4,000 staff, owns or manages over 1 million hectares of natural habitat, and engages 2 million children annually in educational activities. As the data show we are indeed an impressive network.

26 May 2001 -- BSC welcomes Rhonda Donley and Michael Turisk who will be researching Hooded Warblers, a nationally threatened species, this summer. They will be spending most of their time monitoring Hooded Warbler productivity in St. Williams Forest, but will also be surveying several other forests in southern Ontario including: Backus Woods, South Walsingham, Point Abino and Dundas Valley. Rhonda and Mike are being supported through Environment Canada's Canadian Wildlife Service funding for species at risk.

26 May 2001 -- Beaverhill Bird Observatory and Bird Studies Canada's just published Guidelines for Nocturnal Owl Monitoring in North America can now be downloaded from BSC's website. To download your copy, click here.

25 May 2001 -- BSC thanks Human Resources Development Canada for financial support for the hiring of 3 summer students in Ontario and New Brunswick in support of endangered species recovery and wetlands conservation.

22 May 2001 -- BSC's Senior Scientist, Charles Francis, has just completed a 2-week university field course in the Long Point area with 7 students from Queen's, Trent, Toronto, Western, Brock, and Guelph universities. During the course, the students developed projects on wing shape and morphology of sparrows and warblers in relation to migration distances; migration timing in spring and fall and year-to-year variation in migration dates in relation to breeding and wintering latitudes; differences in fat loads of warblers on spring migration among 3 capture sites as well as differences in average fat scores among species in relation to expected migration distance; annual variation in body mass and/or wing chord in spring and fall of selected warblers in relation to climate cycles (El Nino); long-term trends in migration dates in relation to global warming; and seasonal and latitudinal changes in clutch size of Yellow Warblers based on nest record scheme cards.

21 May 2001 -- BSC's BC Program Manager, Dick Cannings, is organizing a one-day survey for rare birds at the BC Field Ornithologists meeting in Dawson Creek, BC on 22 June. Target species will include: Broad-winged Hawk, Upland Sandpiper, Cape May Warbler, Black-throated Green Warbler, Bay-breasted Warbler, Canada Warbler, LeConte's Sparrow, and Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow. These are all considered vulnerable or threatened in BC, being restricted to the northeast corner of the province. Teams of birders will be given maps of routes to cover, then simply scour the area for any of these birds, marking exactly on the maps where any are found. A similar exercise in 1999 at Oliver netted many new sites for rare Okanagan species. The data will be given to the BC Conservation Data Centre.

19 May 2001 -- BSC is pleased to announce that it has received $58,000 in support from Environment Canada's Canadian Wildlife Service in support of endangered species recovery efforts for Hooded Warblers and Loggerhead Shrikes.

18 May 2001 -- BSC has received $2,000 from the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resource's Community Fisheries and Wildlife Involvement Program to continue our Woodlands Restoration project at BSC headquarters in Port Rowan. The money will be used to plant oak, hickory, ash, sycamore, aspen, and cottonwood seedlings along with a number of wetland and upland shrubs.

17 May 2001 -- BSC's Executive Director, Michael Bradstreet, presented a brief to Parliament's Standing Committee on Environment and Sustainable Development on Bill C-6, the Species At Risk Act, in Ottawa today. BSC supported the passage of the bill to protect endangered species and offered some specific suggestions for improvement. Click here to download a copy of BSC's brief.

15 May 2001 -- Trustees of the James L. Baillie Memorial Fund recently met and awarded 15 Regular Grants totaling $12,500 and 11 Migration Monitoring Awards also totaling $12,500. The James L. Baillie Student Award for Field Research was awarded to Mary Stapleton (Queen's University) for her project entitled: "Why do females engage in extra-pair mating? Testing the role of the major histo-compatibility complex." Baillie Fund grants are supported through the proceeds of BSC's annual Baillie Birdathon. Grants were awarded to projects from Prince Edward Island to British Columbia.

15 May 2001 -- BSC has received $25,000 US from the Waterfowl Research Foundation for a Long Point Waterfowl and Wetlands Research Fund study of contaminants in Greater and Lesser Scaup staging in Long Point Bay. The Sydenham Conservation Foundation just made a donation of $1,000 for a spring Black Duck banding project.

14 May 2001 -- BSC has received support from the Parks Canada Species At Risk Recovery Fund for the development of a High Elevation Bird Monitoring Program in Atlantic Canada, with particular emphasis on the Bicknell's Thrush. Becky Whittam, BSC's Atlantic Canada Program Manager, will be cooperating with Parks Canada, the Canadian Wildlife Service, and the University College of Cape Breton, to test a protocol that will eventually be used for long-term monitoring of Bicknell's Thrush and other high elevation bird species. The work will be conducted in Cape Breton Highlands National Park.

14 May 2001 -- BSC has just received a $25,000 donation from the Bank of Nova Scotia in support of our new Headquarters and National Research Centre in Port Rowan, Ontario.

10 May 2001 -- BSC's IBA Directory is now live and interactive on line? Want to know where the IBAs in your province or territory are located, or what sites are identified as globally important for a species of concern? Check out The Important Bird Areas program is a global initiative of BirdLife International. BSC and the Canadian Nature Federation are, jointly, the Canadian partner in BirdLife.

9 May 2001 -- Final participant counts for the 2000 Christmas Bird Count are in. 11,404 volunteers from across Canada participated in the count, including 6,541 field observers and 4,863 feeder watchers. The number of official Canadian counts rose from 258 in 1999 to 298 in 2000 (16% increase). Bird Studies Canada coordinates Christmas Bird Counts in Canada, in cooperation with the US National Audubon Society.

9 May 2001 -- BSC Senior Scientist Charles Francis is conducting a 2-week university field course in ornithology in the Long Point area. 8 students from Ontario universities are participating in this Queen's University course.

7 May 2001 -- Participants can now download Ontario Breeding Bird Atlas summary sheets for each square via the internet at http://www.birdsontario.org/atlas/atlasmain.html . Click data, and then "view results" and "map room." Participants can also download a 8.5" x 11" PDF map of their Atlas square. The BirdsOntario web site is hosted by Bird Studies Canada.

6 May 2001 -- BSC has received financial support from the Canadian Wildlife Service to continue volunteer monitoring of Bald Eagle nest sites in southern Ontario and to band Loggerhead Shrikes. Both species are designated as Endangered in Ontario.

5-6 May 2001 -- The Federation of Ontario Naturalists' Working for Wilderness volunteers planted 1300 trees at BSC headquarters over the weekend. This was no small feat given the heavy clay soils on the site.

29 April 2001 -- Martha Allen, MSc student at Trent University, is returning to Long Point to continue her orientation studies of migrant passerines.

22 April 2001 -- BSC's Board, National Council and Long Point Bird Observatory Committee will hold spring meetings at Long Point from 4-6 May. BSC's Annual Operating Plan, fiscal year budget and new headquarters building are all on the meeting agenda. BSC welcomes Canadian Nature Federation Directors, Cliff Wallis, John Pratt, and Executive Director Julie Gelfand, who will join the meeting on Saturday.

21 April 2001 -- BSC's Executive Director, Michael Bradstreet, and BC Program Manager, Dick Cannings, will attend COSEWIC meetings in Osoyoos, British Columbia, from 30 April - 3 May. The Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada determines the national status of species at risk. Michael is a non-government voting member of COSEWIC, and Dick is co-chair of the Species Specialist Croup on birds. At the COSEWIC meetings, status designations will be made for Piping Plover, Harlequin Duck and 34 other species.

21 April 2001 -- BSC's Executive Director, Michael Bradstreet, will attend the 16th Global Council Meeting of BirdLife International in Madrid, Spain, from 26-29 April. Michael will represent BSC and the Canadian Nature Federation, which are, together, the Canadian BirdLife partner.

21 April 2001 -- Beth Wells has been hired on a 1-year contract as Membership/Donations assistant, beginning 30 April.

20 April 2001 -- BSC's Long Point Waterfowl and Wetlands Research Fund welcomes Mike Schummer as its newest Ph.D. graduate student. Mike will be supervised by Dr. Scott Petrie through the University of Western Ontario. Mike has been awarded an International Graduate Student Scholarship and a President's Special Graduate Scholarship. His study is entitled "Bioenergetics of Spring Staging Lesser Scaup at Long Point, Lake Erie." Mike hypothesizes that low-quality zebra mussel diets and high energy demands during spring staging at Long Point reduce nutrient reserve deposition and scaup fitness.

20 April 2001 -- BSC is pleased to announce that Wendy Cridland has accepted the position of Public Support Coordinator, beginning in mid May. Wendy is a resident of Norfolk County and previously worked for the Long Point Region Conservation Authority for seven years. Wendy has a Masters degree in geography from the University of Waterloo and served as a Director of the Long Point World Biosphere Reserve for 6 years, including a term as Vice President.

19 April 2001 -- Bruce Rodrigues is returning to BSC as Thunder Cape Bird Observatory (TCBO) Coordinator for a second year. Bruce is an experienced bander, having spent two seasons at Atlantic Bird Observatory. In addition, John Woodcock, a local Thunder Bay bander will serve as Assistant Coordinator for 2001. TCBO is a cooperative project of BSC, the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Thunder Bay Field Naturalists.

17 April 2001 -- Beaverhill Bird Observatory and Bird Studies Canada have just published Guidelines for Nocturnal Owl Monitoring in North America. This document is the product of a National Nocturnal Owl Monitoring workshop hosted by Manitoba Conservation (Wildlife Branch). Design and printing of the 32-page document were supported by the Canadian Wildlife Service and Alberta Environment. Copies can be ordered from Lisa Takats at lisa.takats@gov.ab.ca.

16 April 2001 -- BSC's Senior Scientist, Charles Francis, has just published an article on recent developments at BSC, in the spring issue Picoides, the journal of the Society of Canadian Ornithologists.

10 April 2001 -- BSC has received $8,000 from the Endangered Species Recovery Fund for work on endangered Prothonotary Warblers in Ontario this year.

2001 News Archive