Archives

1 April 2005 
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Millennium Ecosystem Assessment Calls for Action

30 March 2005, BirdLife International - Today’s release of the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MEA), a five-year research effort by 1360 of the world’s leading scientists, gives compelling evidence of our dependence on healthy and diverse ecosystems for clean water, food, a stable climate, and much more. The MEA is the largest mobilization ever to assess the current state of the world’s ecosystems, and the services they provide to support life on Earth.

In response to the significance of the MEA’s findings, eight of the world’s leading international conservation organizations – Birdlife International, Conservation International, IUCN-The World Conservation Union, Fauna & Flora International, the Nature Conservancy, Wetlands International, the Wildlife Conservation Society, and the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) – are pledging to work together to conserve ecosystems for the improvement of human well-being. We call on the world to join us. To learn more, click here.

North American Landbird Conservation Plan Online

28 March 2005 - The Partners in Flight (PIF) North American Landbird Conservation Plan is now available for viewing or download from the web. The Plan, published in 2004, provides a continental synthesis of priorities and objectives that will guide landbird conservation actions at national and international scales. Co-authors come from Canada, United States, and Mexico, and include Bird Studies Canada's PIF Scientist Peter Blancher, former President Michael Bradstreet, and Board Member Art Martell. The scope for this Plan is the 448 species of native landbirds that regularly breed in the U.S. and Canada. To access the Plan online, click here.

For the 100 landbirds identified in the Plan as PIF Continental Watch List species, there is another new resource on the web – species accounts that list the research and monitoring needs of each species, along with information on distribution and habitat associations. You can access these accounts through a link on the Plan page (in the coloured box) or directly by clicking here.

BSC Receives International Partners in Flight Award

23 March 2005 - BSC’s President, Dr. George Finney, recently accepted, on behalf of Bird Studies Canada, an international award for outstanding contributions to bird conservation. One of 6 awards presented by the American Birding Association and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, on behalf of Partners in Flight, Bird Studies Canada received a Partners in Flight Investigations Award in recognition of BSC’s coordinated national-scale monitoring of boreal migrants and for its many other long-term monitoring programs.

New Manual Available for Bird Guides

22 March 2005 - Over the past few years Nature Canada, the BirdLife co-partner in Canada along with Bird Studies Canada, has been working with a local wildlife NGO in Mexico to promote community-based nature tourism opportunities for communities living near sites of key conservation significance.

The organization Amigos de Sian Ka’an has considerable experience in environmental education and bird guide training and has been working with local communities for many years. With the success of its bird guide training, there has been a realization that the wealth of material and experiences gained should be brought together in a format that could be shared with others.

As a result, Nature Canada and Amigos de Sian Ka’an have collaborated on a manual to assist organizers and instructors of bird identification workshops in Latin American rural communities.

To learn more about the manual and access it online, click here.  Hard copies of the manual are available in English and Spanish from Nature Canada by e-mailing info@naturecanada.ca

 

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Sexual Differences Observed in Fall Migration

26 March 2005 - In songbirds, there has been a lot of attention paid to studying differential timing of migration of males versus females and older birds versus younger birds in the spring, but very little research has been done on the fall migration. In spring, males almost always precede females, and older birds tend to precede younger birds. In a research paper that was published in the most recent issue of The Auk (Volume 122(1):71-81), Alex Mills used a massive database of banding records from the Long Point Bird Observatory to demonstrate that "protogyny" (the earlier migration of females), while less common and less dramatic than spring "protandry" (the earlier migration of males), frequently occurs in the autumn. In three of the five species studied at Long Point (Ruby-crowned Kinglet, Magnolia Warbler, and Yellow-rumped Warbler), fall migration of females preceded that of males by two to five days. No sexual difference in the timing of migration was found for the two other species (Least Flycatcher and American Redstart).

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Maritimes Atlas Benefits from Ontario Experience

30 March 2005 - Ontario Breeding Bird Atlas Coordinator Mike Cadman, Assistant Coordinator Nicole Kopysh, and Database Manager and BSC Senior Scientist Denis Lepage travelled to Sackville, NB on 22-23 March to meet with the Steering Committee and various sub-committees of the second Maritimes Breeding Bird Atlas. The two-day meeting discussed the "A to Zs of Atlas Management" and also delved into the technical details of point counts, mapping atlas squares, and developing an online data entry program. Field work for the second Maritimes Breeding Bird Atlas will begin in 2006.

Beached Bird Survey Training Offered

29 March 2005 - Bird Studies Canada teamed up with the Seabird Ecological Assessment Group (SEANET) to host a bi-national training session for Bay of Fundy Beached Bird Survey volunteers on Saturday, 26 March at the Downeast Heritage Center in Calais, Maine. About a dozen volunteers learned how to conduct surveys, and learned about the effects of oil and other sources of pollution on seabirds along the Atlantic coast.

Another training session for Canadian beached bird survey volunteers will be held on Saturday, 9 April in Digby, NS, from 1 to 3 p.m. at the Coastal Inn. To register, contact Greg Campbell at (506) 364-5025 or e-mail at greg.campbell@ec.gc.ca. The Bay of Fundy Beached Bird Survey is sponsored by EcoAction, the Gulf of Maine Council on the Marine Environment, and the Nova Scotia Go For Green Fund. For more information on BSC's Atlantic Canada Beached Bird Surveys, click here.

NS Bird Society Learns about Atlassing and Owls

25 March 2005 - Atlantic Canada Program Manager, Becky Whittam, spoke to the Nova Scotia Bird Society in Halifax, NS on Thursday 24 March. Topics included both the second Maritimes Breeding Bird Atlas (see item above), and owl surveying in Nova Scotia. Members of the Bird Society, many of whom are also Bird Studies Canada volunteers, showed great enthusiasm for both topics. For more information on the Bird Society, click here.

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Québec MMP Presented to Ducks Unlimited

22 March 2005 - Catherine Poussart of BSC’s Québec regional office presented the Marsh Monitoring Program (MMP) at a recent Ducks Unlimited Canada meeting. In Québec, Ducks Unlimited Canada has developed, restored, or protected 21,000 ha of marsh. These wetlands offer good habitat for many marsh bird species as their water level is often controlled, reducing the possibility that nests will be flooded. As in 2004, this spring MMP participants will be conducting bird surveys in some of the marshes managed by Ducks Unlimited.

22 mars 2005 - Catherine Poussart, employée d’ÉOC au Québec a présenté le Programme de surveillance des marais (PSM) aux employés de Canards Illimités Canada du bureau de Québec. Dans cette province, Canards Illimités Canada a aménagé, restauré ou protégé 21 000 hectares de marais. Ces marais offrent un habitat de choix B plusieurs espPces d’oiseaux de marais étant donné que les niveaux d’eau sont souvent contrôlés, ce qui diminue le risque que les nids soient inondés. Tout comme au printemps 2004, les participants du PSM de la saison 2005 feront des inventaires d’oiseaux dans certains aménagements de Canards Illimités Canada.

The Owls are Calling

1 April 2005 - Owl Surveys start in Atlantic Canada today! One April marks the first day of the survey window for the Atlantic Canada Nocturnal Owl Survey. More than 200 volunteers from across the region participate in this annual survey. Updated instruction guides and the 2004 survey report are available online, by clicking here.  For more information, contact Becky Whittam at becky.whittam@ec.gc.ca or Greg Campbell at greg.campbell@ec.gc.ca

In Ontario, 1 April also marks the start of the survey window for the Ontario Nocturnal Owl Survey. Participants can run their survey during a single evening throughout the entire month. Be sure to return data forms to Bird Studies Canada by 15 May. All data collected, regardless of the number of owls observed, is important to the survey. Areas with few species recorded help us highlight potential movement or declines. Long-term data are critical in the analysis of population trends, such as with the Northern Saw-whet Owl. Over the past five years, survey data in central Ontario have shown an interesting pattern of increasing and decreasing numbers, likely related to fluctuations in small mammal prey populations. For further details on this and many other interesting trends, view the 2004 Final Report by clicking here.  For more information on the survey please contact Susan Debreceni at sdebreceni@bsc-eoc.org.

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LPBO Spring Season has Begun

31 March 2005 - Long Point Bird Observatory's (LPBO's) migration monitoring at Old Cut banding station will be in full swing as of 1 April. The observatory's two remote stations, Breakwater and the Tip, will be open by mid April. Check out all of the weekly sightings on the Sightings Board, updated weekly with highlights from LPBO and the surrounding area, by clicking here.  The first updates from March are already posted. If you're in the area, be sure to plan a visit to Long Point and visit us on Old Cut Blvd. The friendly LPBO staff, volunteers, and Friends of Long Point Bird Observatory would be happy to answer those burning questions about Long Point and the birds. As well, check out the new, onsite 'LPBO Shoppe' for bird-friendly gifts and apparel.

Swan Song

28 March 2005 - Every year, tens of thousands of Tundra Swans move through Long Point in early spring on their way to the high Arctic. This springs migration through Long Point peaked this past weekend with well over 15,000 in the Long Point Marshes and surrounding fields. Although the fields are no longer blanketed in white, many Tundra Swans will still be in the region through April.

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LPWWRF Presents Research Far and Wide

26 March 2005 - The Long Point Waterfowl and Research Fund (LPWWRF) staff and students presented research findings to other waterfowl and wetland specialists earlier this spring at several different technical meetings and scientific conferences held in Manitoba, Minnesota, and Connecticut. Research and lecture topics addressed invasive Mute Swans, selenium uptake by scaup, effects of Tundra Swans on aquatic vegetation, resource use by diving ducks, and much more. Topics were presented by Scott Petrie, Paul Ashley, Shannon Badzinski, Michael Schummer, and Ted Barney.

Scaup Work Receives an Order of Good Cheer

26 March 2005 - The Aylmer Order of Good Cheer recently provided a generous $2000 contribution toward the Lesser Scaup satellite tracking project being conducted by the Long Point Waterfowl and Wetlands Research Fund this spring. LPWWRF will be tracking 6 adult females from Long Point to their breeding grounds, and with any luck, back to their wintering areas. This research is part of LPWWRF's long-term study pertaining to contaminant acquisition by Lesser and Greater scaup on the lower Great Lakes.

Eagle Display Engages Hundreds of Youth

15 March 2005 - On the weekend of 12-13 March, over 2000 youth attended the 2005 Simcoe Wildlife Festival in Simcoe, ON. Bird Studies Canada provided a youth-oriented booth and promoted Bald Eagle education by asking children to assist in the construction of a life-sized eagle nest and take part in a colouring contest. Over 200 children entered the contest! To view the winners by age category, click here.

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