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What am I committing to?
The BC Coastal Waterbird Survey is a program designed to monitor coastal waterbirds. Participants of the Survey are encouraged to visit and count waterbirds at a designated survey site once a month with an emphasis from September to April. Even with a few visits a year, you are helping amass an important data set for monitoring and helping to conserve waterbird populations in British Columbia. While we hope people will adopt a BC Coastal Waterbird Survey site and continue to visit for years to come, we appreciate whatever efforts you can make.
What if I cannot visit every month?
In the event of any absences or illness, a friend can step in and do your waterbird count for the month, or inform your regional organizer or the BC Coastal Waterbird Survey Coordinator to help find a temporary replacement. If a monthly survey is missed, surveys can resume when you return.
What bird species are we counting?
We are counting all species of coastal waterbirds including the many species of loons, grebes, cormorants, herons, swans, geese, ducks, shorebirds, gulls, terns, auks as well as raptors that use coastal areas. Because raptors are also of interest and may affect numbers of waterbirds, we are counting hawks, eagles, falcons and vultures flying over or using the survey area.
Survey skills and equipment
Surveyors must be comfortable identifying all waterbird species that regularly occur in the survey area. If you are unsure of your identification skills, why not accompany an experienced observer until you feel confident with all the regular species in your area?
To adequately view and identify waterbirds from the shoreline, surveyors need either binoculars or a spotting scope, but preferably both. Optical equipment should be good enough to identify birds up to at least 500m from the shoreline in good conditions.
Once you have a designated BC Coastal Waterbird Survey site and the necessary viewing equipment and skills, you are ready to do a monthly survey!
Where are BC Coastal Waterbird Survey sites?
A suitable BC Coastal Waterbird Survey site is an accessible section of the British Columbia coastline with safe and legal access to the site. A survey site can be along rocky intertidal shorelines, a sandy or cobble beach, a small or large bay or an estuary.
Click here to view the Survey site locations.
If you would like to participate in the Survey contact the BC Coastal Waterbird Survey Coordinator. You may suggest your own location for a survey site or the organizer may be able to select a location for you. It is important that coastal waterbird counts be consistent, counting only within the site boundaries decided on jointly by yourself, your regional organizer and/or the BC Coastal Waterbird Survey Coordinator.
When do I do my BC Coastal Waterbird Survey?
BC Coastal Waterbird Surveys are monthly waterbird counts. To standardize counts in each area, surveyors are asked to visit on the second Sunday of each month, or as close to that day as possible. We urge you to try and count as close to the target day as possible, but since weather conditions vary and other commitments crop up, all surveys are accepted and appreciated.
Synchronized counts are most important for certain large areas that are divided among multiple observers, where there is a high risk of multiple counting. Regional organizers in these areas may wish to emphasize coordinated efforts.
Additional Surveys
For those who have the time to contribute, we encourage you to count more than one site. Also, if you have the time, or are visiting your site more often than once a month, we encourage you to carry out surveys more frequently, especially during migration periods. This can provide valuable additional information on migration patterns and short-term fluctuations in numbers.
Western Grebe
Artist: Joanne BeaulieuWeather and Sea Conditions
Weather conditions affect the visibility of waterbirds and the enjoyment of the visit. Surveys should be conducted on days with reasonable weather conditions. Slight winds and drizzles are OK, but avoid those westcoast winter storms! It can be difficult to see birds in rough, stormy waters, so avoid counting when the sea is rough. Suitable weather and sea conditions are up to the discretion of each volunteer counter. Base your judgement on normal weather conditions for that time of year.
What about changes with the tide?
One major consideration when counting coastal waterbirds is the state of the tide. In some areas, like extensive mudflats and sandy beaches, waterbirds are too far away to see unless the tide is relatively high. In other areas, the effect of the tide may be far less dramatic. Although you may be able to see some species better at low or mid-tides, such as feeding shorebirds, it is important to standardize the Survey. BC Coastal Waterbird Surveys are best done between the period beginning 2 hours before the high tide of the day until 2 hours after the high tide of the day.
The high tide of the day in this example is 16:00 (4 o’clock in the afternoon). Therefore the best time to count waterbirds is from 14:00 to 18:00 (between 2 and 6 o’clock in the afternoon). If you require tide information for your surveys contact your regional organizer or the BC Coastal Waterbird Survey Coordinator.
How do I count waterbirds?
WATERBIRD COUNTS
All waterbirds are counted during a survey, but we would like you to separate waterbirds into 3 habitat categories: INLAND, NEAR-SHORE and OFF-SHORE habitats. Separating waterbird counts by habitat will help us understand which habitats birds are using as well as reduce the variation among observers. Most of us, under good conditions, will be able to identify waterbirds up to 500m, but the observer variation will increase at greater distances.
INLAND refers to all birds in inland habitats (on the shore, in fields, or on inland waterbodies) that are visible from the shore or from your vantagepoint.
NEAR-SHORE refers to birds in near-shore habitats, which extend from the high tide mark of the shoreline to 500m out onto the water.
OFF-SHORE refers to birds in off-shore habitats, which extend from 500m off-shore to as far as you can see waterbirds during the visit.
Please separate these counts by habitat, and enter them in the appropriate columns on the BC Coastal Waterbird Survey recording form. At some sites, like estuaries or narrow inlets, birds can be seen 500m away but are obviously not in OFF-SHORE habitats. In these situations, please put birds in the appropriate habitat. If you cannot tell which habitat the birds are in, you can use the ‘UNKNOWN HABITAT’ column. As much as possible, please use your judgement to make your estimate as precise as possible.
What about birds moving around during the survey?
If a movement of birds occurs during the survey, do your best to count birds only once. Birds that fly into your count area, birds that continuously move about within the count area, or birds that were in the count area when you began but later flew out of the area should be counted only once. Record moving birds in the habitat that was closest to shore. If birds were near-shore then moved off-shore record them in the near-shore habitat. If birds were near-shore and moved inland, record them in the inland habitat. If you are uncertain about which habitat, use the unknown habitat column.
Heerman's Gull
Artist: Joanne BeaulieuWhat if I see a species that is not on the form?
Over 75 species of waterbirds have been recorded in British Columbia. To keep the survey form simple, we have only listed the species that are most commonly recorded in most areas of BC. If you see a species not listed, simply fill in the species name on one of the lines under "OTHER" and record the appropriate counts there.
Counting waterbirds at your survey site
BC coastline habitats are diverse, which results in wide variation between BC Coastal Waterbird Survey sites. Survey techniques will differ between sites. At some sites, such as small bays or harbours, waterbird counts can be done from one vantagepoint. At these sites, the off-shore habitat begins at 500m from the observer.
When walking along shorelines or mudflats, waterbird counts should be broken up into sections, using landmarks along the shoreline, such as a tree. Observers should walk along the shoreline, stopping to count each section. Try and be consistent each time you survey the site. The off-shore habitat begins at 500m from the shoreline.
Estimating the distance
Some people will feel confidant estimating a distance of 500m to distinguish the near-shore and off-shore sections of the coastline. For others, this can be a difficult task. Some helpful and easy distance estimation techniques include;
Pacing out 500m on the beach: To get a feel for 500m, you can pace out a 500m distance along the shoreline and use that as your future 500m estimate. The average person walks approximately 1 meter with every 2 steps, therefore to pace 500m you need to walk 1000 casual steps.
Using a permanent Marker: You can use a permanent marker, such as a buoy, deep water marker, or even a tree down the beach as a consistent 500m distance estimate. You can use an imaginary radius from the permanent marker to denote a ~500m distance from the shoreline.
The 500m distance is only an approximate estimate. Errors of 100m too far or 100m too close are not important, as long as you try to be consistent.
Recording the BC Coastal Waterbird Data
It is helpful to take the recording form along during your survey, although many people find it useful to use a notebook in the field. Please fill in the BC Coastal Waterbird Survey recording form soon after the visit. This ensures that all the details can be remembered and included on the recording form.
Send completed BC Coastal Waterbird Survey recording forms to your regional organizer or to the BC Coastal Waterbird Survey Coordinator. Recording forms can be sent when it is convenient, but all recording forms for the year should be sent to the BC Coastal Waterbird Survey Coordinator by May 1st. We require the submission of all data by May to produce the annual newsletter during the summer.
To download the recording form, click here. (218K PDF file, Adobe Acrobat required)
Please Send Completed BC Coastal Waterbird Survey Recording Forms to the:
BC Coastal Waterbird Survey
Bird Studies Canada
5421 Robertson Road, RR1
Delta, British Columbia
Canada, V4K 3N2Safety
Coasts can be dangerous habitats. Please take great care during BC Coastal Waterbird Survey related activities. Please inform someone when you are counting coastal waterbirds and your expected time home. Please wear the appropriate clothing, like warm layers and rain gear when needed. Bird Studies Canada cannot accept responsibility or liability for accidents during activities related to the BC Coastal Waterbird Survey.
All photos copyrighted by Richard Cannings
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