With spring on the way, keep an eye and an ear out for Chimney Swifts returning from South America! Unfortunately, along with other species that rely on flying insects, Chimney Swift populations are in trouble. Since 1970, Canadian populations have declined by about 90%, and they are listed as “Threatened” under the Species at Risk Act.
Birds Canada staff Janine McManus, Prairie Biologist, and Dr. Kiel Drake, Prairie Director, as well as other colleagues, also listened to the recording. They agreed: a Common Poorwill in Manitoba!
We are looking for volunteers to adopt existing routes that are not currently being surveyed or new routes in areas with no current coverage.
Thank-you to the prize donors, participants, and sponsors who made Birds Canada’s 2021 Great Canadian Birdathon a success. All of your hard work and generosity will benefit Canada’s wild birds in many, many ways, and is deeply appreciated.
A proposed shipping terminal expansion project in BC has returned to the media spotlight. The Roberts Bank Terminal 2 (RBT2) project would see an artificial island about the size of 150 football fields built in the heart of the Fraser River Estuary. This is expected to impact a number of species legally protected under Canada’s Species at Risk Act, such as Chinook Salmon and Southern Resident Killer Whales. Experts within Environment and Climate Change Canada have also warned it would irreparably damage vital habitat for long-distance migratory birds like Western Sandpipers.
Silver linings of the pandemic are scarce, but one of them is surely Canadians reconnecting to the outdoors and nature. We went for a bike ride or jogged when we couldn’t visit a gym. For relief from another Zoom call, we walked, catching up with friends and counting steps with family. And many of us discovered birds in our backyards and from our balconies for the first time.
Birds Canada is delighted to announce the launch of the Chimney Swift Chimney Restoration Fund, a major new initiative to help conserve important habitat for the Chimney Swift, which is listed as Threatened under Canada’s Species at Risk Act.
For a quarter of a century the annual Great Backyard Bird Count has been a bright spot for nature lovers. The 25th edition of the event is coming up February 18 through 21.
This year, we asked our many CBC volunteers to share with us what it means to participate in North America’s longest-running Citizen Science project. Thank you to all who took the time to share with us. We heard from participants from coast to coast. Birds are important to all of us, and your responses made that loud and clear.
Birds Canada is seeking new volunteers to participate in the Great Lakes Marsh Monitoring Program. This long-term monitoring program coordinates hundreds of volunteer Citizen Scientists throughout the Great Lakes basin of Ontario and the U.S. Volunteers collect information about the presence and abundance of birds and frogs in Great Lakes marshes to contribute to our understanding of these species and their habitat needs.
