The LSLBO Monitoring Report is an anecdotal account of the monitoring season. It includes information about new research activities as well as the Education program. For technical data, you must contact the office.

The Warbler newsletter is published by the LSLBO bi-annually. Members receive the latest edition prior to its online posting. If you wish to become a member, please see the memberships page for a downloadable membership form.

The Canadian Landbird Monitoring Strategy has been prepared by the Canadian Wildlife Service and Bird Studies Canada on behalf of Partners in Flight – Canada to provide a strategic framework and an action plan for the long-term monitoring of Canada’s land birds and selected waterbirds. The action plan is intended as a working document, subject to ongoing revision and updating as work progresses, additional needs become clear, and resources become available.

The boreal forest stretches across a vast northern expanse of North America, from Alaska in the west to Newfoundland & Labrador in the east, with most of the forest in Canada. This forest is of immense global importance to landbirds, especially during the spring and summer when billions of landbirds rely on boreal nesting grounds. This report outlines broad patterns in landbird population sizes, trends and links to wintering grounds to illustrate just how important Canada’s portion of the boreal forest is, not just within the boreal itself, but also across North America, the Western Hemisphere and globally.

Three bird observatories have been established in Alberta as part of the Canadian Migration Monitoring Network to monitor populations of songbirds breeding in the boreal forests of northern Canada. Birds are counted daily throughout spring or fall migration to estimate changes in populations that could be related to activities such as logging practices in the boreal forests, where bird populations are difficult to count directly. Obtaining reliable estimates of population trends requires many years of data, but now that all of these stations have at least 5 years of data, we have calculated annual population indices for most of the more frequently counted species.

More information: Canadian Migration Monitoring Network.

The main objective of the Canadian Migration Monitoring Network (CMMN) is to monitor bird species that are not being adequately monitored by other programs, such as the Breeding Bird Survey and Christmas Bird Count. Migration monitoring may be an effective means of monitoring species that nest in remote northern areas of Canada, species whose habitat is rarely sampled by roadside surveys and species that are otherwise difficult to detect during the breeding season. Data from 19 CMMN stations or sites in five geographic regions (British Columbia, Prairies, Great Lakes, St. Lawrence, and Atlantic Coast) were analyzed to determine which priority species were being monitored and to identify gaps in coverage by the CMMN.

At the national level, the CMMN is covering most of the species designated as targets for migration monitoring. Only 14 of 108 priority species are definitely not being monitored by any of the CMMN stations. However, there are likely other species that are not being adequately monitored because coverage consists mainly of local resident breeders or because they are considered unsuitable candidates for migration monitoring. At the regional level, there are many gaps in species coverage. 52% of priority species are being potentially monitored in British Columbia, 69% in the prairies, 94% in the Great Lakes region, 74% in the St. Lawrence region, and only 57% in the Atlantic Coast region. However, additional stations are being developed in both British Columbia and the Atlantic region, which may improve coverage.

For full details on which species are currently being monitored at each station. Download a copy of the complete report in a format suitable for printing. For further information on the Canadian Migration Monitoring Network, with descriptions of each of the stations, check the CMMN web page.

The Directory of 150 North American IBAs presents the initial results of the North American Important Bird Areas (IBA) program that were supported by the Commission for Environmental Cooperation (CEC). The IBA initiative is a program of BirdLife International, a global partnership of non-governmental conservation organizations. In North America the IBA program has been developed by Consejo Internacional para la Preservación de las Aves-Sección México (CIPAMEX) in Mexico, The National Audubon Society and American Bird Conservancy in the United States, and Bird Studies Canada and the Canadian Nature Federation in Canada.

With the Canadian IBA program, Bird Studies Canada has the lead responsibility for site identification and field research activities, while the Canadian Nature Federation has the lead responsibility for site conservation and advocacy.

The 50 Canadian IBAs presented in this publication represent the first sites that were completed.

View site summaries for an additional 150 Canadian IBAs: Canadian electronic IBA directory.