The 2018-2019 Christmas Bird Count for Kids season has wrapped up in Canada. Thank you to all who made it a success! Sixty-nine events across the country gathered young birders to identify and count winter birds in their local neighborhoods, parks, cities, and wild spaces.
A team of Bird Studies Canada staff will soon be heading to the 12th Prairie Conservation and Endangered Species Conference in Winnipeg, MB from February 19-21. The theme of the conference is “Working Landscapes,” and participants will be exploring intersections between conservation and agriculture.
Thank-you to those of you who participated in our Christmas Bird Count and CBC4Kids photo contest! It’s been a pleasure to receive your submissions from across Canada. We are delighted to announce the winners of this year’s random prize draw!
Our favourite entries in last year’s Great Backyard Bird Count Story Contest were so delightful, we wanted to read them again! We hope they inspire you to participate in the 2019 Great Backyard Bird Count and submit your own story.
The 22nd Great Backyard Bird Count will take place from Friday, February 15 through Monday, February 18. Volunteers from around the world are invited to count the birds they see for at least 15 minutes on one or more days of the count, then enter their checklists at birdcount.org.
Once in a while, we are invited to apply our skills and passion in a different realm. This is the spirit of unity that connects the world’s largest alliance for nature, BirdLife International. In March, Bird Studies Canada’s “Team Canucks” will proudly represent Canada for the first time ever at the biggest, friendliest birding race for conservation on Earth – Champions of the Flyway!
Are you interested in helping birds? Get involved in the 22nd Annual Great Backyard Bird Count, running from February 15-18, 2019.
February 2nd is World Wetlands Day! This awareness day commemorates the 1971 adoption of the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands. It’s also the perfect time to reflect on the global importance of these ecosystems, and to renew our commitment to protecting wetlands in Canada.
The 119th Christmas Bird Count (CBC) season officially ended on 5 January 2019. Results are still coming in, but some highlights reported so far include a Western Kingbird seen during the Long Point count (a first for Ontario CBCs!) and surges in Eurasian Collared-Doves in the west (and even an appearance in Hamilton, ON).
Nestled between the imposing boreal forest and ridges of Riding Mountain National Park and the shores of Lake Manitoba are three relatively unknown Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas (IBAs). Thanks to support from Bird Studies Canada’s Baillie Fund – including donations collected by the Great Canadian Birdathon’s dedicated participants – the Manitoba IBA Program received a grant in 2018 to deliver outreach in these IBAs.
