Birds Canada is seeking a Conservation Coordinator to lead the development and delivery of a conservation strategy and related actions for Bank Swallow in Atlantic Canada. Candidates should possess a Bachelor’s degree (science, biology, environmental studies, ecology, conservation development, or related field) and have practical experience with wildlife conservation planning and program coordination; technical skills related to data and information management and report-writing; and interpersonal skills for collaboration, team-building, and public outreach/engagement.  Candidate can expect to work in a small team environment with enthusiastic colleagues who like birds.

DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

The Bank Swallow Conservation Coordinator will play a lead role in developing and delivering a conservation strategy and related actions for the Bank Swallow in the Atlantic region (Maritimes). The goal of the project is to improve the conservation status of Bank Swallow in Atlantic Canada through targeted stewardship, outreach, monitoring, and research efforts. Tasks include developing resources and strategies to encourage voluntary stewardship for nest and roost sites, promote compliance with legislation, and monitor Bank Swallow nest and roost sites, as follows:

• Build and maintain strong working relationships with a variety of partners
• Review and collate a dataset of background information for Bank Swallow, e.g. existing beneficial management practices and science-based recommendations, survey protocols, regulations, and policies
• Use “The Open Standards for the Practice of Conservation” to develop a situational analysis for Bank Swallow conservation in Atlantic Canada
• Develop bilingual education materials tailored to target audiences
• Help develop and maintain mechanisms to evaluate the impact of stewardship and outreach efforts (for example, results chains) and ensure that these outcomes are measurable and tracked
• Conduct data and mapping analyses and write project reports
• Identify and lead additional targeted outreach and education opportunities for stakeholders
• Assist partners with projects that fill key knowledge gaps related to Bank Swallow management and conservation
• Assist in fundraising for the ongoing maintenance and development of the project
• Hire, train, and manage seasonal project staff
• Promote Bank Swallow conservation and program through Birds Canada website and social media (Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram), as well as through broader media releases, and through presentations to naturalist clubs, industry stakeholders, and other groups
• Other work related to aerial insectivore conservation, as determined by the supervisor and Atlantic Programs Director

APPLICANTS SHOULD HAVE:

• A BSc. in biology, ecology, wildlife conservation, program management, or related field
• Demonstrated knowledge of and experience with coordinating working groups or collaboratives, project design and data analysis, stewardship and stakeholder engagement
• Understanding of bird monitoring techniques
• Knowledge of “The Open Standards for Conservation Planning” and/or Miradi software
• Exceptional interpersonal skills, communication skills, and the ability to communicate ideas and protocols to individuals of diverse backgrounds and viewpoints
• Fluency in both English and French
• Experience working with species at risk and stewardship programs
• A solid knowledge of migratory birds, including the ability to identify Bank Swallow and other aerial insectivores by sight and sound, is an asset
• Familiarity with legislation pertaining to species at risk and migratory birds, and with the geography and cultures of Atlantic Canada
• Fluency with Microsoft Office suite of programs and experience analyzing and summarizing data

The position is remote from any Birds Canada office, but ideally, the chosen candidate will reside within the “Atlantic Bubble”. The chosen candidate will work from home and/or be responsible for providing their own workspace. The position pays $3500/mo and is being offered initially as a six-month contract, with possibility of renewal contingent on performance, opportunity, and funding. Part-time contracts will also be considered if necessary. The position reports to the Aerial Insectivore Conservation Program Coordinator (Allison Manthorne).

Applicants should send CV, cover letter, and two references to Allison Manthorne (amanthorne@birdscanada.org). Only those candidates who qualify for an interview will be contacted.  The position is available immediately and will be filled as soon as possible (anticipated start date January 2021). Please state your availability and preference of term type (full-time, part-time).

Bank Swallow Photo: May Haga

Photo: Ellen Jakubowski

Your gift will connect kids and people of all ages to the natural world through birds. You’ll ignite imaginations today and help create a future where more Canadians care about birds and the environment, and make important, lifelong conservation decisions with birds in their hearts and minds.

Thank you for your amazing support!

Birds Canada’s President, Steven Price, will be retiring in May 2021.  Steven has led the organization since 2014 and helped us grow into the organization we need to be for birds and bird lovers in the years to come.  His passion for the blend of conservation science, volunteer bird monitoring, and outreach to our supporters has helped us best serve birds and Canadian society at large.

“I have thoroughly enjoyed working with such a talented and devoted team of bird scientists and enthusiasts,” said Price.  “None of what we accomplish could be achieved without the help of our supporters across Canada, as well as partners in government, business, academia, charitable foundations, and the non-profit sector.  Conservation is like a marathon relay – I have run my leg hard and look forward to passing the baton forward to the next leader.”

Said Board of Directors Chair Paul Uys: “While we are sad to say farewell, we wish Steven all the very best for his retirement.  Under his leadership Birds Canada has evolved immensely, as many members and birders will acknowledge. He has encouraged all of our supporters and partners to strive for bird conservation and heightened awareness of the challenges birds face and the solutions we can all be a part of.  Although Steven will be sorely missed, I know he will continue to be a strong contributor to our role as Canada’s Voice for Birds.

The search for a new President is underway.  You will find the job description at birdscanada.org/president . Please share this opportunity widely.

By Dr. Catherine Dale (Newfoundland Breeding Bird Atlas Coordinator) and Jenna McDermott (Assistant Atlas Coordinator), Birds Canada

Newfoundland Landscape Photo: Catherine Dale

Breeding Bird Atlases are projects that involve documenting breeding birds across a given region. Launching a new breeding bird atlas is always a challenge – but particularly so in the midst of a pandemic.

Early last winter, the first Newfoundland Breeding Bird Atlas was gathering momentum, with plans for an official launch event and community workshops across the island. But in March, everything changed: people were asked to stay home, national parks and other outdoor spaces were closed to the public, and Newfoundland closed its borders to everyone except residents.

Birds Canada put Citizen Science surveys on hold, and for a few months, it seemed unlikely that any Atlas data collection would happen this summer. Even when surveys slowly began to resume, we encouraged volunteers to avoid travel and instead asked them to atlas their own backyards and neighbourhoods.

Our intrepid volunteers rose to the challenge magnificently. The online Atlas database began filling with bird sightings from cities, towns, and villages all over the island. And as public health restrictions began to relax and atlassers ventured farther afield, data trickled in from some of the more remote atlas squares. In total over the last six months, 88 registered participants have spent more than 780 hours surveying for birds, collecting data in 265 atlas squares and reporting breeding evidence for 134 species across Newfoundland.

Among the many people who have contributed data, a few really pushed our numbers up. Alvan Buckley visited seven of the eight Atlas regions and reported an impressive 143 species. Hot on his heels were Barry Day, Doug Clark, and Darroch Whitaker, who also recorded over 100 species. And Barry Day spent an amazing 270 hours (34.5% of the total hours!) atlassing in 74 squares across the island!

This year’s highlights include the discovery of a Rough-legged Hawk nest (with five eggs) on the Avalon Peninsula, a sighting of a female Wood Duck with two ducklings in Deer Lake, where successful clutches of this species are uncommon, and a report of a male Rock Ptarmigan actively courting two females on the Burin Peninsula, where the species has only been reported twice before.

Bay-breasted Warbler Photo: Randolph White

Thank you to all the volunteers and supporters who made the first Atlas season a success! Now the breeding season has come to a close, but there’s still lots to be done over the winter as we prepare for next year – when we hope to welcome atlassers from some of the other Canadian provinces as well.  In the meantime, keep up with the Atlas and get the latest news and events by following us on Facebook or Instagram (@NLbirdatlas)!

Regardless of what is happening in our human-world, birds are still outside doing their thing, and winter is a great time to look for and photograph them. Not all our regularly occurring Citizen Science programs are going ahead this winter, but if you do end up participating, please remember to prioritize your safety and that of others around you.

American Dipper Photo: Kris Cu

This year, we invite everyone to share their bird photos from this winter season! It sounds like it will be a finch-filled winter with Pine Siskins, Evening Grosbeaks, and White-winged Crossbills irrupting all over Canada. We want to see and share what you are seeing!

Submit at least one photo for your chance to win a one-year subscription to BirdWatch Canada, a 340-g bag of Birds and Beans bird-friendly coffee, and an Armstrong suet cake feeder with suet cake.

The contest is open from December 1, 2020 to January 31, 2021.

Each participant who submits at least one photo will be entered into a random prize draw, and three winners will be drawn.

How to Enter:

(1) Please read the Contest Rules and Terms of Use (below). By entering, you acknowledge that you agree to the Terms of Use.

 (2) Email your photos to cbc@birdscanada.org by Sunday, January 31, 2021. You can submit as many photos as you like, but each participant will receive a single entry in the prize draw.

(4) The winners will be announced on Wednesday, February 10, 2021.

Evening Grosbeak Photo: Nina Stavlund

Official Rules for the Winter Birds Photo Contest

Eligible Entrants:

There is no age restriction and no fee required to enter the contest.

By entering a photo (or photos) in the contest, the entrant acknowledges that they agree to the Terms of Use (see below).

Eligible Photos:

Each participant can submit as many photos as they like, but will receive a single entry in the prize draw.

The photo(s) must have been taken by the entrant, and may not infringe the rights of any other individual. If your photo includes other people, ask their permission before submitting the photo to the contest.

The photo(s) must not depict or result from actions that could be considered harmful to birds. To be eligible, photos must have been taken without disturbing, baiting, or otherwise interfering with the natural behaviour of birds (exception: birds coming freely to bird feeders). Judges will eliminate from the competition any photo that they have reason to believe violates this condition.

Selecting Winners:

The winners will be chosen through a random draw. Each person who submits one or more photos to the contest will receive one entry in the draw, regardless of how many photos they have submitted.

The approximate value of each prize is $90. The odds of winning depend on the number of entries received.

Collection of Information:

Birds Canada will use an email address to contact the prize winners. The prize winners will be required to provide a mailing address so that the prizes can be shipped. Neither email addresses nor mailing addresses will be used by Birds Canada for any purposes other than those required to administer this contest, as described above.

Promotion of the Contest:

While Birds Canada is promoting this contest using Facebook and Twitter, the contest is not sponsored, endorsed, administered by, or associated with Facebook or Twitter.

Terms of Use

By submitting a photo (or photos) to the contest, the entrant acknowledges they agree to the Terms of Use below.

The entrant grants Birds Canada the right to edit the photo(s).

The entrant grants Birds Canada the perpetual right to publish the submitted photo(s), royalty-free, for any purpose whatsoever. Uses may include, but are not limited to, publishing the photo(s) in Birds Canada print publications and online, and future promotion of the Project FeederWatch, Christmas Bird Count or CBC4Kids.

Any use of the photo(s) will include the entrant’s name and acknowledge the entrant as the creator of the photo.

By submitting photos, the entrant acknowledges that Birds Canada bears no responsibility whatsoever for protecting the photo(s) from third party infringement of copyright interest or other intellectual property rights, and that Birds Canada shall not be responsible for any losses suffered as a result of such infringement.

By Pete Davidson (Senior Conservation Advisor) and Dr. David Bradley (Director, BC Program), Birds Canada

Shorebirds connect people and places. They are symbols of coastal and interior wetlands, some of the richest and most threatened habitats on Earth. Shorebird behaviours, mesmerizing murmurations, and intricate individual beauty capture the imaginations of millions of people. But shorebirds are challenging to study and understand. They are seldom in one place for very long. Many breed in remote Boreal and Arctic regions then fly thousands of kilometres to temperate and tropical areas, stopping briefly at just a few spots on the way. The State of Canada’s Birds 2019 estimated the loss of 40% of shorebirds from Canada since 1970. Understanding why that is remains a huge challenge, precisely because shorebirds are so mobile, and some of the best information on them comes from places in which the birds spend just a few days each year.

Western Sandpipers Photo: Pete Davidson

In 2011, a small group of shorebird fanatics gathered in Vancouver. We were motivated in particular by concern for the Western Sandpiper and pacifica Dunlin populationshe two largest shorebird populations along the Pacific Flyway, but both are in decline. Building on a decade of work under the Copper River Delta Migratory Bird Initiative, we wanted to find a new way to explore what is driving changes in shorebird populations. The traditional method of studying this has been to compare counts from only the locations where the birds in a population congregate in the highest numbers. Our new approach would be to count shorebirds over a much wider scale – the scale of the entire flyway – by coordinating Citizen Science volunteers to track population changes over space as well as time.

We needed to focus on the regions along the Pacific Flyway where the birds tend to be the most settled and accessible, as opposed to being constantly on the move as they are on migration. The most fitting places are where they spend their non-breeding period between the months of December and February. We chose a series of possible causes for shorebird population change to investigate: habitat loss, predation, disturbance, pollution, and climate change. Next, it was simply a matter of coordinating the effort. Easy, right? Except, the geographic area we needed to cover stretched from British Columbia in the north to Chiloe Island, Chile, in the south!

Dunlin and Western Sandpipers Photo: David Bradley

To make this happen, the Migratory Shorebird Project was born, under the leadership of Point Blue Conservation Science and underpinned by new funding from the U.S. Forest Service and the David and Lucile Packard Foundation. Fortunately, we were able to use existing Citizen Science surveys in California, Mexico, and Canada – including the Birds Canada BC Coastal Waterbird Survey – as a foundation to build on. Thanks to a network of partnerships and intensive training, the monitoring effort expanded to 13 nations by 2020. The Migratory Shorebird Project must now be one of the continent’s most extensive Citizen Science initiatives, and is driven by the leadership of over 40 partner organizations and agencies.

A paper recently published in Avian Conservation and Ecology describes the Migratory Shorebird Project’s innovative approach to counting shorebirds at the scale of a flyway. It also includes initial results from the first three seasons of monitoring (2013/14 – 2016/17). More than a million shorebirds were counted in some years, including over 20% of the global populations of five species. We look forward to future publications examining different possible explanations for shorebird declines using more seasons of data. Our BC Coastal Waterbird Survey volunteers may be particularly interested in what the collaboration could reveal about local long-term declines in Dunlin in Canada’s Salish Sea – which is a sneak peek into our next Pacific Coast publication!

With the holiday season coming up quickly, our team at Birds Canada wanted to share some gift ideas that will have a lasting impact for birds.

Bird-Inspired Yarn

For those who enjoy crafts as much as they enjoy birds, bird-themed yarn could be just the thing. At Songbird Yarn and Fibres, you will find playful products in colour combinations inspired by birds from Canada and around the world. The yarn is available in three weights and is dyed using immersion and handpainting techniques. For each skein purchased, $2 goes towards Birds Canada research and conservation work.

Photo: Ellen Jakubowski

Bird Friendly Window Tape

Collisions with windows in residential and commercial buildings kill more than 25 million birds in Canada each year, and the majority of these collisions occur at houses. Fortunately, options for making windows safer for birds are available! One option is installing the Feather Friendly DIY product on the outside of the window. When you purchase this product and use Coupon Code BirdsCanada, Feather Friendly will make a donation to Birds Canada to support bird conservation. It makes a great gift for a bird-loving homeowner, and it helps birds in more ways than one!

Image Source: Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center

Bird Friendly® Birds and Beans coffee

Do you have any coffee-lovers on your gift list? Birds and Beans is offering Birds Canada supporters a special offer for the giving season. Simply order online with promo code BirdsCanada and 5% of your purchase will be donated to Bird Canada. You’ll get a great cup of coffee, support farmers who are preserving habitat in South and Central America, and support Birds Canada, too! Birds and Beans has spent over 15 years perfecting their roasting technique while exclusively offering coffees that have positive environmental and social impacts. Bird Friendly® coffees are the world’s only shade-grown, organic coffees certified by third-party inspectors using criteria established by the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center. Order your preferred roast today at birdsandbeans.ca

Gift Membership in Project FeederWatch

By counting the kinds and numbers of birds at their feeders, Project FeederWatch participants help our scientists monitor and protect winter bird populations. You don’t need to be an expert to get involved! Recipients will receive fun and informative project materials. Get the low-down from current FeederWatchers in our Project FeederWatch video. Your donation of any amount will provide the gift recipient with a one-year membership in Birds Canada as well as the opportunity to participate in Citizen Science programs including Project FeederWatch. If you give $50 or more, your gift recipient will also receive our exclusive BirdWatch Canada magazine. Sign up online or call us toll-free at 1-888-448-2473 ext. 121. Please order your gift memberships by December 1st.

Dean Evans hard at work. Photo: Dean Evans

Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas (IBAs)

If you aren’t familiar with it, an IBA is an Important Bird and Biodiversity Area. In Canada, sites are given IBA designation because they host impressive congregations of birds, and/or species at risk of extinction. IBAs have been around since the 1980s and much important work has been done in Canada since the late 1990s focusing on IBAs, including conservation planning, on-the-ground stewardship through the IBA Caretaker Network, bird monitoring, and more recently, BioBlitzes.

Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs)

In 2016, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) unveiled a mission to make a program for all biodiversity under one roof for the first time. Along with BirdLife International and 11 partner organizations, they introduced the concept of Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs), building on the long-standing success of IBAs and other similar systems. Upwards of 75% of the KBAs identified around the world so far are IBAs. A team of organizations – the KBA Canada Coalition – is working collaboratively to identify KBAs in Canada.

The crosswalk between IBA and KBA systems

The crosswalk was a close look at which of our IBAs might qualify as KBAs, a kind of bridge to helps us transition from one system to the other.  How did we do it? Canada is one of the first countries to do this, so there wasn’t a process laid out for us. We relied on our resourceful team, and especially our data guru Dean Evans. First, we compiled bird data that had been collected in IBAs and submitted to NatureCounts, Birds Canada’s central database. There were A LOT – over 17 million records. We also updated population estimates for bird species across Canada using information from BirdLife International, Partners in Flight, and the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada. We then compared the data to the new and updated criteria for KBAs to see which IBAs, and the bird life at them, could meet standards for KBAs.

IBA Caretakers Cheryl Anderson & Peter Fuller at Prince Edward County South Shore IBA. Photo: Amanda Bichel

The Results

We looked at bird observations from the 582 IBAs currently designated in Canada, and population estimates for almost 600 species. Nearly 50,000 records met the criteria, and 482 sites are now considered candidate KBAs pending further review. Of these candidate sites, 268 are considered globally significant, and 214 nationally significant.

What could this mean for conservation?

Birds Canada has been looking at KBAs from the bird perspective so far, while the Wildlife Conservation Society of Canada is looking to identify KBAs across Canada for other species of flora and fauna in and outside of IBAs. Adding other organisms to the picture will deepen our understanding of the ecological value of each site, and confirms what we already know: that IBAs are not only good for birds, but for all biodiversity. This transition to KBAs presents a huge opportunity. We can identify priority sites in Canada to focus our conservation efforts on. We can monitor threats and species at sites that need it the most. And most importantly, we can engage and partner with a wider range of people and organizations interested in conserving wild spaces in Canada. This transition will take time, but it is underway, and we’ll keep you updated. Also stay tuned: an interactive story map that allows you to explore and learn more about KBAs is coming very soon!

By Dr. Silke Nebel, Vice-President, Conservation and Science, Birds Canada

The State of Canada Birds, 2019 confirmed that Canada has lost nearly 60% of our grassland birds since 1970. This is crisis for bird life and sounds an alarm for our broader biodiversity as well. But, there is hope thanks to an inspiring new project.

Prairie grasslands provide essential habitat to prevent the extinction of unique prairie birds and other wildlife. The vast majority of these grasslands are working landscapes, where Canadian ranchers raise and graze their cattle. Grazing is an essential process in keeping grasslands healthy. However, the remaining tracts of native prairie grasslands are under threat by the tremendous market pressure on ranchers to plow and cultivate rather than maintain traditional pastures. Community pastures that serve local ranching communities and provide large areas of habitat for grassland birds are also under threat from financial and resource extraction pressures. The Grassland Conservation Incentives Project will help Canadian ranchers access financial support to conserve native prairie and offset carbon emissions.

The carbon offset registry ‘Climate Action Reserve’ released the first Canada Grassland Protocol that includes carbon offsets arising from the carbon-rich grassland habitats of the prairies. It provides ranchers and landowners with a guaranteed revenue stream through working with carbon credit experts to monitor and report on the status of their lands – earning credits that can later be sold in a carbon market to earn revenue for the ranch.

Willet Photo: Pete Davidson

As part of this project, Birds Canada has produced an easy-to-use Grassland Conservation Incentives Guide to centralize all incentives available to producers and landowners to conserve, enhance or restore grasslands. This will make it easier for landowners and producers to access incentives and take conservation action on their land. Birds Canada will be conducting outreach to further expand knowledge of these incentives and the importance of grasslands in mitigating climate change and biodiversity loss.

The project was featured in the Narwhal in the ‘Meet the people saving Canada’s native grasslands’ feature on July 31, 2020.

The Grassland Conservation Incentives program is made possible thanks to the generous support of the A&W Regenerative Agriculture Initiatives Fund, Environment and Climate Change Canada, and Manitoba government’s Ministry of Agriculture and Resource Development.

If you’re interested in more information on the Grasslands Conservation Incentives Project, please visit the Grassland Birds at Risk page, or contact Ian Cook.