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Saw a newborn Black Bear cub while traveling to the bluebird line last week!
July 20th, 2016
Just monitored my BB Line on PR 351 and was pleased to see 16 of 47 boxes had second nesting Bluebirds. That is more than I have ever recorded on this line in 10 years. Let’s hope they all fledge
Bird populations in steep decline in North America, study finds
ERIC ANDREW-GEE
The Globe and Mail
Published Wednesday, Sep. 14, 2016 11:51AM EDT
Last updated Wednesday, Sep. 14, 2016 9:50PM EDT
North America has more than a billion fewer birds than it did 40 years ago, with the snowy owl and the chimney swift just two of the better-known species in dramatic decline across the continent, a recent survey has found.
The Partners In Flight report concludes that urbanization, growth in agriculture and possibly even climate change have driven the decline in North American landbird populations, a category that excludes ducks and other waterfowl.
The total number of continental landbirds stands at about 10 billion, down from about 11.5 billion in 1970. The study’s authors – a range of academic, activist and government bodies in Canada and the United States – list 86 of North America’s roughly 450 breeding species as vulnerable, with some populations expected to be halved in a matter of decades.
“I don’t want my grandchild to go out in the forest and not hear the songbirds in the spring, and that seems to be where we’re headed right now,” said Andrew Couturier, senior analyst at Bird Studies Canada and a co-author of the report, which was released in August.
As “North America’s bird nursery,” Canada has an added responsibility to conserve habitat, Mr. Couturier said. A majority of the continent’s birds are hatched here, before migrating south.
Keeping forests musical is not the only reason healthy bird populations are important, he notes. The creatures also provide “ecosystem services” such as pollination and insect control.
And birds are often a bellwether of broader ecological health, said Judith Kennedy, head of the migratory bird conservation unit at Environment and Climate Change Canada, and a co-author of the report. She noted that sickly birds were an early warning sign of the environmental damage caused by the pesticide DDT a generation ago.
“In some ways, the status of these birds could indicate the status of our own health,” she said.
By that score, North Americans have cause for concern. Dozens of species lost more than 50 per cent of their populations between 1970 and 2014, from the obscure (Sprague’s pipit, the oak titmouse, the bobolink) to the familiar. Snowy owl populations, for example, fell 64 per cent in that time.
Even relatively abundant birds are dwindling in number, the report says. Chimney swifts, field sparrows and short-eared owls are among the common species that have lost more than half of their populations since 1970 and are expected to lose half of their current level in 40 years or less.
Two groups of birds have been especially affected: grasslands species, which have been hurt by the conversion of their habitat into farmland, and insect eaters such as swallows and flycatchers, whose decline is less obvious but may be a result of falling insect populations related to pesticide use.
Human activity kills billions of birds a year, the report notes. Collisions with power lines, buildings and vehicles account for about 900 million bird deaths annually in Canada and the United States, while domesticated and feral cats kill another 2.6 billion – or about a quarter of the landbird population.
Loss of habitat to urban sprawl, farming and forestry is arguably an even bigger driver of long-term decline in bird populations, Ms. Kennedy said. Because of migration south, that is an international problem – the cultivation techniques of coffee planters in Colombia can affect songbird flocks in Ontario, she noted.
The work of conservationists across national lines is one of the good news stories for birds in the past decade.
“We do have such partnerships in place that we didn’t have in 2004,” Ms. Kennedy said. “I think we do work in a more co-ordinated fashion internationally now.”
Closer to home, she said, bird-lovers should press politicians to replicate past victories, such as the huge reduction in hunting of waterfowl.
“It’s not all doom and gloom.”
such a late spring, have only seen two male mountain bluebirds. No sigh of the eastern yet, perhaps they are hiding in the trees. Lids are on and the welcome sign is out. Just starting my 37th year of blue birding.
Used to see the bluebirds at Lake of the Prairies, near Roblin MB. Now the tree swallows are all we see in the nesting boxes. Have lots of birds in the yard…Orioles, hummingbirds, tree swallows, gold finches, cat birds (yuck), house finches, robins, woodpeckers…… are there any in Manitoba?
Thanks!!
Eastern Bluebird and fledgling sighted in Headingley, Manitoba on August 17, 2018.
NABS is Seeking New Board Members
The North American Bluebird Society (NABS) is seeking volunteers to fill one or more positions on their Board of Directors, and they have asked us, as a NABS Affiliate, to publicize this opportunity to our membership. NABS Board members are required to be or become NABS members. The NABS Board uses a committee structure to execute its business functions, the committees are listed in each issue of the NABS ‘Bluebird’ journal. Board members are expected to participate in one or more of the committees. The NABS Board meets monthly via a one-hour teleconference call. If you are interested in joining the NABS Board, or if you need more information before making your decision, please contact the NABS Board President, Bernie Daniel, by phone at (513)300-8714 or by email at bdaniel@nabluebirdsociety.org.
I have a concern about leaky bird boxes. Bluebirds don’t like a breezy nest box. The incubation period needs to be vey warm. When we use the front as a clean-out door and the door is between the sides, air leaks in. I came across this problem when I discovered a Bluebird had raised her nest with grass up to the hole.
I have a simple solution. Take a roll of Gorilla duct tape and cut off what you need to cover the crack from top to bottom. Either by tearing it off or cut a slit down the tape. As most of us have many boxes out on lines already it would be easier to work with tape than small pieces of wood screwed on.
As well it may stop people from opening the clean-out door which could be dangerous to the eggs and chicks.
Oh how I miss my mountain bluebirds! they we’re such friendly fellows. They never seemed to mind your tampering with their homes, but sat quietly nearby. Sure now they have been replaced wth Eastern bluebirds but you never see them. Only way you know they are around is the presence of blue eggs in the box. I was to add a couple of great pictures from the good old days but can’t seem to. perhaps can send them to Erica
Just wondering where all the bluebirds have gone?We have always had them nesting in our yard and we’d see them along PTH 351 west of Carberry