A photo gallery of bird species recorded through e-bird
As a 268-hectare coastal landscape on the Atlantic Flyway, Owls Head Provincial Park is an important habitat for native bird species and a refuge for migratory birds.
The coastal headland supports a variety of habitats, including a beach, estuaries, bogs, and salt marshes. Last summer, CPAWS NS and a team of biodiversity experts set out “to identify bird species across these habitats and document the ecological significance of this unique region.”
Through surveys from the land and the water, the expert birders identified over 70 species of birds. These included common eiders, which are important to conservation objectives in the region, and provincially endangered barn swallows. The team also discovered a northern harrier nest (pictured below).
They recorded their sightings in eBird, an online tracking tool from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Click to enlarge the photos.
The following bird photos were not taken during the expedition, but they represent the species recorded. Please click to view the full photos and see the name of each species. You can use the arrows to navigate.
Previous E-bird Observations
In addition to many of the species above, another bird-watcher previously recorded the following species at Owls Head Provincial Park. Read the complete list of species in his record, here. Click to enlarge.
Think Globally, Act Locally
It’s more important than ever to conserve bird habitat, including undeveloped shorelines and salt marshes.
The American Bird Conservancy explains, “In the case of birds, habitats provide cover from predators; breeding, wintering, and migration stopover sites; and places to forage and roost. All of the habitats used by a bird play a role in its survival, and the loss or degradation of any one of them can potentially have a population-level impact. It is little surprise, then, that habitat loss is the greatest threat to birds.”
Rosenberg et al. report wide-spread population declines of birds over the past half-century, resulting in the cumulative loss of billions of breeding individuals across a wide range of species and habitats. They show that declines are not restricted to rare and threatened species—those once considered common and wide-spread are also diminished. These results have major implications for ecosystem integrity, the conservation of wildlife more broadly, and policies associated with the protection of birds and native ecosystems on which they depend.
Science : Vol. 366, Issue 6461, pp. 120-124
The study “Decline of the North American avifauna” reported that there are a staggering 2.9 billion fewer birds in North America than there were in 1970. Migrating species have been hit particularly hard, with their populations declining by 2.5 billion individuals.
“Our estimates of abundance and biodiversity loss signals an urgent need to address ongoing threats, in order to avert future avifaunal collapse and associated loss of ecosystem integrity and function.”
Decline of the North American avifauna
Observations of Particular Interest
Within this diversity of bird species observed at Owls Head Provincial Park are several of conservation significance. (You can find the descriptions & S-ranks for various conservation statuses farther down the page.)
| Common Name | Scientific Name | S-rank, Nova Scotia AC CDC† | Provincial Status | Federal Status SARA ‡ Schedule 1 | COSEWIC§ Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| American Kestrel | Falco sparverius | S3B | |||
| Barn Swallow | Hirundo rustica | S2S3B | Endangered | Threatened | Threatened |
| Bay-breasted Warbler | Setophaga castanea | S3S4B | |||
| Blackpoll Warbler | Setophaga striata | S3S4B | |||
| Boreal Chickadee | Poecile hudsonicus | S3 | |||
| Bufflehead | Bucephala albeola | S3S4N | |||
| Canada Warbler | Cardellina canadensis | S3B | Endangered | Threatened | Special Concern |
| Common Eider | Somateria mollissima | S3S4 | |||
| Common Tern | Sterna hirundo | S3B | |||
| Evening Grosbeak | Coccothraustes vespertinus | S3S4B, S3N | Vulnerable | Special Concern | Special Concern |
| Gray Catbird | Dumetella carolinensis | S3B | |||
| Greater Yellowlegs | Tringa melanoleuca | S3B, S3S4M | |||
| Northern Harrier | Circus hudsonius | S3S4B | |||
| Pine Siskin | Spinus pinus | S2S3 | |||
| Red-breasted Merganser | Mergus serrator | S3S4B, S5N | |||
| Red-breasted Nuthatch | Sitta canadensis | S3 | |||
| Ruby-crowned Kinglet | Regulus calendula | S3S4B | |||
| Ruddy Turnstone | Arenaria interpres | S3M | |||
| Spotted Sandpiper | Actitis macularius | S3S4B | |||
| Swainson’s Thrush | Catharus ustulatus | S3S4B | |||
| Willet | Tringa semipalmata | S2S3B | |||
| Yellow-bellied Flycatcher | Empidonax flaviventris | S3S4B |
‡ Species at Risk Act, Canada
§ Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada
Definitions & Conservation Status Information
Conservation Status: S-Rank definitions for the province of Nova Scotia
| S-Rank | Definition |
|---|---|
| SX | Presumed Extirpated – Species or community is believed to be extirpated from the province. Not located despite intensive searches of historical sites and other appropriate habitat, and virtually no likelihood that it will be rediscovered. |
| S1 | Critically Imperiled – Critically imperiled in the province because of extreme rarity (often 5 or fewer occurrences) or because of some factor(s) such as very steep declines making it especially vulnerable to extirpation from the province. |
| S2 | Imperiled – Imperiled in the province because of rarity due to very restricted range, very few populations (often 20 or fewer), steep declines, or other factors making it very vulnerable to extirpation from the province. |
| S3 | Vulnerable – Vulnerable in the province due to a restricted range, relatively few populations (often 80 or fewer), recent and widespread declines, or other factors making it vulnerable to extirpation. |
| S4 | Apparently Secure – Uncommon but not rare; some cause for long-term concern due to declines or other factors. |
| S5 | Secure – Common, widespread, and abundant in the province. |
| Qualifier | Definition |
|---|---|
| B | Breeding – Conservation status refers to the breeding population of the species in the province. |
| N | Nonbreeding – Conservation status refers to the non-breeding population of the species in the province. |
| M | Migrant – Migrant species occurring regularly on migration at particular staging areas or concentration spots where the species might warrant conservation attention. Conservation status refers to the aggregating transient population of the species in the province. |
Provincial Species at Risk designations:
| Status | Definition |
| Endangered | a species facing imminent extirpation or extinction |
| Threatened | a species likely to become endangered if limiting factors are not reversed |
| Vulnerable | a species of special concern because of characteristics that make it particularly sensitive to human activities or natural events |
| Extirpated | a species that no longer exists in the wild in the Province but exists in the wild outside the Province |
| Extinct | a species that no longer exists |
FEDERAL SPECIES AT RISK AND STATUS RANK DEFINITIONS:
Government of Canada Species At Risk information
- Species At Risk – an extirpated, endangered, threatened species, or a species of special concern.
- SARA – the Species At Risk Act
- Schedule 1 – is the official list of species that are classified as extirpated, endangered, threatened, and of special concern.
- COSEWIC – Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada
| SARA & COSEWIC Status | Definition |
|---|---|
| Extinct | A wildlife species that no longer exists |
| Extirpated | A wildlife species that no longer exists in the wild in Canada, but exists elsewhere in the wild. |
| Endangered | A wildlife species that is facing imminent extirpation or extinction |
| Threatened | A wildlife species that is likely to become endangered if nothing is done to reverse the factors leading to its extirpation or extinction |
| Special Concern | A wildlife species that may become a threatened or an endangered species because of a combination of biological characteristics and identified threats |
Special thanks to Katie Studholme, Addie & Fred Campaigne, Lucas Berrigan, Seb Pardo, and Laura Achenbach
