[getsmart-l] FW: New Atlas of the Breeding Birds of Ontario reveals surprising trends for bird species in the province

[Janet May]

                                 Emacs!
Ontario Nature - Federation of Ontario Naturalists

Eagles soar while Swallows sputter

New Atlas of the Breeding Birds of Ontario reveals surprising trends for
bird species in the province

(Toronto, Ontario, January 29, 2008) A ground-breaking new atlas is
revealing major trends about the health of Ontario's bird populations.
Compared to just twenty years ago, many bird species have declined
precipitously whereas others have made remarkable come-backs. Population
trends are generally positive for birds of prey, but biologists are
expressing concern about the fate of grassland birds and those that feed on
flying insects. 

"Results from the atlas show population trends are literally all over the
map," said Mike Cadman, project coordinator for the Atlas of the Breeding
Birds of Ontario. Many of the increases result from conservation activities.
"For Bald Eagle, Peregrine Falcon and Merlin, news is pretty much all
positive because these raptors are recovering well since pesticides like DDT
were banned in the 1970s. Bald eagles have increased four-fold province-wide
- even more so in the south - and peregrines are back from the brink."

"Interestingly, most of Ontario's biggest birds have also increased
dramatically in the twenty years since an earlier atlas was conducted,"
added Cadman. "Three swan species, Bald Eagle, Sandhill Crane, and most
dramatically Canada Goose and Wild Turkey have all increased tremendously."
 
"Unfortunately, the future seems much bleaker at the moment for some other
species," said Gregor Beck, atlas board chair and co-editor. "For grassland
species and birds that eat flying insects, the trend is very worrisome.
Formerly widespread birds like Common Nighthawk, Whip-poor-will, Chimney
Swift and 6 species of swallow are becoming scarce at an alarming rate. Most
of these species have seen a 30-50% decline in two decades and the Nighthawk
and Swift have recently been designated as "threatened" species in Canada.
Birds of grasslands,  wetlands, and scrublands are declining significantly
in the Carolinian region between Toronto and Windsor."

"Results from the atlas will be put swiftly to use to help protect birds and
ecosystems," said Caroline Schultz, Executive Director of Ontario Nature, a
project partner. "The loss of grassland habitat to intensive agriculture,
for example, is having a negative effect on species like the endangered
Northern Bobwhite and the more common Bobolink. The fact that the biggest
overall declines are in southern Ontario highlights the need for
conservation efforts here. Atlas data will help identify patterns in
population change and chart recovery routes."

Another extensive atlas survey will be conducted from 2021 to 2025.
"Hopefully by then conservation actions will have helped some species
currently in decline to rebound," concluded Beck. "We look forward to more
success stories like the Bald Eagle and Peregrine Falcon."

-30- 

For further information, please contact:

Mike Cadman, 519-826-2094, cell: 519-820-2462,  mcadman at uoguelph.ca
Gregor Beck, 519-586-9361, cell: 647-285-2966,  gregor.beck at xplornet.com
Caroline Schultz, 416-444-8419 ext. 237,  carolines at ontarionature.org
 
Backgrounder

After five years of intensive research and collaboration by Ontario's
leading bird conservation organizations and provincial and federal
governments, the Atlas of the Breeding Birds of Ontario, 2001-2005 has been
published and reveals some surprising changes in bird populations and ranges
in recent decades.  

Over 3,000 volunteers collected 1.2 million individual bird records, in a
systematic grid stretching from the islands of Lake Erie to the shores of
Hudson Bay. There was unprecedented coverage of remote areas of northern
Ontario and the boreal forest. The comprehensive, 728-page atlas includes
over 900 coloured maps and 400 photographs of Ontario's 286 breeding bird
species. This atlas expands on the first atlas project of 1981-1985,
published in 1987, allowing the comparison between the two datasets to show
changes in distribution and abundance of Ontario's breeding birds. The
trends from this research are compelling.  

Additional highlights from the atlas: 

*	        Tree planting, conifer plantations, and natural forest
regeneration are helping to increase forest cover and provide needed
habitat for forest birds in southern Ontario. 
*	         Evident importance highlighted for the Niagara Escarpment,
Oak Ridges Moraine and "The Land Between." 
*	        As a result of extensive data collection using new methods,
maps of relative abundance were created for the first time for      many
species, showing which parts of the province are most important to each, and
allowing for better conservation      planning. 
*	         Climate change results for southern Ontario are equivocal.
Although the range edge of 15 species expanded northward in  southern
Ontario, consistent with climate change predictions, the range edge of 29
species expanded southward. The      birds expanding to the south are mostly
forest birds, likely taking advantage of increasing forest cover south of
the   Canadian Shield in southern Ontario. 


Top 10 increasing species in the province as a whole:
Canada Goose
House Finch
Blue-headed Vireo
Turkey Vulture
Wild Turkey
Merlin
Eastern Bluebird
Pine Warbler
Bald Eagle
Sandhill Crane

Top 10 decreasing species in the province as a whole:
Common Nighthawk
Chimney Swift
Bank Swallow
Blue-winged Teal
Red-headed Woodpecker
Barn Swallow
Cliff Swallow
Brown-headed Cowbird
Spotted Sandpiper
Killdeer
The extensive coverage provided by the atlas allows the best provincial
population estimates ever available for many species, though they are rough
approximations. The ten most abundant species in Ontario are listed below.
All but two of these species are concentrated primarily in the Boreal Forest
and the Hudson Bay Lowlands of northern Ontario. The American Robin and
Red-eyed Vireo are concentrated farther south.

Species                   Population estimate

Nashville Warbler                15,000,000
Chipping Sparrow                  12,000,000
Dark-eyed Junco          12,000,000
Golden-crowned Kinglet  12,000,000
Magnolia Warbler                  12,000,000
White-throated Sparrow  12,000,000
Yellow-rumped Warbler   12,000,000
American Robin           10,000,000
Red-eyed Vireo             9,000,000
Swainson's Thrush                  8,000,000

The atlas book will be formally launched in:

*	        Ottawa on January 30, 6:00 - 8:00pm, at the Canadian Museum
of Nature (240 McLeod Street; Discovery Zone, 4th Floor) 
*	         Toronto on February 10, 2:00 - 5:00pm, at the Royal Ontario
Museum (100 Queens Park, "Loblaws" entrance) 


More information about the Atlas of the Breeding Birds of Ontario is
available at www.birdsontario.org <http://www.birdsontario.org/> . Copies of
the book can be purchased by calling 416-444-8419 or 1-800-440-2366 ($92.50
plus GST; price includes shipping); for online sales, follow the links from
www.birdsontario.org <http://www.birdsontario.org/> . 






For further information, please contact:

Mike Cadman, 519-826-2094, cell: 519-820-2462,  mcadman at uoguelph.ca 
Gregor Beck, 519-586-9361, cell: 647-285-2966,  gregor.beck at xplornet.com 
Caroline Schultz, 416-444-8419 ext. 237,  carolines at ontarionature.org
Jon McCracken, 519-586-3531 ext. 205, jmccracken at bsc-eoc.org


The Atlas of the Breeding Birds of Ontario is a collaborative project of
Bird Studies Canada, 
Environment Canada, Ontario Field Ornithologists, Ontario Ministry of
Natural Resources, and Ontario Nature.




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