Caspian Terns in Maine
Credit: Mike Fahay
A comical looking bird the size of a small gull with a black cap, gray back and a bill that looked like a carrot was spotted stopping off on a beach in mid-coast Maine last week on its way south. Staying close by its side and making regularly whistley-squawky [...]

Until recently, Whimbrels have proved to be somewhat of a mystery to scientists. Noting a decline among the long-distant migrants, which typically breed up in arctic Canada, scientists set out to better understand the everyday life of a Whimbrel and what might be leading to their decline.

Whimbrel
Credit: James Robinson
Part of the difficulty in understanding [...]

‘Hope’ is becoming increasingly familiar with this blog. Not just because we do our darndest  to be optimistic (and several conservation gains in Canada’s boreal in the past few years have affirmed this right—including recent good news in Quebec). But because one amazing Whimbrel named Hope has provided much joy for this blog over the [...]

In our last post we highlighted the Northern Waterthrush – a small bird frequently found in mangroves throughout the Caribbean that heavily relies on the boreal forest up north for summer breeding.

Hope, in her wintering grounds in St. Croix
Credit: Lisa Yntema
Another bird that shares such mangrove habitat and also heavily relies on the boreal [...]

The Mackenzie River in the Northwest Territories.
Credit: Irene Owsley
I have had the good fortune to see firsthand some incredible places in Canada’s Boreal Forest. The feeling you get looking out from the shore of a Lake Superior, Great Bear Lake, or Great Slave Lake—all among the world’s largest lakes—is one of awe. The same can [...]

Some troubling news came from the Northwest Territories a few weeks ago.
Edéhzhíe, an intact 14,250 square kilometer ecological gem in the Northwest Territories, ten years ago was placed under interim protection with the goal of eventually making it a National Wildlife Area.  Also referred to as “Horn Plateau” this region features a unique teardrop shaped [...]

We wanted to share two recent items related to water issues in Canada’s Boreal Forest region that everyone should be aware of.
One is a striking video about the potential fate of a beautiful lake in British Columbia which, believe it or not, could be completely drained for mining purposes and then used as a place [...]

South Nahanni River
Credit: Larry Innes
Parks Canada is currently reviewing how much of the South Nahanni watershed to protect as part of its National Park Reserve system, and they want your help. The area under consideration, named Nááts´ihch´oh National Park Reserve, would lie adjacent to the north of the current Nahanni National Park Reserve. You might [...]

Along with comments left on my blog (read them here), I received some excellent e-mail and listserv feedback on the Yellowknife Yellow Warbler’s story I wrote about last week (click here to read the original story). I wanted to share these comments with you below. Thanks to all who took the time to comment and [...]

Last week CBC news reported that surveys of the Bathurst migratory barren-ground caribou herd had dropped from 128,000 in 2006 to 31,900 this year. The herd now has to cross an ice road on its migratory path and there are a number of mines within its traditional range. Caribou are known to be very sensitive [...]