 Atlas at Last A number of years ago I lived by Bradley Creek in a little cabin since torn down. At that time I became aware of how vitally important the riparian area along a creek is to migrating and nesting songbirds. In early spring I sat outside and witnessed the first returning birds follow beside the creek in the still-bare willows. Each morning new waves of songbirds fed and moved northward while I identified warblers, vireos, flycatchers, and other species. After the migration peaked and the willows leafed I was amazed at how many songbirds used the riparian zone for nesting. The species included Catbirds, Veerys, Orange-crowned Warblers, Redstarts, and Lincoln Sparrow’s. There were also Yellowthroats, MacGillivray’s Warblers, Yellow Warblers, Purple Finches, and Rufous Hummingbirds. Some birds, such as the Red-naped Sapsucker do not nest in the riparian zone but rely on creek willows to supply the first sap of the season. The tiny Ruby-crowned Kinglet also spends its first few weeks in the creek willows finding food and singing loudly, but later departs to nest in the evergreens. After witnessing the pageant of avian activity around Bradley Creek for several years I was convinced that the riparian areas of the Cariboo were absolutely vital to many songbirds. The riparian areas were the nurseries and larders which sustain a multitude of songbirds. If songbird populations were to remain healthy, riparian areas needed to be safeguarded. After moving from Bradley Creek to 100 Mile House, I continued thinking about how to champion riparian areas. I wanted to do something constructive to insure that people left riparian areas alone and did not attempt to “clean them up.” For a few years, on a day in May, a number of us gathered near the cabin where I once lived and had what we termed a “creek sit.” This meant that we watched birds and discussed the importance of the riparian area to the birds we saw. At about this same time, a watershed group formed in 100 Mile House and I joined it, seeing it as a possible platform from which to continue championing riparian zones as vital bird habitat. After all, what was good for fish was also good for birds; a creek, in order to be a good place for fish needed to be shaded by healthy willow stands and grasses. And that’s about how far I got with my efforts to preserve riparian zones. But then on January 17, 2008 an official announcement was made - The Atlas of Breeding Birds of BC was going ahead. What’s a breeding bird atlas, you might ask? If I understand it correctly (and I’m not sure yet if I do) I will finally get my chance to officially document the importance of riparian areas to songbird populations in the Cariboo. The atlas is an inventory of birds nesting in a particular province over a particular length of time. A completed breeding bird atlas provides a fairly thorough picture of the bird species, and habitats, critical to breeding birds of the area. In order to have a provincial bird inventory it is essential that avid birders and non-birders participate to gather the needed data. A region, such as the South Cariboo, is divided into tracts of land measuring 10 square km. The person doing the inventorying spends at least 20 hours (per year) in their portion, gathering information about the nesting details of bird species. There are several ways to assess nesting activity apart from laying eyes on an active nest. One way is to note singing males and peripheral nest activity such as an adult bird feeding young. A person need not restrict themselves to recording nesting activity only in a given territory. They can contribute sightings of nest activities wherever they are found in BC. A web page has been set up to spread the news of the breeding bird atlas and some information can be garnered there but bear in mind it is still a work in progress http://www.birdatlas.bc.ca. Coordinators have been chosen from each region of the province to organize the bird atlas activities in their areas. The coordinator for the Cariboo region has been named and it is Phil Ranson from Williams Lake. I plan to be involved in the gathering of information for the breeding bird atlas but have yet to learn of the specifics of how the project is to proceed. For instance, how are the 10 sq. km. blocks allotted? Are they built on a grid of the whole province or are they arbitrarily given out by people in the area where the inventories are undertaken? There is much to learn and much to be done but at least the atlas is going ahead. This is a chance for everyone to contribute their information about bird nesting activity in our region and hopefully provide hard data which could affect development and destruction in the name of progress in habitats that are vital to songbirds and birds in general. To e-mail Tom CLICK HERE To look at previous column CLICK HERE |
