On June 15th, I took part in an Ontario Field Ornithologists outing on the Bruce Peninsula. It was my first time there and I quickly learned that despite the tourism and recreation the area offers, birds thrive there as well as humans. What was especially memorable were the species at risk I had the chance to observe.
First, the group stopped by a section of the Bruce Trail to locate a recently reported Cerulean Warbler. We searched up and down the path until we finally heard its beautiful song echoing in the treetops. Soon after, with our thirty heads craned up to the canopy, the group was able to get peeks at the famous bright blue the warbler was named after.
I was very pleased at finally seeing this bird for myself. I have read numerous articles on the threats facing Cerulean Warblers, including habitat fragmentation, degradation, and Brown-headed Cowbird parasitism. It didn't seem likely that I would have the chance to see one at all!
In the afternoon, we visited a field on Everatt Side Road where an Upland Sandpiper occurs every year. The Upland Sandpiper is a Bruce specialty, and birders from all over the province gather here to observe this threatened species. Hunting was the primary cause of the dramatic plummet in its population in the last century. Recently, the Upland Sandpiper's population recovered, but it is continuing to steadily decline due to widespread loss of tall-grass prairie, which key nesting habitat for the Upland Sandpiper.
Our last stop was Sauble Beach to observe a Piping Plover nest. The
Piping Plover is a rare shorebird that is protected by the Ontario
Endangered Species Act. Over the last fifty years, the bird was extirpated from Canada's Great Lakes due to extensive shoreline development. Only a few nests in Michigan remained. However, until recently,
intensive management projects repopulated many nest sites. Today, with
about forty-five nests in Ontario and many with volunteer guardian
programs monitoring them, the Piping Plover is a reminder that we are
able to make a difference for wildlife conservation.
As soon as I came back home from my trip, I brought out my life list and a big red pen. I carefully checked off the Cerulean Warbler, the Upland Sandpiper, and the Piping Plover. I took a moment to reflect; these bird mean so much more than ink on a page. They are charismatic species teach us and encourage us to conserve the nature around us. If we want to continue to see the Cerulean Warbler, the Upland Sandpiper, and the Piping Plover, for example, even caring about the future of birds must not be forgotten...
