Computerized Database of Québec Seabirds (CDQS)

The Computerized Database of Québec Seabirds (CDQS), also known as the Banque informatisée des oiseaux marins du Québec (BIOMQ), is a database that allows to monitor the status, distribution, and trends of seabird populations nesting in Québec, particularly along the shores of the river, estuary, and Gulf of St. Lawrence. Compiled and regularly updated for over 40 years by the Canadian Wildlife Service (CWS), Québec region, it contains information on seabird colonies composed of Gaviidae (loons), Hydrobatidae (storm-petrels), Sulidae (gannets), Phalacrocoracidae (cormorants), Laridae (gulls, terns), Alcidae (murres, auks, puffins), and Common Eiders (Anatidae). The data come mainly from seabird colony surveys conducted by the CWS during the breeding season but are also enriched by numerous scientific sources. It includes, among other things, data from the literature dating back more than a century, as well as observations from amateur ornithologists.

Source to quote: Canadian Wildlife Service - Quebec Region. Computerized Database of Québec Seabirds (CDQS). version October 2025.

Data and Resources

Additional Info

Field	Value
Last Updated	April 17, 2026, 20:11 (UTC)
Created	April 17, 2026, 20:11 (UTC)
contact_email	enviroinfo@ec.gc.ca
contact_person	{"en": "Government of Canada; Environment and Climate Change Canada; Canadian Wildlife Service, 1-800-668-6767, enviroinfo@ec.gc.ca", "fr": "Gouvernement du Canada; Environnement et Changement climatique Canada; Service canadien de la faune, 1-800-668-6767, enviroinfo@ec.gc.ca"}
criticality_level	[]
data_dictionary	[]
geographic_scope	["0"]
open_canada_collection	primary
open_canada_date_published	2015-08-20 04:00:00
open_canada_keywords	{"en": ["Aquatic birds", "Biological Classification", "Birds", "Red-throated Loon", "Gavia stellata", "Atlantic Puffin", "Fratercula arctica", "Black Guillemot", "Cepphus grylle", "Common Murre", "Uria aalge", "Thick-billed Murre", "Uria lomvia", "Razorbill", "Alca torda", "Black-legged Kittiwake", "Rissa tridactyla", "Great Black-backed Gull", "Larus marinus", "American Herring Gull", "Larus smithsonianus", "Ring-billed Gull", "Larus delawarensis", "Black-headed Gull", "Chroicocephalus ridibundus", "Caspian Tern", "Hydroprogne caspia", "Common Tern", "Sterna hirundo", "Arctic Tern", "Sterna paradisaea", "Roseate Tern", "Sterna dougallii", "Hydrobates leucorhous", "Leach's Storm-Petrel", "Northern Gannet", "Morus bassanus", "Great Cormorant", "Phalacrocorax carbo", "Double-crested Cormorant", "Nannopterum auritum", "Common Eider", "Somateria mollissima"], "fr": ["Oiseau aquatique", "Classification biologique", "oiseaux", "Plongeon catmarin", "Gavia stellata", "Macareux moine", "Fratercula arctica", "Guillemot à miroir", "Cepphus grylle", "Guillemot marmette", "Uria aalge", "Guillemot de Brünnich", "Uria lomvia", "Petit Pingouin", "Alca torda", "Mouette tridactyle", "Rissa tridactyla", "Goéland marin", "Larus marinus", "Goéland hudsonien", "Larus smithsonianus", "Goéland à bec cerclé", "Larus delawarensis", "Mouette rieuse", "Chroicocephalus ridibundus", "Sterne caspienne", "Hydroprogne caspia", "Sterne pierregarin", "Sterna hirundo", "Sterne arctique", "Sterna paradisaea", "Sterne de Dougall", "Sterna dougallii", "Hydrobates leucorhous", "Océanite cul-blanc", "Fou de Bassan", "Morus bassanus", "Grand Cormoran", "Phalacrocorax carbo", "Cormoran à aigrettes", "Nannopterum auritum", "Eider à duvet;", "Somateria mollissima"]}
open_canada_subject	["nature_and_environment"]
sensitivity_level	unrestricted
title_fr	Banque Informatisée des Oiseaux Marins du Québec (BIOMQ)
update_frequency	P1Y