Environment and Climate Change Canada’s monitoring program for species at risk, rare and difficult-to-monitor species uses targeted sampling designs to assess the population status and trend of species that are not readily sampled by other programs.
A formal analysis was used to prioritize landbird species for monitoring under this program. Old-forest songbirds were determined to be the highest priority for monitoring because they can be vulnerable to habitat disturbance, and their habitats are less common overall and difficult to restore once disturbed. An old-forest landbird monitoring program was initiated in 2014.
A separate focused study is assessing the potential impacts of oil sands mining on Whooping Cranes, which migrate through the oil sands region twice annually and sometimes stop over during migration. Data from this study are not currently available.
Supplemental Information
Supporting Projects: Canada-Alberta Oil Sands Environmental Monitoring