Submitted by Graham Sorenson

Bird Studies Canada organizes a Coastal Waterbird Survey in British Columbia, and is looking for more volunteers in the Vancouver area, and throughout BC’s coast. This long-term Citizen Science monitoring program involves counting ducks, loons, grebes, gulls, and other waterbirds on the second Sunday of each month from Sept-April. The BC Coastal Waterbird Survey results play an important role in monitoring populations, species recovery strategies, oil spill response planning, and international research initiatives like the Migratory Shorebird Project. 

In the 2017-2018 season, almost 1,300 surveys were conducted at 198 sites throughout BC, and documented 105 waterbird species! We are always hoping to improve our coverage of the coast and learn more about the distribution and abundance of coastal waterbirds. Join this survey by emailing the BC Projects Coordinator, Graham Sorenson, at BCvolunteer@birdscanada.org. You can read more about this survey and other coastal news HERE and check out recent hotspot maps created from the survey data HERE.