One of the most celebrated symbols of spring around the world is the arrival of migratory birds. This natural phenomenon can be experienced and admired in nearly every corner of the globe. During spring in the northern hemisphere, many birds are heading north to their breeding grounds in the Boreal Forest of Canada. Later in the year after their young have fledged—and during spring in the southern hemispheric—they will return to their southern homes including Panama, Colombia, or Chile.
It is in this spirit that we celebrate World Migratory Bird Day (WMBD) twice a year. The official dates in 2025 are May 10th and October 11th. WMBD is an opportunity not only to celebrate the wonder of birds, but to better educate ourselves about the kinds of birds we have around us, what types of pressures may be affecting them, and what we can do to help relieve some of that pressure.
With so many birds heading north to breed right now, we focus our attention on their destination. The Boreal provides nesting and migration habitat for an impressive number and diverse array of birds. Nearly half of all common bird species of the U.S. and Canada rely on this vast biome for their nesting or migratory stopover habitat (325+ species in total), and it ‘produces’ around 30% of the North American landbird population, 30% of the shorebird population, and 38% of the waterfowl population overall. The birds range from birds like Dark-eyed Junco and White-crowned Sparrow to widely appreciated neotropical migrants, including more than half of the known wood warbler species of North America, some of which are almost exclusively reliant on the Boreal for nesting grounds. In fact, the Boreal provides nesting grounds for at least three-quarters of the population of the Bay-breasted Warbler, Blackpoll Warbler, Cape May Warbler, Connecticut Warbler, Mourning Warbler, Palm Warbler, and Tennessee Warbler.
Over the past several decades, momentum has been building in Canada to not only better understand and appreciate the many benefits and ecological values of the Boreal Forest, but also better protect it. Indigenous governments and organizations have been at the forefront of this effort.
In the following video, our partners at SNAP Quebec take you to northern Abitibi-Témiscamingue to meet the Abitibiwinni First Nation, who are working to better understand and protect the birds of the Boreal Forest.
So if you’re out this weekend and spot a White-throated Sparrow, Common Loon, or one of the other 300+ bird species that owe much of their existence to the Boreal, know that there are some positive things happening on the ground in Canada that should help ensure we are able to continue enjoying these delightful migrants for decades to come. Happy #WMBD!
