Birds of the Offshore Canadian Beaufort Sea: Database and Atlas

• Main Authors: Harris, Ross, Upun-LGL Limited
• Format: Dataset
• Language: English
• Published: Canadian Cryospheric Information Network 2014
• Subjects: Abundance; Amundsen Gulf; Beaufort Sea; Birds; Database; Eiders; Gulls; Jaegers; Loons; Marine birds; Beaufort Regional Environmental Assessment
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.5443/11869; https://www.polardata.ca/pdcsearch/?doi_id=11869

Existing data on bird sightings and surveys in the Canadian Beaufort Sea were found, assembled, reviewed, cleaned, and organized into a standardized database structure. Data were collected primarily during recent seismic surveys conducted by the oil and gas industry, and government research cruises. The data are grouped into cruise, watch, and sighting categories. Cruise data include general information about the overall survey program. Watch data consists of information about specific survey dates, times, observers, ship speed, and environmental conditions. Sighting data includes species identification, age, sex, numbers, and behaviour. : Purpose: Data on the offshore occurence (distribution and abundance) of birds in the Canadian Beaufort Sea were scattered among many often unpublished sources, in different formats, and collected using different fields methods. The purpose of this project is to collect and organize those data into a standardized, geo-referenced database for use in the assessment of environmental effects of offshore oil and gas activities and other research. Also, this database can serve as the standard format, and the central storage location, for future data collection. : Summary: Not Applicable