Relative abundance and range extensions of bird species in central Labrador
Bird communities in Labrador remain poorly described, including in the lower Churchill River valley, which lies within an offshoot of the boreal shield ecozone and features vegetation communities typically found more than 100 km to the south. Between 2006 and 2016, we conducted 1139 point counts in...
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ftjcfn:oai:canadianfieldnaturalist.ca:article/2419 2023-05-15T15:55:10+02:00 Relative abundance and range extensions of bird species in central Labrador Gahbauer, Marcel A. Rashleigh, Karen 2022-01-21 application/pdf https://www.canadianfieldnaturalist.ca/index.php/cfn/article/view/2419 https://doi.org/10.22621/cfn.v135i3.2419 eng eng The Ottawa Field-Naturalists' Club https://www.canadianfieldnaturalist.ca/index.php/cfn/article/view/2419/2733 https://www.canadianfieldnaturalist.ca/index.php/cfn/article/view/2419/2735 https://www.canadianfieldnaturalist.ca/index.php/cfn/article/view/2419 doi:10.22621/cfn.v135i3.2419 Copyright (c) 2022 The authors The Canadian Field-Naturalist; Vol. 135 No. 3 (2021); 262-277 0008-3550 birds boreal distribution habitat association Labrador range extension info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion 2022 ftjcfn https://doi.org/10.22621/cfn.v135i3.2419 2022-01-23T18:29:06Z Bird communities in Labrador remain poorly described, including in the lower Churchill River valley, which lies within an offshoot of the boreal shield ecozone and features vegetation communities typically found more than 100 km to the south. Between 2006 and 2016, we conducted 1139 point counts in June and early July at 617 sites along 63 routes within and adjacent to the lower Churchill River valley. We documented 80 species during the surveys and a further nine species incidentally. The most numerous species were Swainson’s Thrush (Catharus ustulatus), Ruby-crowned Kinglet (Corthylio calendula), and Dark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis). Relative bird abundance was highest in hardwood and mixedwood forests and lowest in areas dominated by Black Spruce (Picea mariana). Among the species we observed were 19 that we considered to be regionally rare, based on existing documentation. The most abundant of these were Least Flycatcher (Empidonax minimus), Cedar Waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum), and Magnolia Warbler (Setophaga magnolia), each with more than 80 observations over multiple years, spanning 10 or more areas within the lower Churchill River valley. Almost all of the regionally rare species were strongly associated with either hardwood forests, large conifers, or dense riparian vegetation. These features are relatively widespread within the lower Churchill River valley, but scarce elsewhere in Labrador. It is unclear whether the results observed represent recent range expansions or our surveys were simply the first to document long-standing regional populations; regardless, we recommend that our records be considered in future revisions to range maps for these species. Article in Journal/Newspaper Churchill River The Canadian Field-Naturalist (E-Journal) The Canadian Field-Naturalist 135 3 262 277 |
institution |
Open Polar |
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The Canadian Field-Naturalist (E-Journal) |
op_collection_id |
ftjcfn |
language |
English |
topic |
birds boreal distribution habitat association Labrador range extension |
spellingShingle |
birds boreal distribution habitat association Labrador range extension Gahbauer, Marcel A. Rashleigh, Karen Relative abundance and range extensions of bird species in central Labrador |
topic_facet |
birds boreal distribution habitat association Labrador range extension |
description |
Bird communities in Labrador remain poorly described, including in the lower Churchill River valley, which lies within an offshoot of the boreal shield ecozone and features vegetation communities typically found more than 100 km to the south. Between 2006 and 2016, we conducted 1139 point counts in June and early July at 617 sites along 63 routes within and adjacent to the lower Churchill River valley. We documented 80 species during the surveys and a further nine species incidentally. The most numerous species were Swainson’s Thrush (Catharus ustulatus), Ruby-crowned Kinglet (Corthylio calendula), and Dark-eyed Junco (Junco hyemalis). Relative bird abundance was highest in hardwood and mixedwood forests and lowest in areas dominated by Black Spruce (Picea mariana). Among the species we observed were 19 that we considered to be regionally rare, based on existing documentation. The most abundant of these were Least Flycatcher (Empidonax minimus), Cedar Waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum), and Magnolia Warbler (Setophaga magnolia), each with more than 80 observations over multiple years, spanning 10 or more areas within the lower Churchill River valley. Almost all of the regionally rare species were strongly associated with either hardwood forests, large conifers, or dense riparian vegetation. These features are relatively widespread within the lower Churchill River valley, but scarce elsewhere in Labrador. It is unclear whether the results observed represent recent range expansions or our surveys were simply the first to document long-standing regional populations; regardless, we recommend that our records be considered in future revisions to range maps for these species. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Gahbauer, Marcel A. Rashleigh, Karen |
author_facet |
Gahbauer, Marcel A. Rashleigh, Karen |
author_sort |
Gahbauer, Marcel A. |
title |
Relative abundance and range extensions of bird species in central Labrador |
title_short |
Relative abundance and range extensions of bird species in central Labrador |
title_full |
Relative abundance and range extensions of bird species in central Labrador |
title_fullStr |
Relative abundance and range extensions of bird species in central Labrador |
title_full_unstemmed |
Relative abundance and range extensions of bird species in central Labrador |
title_sort |
relative abundance and range extensions of bird species in central labrador |
publisher |
The Ottawa Field-Naturalists' Club |
publishDate |
2022 |
url |
https://www.canadianfieldnaturalist.ca/index.php/cfn/article/view/2419 https://doi.org/10.22621/cfn.v135i3.2419 |
genre |
Churchill River |
genre_facet |
Churchill River |
op_source |
The Canadian Field-Naturalist; Vol. 135 No. 3 (2021); 262-277 0008-3550 |
op_relation |
https://www.canadianfieldnaturalist.ca/index.php/cfn/article/view/2419/2733 https://www.canadianfieldnaturalist.ca/index.php/cfn/article/view/2419/2735 https://www.canadianfieldnaturalist.ca/index.php/cfn/article/view/2419 doi:10.22621/cfn.v135i3.2419 |
op_rights |
Copyright (c) 2022 The authors |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.22621/cfn.v135i3.2419 |
container_title |
The Canadian Field-Naturalist |
container_volume |
135 |
container_issue |
3 |
container_start_page |
262 |
op_container_end_page |
277 |
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1766390504391442432 |