Spring is well underway! Trees are sprouting leaves and blooms, and with this transition come new species of birds as they either return to Southern Ontario to breed, or continue further north to their boreal forest breeding grounds.
Compared to just a week ago, there’s an obvious increase of species in town. Today during another brief walk along the Etobicoke Creek I spotted a Belted Kingfisher, Brown Thrasher, and more.
There’s a continuing abundance of Kinglets, both yellow-crowned and ruby-crowned. Vireos were seen along with a number of Warblers, one of my favourites being the Palm Warbler, one of many species that rely on our boreal forest for their annual breeding.
If you’re a birder, you may already know about this, but it’s worth mentioning regardless. In northern Canada we have an important ecosystem known as the Boreal forest. It stretches across most of northern Canada, and is an important breeding area for more than 300 species of birds. It’s also home to other wildlife.
At the current time, only 8% of the boreal forest is currently protected, while 30% has been allocated to industrial use. The current land usage is already causing a decline in bird populations. In the long run we’re headed for worse.
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