A Helping Hand: Updates to the Migratory Birds Regulations
Migratory birds are true global citizens. They do not recognize international borders, belong to a specific country, or call only one place home. Just as humans do, these birds follow good weather and food availability across great distances.
In the spring and summer months, thousands of birds make the trip up to Canada to nest, mate, and raise their young. For most migratory birds in Canada, this breeding season lasts from late March to August (Government of Canada, 2022 October 30). Then, when the sunlight hours and temperature begin to dip, flocks of birds both young and old leave their breeding grounds behind and head south in search of food and warmth. This great migration is a treacherous journey. Not only does each bird have to fight for food and shelter but they must also evade people, projects, pollution and… cats! In Canada, the federal Migratory Birds Convention Act (MBCA) and Migratory Birds Regulations (MBR) supply the largest protection for 395 migratory bird species that call Canada home for part of the year (Government of Canada, 2022 August 03).
American Robin
First introduced in 1918, the MBCA and MBR prohibit anybody from capturing, killing, injuring, taking, or harassing a migratory bird (Government of Canada, 2022 December 15). These documents were updated in July 2022 to begin modernizing regulations around migratory birds. Prior to this update, the MBR focused on protecting all migratory bird nests year-round regardless if they were actively used or not. The goal of the updated MBR is to provide protection for migratory bird nests when they have the highest conservation value; in other words, when the nest contains a live bird or egg (Government of Canada, 2022 November 25).
However, Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) has identified 18 bird species that have such high conservation value that they and their nests must be protected beyond the active window. These species are identified on Schedule 1 of the MBR and their nests cannot be moved or destroyed until they are deemed abandoned by following an ECCC established protocol (Government of Canada, 2022 August 03). First, the nest removal proponent must submit a formal notice to ECCC using the Abandoned Nest Registry (Government of Canada, 2022 August 03). Once this notice has been submitted, it “starts the clock” for the time required to lapse before the nest can be removed (Government of Canada, 2022 August 03). This waiting period depends on the species and if the nest becomes used by another migratory bird after submission of the abandonment notice. It is the responsibility of the nest removal proponent to actively monitor the nest throughout the waiting period to verify that it has remained inactive (Government of Canada, 2022 August 03). If at any point during the waiting period the nest becomes active again, the proponent must notify ECCC who will then cancel the abandonment notice (Government of Canada, 2022 August 03). Once the nest is no longer active again, a new abandonment notice must be submitted which then starts a new, full waiting period (Government of Canada, 2022 August 03).
Pileated woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus)
Pileated woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus)
One interesting species that is listed on Schedule 1 of the MBR is the pileated woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus). The pileated woodpecker is about the size of an American crow which makes it the largest woodpecker in Canada (All About Birds, n.d.). It has mostly black plumage with white stripes on its face, neck, and underwings. The males and females look nearly identical, each having a beautiful fire-red crest, but the males can be identified by a red stripe that stretches across their cheek (All About Birds, n.d.). Respective to their size, pileated woodpeckers have a long neck and sturdy bill which they use like a chisel to break into decaying wood in search of their favourite food, carpenter ants! (All About Birds, n.d.). While ants make up the bulk of their diet, pileated woodpeckers are also big fans of woodboring insect larvae, wild fruit, and nuts.
Pileated woodpecker foraging in a tree.
Currently, the pileated woodpecker is listed as “Secure” by the Government of Canada as their Canadian populations have increased significantly since 1970 (Government of Canada, 2015 August 19). Pileated woodpeckers can be found in almost every province and are residents of Canada which means they stick around their territory all year. They prefer mature forests, either deciduous or mixed deciduous-coniferous, with lots of large trees for nesting and foraging. They can also be found in younger forests that have a good supply of large decaying trees and woody material (All About Birds, n.d.). Pileated woodpecker’s generally mate between April and July and will produce one brood of 3 to 5 eggs per year. The eggs are incubated for 2 to 3 weeks with the chicks fledging the nest 3 to 4 weeks after hatching.
So why is a bird that does not migrate protected under the Migratory Birds Convention Act? That is because pileated woodpeckers are cavity nesters. This means that they will excavate a large cavity into a tree in which they will raise their young. It is also common for them to excavate a separate cavity for resting (i.e. a roost) and multiple cavities when foraging for food (Government of Canada, 2022 October 05). Each of these cavities can be used as nests by other migratory birds that return to Canada which makes the pileated woodpecker an important ecological contributor (Government of Canada, 2022 December 15). Large, pre-existing tree cavities are an incredibly valuable, but limited, resource in a forest ecosystem as they provide shelter, storage, and sanctuary for all sorts of organisms. By protecting the pileated woodpecker and the tree cavities they create, the newly updated MBCA and MBR extends conservation support to all migratory bird species that rely on tree cavity availability.
Tree cavity excavation.
Red-naped sapsucker surveying a tree cavity.
References
All About Birds (n.d.) Pileated Woodpecker Life History. Accessed from https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Pileated_Woodpecker/lifehistory on April 12, 2023
Government of Canada. (2015, August 19). Pileated Woodpecker (Dryocopus pileatus). Accessed from https://wildlife-species.canada.ca/bird-status/oiseau-bird-eng.aspx?sY=2019&sL=e&sM=c&sB=PIWO on April 13, 2023.
Government of Canada. (2022, October 30). Nesting. Accessed from https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/avoiding-harm-migratory-birds/general-nesting-periods/nesting-periods.html on April 12, 2023
Government of Canada. (2022, August 03). Fact Sheet: Nest Protection under the Migratory Birds Regulations, 2022. Accessed from https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/avoiding-harm-migratory-birds/fact-sheet-nest-protection-under-mbr-2022.html on April 6, 2023.
Government of Canada. (2022, October 05). Pileated Woodpecker Cavity Identification Guide. Accessed from https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/avoiding-harm-migratory-birds/pileated-woodpecker-cavity-identification-guide.html on April 12, 2023
Government of Canada. (2022, November 25). New Migratory Birds Regulations, 2022. Accessed from https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/migratory-game-bird-hunting/status-update-modernization-regulations.html#toc1 on April 6, 2023.
Government of Canada. (2022, December 15). Frequently Asked Questions: Migratory Birds Regulations, 2022. Accessed from https://www.canada.ca/en/environment-climate-change/services/migratory-bird-permits/faq-migratory-birds-regulations-2022.html on April 6, 2023.