Barkley Sound Bird Surveys
The RES’s ongoing collaboration with BCNature and the Anne Marie Gaston Foundation has us starting the first of three years of surveys in Barkley Sound aimed at clarifying the abundance and diversity of seabirds during fall migration.
Our similar work in Queen Charlotte Strait 2019-2022 was a huge success and resulted in the publication of two papers and the establishment of a Key Biodiversity Area. We are now working to update data on marine birds a bit closer to home, right here in Barkley Sound. We have been working during the spring herring spawns to quantify what here’s and how trends have changed over time, and now the goal is to focus on the late summer post-breeding season when huge numbers of birds move through on their way south.
Joining us for the inaugural survey are Alan Burger, seabird expert extraordinaire and one of the first folks to study Marbled Murrelets here on the Island, Ken Wright, an expert with experience all across the world, and Karyssa Arnett, of SIMRS.
We will be running surveys all fall into early October, so stay tuned for more!
Research and Monitoring
The Raincoast Education Society (RES) is actively involved in scientific research and monitoring in Clayoquot and Barkley Sound. Our work in this field may sometimes go ‘under the radar’, but it’s an important part of our mission. Our core staff includes several biologists who often work in collaboration with partners from other local, provincial, or national agencies and organizations. The RES enjoys the freedom of a broad mandate and the ability to focus on locally relevant issues that affect the communities we serve. From water sampling to shorebird tracking, every project the RES takes on seeks to collect data that can provide a solid, scientifically-based reference to inform local efforts to manage, enhance, protect and preserve the unique natural environment we live in and the species we share it with.