……objective science for conservation…….

The Pacific WildLife Foundation is a non-profit coastal and marine research and education society  that inspires an appreciation for objective scientific research and conservation of the ocean. We conduct original research, develop novel education programs, and inspire an appreciation for conservation of the ocean. 

 
 
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Black Oystercatcher Haematopus bachmani

Black Oystercatcher Science

Black Oystercatcher Project

The Black Oystercatcher is an endemic species of the rocky edge of the north Pacific from Baja California to Alaska where it eats marine invertebrates and nests on islets. The PWLF is collaborating with Parks Canada and Laskeek Bay Conservation Society in a study to use changes in the ecology of the oystercatcher as a signal of human impact in National Parks. Oystercatchers play an important role in rocky shore intertidal communities as predators of small marine invertebrates. They are largely confined to nest on small rocky islets away from most predators. Oystercatchers on islands near urban centres are frequently disturbed by kayakers and boaters and oil spills can harm oystercatchers.

 

Oystercatcher Discovery

The objective of the Oystercatcher Discovery study is to measure human impacts on the seashore. We selected the Black Oystercatcher because it resides year round on a very small section of rocky shore that it uses each year, it occurs on small islands visited by boaters and kayakers,   and its ground nest and flightless chicks are vulnerable to human trampling.  Oil spills can potentially be a problem. We are surveying all the islands in the Strait of Georgia, Broken islands and parts of the  west coast of Vancouver Island, including the seabird colony on Triangle island, and most of the east coast of Moresby Island in Haida Gwaii (Queen Charlotte Islands). This project is directed by Dr. Rob Butler from PWLF in collaboration with colleagues from Parks Canada’s Gulf Islands National Park Reserve, Pacific Rim National Park Reserve , Gwaii Hanaas National Park Reserve, Laskeek Bay Conservation Society, and the Canadian Wildlife Service

 

Black Oystercatcher Project 2007 Update

In 2005 and 2006, a collaborative census between the PWLF and Parks Canada staff concluded that about 100 pairs of oystercatchers nested in the Strait of Georgia. The details of this study will appear in an upcoming issue of Northwest Science. The census results highlighted the significance and sensitivity of nest sites and protection of islets used for nesting which was adopted by the Gulf Islands National Park Reserve conservation action in 2006.

In 2007, Parks Canada’s Ecological Integrity Monitoring Program selected the black oystercatcher as an indicator of rocky intertidal community health. This decision provided impetus for Parks Canada to collaborate on population surveys and associated research with British Columbia, Alaska, Washington, Oregon and California agencies as well as the PWLF and Laskeek Bay Conservation Society.  The Black Oystercatcher Conservation Action Plan guides the efforts toward better understanding of adult and fledgling survival, regional population size and trends, seasonal movements of individuals and inter-population mixing.

 

The field work in 2007 began to look at movements between populations and between winter and summer habitats.  Some birds received coloured leg bands to help detect seasonal movements, nesting site fidelity and inter-population dispersal.  In addition to leg bands, satellite and radio tracking devices were being used on birds in Pacific Rim National Park and Alaska for collection of more detailed movement data. Oystercatchers in Haida Gwaii have orange or dark blue bands on the left leg. Pacific Rim and Clayoquot Sound birds wear white with black letters on the right leg. In the Gulf islands, birds have orange bands with black letters and on the southern BC mainland coast, birds have yellow with black letters. Stay tuned for more information on the black oystercatcher in the near future. We would like to solicit your cooperation and effort in tracking these banded birds.  If you observe a banded bird, please note the band colour, and number if visible, the name of the island of the sighting and its geographic coordinates. You can send us that information by clicking on Contact Us on the home page. 

 

In the autumn of 2007, PWLF produced a short video entitled Tidecatchers that will be broadcast on this web site soon.

 

 

Learn About Black Oystercatchers

 

Current PWLF Projects

 

 
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