Continued from part A. Post # 5 is divided into two emails A and B.
This is part B.

SHOREBIRD POPULATION TRENDS: Are shorebirds declining? Bart et al.
(2007) discussed shorebird population trends. They analyzed long-term
shorebird data from two survey regions: the North Atlantic and
Midwest USA regions. The North Atlantic region showed an overall
decline of 2.17% per year (P = 0.004). Among 30 species, 73% showed
declines, 9 species declined significantly and none increased
significantly. The Midwest region showed no clear evidence of an
overall decline in 29 species. The authors stated, "The finding that
trends were quite different in the North Atlantic and Midwest regions
makes us reluctant to calculate rangewide trend estimates."
        In the North Atlantic Region, three possible causes for the decline
in total numbers were evaluated: 1. Movement hypothesis: that the
timing of migration changed and caused the decline was not supported
by the data; another aspect of the movements hypothesis is that
shorebirds moved through faster in recent years, but this could not
be evaluated with existing data. 2. Change in detection hypothesis:
no evidence was found for a net shift of shorebirds from surveyed to
non-surveyed sites. 3. Population change hypothesis: this hypothesis
says that "the reduction in total numbers recorded is due to a
reduction in size of the breeding population." The authors state,
"While results are mixed for some species, the overall picture
indicates a disproportionate number of declines across many shorebird
species in North America...particularly in eastern Canada and the
northeastern United States". They say that a decline in shorebird
numbers is supported by surveys in other areas such as the Ontario
Shorebird Survey, checklist programs in Quebec, Breeding Bird Surveys
in the USA and Canada, aerial surveys in North and South America, and
counts during research projects in western Canada and surveys on the
Arctic breeding grounds.
        Conclusion: The shorebird decline in the North Atlantic region
appears to be caused by declines in population size, but the authors
cannot exclude the hypothesis that declines were due to a changes in
movements during migration, such as passing through the region more
quickly. They state that, "An urgent need exists for more long-term
data sets, especially from northern breeding grounds and from western
North America...".

Other Birds: Canada Geese and Whimbrels actively eating
Bufflaloberries (Shepherdia canadensis), adult Parasitic Jaeger on 19
Aug, Great Blue Heron, Northern Harrier, Tree Swallow on 19 Aug, 3
Gray Jays behind camp on 19 Aug, Yellow Warbler, Yellow-rumped
Warbler, "Western" Palm Warbler, Blackpoll Warbler, Lincoln's
Sparrow, White-throated Sparrow, White-crowned Sparrow, 3 Common
Redpolls on 19 Aug, White-winged Crossbill.

Polar Bears: A big male and a female with 3 cubs are interrupting
surveyors, banding and Trent Masters student Lisa Pollock's important
shorebird study. Polar Bears are also eating the abundant
Bufflaloberries based on remains in their droppings.

Wildflowers: Jean loves Akimiski's subarctic remoteness and beauty.
It is now bright with an abundance of Arctic Daisy (Chrysanthermum
arcticum), Marsh Ragwort (Senecio congestus), Northern Grass of
Parnassus (Parnassia palustris), pinkish purple Beach Pea (Lathyrus
japonicus), and pale purple Northern Gentians (Gentianella amarella).
Scientific and common plant names from the "Flora of the Hudson Bay
Lowland and its Postglacial Origins" by John L. Riley, published in
2003 by the National Research Council of Canada, 236 pages.

Note last remaining sea ice in Hudson Bay close to Manitoba and Ontario.
http://www.natice.noaa.gov/pub/ims_gif/DATA/cursnow_usa.gif

Literature Cited: Bart, J., Brown, S., Harrington, B., and R.I.G.
Morrison. 2007. Survey Trends of North American Shorebirds: Declines
or Shifting Populations? Journal of Avian Biology 38(1): 73-82.

We thank Ken Abraham and Andrew Jano for helpful comments and
information. Next report in a few days.

Ron Pittaway (for Jean Iron)
Minden and Toronto
Ontario, Canada