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Volunteer-based Surveys of Bird Communities in Coastal Wetlands
This project was initiated in May 2000 to obtain information on the habitat
requirements of the many bird species that call coastal wetlands home. Volunteers conduct
dawn surveys of salt marshes and other types of coastal wetlands during June and July.
Volunteers are still required for many areas of the Maritimes (see maps linked to location
names below).
The Willet and Nelson’s Sharp-tailed Sparrow, whose populations in the Maritime
provinces may be less than 2,500 and 750 pairs, respectively are two species that require
salt marsh habitat. They are especially vulnerable to the negative effects of habitat
destruction, fragmentation and degradation.
The WilletThe Willet is a large conspicuous shore bird. Nesting Willets are extremely territorial
and will let intruders know of their presence, by flying around them calling loudly their
name (will-it, will-it, will-it). They feed on the invertebrates found in the pannes of
water found throughout the salt marsh.
Photo copyright of Gilles Daigle (photocanada.com)
Download a Willet call (wav format) |
 The Willet
Click on thumbnail to enlarge |
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Nelson's Sharp-Tailed Sparrow
The sharp-tailed sparrow is a very secretive bird. It prefers the higher elevations of
the salt marsh, where it scurries through the grass in a mouse-like fashion. If you catch
a glimpse of the sharp-tailed sparrow, it is yet another sparrow that can be described as
a LBB, little brown bird. The Sharp-tailed sparrow has a very distinct call that has been
described as putting a piece of fat into a hot frying pan (psshhhhh).
Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow (Ammodramus nelsoni) was established as a separate species from the mores southerly occurring Saltmarsh Sharp-tailed Sparrow (Ammodramus caudacutus) by the American Ornithologist's Union in 1995.
Click on thumbnails for a larger image
Download a Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow call (wav format - 1,077 kb)
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 Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrow
 Saltmarsh Sharp-tailed Sparrow
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Surveys were conducted during 2000 and 2001 at the locations as indicated on the following maps
(click on location names to see maps).
- Northern New Brunswick
- Outer Bay of Fundy
- Upper Bay of Fundy
- Nova Scotia
- Prince Edward Island
- Northumberland Strait
To view the numbers of Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrows (NSTS) and Willets (WILL)
observed throughout the 2000 and 2001 Salt Marsh Surveys, click on any of the following links:
Nelson's Sharp-tailed Sparrows
- NSTS in Northern New Brunswick
- NSTS in Kent County, NB
- NSTS observed in Westmoreland County, NB, along the Northumberland Strait
- NSTS in the Upper Bay of Fundy area, NB
- NSTS in the Lower Bay of Fundy area, NB
- NSTS in Cumberland and Colchester Counties, NS
- NSTS observed in Cape Breton, NS
- NSTS along the Atlantic Coast of Nova Scotia
- NSTS in Prince Edward Island
Willets
- WILL in Northern New Brunswick
- WILL in Kent County, New Brunswick
- WILL in Westmoreland County NB, along the Northumberland Strait
- WILL in the Lower Bay of Fundy area, NB
- WILL in the Upper Bay of Fundy area, NB
- WILL in Cumberland and Colchester Counties, NS
- WILL in Cape Breton, NS
- WILL along the Atlantic Coast of Nova Scotia
- WILL on Prince Edward Island
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Results from these surveys indicate that even relatively small salt marshes are
important as habitat for sharp-tailed sparrows. The other important finding was that
Willets are relatively uncommon throughout the Maritimes due to the lack of pannes in many
salt marshes. Salt marshes that were formerly dyked and drained have had Spartina become
re-established, but drainage systems still prevent pannes from forming.
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 Click on thumbnails for a larger image
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If you are interested in becoming a participant in the Bird Surveys the
following information on survey methods will be most useful.
- A Study of Distribution and Abundance of Salt-Marsh Birds
Breeding in the Maritimes Page
- Field Protocol for Salt Marsh Bird Surveys
- Description of Butterflies
- Potential Bird Species for Salt Marsh Surveys
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