Birds on the Niagara returns to a local ‘bird wonderland’
A unique cross-border birding event will take flight virtually this year.
The third annual Birds on the Niagara, to take place Friday to Sunday, celebrates the wide variety of winter birds that call the Niagara River corridor home.
“The Niagara region is a bird wonderland to behold during the winter months,” said Kerry Kennedy, co-chair of BON21 and a member of the Niagara Falls Nature Club.
“Vast populations of northern birds, including ducks and geese, gulls and terns, and other visitors from the North, find food and shelter here, in the open waters connecting Lake Erie and Lake Ontario.”
Up to 40 species of waterfowl, including tundra swans, buffleheads and canvasbacks, and 19 species of gulls, including Bonaparte’s gulls, can be spotted along the corridor.
Birds on the Niagara is an international partnership of organizations, agencies and individuals, dedicated to promoting the conservation and enjoyment of the Niagara River Globally Significant Important Bird Area and the Ramsar Wetlands of International Significance, also known as the Niagara River Strait.
With the U.S. shore now recognized as a Ramsar Wetland of International Significance, and a parallel Canadian effort underway, the event will showcase the importance of the area and organizers hope it will one day become a prominent winter destination for ecotourists and adventure travellers.
“The number of birds that migrate to the river near the Falls is a tremendous ecotourist attraction,” said Jay Burney, event co-chair.
The event begins Friday with a meet and greet and silent auction in support of Buffalo Audubon and Birds on the Niagara, a virtual Owl Prowl, and a presentation on the gulls of Niagara by Justin Peter, of Quest Nature Tours.
Saturday’s programming will include a session on “Virtual Family Winter Birding” hosted by the Tifft Nature Preserve in Buffalo, N.Y.
“With the number of winter birds declining every year, celebrating and learning about them, and the role that we can all play in their conservation and protection, is now more important than ever,” said Marcie Jacklin, event co-chair and member of Bert Miller Nature Club in Fort Erie.
All programs will be delivered online through www.birdsontheniagara.org.