Blanding's Turtle an Endangered Treasure

The bright yellow throat and pointed facial features of the Blanding's Turtle give it an unmistakable look among the many turtles that live in Canada's rivers, lakes and ponds. The carapace (top shell) can reach a length of up to 27 cm and is normally dark brown or black, with tan or yellow spots or lines across it. The plastron (bottom shell) is normally bright yellow.

In Canada, distinct populations of the Blanding's Turtle occur in southwestern Québec, southern Ontario and central-southwest Nova Scotia. The Canadian distributions account for 20% of the species' global range.

During the summer months, this turtle can be found in many different types of freshwater areas, from lakes and slow-moving streams to marshes and swamps. Blanding's Turtles prefer shallow water, rich in nutrients and dense with vegetation; adults will be found in open areas, while juveniles will congregate in heavily vegetated areas close to the water's edge.

Although this species is considered to be primarily aquatic, members will spend a great deal of time on land basking and looking for nesting sites, travelling great distances while doing so.

Natural threats to this species include predators such as coyotes, skunks, foxes and raccoons raiding nesting sites, as full-grown turtles will deter predatory animals with their overall size and the strength of the carapace. Without sufficiently warm temperatures during the summer months, nests can also fail.

Increased human activity has fragmented and degraded the Blanding's Turtle's habitat. Wetland development reduces the amount of habitat available to the turtle and may change the water flows in the area. Increases in road construction and traffic circulation lead to higher chances that vehicles will strike turtles, severely injuring or killing them, or destroy nests that are often found in loose roadside gravel.

What You Can Do

• Protect Canada's waterways and habitats that the Blanding's Turtle calls home.


• If you find a turtle on a busy pathway or road and believe it is in danger, move it to a safer location nearby. Lift the turtle by the side edges of its carapace and move it in the direction it is traveling.

Read more of the Blanding's Turtle's story, including interesting species facts and additional actions you can take, in our endangered species profile.

Photo by Beatrice Laporte

Common Bird-feeding Myths

Feeding birds can be a rewarding experience, and a great way to connect with nature. But are you really helping your feathered friends? Here's the truth about some common bird-feeding myths:

Myth: Feeding birds prevents them from migrating.

Fact: Birds migrate in response to factors such as length of daylight and weather, not because of food availability. In fact, birds need more food during long migrations, so your feeder may be a welcome stop for species you don't normally see in your area.

Myth: Birds become dependent on feeders.

Fact: Most birds use many sources of food and do not rely on just one. If your feeder happens to go empty, most birds will find food elsewhere, although you'll have to work harder to bring them back to your yard. Loss of natural habitat due to human development does make it more difficult each year for birds to find the necessary food, particularly during the winter months, so providing a ready source of seeds, fruits or suet can give many birds a leg up.

Myth: The mixed seed at the grocery store is bad.

Fact: Some mixed seed can be bad, while other grocery-store varieties will provide quality for your feeder; the key is in the ingredients. Filler in cheap feed includes lots of milo, wheat, and barley. There may also be inedible objects such as sticks and empty hulls visible in the mix. These seeds are more likely to attract pesky birds and result in more wasted seed on the ground around your feeder. A good mix will have some form of sunflower seed and may also include peanut bits, safflower and millet.

Find more bird-feeding myths on our website.

Photo by Jim Dubois

Back to school! in one of Haiti's biodiversity hotspots

The community of Formon is in the buffer zone of Macaya National Park. This forest, high in the mountains of the Massif de la Hotte, is one of the very last remnants of forest in Haiti. It is a refuge for migrating birds and many endemic threatened species.

Formon is a very remote community and its only school ran out of funding and was closed for several years, leaving the greater part of the children of the community, particularly girls, without the benefit of a formal education. The few families that could afford it, sent their boys to school in another town (the closest being at least 6 hours away). The boy's mothers went with them and their sisters stayed behind to take on the household duties.

But this just changed thanks to an integrated conservation and development project we're implementing in the Caribbean. This summer, our partner Haiti Audubon Society, worked with the community to renovate the school, furnish it and staff it with 8 teachers. Nature Canada is implementing this project with the financial support of the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA). Our other Caribbean partners in this project are Grupo Jaragua in the Dominican Republic and CNAP in Cuba. Learn more about this project on our website.




Projects like these are based on the belief that effective conservation efforts should deliver benefits to local people. By improving the livelihoods of people so they can have a better quality of life, we make it more likely they will become better stewards of their rich and fragile environments. Basic education for boys and girls is a key component of a prosperous and sustainable future, so we are thrilled that the kids of Formon went back to school in October!

Thanks to Jean Vilmond Hilaire from Haiti Audubon Society for sharing this video... Enjoy!

Photo of the Month: Osprey

We had two great Osprey photos submitted last month that we just had to share:

The first image was captured by Clive Bryson at Salmon Arm Bay in B.C.


The second photo was taken by Larry Halverson while fly fishing at Lake Enid in B.C.

The osprey is one of the largest birds of prey in North America. It is a fish-eating specialist, with live fish making up 99% of its diet. It will often hover over the water before diving feet-first to grab fish from near the surface.

Both of these stunning shots show the power and grace of these aerial predators; thanks for sharing them, Clive and Larry!

Global Extinction Continues: Report

This year's IUCN Red List of Threatened Species update shows more than one-third of the assessed species are threatened with extinction. A recognized environmental leader, the IUCN has assessed the conservation status of 47,677 species around the world.

BirdLife International is the Red List Authority for birds. Of the world's 9,998 bird species, 669 are Vulnerable, 362 are Endangered and 192 are Critically Endangered - 2 more than last year. However, BirdLife also tells us about some conservation success stories:

In Brazil, Lear's Macaw Anodorhynchus leari has been downlisted from Critically Endangered. Named after the English poet, this spectacular blue parrot has increased four-fold in numbers as a result of a joint effort of many national and international non-governmental organisations, the Brazilian government and local landowners. In New Zealand, Chatham Petrel Pterodroma axillaris has benefited from work by the New Zealand Department of Conservation and has consequently been downlisted from Critically Endangered. And in Mauritius the stunning, Mauritius Fody Foudia rubra has been rescued from the brink after the translocation and establishment of a new population on to a predator-free offshore island. It has now been downlisted to Endangered.

The results of the full Red List update reveal 21% of mammals, 30% of amphibians, 12% of birds, 28% of reptiles, 37% of freshwater fishes, 70% of plants and 35% of invertebrates assessed so far are under threat.

Nature Canada is the Canadian co-partner with Bird Studies Canada in BirdLife International. As BirdLife in Canada, we deliver the Important Bird Areas Program, which aims to identify, conserve and monitor a network of sites that provides essential habitat for bird populations.

Good News for Polar Bears

Polar Bears that live in Canada's far north, with ranges that overlap Nunavut and Greenland, will be protected by a new agreement. Canadian Environment Minister Jim Prentice is in Greenland today for the signing ceremony with the governments of Greenland and Nunavut.

From the Ottawa Citizen:

"Conservation groups have said they expect the agreement to be similar to other bilateral deals, such as one signed last year between Canada and the U.S., as well as a separate agreement between Alaska and Russia.
...
Previous bilateral agreements have set a framework for collaboration on scientific research and monitoring of population levels, and could also include specific provisions to address or restrict hunting."

Read more news from the CBC and the Globe and Mail.

In 2008 the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service issued its decision to list the Polar Bear as "threatened" under the Endangered Species Act. The Polar Bear is not yet listed under Canada's Species At Risk Act, despite the fact that more than half of the world's Polar Bears are found in Canada. You can join the campaign calling on the Environment Minister to add the Polar Bear to Canada's official Species At Risk list.

About the Polar Bear
Common Name: Polar Bear
Latin Name: Ursus Maritimus
Status: Special Concern (according to the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada)
Size: Males are typically between two and three metres long and weigh up to 500 kg, though a few weigh as much as 800 kg. Females weigh between 150 to 250 kg.
Population: 22,000 to 27,000
Life Span: 20 to 25 years
Range: Most polar bears live in Canada, but other populations exist in Alaska, Russia, Greenland and Norway.
Threats: Climate change, air pollution, oil spills and toxic chemicals.

The Gardiens of the IBAs are hard at work in Quebec

A large number of globally significant IBAs have been identified along the Saint Lawrence River in Quebec (IBAs are called ZICOs - Zones Importantes pour la Conservation des Oiseaux - in Quebec). Many are designated for concentrations of shorebirds which migrate south from James and Hudson Bay in the fall, or north in the spring from their wintering grounds often thousands of kilometres to the south. Extensive mudflats, sandbars and wetlands provide critical habitat rich in the invertebrate foods that fuel the next leg of their thousands of kilometres long journeys. The "battures" or tidal flats near the sprawling 80 kilometres square Sept Iles IBA, the Pointe au Pere IBA near Rimouski, or the sand bar at Portneuf, all support thousands of individuals from species such as White-rumped Sandpiper, American Golden Plover, and Ruddy Turnstone. This rich and dynamic littoral zone also supports massive numbers of migrating waterfowl, including Snow Goose, Canada Goose, Common Eider and Barrow's Goldeneye.
As well as providing stop-over habitat for shorebirds and waterfowl, the coastline is a veritable highway of birds from Pointe des Monts, about an hour's drive east of Baie Comeau, where the coast takes a shape turn to the north and the Saint Lawrence River becomes a gulf, to the beautiful village of Tadoussac and even further to the south-west. Tens and perhaps hundreds of millions of migrant landbirds move south from the huge area of boreal forest and tundra between Hudson Bay and the Labrador coast, arriving at the south-west angle of the Saint Lawrence coastline then follow the coast south-westward before crossing the Saint Lawrence at one of a few locations east of Quebec City. Observers with the Tadoussac Bird Observatory document part of this migration in the fall season from lookouts above the Saint Lawrence near Tadoussac and from observation points near Pointe des Monts.

In visiting three of these highly significant IBAs with very active groups and champions, I have been impressed with how enthusiastically the IBA concept is embraced and how eager the local people are to continue their work as "Gardiens" or Caretakers. Along the way I have also met several very talented and passionate young ornithologists such as Marylène and Jean Étienne (in the photo) who paint a very bright future for bird conservation in la belle province!