Welcome to the James Bay Islands Bird Survey (JBIBS). This survey
is a long-term study of the birdlife of the James Bay islands. Most of the
islands in this remote region have never been visited by ornithologists and only brief visits have been made to the larger islands.
Though James Bay is flanked by Ontario and Quebec, its waters and islands are under the jurisdiction of the new territory of Nunavut. Despite recent regional interest in hydroelectric
projects, diamond mining, and other extractive industries in both Quebec and Ontario, little research has been done on James Bay's islands and waters. The JBIBS should significantly add to the baseline data on the bay's birdlife.
These on-going
low-impact avifaunal surveys document the distribution and abundance of the
breeding and migratory birds of the islands and waters of James Bay. Other
life-forms, such as mammals, reptiles, amphibians, and butterflies, are also being recorded.
The project should yield valuable information on numbers and movements
of shorebirds, waterfowl, and songbirds, as well as larger mammals such as
beluga whales, seals, and polar bears. Expeditions to the islands are being undertaken
during the May-September period, with an emphasis on the
breeding season (June-July). To date, approximately 209 species of birds have been recorded from the Bay Islands. Confirmed breeders total 71 species with a further 67 species suspected but yet-to-be-confirmed as breeders.
The Expeditions, so far...
1995: Southeast James Bay (14 islands)
1997: Northeast James Bay (15 islands)
2006: Chisasibi to Richmond Gulf, Hudson Bay
James Bay is a lobe on
the southeast corner of Hudson Bay.
It's also the southernmost extension of the Arctic Ocean in Canada.
Checklist of the Birds of the Waters and Islands of James Bay and southern Hudson Bay
I'd love to hear your comments, questions, and suggestions for improvement,
and of course, your bird records from the region. Please e-mail me (Rob Tymstra) at
birdman@ebtech.net.
BMW F650 Adventures: Birding & Motorcycling theWorld
CLICK on the bike to see my new BMW birding blog. This page will detail the birding adventures I hope to have on my new BMW. Eventually, I plan to take 'Rosie' on a round-the-world journey. In the meantime, I'll try for some shakedown cruises to Alaska or Tierra del Fuego... stay tuned!
Rosie!
Ornithographs: A link to a catalogue of fine natural history art and much, much more...
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since November 20, 1998.
Rob Tymstra (JBIAS Webmaster) Darrell Parsons (research assistant)