Fauna Foundation Bird Count Nears 160
January 2025
By Justin Taus
Our inventory of bird species observed on the Fauna Foundation property has now reached a total of 158 species. The last species to be added to our list are the Marsh Wren, a small rusty-brown bird that inhabits marshland and builds its nests in reeds, the Willow Flycatcher, an insectivore that migrates to Central and South America in the winter, and the Herring Gull, a large gull that is common in North America.
The total of bird species on the property that are assessed to have a special conservation status by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC) and that are listed under the Species at Risk Act (SARA) remains at 9. These include the Bicknell’s Thrush, Chimney Swift, Eastern Meadowlark and Wood Thrush which are assessed as threatened as well as the Barn Swallow, Bobolink, Common Nighthawk, Eastern Wood-pewee and Rusty Blackbird which are assessed as special concern.
Justin Taus
Justin Taus is on the Caregiver team at Fauna Foundation. Justin holds degrees in both Education and Journalism from Concordia University in Montreal, Canada, where he specialized in photojournalism. He has reported from diverse regions of the world including the Amazon rainforest, the savannahs of Eastern Africa and the Alaskan Arctic. He has produced content for organizations like the Wildlife Conservation Society and the International League of Conservation Photographers as well as media outlets including Outdoor Photographer magazine, Vice and the CBC. Justin has been photographing the wildlife at Fauna since 2017.
