Niagara River Corridor Important Bird Area

Niagara River Corridor Important Bird Area. . , The Niagara River Corridor Important Bird Area (IBA) was identified as globally significant by the National Audubon Society in 1996. IBAs identify, protect, and conserve a network of sites essential for sustaining naturally occurring bird populations and their habitats., Winter bird populations are unique in the Niagara Frontier Region. The open waters of the Niagara River and the Lakes Ontario and Erie attract up to 19 different species of gulls and 25 different species of waterfowl. , The Bonaparte’s Gull uses the Niagara River as a migratory stopover and wintering site. Up to 50,000 of these birds, which account for 10% of the world’s population, have been counted along the Niagara River in a single day., Herring Gulls are also abundant; about 20,000 or more individuals can be observed regularly. This represents the regular occurrence of almost 6% of the North American Herring Gull population with upwards of 14% of the population being reported on a (regular basis). , Canvasback Common Merganser. Waterfowl concentrations during fall and winter also regularly exceed 20,000 individuals of more than 20 species. At least two species (Canvasbacks and Common Mergansers) are regularly present during late fall and early winter in numbers just above 1% of their estimated North American populations.