INDIGENOUS-LED CONSERVATION

Joint study between Manitoba’s Seal River Watershed Alliance & Audubon documents abundant bird population amidst overall North American decline 

“The results highlight the critical importance of the Seal River Watershed landscape for sustaining a diverse assemblage of bird species. Protection of this type of prime breeding habitat with extensive landscape coverage is a critical component for reversing the decline of North American bird populations, which have declined by nearly three billion birds over the last 50 years. Long-term financial support of Indigenous Guardians programs and Indigenous-led conservation efforts like the one to protect the Seal River Watershed should be a high priority of federal and provincial governments.” -- Jeff Wells, PhD Vice President Boreal Conservation leads National Audubon’s work to protect the Boreal forest

In December 2023 leaders from the four allied nations — the Sayisi Dene, Northlands Denesuline, Barren Lands First Nation and O-Pipon-Na-Piwin Cree Nation — signed an agreement with the provincial and federal governments to explore the development of a protected area. 

Interview with Jeff Wells, Vice President Boreal Conservation, Audubon

By Suzanne Forcese

WT: The September 2024 report, 'The Birds of the Seal River Watershed' —published by the Seal River Watershed Alliance and the National Audubon Society—shares the finding from a co-led bioacoustics research project in Manitoba that combined Indigenous knowledge and Western science... 

Please tell us about the joint effort between the Audubon Society and The Seal River Watershed Alliance. Describe the process you are involved with in this study.

Wells: Because it is remote, most of the Seal River Watershed has never been surveyed for birds by Western scientists. 

To increase the area surveyed using Western Science approaches, a relatively new technology called autonomous recording units (ARUs) was utilized. These ARUs were deployed by Indigenous Guardians in specific locations within the watershed based on their knowledge and the knowledge of Elders and other land users of the landscape. The ARUs were programmed to record each morning and evening through the deployment period. Those recordings were later retrieved by the Guardians, sent to Audubon, and analyzed by staff scientists to determine the presence of birds in the area. 

This bioacoustics research project is a prime example of Indigenous-led conservation and land stewardship. It is also a model of a successful collaboration between Indigenous Guardians and Western scientists. The program’s process can be used to demonstrate the effectiveness of such collaborations and used as a blueprint for similar projects 

WT: What is unique about the Seal River Watershed and what it provides for migratory birds? 

Wells: The Seal River Watershed is a biodiversity-rich landscape of lakes, rivers, wetlands, forests, and tundra. The variation of habitats within this pristine wilderness helps to make it the perfect breeding grounds and stopover location for millions of individual birds each year. 

The results of this 3-year survey detected 102 different species of birds within the region, and it highlights the importance of the Seal River Watershed for sustaining an impressively diverse and abundant community of bird species. 

WT: Saturday, October 12, is World Migratory Bird Day 2024.

Jeff, you have previously said " billions of birds that hatched in the Boreal Forest region of Canada and Alaska are pouring south to wintering areas across the Americas. Those birds can’t ponder what the future holds for their descendants, most of which will face intensifying threats, especially from climate change. But scientists have found a way to gaze into the possible futures for these birds."

What are the possible futures for these birds? 

Wells: By using models that predict how temperature, precipitation, humidity, habitat and other variables will change over time and space based on different levels of climate pollution Audubon scientists can predict future outcomes for bird populations. In the worst-case scenario with little change in the amount of climate pollution going into the atmosphere we could see two-thirds of North America’s bird species at risk of extinction (and an even higher percentage of Boreal Forest breeding birds would be at risk). 

The good news is that if we can keep the climate warming to a more reasonable level, we can decrease the likelihood of extinction of 70% of those at-risk species. 

WT: What are the solutions?

Wells: Along with reducing carbon emissions from human-made sources like cars, trucks, and industry, it is crucial that the carbon-rich and biodiversity-rich landscapes of the Boreal Forest are protected to maintain these special values.

WT: What groups have been leading the protection and stewardship efforts?

Wells: Indigenous governments and organizations have been leading the largest land protection and stewardship efforts in the world including in Manitoba.

Poplar River First Nation and the other three First Nations of the Pimachiowin Aki World Heritage Site have protected over seven million acres, one of the largest blocks of southern Boreal Forest remaining in Canada. 

The four First Nations of the Seal River Watershed Alliance are proposing protections for the 12-million-acre Seal River Watershed in northern Manitoba, which would make it one of the largest protected areas in North America. 

These protections will help maintain the carbon stores in these landscapes and will provide habitat for birds and other wildlife that are being impacted by climate change effects.

The Fisher River Cree Nation recently protected a number of carbon-rich peatlands in Manitoba from peat mining and subsequent loss of the stored carbon through a unique funding opportunity with the Government of Canada. Other First Nations are advancing other conservation proposals across Manitoba as well. 

WT: What have been the findings of your study with the Seal River Watershed Alliance? What species have you identified?

Wells: The results of this 3-year survey detected 102 different species of birds. Of the 102 bird species detected, five are listed as Species of Special Concern and are protected under the Species at Risk Act—Common Nighthawk, Harris’s Sparrow, Olive-sided Flycatcher, Peregrine Falcon, and Rusty Blackbird. 

One of the species detected throughout the watershed, the Lesser Yellowlegs, is designated as Threatened by COSEWIC, and 39 species are considered Priority Species in Bird Conservation Region 7. 

The data also highlighted the abundance of migratory species—including many shorebirds and waterbirds—that either use the region to nest and raise their young or as a stopover location on their journey to breeding grounds further north. 

WT: What conclusions are you drawing from your findings?

Wells: The Seal River Watershed is a special part of the Boreal Forest. The entire watershed is rich in biodiversity supporting iconic species like polar bears, wolverines, gray wolves, and barren-ground caribou. 

It is also a critically important breeding and migratory stopover location for millions of birds of hundreds of species, some of which travel to the watershed from locations as far away as the southern tip of Chile every year. 

Birds like the Lesser Yellowlegs, a species of conservation concern, are abundant breeders in wetlands in the watershed in summer but leave to migrate through the U.S. to winter across Central and Southern America and the Caribbean.

Common Terns nest on small islands across the countless Boreal lakes of the region then migrate south through the Gulf of Mexico to winter along the southern coast of Brazil. 

Others like the White-throated Sparrow grace the summer landscape of the watershed with their beautiful songs and migrate south to become one of the common backyard birds across much of the eastern U.S. 

The efforts of the Seal River Watershed Alliance to protect this land are vitally important to the long-term survival of these species. These proposed protections also ensure that future generations can continue traditional practices and have access to the generous bounty of these amazing lands and waters.

Related:

‘The Birds of the Seal River Watershed’ Report