Wildlife Afield 7(1):12-123, 2010 © Biodiversity Centre for Wildlife Studies Birds of North Peace River (Fort St. John and Vicinity), British Columbia, 1975-1999 Part 1 (Introduction and Nonpasserines: waterfowl through woodpeckers) Chris Siddle 6131 Silver Star Road, Vernon, British Columbia, Canada V1B 3P3 Abstract The North Peace River region of northeastern British Columbia is home to at least 258 species of birds. Some of these are unique to the province as migrants, summer and winter visitors and breeders. The following article is a compilation of information on the nonpasserines (waterfowl through woodpeckers) for this area. A second article, covering the passerines (flycatchers through Old World sparrows), will follow. Although historical information has been included in each species account, most of the information in this article has resulted from my extensive fieldwork between 1975 and 1989 and supplemented with my additional observations and those of friends through 1999. It includes occasional additional records from literature such as McKelvey (1982). Details are presented for population status, breeding and non-breeding habitat, distribution, occurrence, and breeding for all regularly occurring species; full details of individual records are provided for rare species. Introduction species; full details of individual records are provided for rare species. The North Peace River region of northeastern The W.A.C. Bennett Dam on the Peace River British Columbia (Figure 1) is home to at least 258 upstream of Hudson’s Hope began operation in species of birds. Some of these are unique to the 1968. In 1980, the Peace Canyon Dam (also known province as migrants, summer and winter visitors as Site One) between the Bennett Dam and Hudson’s and breeders (Figure 2). The following article is a Hope was completed, creating a reservoir called compilation of information on the nonpasserines Dinosaur Lake. In 2010, the province gave initial (waterfowl through woodpeckers) for this area. A approval for the construction of another large dam, second article, covering the passerines (flycatchers “Site C”. It would be located south of Fort St. John, through Old World sparrows), will follow. and downstream of the other dams. The reservoir Although historical information has been created by this dam would inundate a portion of the included in each species account, most of the North Peace River region study area. information in this article has resulted from my Since the ornithology of the Peace River region extensive fieldwork between 1975 and 1989 and is poorly known, and many species occurring in supplemented with my additional observations and British Columbia are restricted to the area, the those of friends through 1999. It includes occasional primary purposes of this paper are to stimulate additional records from literature such as McKelvey further investigations of the region’s avi-fauna and (1982). Details are presented for population status, to provide baseline information for the proposed breeding and non-breeding habitat, distribution, dam and other potential environmental problems occurrence, and breeding for all regularly occurring that may arise. 7(1) June 2010 12 Figure 1. Map of the entire study area. Most of the data have been collected in the vicinity of Fort St. John accessible by car, and occasionally by boat. Major locations visited are included. Map prepared by Mark Nyhof. Figure 2. The largest Eared Grebe colony in British Columbia occurs in the North Peace River region on Cecil Lake. In some years, due to lake water levels, adults are still trying to locate suitable nesting spots in late June and may not nest. Photo by R. Wayne Campbell, 20 June 2008. 13 Wildlife Afield History of Ornithology in the Peace River went home to Victoria on 30 June, having spent 57 Region, 1922 to 1974 days investigating the vertebrate fauna of the Peace River area. Before 1975, the Peace River region of Dr. McTaggart-Cowan prepared a manuscript northeastern British Columbia was one of the least of their fieldwork entitled The Vertebrate Fauna known ornithological regions in the province. A of the Peace River District of British Columbia series of fur trading forts had been established along which became the first publication in the British the Peace River in the 1790s between what is now Columbia Provincial Museum’s Occasional Paper the Alberta border and the Peace River canyon west series (Cowan 1939). Fifty-five pages are devoted of Hudson’s Hope. Although they were among the to birds; 168 species were recorded. One hundred earliest European settlements in the province, the and thirty two species were prepared for museum bird life of the area was essentially ignored. In 1922, collections. McTaggart-Cowan and Martin’s results however, geologist and naturalist M. Y. Williams are impressive considering the rudimentary optics recorded observations of birds along the Peace and of the day, and the lack of roads which restricted Mackenzie rivers during his brief travels through their access. It is obvious the investigators were the North Peace River region to areas of exploration extremely sharp-eyed and energetic, worked long farther north (Williams 1933a,b). hours, and did not spend much time relaxing in The first major ornithological investigation of camp. Their spring and early summer work added the Peace River Lowlands took place in 1938 when several new species to the list of birds of British Ian McTaggart-Cowan and Patrick W. Martin visited Columbia, including some perpetually hard-to-find the area to collect specimens for the British Columbia species like Nelson’s Sharp-tailed Sparrow (Figure Provincial Museum. They arrived on 5 May and 4), Bay-breasted Warbler, and Cape May Warbler. camped at Swan Lake near Tupper Creek (Figure 3), where they remained until 8 June. The following day they re-located to Charlie Lake. Unfortunately both men became ill and left the North Peace River region and returned to Swan Lake on 19 June. They Figure 4. The first records of Nelson’s Sharp-tailed Sparrow for British Columbia were found in the sedge marshes at Swan Lake, BC, in 1938. Photo by R. Wayne Campbell, 14 June 1996. Figure 3. Riparian shrubs and deciduous trees For over three and a half decades this dominated a small spit of land jutting into Swan publication was the only substantive reference to Lake at Tupper Creek, BC, which was the campsite the birds of British Columbia’s Peace River region for early ornithological investigations into the Peace and the entire northeastern part of the province. Its River region by Ian McTaggart-Cowan and Patrick findings were later incorporated into the updated W. Martin in 1938. Photo by R. Wayne Campbell, overview, A Review of the Bird Fauna of British 14 June 1996. Columbia by Munro and Cowan (1947). 7(1) June 2010 14 Although The Vertebrate Fauna of the Peace on British Columbia birds (see Munro and Cowan River District of British Columbia remained an 1947, Campbell et al. 1990a, 1990b, 1997, 2001). important reference, it had its limitations. Cowan He also explored significant wetlands as possible and Martin had only enough time to cover a small Ecological Reserves (see Campbell 1978a, 1979c), area of the Peace River Block as it was called. They inventoried wildlife in existing reserves (Campbell were in the field for just under two spring months 1978b, 1978d, 1979a, 1979b), and tallied breeding and though they interviewed local pioneers and water birds on larger lakes (Campbell 1978c). These wisely interpreted the information that local people excursions carried into the 1980s. Unfortunately gave them, they couldn’t get a complete picture of many of these reports were internal documents for the birds that occurred in the other seasons of the decision-making and were never made public in Peace. A year round investigation of the avifauna published form. of northeastern British Columbia had yet to be Secondly, British Columbia Hydro funded completed. various natural resource inventories and assessments During this period, the Peace River area of the Peace River valley from the Alberta border remained relatively unexplored, at least in literature, west to the vicinity of Hudson’s Hope before except for brief visits by Rand (1944), Leo Jobin construction of the W. A. C. Bennett Dam began on a bird collecting trip in early June 1954 (Jobin (Figure 5). Further plans to dam the Peace Valley 1955), and Wayne Weber who wrote a note on range downstream from Hudson’s Hope resulted in extensions for Mourning Warbler and Northern several environmental surveys of the Valley. The (Baltimore) Oriole (Weber 1976). These notes were single biggest report was known as The Thurber important in that they suggested that significant Report. Unfortunately, wildlife data were not easily discoveries of range extensions into the Peace accessible to the public, although this report was region by southern and particularly eastern species published by B.C. Hydro in 1976. It contained an were still likely. annotated list of birds seen during spring surveys In the 1970s, two significant events occurred. along the Peace River. One hundred and twenty bird Firstly R. Wayne Campbell, curator of vertebrates at species were listed by Penner (1976). However, the the British Columbia Provincial Museum in Victoria, field work was once again restricted to spring and and colleagues began visiting the South and North did not cover areas outside of the Peace River Valley. Peace River regions, collecting information for an Thormin (1973) also provided brief notes on birds update of Munro and Cowan’s provincial treatise for the Peace River region of British Columbia. Figure 5. Environmental inventories and assessments for construction of the W. A. C. Bennett dam west of Hudson’s Hope, BC in the mid-1970s provided new information on bird-use of the Peace River.