Photo gallery 1
Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve, National Marine Conservation Area Reserve, and Haida Heritage Site
Photo gallery 1
SGin Xaana Sdiihltl’lxa: Night Birds Returning
Gwaii Haanas is undertaking a multi-year Action on the Ground project to restore ecologically and culturally significant seabird colonies on remote islands.
Parks Canada / Andrew Wright
Several islands within Gwaii Haanas traditionally supported significant seabird breeding colonies including those of Ancient Murrelets, a Species-at-Risk (shown here), Black Oyster Catchers, Cassin's Auklets and storm petrels.
Parks Canada / C. Bergman
Introduced species, particularly invasive species like rats and other feral animals, have been responsible for many island extinctions globally.
Parks Canada
In Gwaii Haanas, introduced rats have had serious detrimental effects on seabird eggs and small native mammals including dusky shrew and Keen's deer mice.
Parks Canada / C. Bergman
Although many of the archipelago's 1.5 million nesting seabirds breed in Gwaii Haanas, it is not always easy to get a sense of the magnitude of these populations. These Common Murres were found on the Kerouard Islands.
Parks Canada / N. Osborne
The birds breed in underground burrows in the forest and Canadian scientists have gone to great lengths to learn about their habits. Moira Lemon with her arm in an Ancient Murrelet burrow
Parks Canada / C. Bergman
Gwaii Haanas began monitoring islands that were known to be rat infested and those known to be rat free with night time monitoring cameras and listening stations.
Parks Canada
In 2011, Gwaii Haanas and partners eradicated invasive Norway rats from the Bischof Islands and Arichika Island using bait stations (shown here) in a ground-based eradication. Monitoring is on-going.
Parks Canada / A. Wright
Currently, Parks Canada and its partners, Islands Conservation, Coastal Conservation and the Haida Nation, are planning the eradication of invasive black rats from much larger Murchison and Faraday Islands. This aerial broadcast eradication is planned for September, 2013.
Parks Canada
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