Osprey
(Pandion haliaetus)

Overview

Summary

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The Osprey is a widespread species in Canada, inhabiting a broad array of habitats with shallow waters in which it hunts for fish. The Breeding Bird Survey indicates that populations have increased since 1970. This increase is thought to be largely a result of elimination of toxic contaminants and the proliferation of artificial nest structures that the Osprey readily accepts as a nest platform (Poole et al. 2002). This species has been identified as a priority for conservation and/or stewardship in one or more Bird Conservation Region Strategies in Canada.

Designations

Population status

Population estimate

Distribution maps

• BirdLife International / NatureServe
• Breeding Bird Survey (BBS): Relative Abundance and Breeding Distribution (1993-2012)

Migration strategy, occurrence

Responsibility for conservation of world population

Conservation and management

The species was historically affected by shooting (Poole et al. 2002). Persistent organochlorine pesticides were implicated in severe and widespread declines of the species during the 1950s to the 1970s. Removal of those pesticides has likely been responsible for the striking increase in the population since then (Poole et al. 2002). Other factors influencing the species abundance are its ability to adapt to man-made structures such as utility poles, channel markers and artificial nest platforms (Poole et al. 2002, Ewins 1996).

Bird conservation region strategies

Environment and Climate Change Canada and partners have developed Bird Conservation Region Strategies in each of Canada’s Bird Conservation Regions (BCRs). In these strategies, selected species are identified as priorities for one or more of the following reasons:

• conservation concerns (i.e., species vulnerable due to population size, distribution, population trend, abundance, or threats)
• stewardship responsibilities (i.e., species that typify the regional avifauna or have a large proportion of their range or population in the sub-region)
• management concerns (i.e., species that require ongoing management because of their socio-economic importance as game species, or because of their impacts on other species or habitats)
• other concerns (i.e., species deemed a priority by regional experts for other reasons than those listed above or because they are listed as species at risk or concern at the provincial level)

Select any of the sub-regions below to view the BCR strategy for additional details.

References

• Ewins, P.J. 1996. The use of artificial nest sites by an increasing population of Osprey in the Canadian Great Lakes basin. pp. 109-123 in: Raptors in Human Landscapes. Bird, D.M., D.E. Varland and J.J. Negro, Eds. Academic Press Inc. San Diego, CA.
• Poole, A.F., R.O. Bierregaard and M.S. Martell. 2002. Osprey (Pandion haliaetus), The Birds of North America Online (A. Poole, Ed.). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. Poole, A.F., R.O. Bierregaard and M.S. Martell. 2002. Osprey (Pandion haliaetus), The Birds of North America Online (A. Poole, Ed.). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. (Link)