You can use it for research or reference. To access the current information, please visit NatureCounts - The State of Canada’s Birds (external link).
Canada holds over 80% of this species’ breeding range in the Prairie Provinces, mostly in large, bulrush or cattail-dominated freshwater marshes across the prairies and the boreal plain (Beyersbergen et al. 2009). Tracking Franklin’s Gull populations is difficult because colonies tend to relocate depending on water levels and are often difficult to access. Available results from the Breeding Bird Survey suggest a large decrease since the 1970s, though the reliability of this assessment is considered low. This species has been identified as a priority for conservation and/or stewardship in one or more Bird Conservation Region Strategies in Canada.
The Franklin's Gull is heavily dependent on prairie wetlands for breeding. Further, they require suitable reed beds for constructing floating nests, usually in water no shallower than 37 cm and no deeper than 125 cm (Beyersbergen et al. 2009). Additional stressors include power line and wind farm collisions (Villegas-Patraca and Herrera-Alsina 2015), sudden water level changes, and human disturbance during the breeding season (Burger and Gochfeld 2009). Though the species was once threatened by large-scale habitat loss due to drainage, prairie wetland restoration and recreation appear to be mitigating previous losses (Burger and Gochfeld 2009).
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:
Select any of the sub-regions below to view the BCR strategy for additional details.