The Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) provides the best source of national population information for this species. BBS results indicate that, despite annual fluctuations, the national population of Bay-breasted Warbler has shown little overall change since about 1970. However, BBS results do not provide good coverage for the northern portion of the breeding range, an important consideration for this species, which breeds primarily in coniferous boreal forest. As a result, this assessment is considered to be of medium reliability. At the regional level, the only two Bird Conservation Regions with reasonably reliable results (displayed below) suggest large, long-term decreases in their population, in contrast to the national level results. Currently, the Bay-breasted Warbler is considered to be within acceptable levels of the national population goal (see Canada graph below).
Additional information on: Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) - Canadian analysis