Nature Barrie receives designation for work with Eastern Bluebirds

Nature Barrie has received a prestigious provincial award for its work protecting rare, threatened eastern bluebird.

An organization trying to preserve a bird species that relies on continuing conservation efforts has received a prestigious award for its hard work.

Nature Barrie, a 75-year-old volunteer-run group dedicated to preserving and protecting wildlife and local greenspaces, has recently been honoured with the Ontario Eastern Bluebird Society (OEBS) Conservation Award for its ongoing support of the conservation of cavity nesting birds.

These birds are a species of birds that raise their babies in enclosed and protected spaces and benefit greatly from the boxes Nature Barrie owns and has distributed across the outskirts of Barrie.

The group owns 104 boxes and monitors other privately-owned boxes. They have been placed across seven different areas, which have been broken down into 11 monitored runs, where volunteers are assigned up to 10 boxes to visit each week and record their findings.

These findings offer insights into the health and population of species.

Nature Barrie compiles the data and sends it to various bird research organizations including OEBS, Birds Canada and Cornell University’s NestWatch.

While the focus is on Eastern Bluebirds, the group also monitors companion nesting cavity birds like Tree Swallows and House Wrens.

Eastern Bluebirds are insectivores or insect-eating birds, meaning they need to perch where they can see insects on the ground.

According to volunteers with Nature Barrie, there’s been a loss of this habitat due to insecticides so the Eastern Bluebirds find it difficult to gather enough food, putting them on the threatened species list.

The group is also the recipient of the Birds Canada Community Grant, money that’s been raised through Birdathon, Canada’s longest-running, community-based fundraiser for bird conservation.

The funds will go towards the repairs and replacements of nest boxes, which are part of a system of more than 100 monitored nest boxes on the Nature Barrie Bluebird Trail. The boxes give vital habitat for Eastern Bluebirds, Tree Swallows and House Wrens.