A new scientifically-derived list of 178 endangered and threatened North American bird species released today from Audubon and the American Bird Conservancy includes at least 60 species that occur regularly in Canada. Over 20% of the birds listed breed in Canada's Boreal Forest region. Eight new species to the Watchlist that are particularly reliant on the Canadian Boreal for breeding and migration.

Some of the species on this list include:

- Whooping Crane—a large white crane that is an icon of endangered species conservation and whose entire natural migratory population breeds only in Canada—within Wood Buffalo National Park.

- Yellow Rail—a secretive chicken-like marsh bird rarely ever seen whose breeding song is remarkably similar to the sound made by clicking two quarters together. Over 50% of its breeding population occurs in Canada's Boreal;

- Rusty Blackbird--another rather seldom seen bird that had declined by over 90% before anyone noticed. Over 80% of its breeding population occurs in Canada's Boreal;

- American Golden-Plover—a shorebird species once hard-hit by turn-of-the-century market hunters that killed them by the thousands and a species that undertakes a remarkable journey to winter in the grasslands of southern South America. Over 40% of its breeding population occurs in Canada's Boreal;

- Bay-breasted Warbler—a tiny warbler hardly larger than a person's thumb and dependent on mature spruce fir forest of the southern Boreal which may at least partly explain its 50+% decline. Over 75% of its breeding population occurs in Canada's Boreal.

To see the 2007 Watchlist go to:
http://web1.audubon.org/science/species/watchlist/