A central objective of the Boreal Avian Modelling Project (BAM) is to develop predictive distribution models for boreal birds, using biophysical variables to explain the locations and abundances of individual species.

First, a massive data collection was undertaken, drawing from existing bird and habitat information held by researchers and agencies working across the boreal forest.

To date, all contributed data have been amalgamated, spatially referenced, and assigned metadata (details specific to each contributing study), ensuring that they are accessible and ready for analyses. Models of the abundance, distribution, and habitat associations of boreal birds are being built and validated.  Eventually, we will also be able to explore the implications of various climate change and forest management scenarios for boreal bird populations.

Among their many applications, these models can be used to determine whether different types of land use can sustain bird populations and habitats, and they can help to identify species that might function as indicators of their habitat condition.

To browse the Boreal Birds species database and view the results of our analyses by species: click here.

Readers should note that the results of scientific modelling are estimations.  These values are not set in stone.  Rather, they represent the best possible information at any given time, and include an inherent level of error.  For example, boreal bird distributions and abundances calculated by the BAM project are dynamic estimates, which will be updated regularly as recent survey data are incorporated, methods are developed and refined, and new modelling results become available.