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The Ontario Breeding Bird Atlas (OBBA) has just completed its fourth successful year (see Report for 2005). This is the second breeding bird atlas in Ontario. The first one ran from 1981 through 1985 and the results were published in 1987 as The Atlas of the Breeding Birds of Ontario (now out of print).

This atlas, like the first, focuses on mapping the distribution of all breeding bird species in Ontario, but with more emphasis on collecting abundance information through point counts. A lot can happen in 20 years, and many species in Ontario have undergone changes in both population and distribution. This second atlas will update the original and add to the already extensive database of over 400,000 records.

Data gathered during this project will be used to determine distribution of species, status of rare species, and affects of habitat changes on breeding bird populations.

Ontario is divided into 47 regions which are further divided into 10 km × 10 km squares, except in Northern Ontario where the squares are 100 km × 100 km in size. Each region has a Regional Coordinator responsible for recruiting volunteers and making sure data is collected and accurately recorded in their region. Christine Hanrahan is the coordinator for this area, Region 24 (Ottawa), and works with an atlas committee consisting of Paul Jones, Mark Gawn, and Mick Panesar.

Region 24 has 86 squares which gives us roughly 8,500 square kilometres of territory to survey and census for breeding birds. (See map.)