06/25/2026
The Summer 2025 issue of the Nova Scotia Bird Society magazine, 'Nova Scotia Birds', is available online. For those that are paid members of the society, you can download it at the link below.
https://www.nsbirdsociety.ca/library/library-introduction/recent-publications
For those that aren't yet paid members, you can join here:
https://www.nsbirdsociety.ca/join
This post contains images of select pages from this issue.
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Here is the Editor's Foreword for this latest issue:
Despite the extremely dry conditions that would close the woods to birders and everyone else across the province in early August, the birds breeding in and visiting NS this summer did not fail to impress. The star of the season is, of course, the Black-billed Magpie that turned up on an island in Canso Harbour, Guysborough County, and was first observed on a trail camera at Tom Kavanaugh’s camp. And the plot only thickens from there, largely due to relatively recent taxonomic changes in the Pica genus. Perhaps not the first, but certainly the first confirmed, breeding record of a Red-bellied Woodpecker well outside of Halifax Regional Municipality occurred this summer when a recently fledged young bird turned up with its parents at a suet feeder in Greenwood, Kings County. Are Barred Owls becoming more catholic in their tastes and foraging habits because their populations are on the rise, or are numbers increasing simply because these owls are very adaptable generalists? Probably a bit of both. Still, it is surprising to see one attacking an active hanging nest of a Baltimore Oriole at Miners Marsh. Read all about these and other highlights in the Seasonal Summaries.
Seasonal Summary editors draw heavily on the information in the 1st and 2nd Maritimes Breeding Birds Atlases to compare past species’ nesting distributions to those of today. As birders anticipate the upcoming 3rd Maritimes Breeding Birds Atlas in the not-too distant future, Joan Czapalay (Cormier) recalls some of her varied experiences during the first Atlas in Joan Cormier’s Reflections: Chapter 3. Joan’s memories of surveying squares will not only entertain but also inspire others to join the 3rd Atlas project once it gets underway.
Given its strategic location jutting out into the Atlantic Ocean at the mouth of Halifax Harbour, Hartlen Point has attracted a lot of attention. For over a hundred years the Department of National Defense, which owns the property, has utilized the site for a variety of military objectives, and since 1965 the Hartlen Point Forces Golf Club has also called this headland home. For birders, Hartlen Point represents a vagrant magnet that has been the landing pad for many wandering and storm-blown mega-rarities (as readers will once again find in the coming Fall 2025 issue). Sounds like a recipe for an all-too-familiar “birders vs. landowners” situation; but, so far, DND and the golf club have tolerated, and even embraced, the birds and birding activity at Hartlen Point. In The Future of Hartlen Point, author David Currie explains that this amiable relationship is thanks, in large part, to him and a few other NSBS members who have kept the dialogue between parties ongoing and positive for many decades. Read all about these past meetings and activities that have, fingers-crossed, paved the way towards birders’ continuing access to Hartlen Point as construction of DND’s new Land-Based Test Facility proceeds.
In this issue’s Behind the Oculars Andy de Champlain interviews Lockeport, Shelburne County, part-time resident Jane Alexander, best known for her roles on stage and screen; and, perhaps, less known for her active role in numerous bird conservation initiatives and societies, both locally and globally. Jane leaves readers with an inspiring thought, which highlights the importance of relatively small societies like the NSBS: “Conservation is a process, not a result. It begins with backyard conversations”.
Keep this in mind as you enjoy reading this and all issues of NS Birds.
Happy reading!
