Data Zone
Country/territory: Canada
IBA criteria met: -
For more information about IBA criteria, please click here
Area: 80 ha
Site description (baseline)
Bedeque Bay is located along the south shore of west-central Prince Edward Island. The town of Summerside is located along its landward side at the head of the bay. Included in the site are the Dunk and Wilmot River estuaries that discharge into the northeast arm of the bay, and Salutation Cove, which is located on the eastern side of the bay. The main part of the bay is broad and shallow with the adjacent coastline having marshy shores and mudflats. The coasts are generally ice-free by late March.
Key biodiversity
Bedeque Bay often contains large numbers of staging Canada Geese during both the spring and fall migration. Over the past six years (1992-97), one-day surveys completed in mid-November have recorded an average of 1,238 Canada Geese. Over the entire season, the number of geese using the site is likely much larger, since turnover in the population occurs over the migration period. It has been estimated that over 3,000 Canada Geese use the site during the spring, and over 2,000 Canada Geese use the site during the fall. These numbers represent over one percent of the estimated Newfoundland and Labrador Canada Goose population. In addition to Canada Geese, relatively large numbers of Atlantic Brant are also occasionally reported at Bedeque Bay during the spring migration: some estimates are as high as 1,000 birds.
During the late summer and early fall, a variety of shorebirds, including Black-bellied Plover, Willet, and Red Knot, make use of the mudflats surrounding the bay.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2023) Important Bird Area factsheet: Bedeque Bay. Downloaded from
http://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/11391 on 30/05/2023.
