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Site description (2001 baseline):
Site location and context
Mount Carleton Provincial Park is located in northern New Brunswick, near the community of Nictau. The region has few roads, and is sparsely populated. The park has the highest elevations in the Maritimes, including Mount Carleton at 820 m. The high rounded hills of the park are mostly forest-covered; particularly with mixed forests of fir, spruce and birch. Nictau Lake and the Nepisiguit Lakes are long narrow lakes on the north and south sides of the park that lie in the valleys. The park is used by both hikers and campers.
Three peaks in Mount Carleton Provincial Park, Sagamook, Head and Carleton, support populations of breeding Bicknells Thrush. Between 25 and 50 pairs of thrushes breed in the low dense forests near and at the top of these peaks. Fifty pairs would represent 3% of the Canadian population of Bicknells Thrush, and 1% of the global population of the species, when conservative estimates are used. The Bicknells Thrush was recently declared nationally vulnerable by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada. Ever since its discovery in 1881, this thrush was considered a subspecies of the Gray-cheeked Thrush. Now that it is clearly a separate species (based on genetic work), biologists have begun numerous studies on the species. Bicknells Thrush nests are extremely hard to find - for example, two researchers found only 14 nests in three years - making this a difficult species to fully understand.
Conservation responses/actions for key biodiversity
Mount Carleton Provincial Park is currently well protected and park staff are actively promoting protection. Nonetheless, there is some concern that the protected status of the park is not wholly secure.
Recommended citation
BirdLife International (2024) Important Bird Area factsheet: Mount Carleton Provincial Park (Canada). Downloaded from
https://datazone.birdlife.org/site/factsheet/mount-carleton-provincial-park-iba-canada on 23/11/2024.
