BIRDWATCHING in TOFINO BOTANICAL GARDENS

Our property provides a wonderful area for birdwatching. The gardens and forest bring hummingbirds, wookpeckers and a variety of songbirds. The bordering Tofino Mudflats - one of four Important Bird Areas (IBAs) in Clayoquot Sound - bring an incredible diversity of shorebirds and waterfowl. Visitors delight at regular sightings of bald eagles, year-round residents who hang out over the mudflats looking for prey.

There are a variety of species that use the mudflats year-round, but the the most exciting time for birdwatching here is during the fall and spring shorebird migrations. Over 160,000 western sandpipers have been recorded using the mudflats for a re-fueling during their fall migration - one of the highest recorded number of western sandpipers on Canada's west coast. Other shorebird highlights include: Dunlin, Least Sandpipers, Black-bellied Plovers, Greater Yellowlegs, Sanderling, Whimbrel and American Black Oystercatchers.

The summer is a wonderful time to watch for great blue herons (subspecies fannini). Over 100 great blue herons have been recorded at one time on the Tofino Mudflats - more than 1% of the global population of the subspecies, which is listed as "Special Concern" under the Canadian Species at Risk Act.

The mudflats are an important wintering area for a variety of waterfowl. Some of the more abundant species include Trumpeter Swan, Mallard, Northern Pintail, American Wigeon, Surf Scoter and Bufflehead.