Compter les oiseaux aquatiques

Birds are the easiest of all animals to census as they are often brightly coloured, relatively easy to see and highly vocal. The bird census and monitoring is an extremely cost-effective way of monitoring the overall health of the ecosystem.
Waterbirds are broadly defined as: “birds ecologically dependent on wetlands” and include traditionally recognised groups popularly known as wildfowl, waterfowl and shorebirds and waders. Counting waterbirds is crucial to collect data which underpin conservation of waterbirds and their wetland habitats. The aims of the census are to monitor the numerical size of waterbird populations to describe changes in numbers and distribution of these populations, to identify wetlands of  importance for waterbirds at all seasons and to provide information to assist protection and management of waterbird populations through international conventions, national legislation and other means.
The International Waterbird Census (IWC) is organised every year since 1967 in mid-January by Wetlands International, formerly the International Waterfowl and Wetlands Research Bureau (IWRB). In 2013, it will take place the 12 and 13 of January.
In this article, we present you the principles of waterbird counting, the different techniques to count aquatic birds and the Wetlands census.