Which is the rarest breeding bird in Canada?
A possible answer based on worldwide population is the Eskimo Curlew. This is a roughly pigeon sized shorebird with a long curved bill which has historically nested in northwest Canada. The answer is only “possible” because no one has made a confirmed sighting of the Curlew, in Canada or elsewhere, in about 30 years, though there are sporadic reports from experienced observers in the intervening time. No one has found a nest in over a century, or taken a photograph since the 1950s. At one time the Eskimo Curlew was among the most common birds in Canada, but hunting and habitat destruction left it near extinction by 1900. The estimated population in 1973 was about 20. Many authorities consider the species to be extinct. Other claimants to the title include the Whooping Crane, which numbers about 200, up from a low of 19 in 1938. All known Canadian breeders nest in Wood Buffalo NP in Alberta and the Northwest Territories. The Kirtland’s Warbler numbers between 200 and 800, but most breed
