Don’t know which birds you spotted at Katahdin Woods & Waters? There’s now a list for that.

5 years ago

Birders and other visitors to Maine’s newest national monument will receive a valuable tool Saturday as Friends of Katahdin Woods & Waters releases a checklist of more than 150 birds that can be found in the monument.

Katahdin Woods and Waters National Monument, which is about 90 miles north of Bangor, was officially designated as a unit of the National Park Service in August of 2016. The checklist was created and designed by Friends of Katahdin Woods & Waters. Its release will coincide with World Migratory Bird Day.

“The bird checklist is a resource for locals and visitors made possible by the hours and funding contributed by our members,” said Andrew Bossie, executive director of Friends of Katahdin Woods & Waters. “Lots of folks are planning spring and summer trips to Katahdin Woods and Waters. We can add the Bird Checklist to trip planning resources made possible by the growing community rallying behind this monument.”

Anita Mueller, vice president of Friends of Katahdin Woods & Waters, compiled and designed the checklist.

“Spanning three ecoregions with a complex matrix of microclimates, the monument provides breeding habitat for an exceptionally wide diversity of bird species. As a result, the monument is quickly becoming known as a birding hotspot particularly for the rarer boreal species,” Mueller said. “Located at the southern range for several boreal species, the monument provides excellent breeding habitat for black-backed woodpecker, boreal chickadee, Canada jay, rusty blackbird and spruce grouse, as well as blackpoll and bay-breasted warblers.”

This article originally appeared on www.bangordailynews.com.