Country Island National Wildlife Area

Country Island National Wildlife Area (NWA) is an island located off the southeast coast of Nova Scotia, approximately 15 kilometers east of Port Bickerton.

Description

Country Island NWA is a 21-hectare island on the traditional lands of the Mi'kmaq people. The island has been designated as an Important Bird Area (IBA). It provides habitat for several migratory birds and species at risk. The vegetation found on the island plays an important role for the wildlife in the area. The island is dominated by plants like::

• cinnamon fern
• red raspberry
• chokeberry
• bayberry
• white spruce
• black crowberry

These plants are important food sources and shelter for ground-nesting birds. including:

• Arctic tern
• common tern
• Leach’s storm petrel
• roseate tern
• common eider
• Savannah sparrow
• willet

Country Island NWA contains critical habitat for the roseate tern and is used as a research area to study these birds, which are listed as endangered under the Species at Risk Act (SARA). The island supports one of the few breeding colonies in Canada. It also supports over 30,000 Leach’s Storm-petrel (approximately 2% of the western Atlantic population), which is assessed as threatened by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC). Additionally, the island is home to one of Nova Scotia’s largest common and arctic tern nesting colony and is a stop-over site for migrating shorebirds and songbirds. A variety of additional bird species are observed to frequent the island and surrounding areas, including:

• American black duck
• American robin
• black guillemot
• common eider
• gray catbird
• great black-backed gull
• great cormorant
• herring gull
• northern gannet
• red-breasted merganser
• semipalmated plovers
• song sparrow
• spotted sandpiper
• Savannah sparrow

Management

Entry to Country Island National Wildlife Area is prohibited year-round, as are all activities listed under section 3(1) of the Wildlife Area Regulations, unless authorized by a permit. These prohibitions are in place due to the significant importance of the NWA as a nesting site for colonial seabirds, such as the common, Arctic and roseate terns. The island has been designated as critical habitat for the roseate tern, listed as Endangered under the Species at Risk Act, and it is one of the few islands in Canada supporting a nesting population. A management plan will be developed for the NWA that will describe the research and monitoring priorities and identify any restoration or habitat improvement work that might be necessary. For more information, consult the NWA Management and Activities section.

More information on access and permitting for Country Island NWA can be obtained by contacting the Environment and Climate Change Canada regional office.

Map of the area

Summary table

Protected Area designation

National Wildlife Area

Province/territory

Nova Scotia

Latitude/longitude

45°06'08 N 61°32'33 W

Size

21 ha

Reason for creation of protected area

To protect critical habitat for the endangered roseate tern and breeding habitat for the threatened Leach’s storm-petrel

Designation Date (Gazetted)

2025

International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Management Category

Under review

Additional designations

• Part of Country Island Complex – Important Bird Area (IBA).
• Site of Ecological Significance

Keystone or flagship species

• Arctic tern
• common tern
• Leach’s storm-petrel
• roseate tern

Main habitat type

• Tall herbaceous shrub (54%)
• Boulder/cobble beach (19%)
• Low herbaceous (12%)
• White spruce forest (8%)
• Low shrub bog (4%)
• Intertidal bedrock (2%)
• Coastal saline pond (1%)

Listed species under the Species at Risk Act (SARA)

Birds:

• barn swallow
• Leach’s storm-petrel
• roseate tern

Additional links

Birds:

• American black duck
• Arctic tern
• black guillemot
• common eider
• common tern
• gray catbird
• great black-backed gull
• great cormorant
• herring gull
• northern gannet
• red-breasted merganser
• Savannah sparrow
• song sparrow
• spotted sandpiper
• willet

Main threats and challenges

Climate change and potential for increased severe storms and sea-level rise

Management Agency

Environment and Climate Change Canada (Canadian Wildlife Service)

Public access and usage

Entry to the island is prohibited without a permit.

Note: If there is a discrepancy between the information presented on this web page, any notice posted at the NWA site and the law, the law prevails, as it is the legal instrument authorizing the activity.

Contact us

Environment and Climate Change Canada - Atlantic Region
Canadian Wildlife Service
Protected Areas Unit
17 Waterfowl Lane
Sackville, New Brunswick
E4L 4N1

Toll-Free: 1-800-668-6767 (in Canada only)
Email: enviroinfo@ec.gc.ca

Related links

• Canada Wildlife Act
• Wildlife Area Regulations
• Country Island Complex – Important Bird Area (IBA)
• Country Island NWA on Google Maps (Please note that the Google map is a complementary source of information and does not represent the official map or site name)