Location
Key Information
| 820 km2 | MARINE AREA |
| 827 km2 | TOTAL AREA i |
Regulations: Government of Canada
Boundary: Canadian Protected and Conserved Areas Database (Unmodified)
2.0
July 2023
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Purpose
Banks Island, in the Northwest Territories, is the fourth largest and the most western of the Canadian Arctic Islands. Two migratory bird sanctuaries have been established on this island and Banks Island Migratory Bird Sanctuary No. 1 is located adjacent to Sachs Harbour along the southwestern portion of the island. Each spring, up to 500 000 lesser snow geese fly northward to the eastern Beaufort Sea region, located off of the western coast of Banks Island. These geese are of the Western Arctic population, which spend their winters in California, New Mexico or Mexico. As many as 450 000 geese return yearly to nest in Big River and Egg River located within the sanctuary. This represents approximately 95% of the Western Arctic population and about 15% of the Canadian lesser snow geese population.
Species of Concern: lesser snow goose
Regulations Summary
Restrictions
The primary purpose of Migratory Bird Sanctuaries is the protection of migratory birds from killing, harm and harassment during a critical part of their life cycle, such as breeding, nesting, moulting, or staging and stopover during their migration. Unless a permit has been issued by the Minister of the Environment authorizing such activity, the Regulations prohibit the following activities in a Migratory Bird Sanctuary:
1. no person shall hunt migratory birds;
2. no person shall disturb, destroy or take the nests of migratory birds;
3. no person shall have in their possession a live migratory bird, or a carcass, skin, nest or egg of a migratory bird (a resident of a Migratory Bird Sanctuary may have in their possession migratory birds lawfully killed outside a Migratory Bird Sanctuary);
4.no person shall have in their possession in a Migratory Bird Sanctuary any firearm; or any hunting appliance except as otherwise provided in these Regulations (does not apply to residents of a Migratory Bird Sanctuary);
5. no person shall permit a dog or cat to run at large in a Migratory Bird Sanctuary;
6. no person shall carry on any activity that is harmful to migratory birds or the eggs, nests or habitat of migratory birds, except under the authority of a permit for those Migratory Bird Sanctuaries on provincial, territorial and federal lands.
Allowed
1. First Nations have a right to access and hunt within the sanctuary.