2024-2025 Official Tourist Guide of the Îles de la Madeleine

Profile of the Region – Features of the Region

Fauna Since the archipelago is not large, it is home to many species of birds and mammals. Due to their location in the middle of the Gulf of St. Lawrence, the Îles de la Madeleine are a favourite site for birds. The most important of the marine mammals, both because of its number and its importance, is the seal. Four different species of seals can be found around the Îles de la Madeleine (Gray, Harbour, Harp and Hooded). There was a time when walrus were also common, but they disappeared in 1799. Whales can sometimes be observed offshore, although they are rather rare.

Birds Approximately 300 species of birds live on or pass through the Islands. These birds have different sta tuses: nesting, migratory, residents, visitors and win tering species. Many of the nesting birds live in colonies: the northern gannet, the blacklegged kittiwake, the great blue heron, the double-crested shag, the thick-billed murre, the atlantic puffin, the razorbill, etc. The Piping Plover, an endangered species, nests on beaches. It is found nowhere else in the Province of Québec except here in the Islands. You should avoid their nesting grounds (identified by signs) between May 1 and August 15. Two other bird species coming to the Islands — the roseate tern and the horned grebe — are also on the list of species at risk. Many of the migratory birds are coastal species: Sandpipers, Plovers, Yellowlegs, Turnstones, the Whimbrel and the Hudsonian Godwit. There are only about 25 resident species on the Islands, from the common crow to the rare snowy owl. Note that the number of individual species reaches its maximum at the end of summer and the beginning of autumn when migratory birds stop on the Islands. For information on the best watching sites, visit the Bird Watching section, p. 101 or tourismeilesdelamadeleine.com/birdwatching.

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The Gray Seal and the Harbor Seal Gray Seals and Harbor Seals can be observed in their natural habitat at the east end of Brion Island, at the end of the Grande Échouerie Beach in Grosse-Île, at Corps-Mort Rock and on the Dune du Sud Beach, just opposite the Grande-Entrée fishing port. Seal watching tours are offered in the Havre aux Maisons lagoon. This is a wonderful, exciting experience, but can only be experienced in good weather (see Live the St. Lawrence River, Sea Excursions (Boat/zodiac) section, p. 56, Marine Mammal Watching, p. 59). The Harp Seal Every year, when conditions are favorable at the beginning of March, hundreds of thousands of Harp Seals come to the ice floes around the Islands when it is time for the birth of their youngs, which are called “whitecoats”. The whitecoat’s fur is long and white. The baby is weaned approximately two weeks after birth and his mother leaves him on the ice to go off and mate. Helicopter excursions to observe whitecoats in their natural habitat on the ice floes are available in the Îles de la Madeleine (p. 110). See also the Seal Interpretation Centre (p. 88).

tourismeilesdelamadeleine.com

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© É.Deschamps/M.Bonato