How we found Haida Gwaii’s first marbled murrelet nest in more than 30 years

Unlike almost every other seabird, female marbled murrelets fly inland in spring, leaving the ocean behind to lay a single egg on a branch high in the forest canopy. (Joachim Bertrands)

Scrambling through dense salal in the dark, weaving between the majestic western red cedars of northern Haida Gwaii, I could barely imagine where we were just days before — crossing Dixon Entrance off the coast in an open skiff, pushing head-on through ocean swells and salt spray.

These were two vastly different worlds, connected by one strange little bird: the marbled murrelet.