1. Birds provide insight for stewardship of urban riparian areas
Cooper Farr
Conservation Science Program

2. Riparian Areas
transitional zone between terrestrial and acquatic ecosystems

3. Urban riparian areas give us...
resources (water), ecosystem services, recreational opportunities, access to natural spaces
filtering pollutants from overland flow

4. Riparian areas are important for birds
Less than 1% of land area
Up to 75% of Utah bird species
On average: 2x greater bird density
10x more birds during spring migration
Especially in urban areas- serve as small, linear preserves
also we want to support birds in Salt Lake City and provide them with habitat in Urban areas
42% breed or over-winter

5. Riparian Areas in Salt Lake County
7 Canyons:
Drinking water for over 1 million
Some underground in urban area
Jordan River:
Historically 12,500 acres of wetland/riparian habitat
Since 1847:
Great Salt Lake
City Creek
Red Butte
Emigration
Parley’s
Jordan River
Mill Creek
Big Cottonwood
Salt Lake County
Little Cottonwood
Channelization
Straightening
Dredging
Development
Jordan River: flows over 50 miles between Utah lake and Great Salt Lake, and goes through 3 counties and 15 cities along the way
Channelization, Straightening, Dredging = reduced historic floodplain
Development
Domestic, industrial, and agricultural discharge
City Creek = first water source for Mormon pioneers in 1847
Now – City Creek, Parley’s, Big Cottonwood, Little Cottonwood
Utah Lake
Domestic,
industrial,
agricultural
discharge
Changes in plant
communities
> Non-native
encroachment

6. Channelization Straightening Dredging Domestic, industrial,
resources (water), ecosystem services, recreational opportunities, access to natural spaces
filtering pollutants from overland flow
Domestic,
industrial,
agricultural
discharge
Changes in plant
communities
> Non-native
encroachment
Development

7. Birds are good indicators of riparian health

8. Tracy Aviary’s Citizen Science Program
Number of Participants: 41
Citizen Scientist Hours: 980
Since 2011, Tracy Aviary’s citizen science program has developed and implemented a series of participatory bird monitoring projects in urban riparian areas throughout the Salt Lake County Watershed

9. Our work and partners
Regional Athletic Complex
Jordan River Golf Course
City Creek Canyon
Liberty Park
Parley’s Historic Nature Park
Scott Ave Park
Big Bend Habitat Restoration Area
Our projects include diverse objective, partners, stakeholders, and geographic locations, but they all investigate avian use of urban riparian habitat
Alta Ski Area
Galena Soo’nkhanni Preserve

10. ? local avian ecology riparian health management/restoration
Patterns of bird occurrence, distribution, and community composition can serve as important indicators of watershed quality and overall ecosystem health, and data we have collected over the years have increased our understanding of local avian ecology, best management practices, and how to balance competing objectives for our region’s riparian areas
local avian ecology
riparian health
management/restoration
balance competing objectives

11. Study sites and sampling points (80)
Creeks:
City Creek Canyon (400 acres)
31 sampling points
Parley’s Historic Park (63 acres)
6 sampling points
Jordan River:
Regional Athletic Complex (44 acres)
Jordan River Golf Course (15 acres)
2 sampling points
Big Bend Habitat Restoration Area (80 acres)
8 sampling points
Galena Soo’nkhanni Preserve (252 acres)
27 sampling points

12. Breeding Bird Surveys - Point counts
112m
32m
32 citizen science volunteers
Breeding Season: April – July
Dawn – 10am
Multiple Visits (5-6)
87m

13. Question 1: Which bird species are using Salt Lake County’s urban riparian areas during the breeding season? ?

14. 124 bird species 95% native birds 38% of all Salt Lake County species82 66 54 51
Results 1 – Species Counts during breeding season at each of the areas
Number of species
out of how many riparian species
% native vs. non-native 35 34

15. Species we observed most often at each site:
Red-winged Blackbird
Black-billed Magpie
Northern Rough-winged Swallow
Bullock’s Oriole
American Robin
Song Sparrow
Bullock’s Oriole
Bullock’s Oriole
Song Sparrow
American Robin
American Robin
Yellow Warbler
European Starling
Rock Pigeon
Warbling Vireo
Franklin’s Gull
Yellow Warbler
American Robin
Jordan River
Golf Course

16. Riparian Obligate birds
Yellow-breasted Chat
Willow Flycatcher

17. Question 2: What habitat factors make riparian areas better for birds?
*Note: Jordan River sites only

18. Riparian Bird Index: 28 Riparian Obligate and Dependent Species
Young et al. 2013, BLM PIF 1998

19. Riparian Area Characteristics
Total size
Overstory Canopy Cover (>3m)
Understory Canopy Cover (0.25m – 3m)
Percentage of Understory that is Non-native
Grass Cover
Forb Cover

20. Analysis Multiple Linear Regression Models 1 and 2 covariates
AIC for model selection

21. Size, canopy cover, and native vegetation were best supported indicators of a healthy riparian bird community
AIC =
(0.04)
(0.02)
Total size
Overstory Canopy Cover ?
AIC =
(0.03)
Total size
Percentage of Non-native Understory

22. Across all study areas, trees and shrubs were predominantly non-native
Overstory
78.7% Russian Olive (non-native)
12% Siberian Elm (non-native)
3.5% Fremont Cottonwood (native)
Understory
36.6% Russian Olive (non-native)
20.3% Rabbit Brush (native)
11% Tamarisk (non-native)

23. Conclusion: Urban riparian areas are important for native birds, and ours support many
Despite the degredation and development, we have habitat that supports some fantastic bird communities.

24. Conclusion: Larger protected areas with canopy trees support healthy riparian bird communities
Implications for management

25. Implications for restoration
Conclusion: Russian Olives and other non-native vegetation support bird communities in disturbed habitat
Implications for restoration
When thinking about how to restore the area, need to keep in mind that birds are already using these trees, and need midstory and canopy structure in the vegetation.

26. Conclusion: There is more to learn!
11 new species detected this year
Long-term monitoring:
Restoration work
Population growth
Climate change
new species, even in site we’ve been monitoring for 5 years

27. Interested in joining? www.tracyaviary.org/volunteer
Acknowledgements
Tracy Aviary Citizen Science Team
Project Partners
Interested in joining?