1. FLORIDA SHOREBIRD PRESENTATION

2. 2/23/2009

3. Janell Brush - Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission

4. Janell.Brush@MyFWC.com

5. Life History of Florida Shorebirds

6. With 217 species worldwide and approximately 50 species that breed in North America, shorebirds make up a small percentage of the world’s more than 8,000 bird species

7. They can be found all year round on most Florida beaches.

8. Breeding Season

9. The Florida breeding season is March - July

10. 14 Species of shorebirds and seabirds nest in Florida

11. The majority of shorebirds leave Florida to nest in the Arctic, Midwest or the North Atlantic Coast

12. In Florida, shorebirds and seabirds nest on coastal beaches, barrier islands, spoil islands, causeways, gravel roofs, coral rock islands

13. Nesting Birds

14. Colonial Nesting– ‘seabirds’ gulls, skimmers, terns

15. Enhanced protection and defense against predators

16. Improved foraging – follow successful hunters to food source

17. Solitary Nesting – shorebirds (oystercatchers, willets, plovers)

18. Use camouflage for protection from predators

19. Food resource remains more constant in area of territory

20. Colonial Nesting Birds

21. Nesting ‘Seabird’ Status – 10 Species

22. Threatened – Least Tern, Roseate Tern

23. Petitioned for listing – Gull-billed Tern

24. Species of Special Concern in Fl- Black Skimmer, Sooty Tern, Royal Tern, Caspian Tern, Sandwich Tern, Brown Noddy

25. Common- Laughing Gull

26. Colonies on ground or rooftops

27. Loss of habitat on beach

28. Many coastal buildings are getting rid of gravel rooftops

29. Human disturbance on ground

30. Risk of chicks falling off roof

31. Least Tern – Only tern that will nest on rooftops in FL

32. Roofs support 75% of all colonies and 83% of all nests

33. Black Skimmer – Starting to nest more on rooftops in FL

34. 10% of nests are on roofs

35. Solitary Nesting Birds

36. Four shorebird species nest in FL

37. Snowy Plover (threatened), American Oystercatcher (threatened), Willet (common), Wilson’s Plover (species of special concern)

38. Advantages of solitary nesting

39. Use of camouflage for predator protection (instead of colony)

40. Food resource remains more constant

41. Snowy Plover Nest Monitoring

42. USFWS census and WEC Master’s student Raya Pruner

43. Information about population, nest success, nesting distribution and relative survival

44. Occur on mainly the Gulf Coast

45. American Oystercatcher Nest Monitoring

46. Determine nest success, relative survival and distribution of Florida birds

47. Provide information to managers

48. Occur throughout coastal Florida

49. Wintering Shorebirds

50. About 20 species of shorebirds winter in Florida annually

51. Most of the species are species that are in trouble

52. Piping Plover – Federally Endangered

53. Only 54% of them have been found on the wintering grounds

54. Many groups conducting research/monitoring

55. Report banded birds at piping.plover@usacoe.army.mil

56. American Oystercatcher – Threatened in Florida

57. Recent evidence of population declines, particularly in the Southeastern U.S., has prompted research aimed at understanding the bird's biology and conservation needs.

58. Large winter roosts (>2,000)

59. Gulf Coast Barge Canal to Horseshoe Beach and Jacksonville

60. The majority of birds are not part of the Florida breeding population

61. Large group of researchers throughout its range

62. Report bands at http://www.ncsu.edu/project/grsmgi s/AMOY/Research.htm

63. In recent years, coordinated, widespread banding and re-sighting efforts along the Atlantic coast have revealed connections between breeding and wintering sites and a glimpse into the complexity of patterns of movement and dispersal.

64. Migrating Birds

65. More than 30 species of shorebirds and seabirds migrate through Florida

66. Energetically costly to migrate long distances

67. Need ‘re-fueling’ stopover habitats consistent from year to year to gain weight in a short amount of time

68. Alterations to food resources can have devastating effects on the birds

69. Timing of migration related to prey availability. Classic example is the spawning events of horseshoe crabs and migrating shorebirds in Delaware Bay

70. Red Knot – Species of Special Concern in Florida – Petitioned for federal listing

71. Largest calidrine sandpiper in N. America (robin-sized). They can live 10-15 years. Dietary generalist – mollusks, amphipods, horseshoe crab eggs, insects

72. Heavily relies on Horseshoe crab eggs in Delaware Bay

73. Unknown where the FL wintering population nests – Alaska?

74. Historically the most common shorebird – today 20,000

75. Winter largely along Gulf Coast, concentrations in SW and Panhandle, migrate through Duval County

76. Although still rufa subspecies, some population genetic and morphological differences from S. American birds

77. Research to document movement and survival, report bands to janell.brush@myfwc.com

78. Threats

79. Altricial hatchling- (passerines) EX. Robin, Blue Jay, Sparrow. Helpless at hatching. An altricial hatchling is naked or sparsely downy, unable to leave the nest, and its eyes are closed

80. Semi-precocial hatchling - (seabirds, oystercatchers) Describes young that have characteristics of precocial young at hatch (open eyes, down, capacity to leave the nest) but that remain at the nest and are cared for by parents until close to adult size.

81. Precocial hatchling - (shorebirds) Capable of a high degree of independent activity from birth. A precocial hatchling has heavy down, is quickly mobile, and often requires little direct parental care.

82. Human related disturbance

83. Disturbance - Activities that “upset” birds by causing them to fly, run walk away, or vocalize.

84. Managers try to decrease disturbance by posting nesting areas

85. Enforce leash laws

86. Increase in mammalian predators

87. Habitat alteration – nourishment and raking

88. Increasing pressures in the Arctic

89. Climate Change

90. The population of the Florida coastal counties is predicted to double from 12.3 million to more than 26 million by 2060

91. About 59% of Florida beaches are already experiencing erosion. Some of this erosion is the result of natural forces; however the majority of the impact is a consequence of human activities.

92. This situation will be exacerbated in the near future by the effects of climate change.

93. Climate change can be expected to result in sea level rise, increasing storms, and changes to the pattern of ocean currents. These changes will require an increase in management of coastal systems in the form of habitat modifications including raking, nourishment, armoring, and dredge-spoil deposition, and these modifications have the potential to impact shorebird and seabird communities.

94. Much uncertainty exists about the long and short-term ecological impacts of these types of management activities

95. Arctic Tundra

96. The only major environment whose range is completely unable to shift northward in response to global warming

97. Optimistic models predict that tundra habitat will be cut in half by the end of the twenty-first century due to northward shift of boreal forest

98. Sea-level rise will affect shoreline habitats in the Arctic and farther south

99. More frequent severe storms and flooding may heavily impact birds breeding in coastal lowlands such as coastal tundra, salt marshes, and beaches

100. Timing of bug hatchings is not as predictable– no food for young

101. Conservation and Management

102. Complicated due to the large variety of habitats used

103. Require a series of interconnected areas of suitable habitat to successfully complete their annual movements

104. Many variables have to be right in order to be suitable for shorebirds at a given time

105. Communication by managers and researchers throughout range of the species

106. US Shorebird Conservation Plan http://www.fws.gov/shorebirdplan

107. In 2000, partners from state and federal agencies pooled their resources to develop a plan for migrating shorebirds and their habitats

108. Goal is to ensure that adequate quantity and quality of shorebird habitat is maintained at the local level and to maintain or restore shorebird populations at the continental and hemispheric levels

109. Outreach, education, research, monitoring, and habitat conservation programs are being implemented,

110. Accomplishment of conservation objectives for all shorebird species will require a coordinated effort among traditional and new partners

111. Research and Monitoring

112. FWC Shorebird Monitoring Website

113. http://myfwc.com/shorebirds