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| Division of Bird Habitat Conservation | |
Funding for the following 40 projects was approved in May 2004. A total of $3.83 million in funding was approved with project partners contributing $16 million in matching funds and $193,389 in nonmatching funds to affect 894,350 acres of habitat. This information is accurate as of the date of approval. For further information about specific grant projects, please contact the grantee listed in individual project summaries. Project Summary Table, U.S. Projects, U.S. - Latin American and Caribbean Projects, Latin American and Caribbean Projects.
| ALASKA | |
| Project: Nest
Survivorship of Migratory Birds and Development in Arctic Alaska. Location: North Slope Borough. Congressional District: . Grantee: Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS). Contact: Joseph Liebezeit/Steve Zack, (707) 825-7819, jliebezeit@wcs.org. Partners: BP Exploration (Alaska), Inc., ConocoPhillips Alaska, Inc., ABR, Inc., Ellen McBean, Disney Wildlife Conservation Fund, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $79,449. Matching Funds: $243,624. Nonmatching Funds: None. Joint Venture Region: . BCR: 3. Ecoregion: NA1103. |
The North Slope of Alaska, in the Arctic Coastal Tundra Ecoregion, contains
some of the most important breeding grounds for more than 20 species of
neotropical migratory shorebirds and waterfowl. The North Slope also has
been experiencing human and industrial development, particularly in relation
to oil exploration and extraction. In the last 30 years, some of the migratory
shorebird and waterfowl species that breed in the Arctic have exhibited
population declines, possibly linked to an increase in predator populations
as a result of development and other disturbances on breeding grounds that
favor their success. Preliminary results from research previously conducted by project partners at several sites across the North Slope suggest that at a local scale (within oilfields) there is a significant correlation between the proximity of nests to industrial infrastructure and lower nest-success rates. Partners now will expand their research to determine if there is a link between nest predation, oil-industry infrastructure, and nest survivorship at the regional scale, working at five sites across the North Slope that represent different levels of human/industrial development. Using remote camera systems, they will identify nest-predator species and also will continue to evaluate the impact of predators on tundra-nesting birds. Project results will provide a better understanding of predator-prey relationships in the region, and will help determine how development-related activities could be managed to minimize their impact on tundra-nesting migratory birds. |
| ARIZONA | |
| Project: Effects
of Fire on Buff - Breasted Flycatchers and Other Neotropical Migrants. Location: Pima and Cochise Counties. Congressional District: 7 and 8. Grantee: U.S. Geological Survey-Arizona Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit. Contact: Courtney Conway, (520) 626-8535, cconway@ag.arizona.edu. Partners: U.S. Department of the Interior-Joint Fire Sciences Program and Arizona Game and Fish Department. Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $11,400. Matching Funds: $34,211. Nonmatching Funds: $59,529. Joint Venture Region: Sonoran Joint Venture. BCR: 34. Ecoregion: NA0302. |
The buff-breasted flycatcher is a rare neotropical migrant whose distribution
and population has declined dramatically over the past 100 years or more.
The total square-kilometer area of its historic range, which encompassed
parts of the U.S. Southwest and northern Mexico, has diminished by 88
percent. Nearly all of the bird’s known population is now restricted
to two small mountain ranges, the Huachuca and Chiricahua Mountains,
in southeastern Arizona. In 2000, rangewide surveys of this species found
only 74 individuals. The buff-breasted flycatcher is considered a species
of conservation priority for Bird Conservation Region 34 (Sierra Madre
Occidental) and a wildlife species of special concern (endangered category)
in Arizona. Buff-breasted flycatchers seem to prefer pine forests, particularly where high-intensity ground fires remove dense understory vegetation. The steady population decline of this limited-distribution bird may be related to the more than 100-year-long history of fire suppression in this area, which has allowed hardwood species to colonize the understory. The catastrophic wildfires that burned throughout Arizona in 2002 and 2003—many in the same area as the routes used for the 2000 population survey—have given project partners a unique opportunity to collect post-burn population and distribution data, and compare them to preburn data. In this project, partners will use the comparative data they collect to evaluate the effects of high- and low-intensity fires on the distribution and abundance of buff-breasted flycatchers and more than 30 other neotropical migratory birds that breed in these montane forests. Results will help managers better understand the role of fire, both natural and prescribed, in providing optimal habitat for forest-breeding migratory birds. |
| MICHIGAN | |
| Project: Variables
Associated with Avian Mortality from Collisions with Communication Towers. Location: 20 counties in Michigan. Congressional District: 1. Grantee: Central Michigan University. Contact: Joelle Gehring, (989) 588-9573, joelle.gehring@cst.cmich.edu. Partners: The State of Michigan. Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $38,500. Matching Funds: $198,960. Nonmatching Funds: None. Joint Venture Region: Upper Mississippi River/Great Lakes. BCR: 12 and 23. Ecoregion: NA0414, NA0415, and NA0416. |
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) estimates that 4 to 5 million
birds die annually from collisions with communication towers, and other
sources suggest the majority of those deaths occur at night, perhaps
as birds are attracted to and become disoriented by the towers’ lights.
In Michigan, 77 percent of the species on the Service’s list of
Birds of Conservation Concern for Region 3 have died from collisions.
Considering that approximately 5,000 new towers are erected each year
throughout the United States, collision-related bird deaths nationwide are sure
to increase if the causes are not researched and adjustments to towers
made. Last August, the Federal Communications Commission officially committed to addressing the topic and requested scientific information on the number of birds colliding with towers and on the relationship between collisions and tower variables, such as lighting, height, structural support, and type. The State also is interested in the topic, due to collisions occurring at its 181 new police communication towers. Project partners will collect data on collision-related avian mortality at 24 state-owned towers over the next 2 years, during the peak of spring and fall bird migration. Their expanded research, based on a pilot study conducted at six sites in 2003, will include tower variables such as lighting (strobe versus solid, high- versus mid-level, red versus white light), height (380 to 480 feet versus 1,000 feet), and support structure (guy-wires versus none). Using advanced radar-ornithology technology, partners will gauge the density of migrating birds moving past the study sites, in order to discern the relative number of bird deaths, not just the total number. Project results will help designers and managers of communication towers create or adjust these structures in ways that minimize or prevent avian mortality due to collisions. |
| MINNESOTA | |
| Project: Grassland
Songbird Use of Conservation Buffers in Southwestern Minnesota. Location: Brown, Cottonwood, Jackson, Nobles, and Watonwan Counties. Congressional District: 1. Grantee: USDA/NRCS Wildlife Habitat Management Institute. Contact: William Hohman, (515) 294-8591, whohman@iastate.edu. Partners: Iowa State University, Iowa Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Unit, NRCS-Minnesota, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service-Region 3, and Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $6,423. Matching Funds: $19,269. Nonmatching Funds: None. Joint Venture Region: Prairie Pothole. BCR: 11. Ecoregion: NA0805. |
Grassland was once the most prominent type of habitat in
North America, but human alteration of grassland landscapes over the
past 200 years
has made it one of the most endangered ecosystems on the continent today.
Habitat loss, primarily due to conversion to agricultural uses, is most
pronounced in the Northern Tallgrass Prairie region, which includes portions
of Iowa, Minnesota, North Dakota, and the Province of Manitoba. As grassland
habitat decreases, so do populations of grassland-dependent bird species
such as sedge wrens, bobolinks, and dickcissels—all designated
as species of conservation priority in this region by Partners in Flight. Under the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service’s (NRCS) Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP), state and local partnerships help private landowners to protect, restore, and manage grasslands. Establishing buffers called “filter strips,” which are 30- to 120-foot-wide bands of grass or grass mixtures along waterways, is one of the more popular CREP conservation practices among participating farmers and holds much potential for benefiting breeding grassland songbirds. Project partners will evaluate grassland-dependent songbirds’ use of CREP filter strips in southwestern Minnesota. Their research, now in its second field season, will assess species richness and abundance as well as nest density and nest success in relation to filter strip width, vegetative structure and composition, and surrounding landscape features. Their results will facilitate a better understanding of how filter strips can be optimized for the benefit of songbirds. |
| MONTANA | |
| Project: Conservation
of Cottonwood Gallery Forest Birds in Southeastern Montana. Location: Custer, Powder River, and Rosebud Counties. Congressional District: . Grantee: Montana Audubon. Contact: Jeffrey Marks, (406) 443-3949, jeff.marks@umontana.edu. Partners: . Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $10,120. Matching Funds: $30,400. Nonmatching Funds: None. Joint Venture Region: . BCR: 17. Ecoregion: NA0811. |
Cottonwood gallery forests cover roughly 0.5 percent of Montana’s
land area but are used by approximately 60 percent of the bird species
that breed in the State. This naturally scarce habitat also supports
many other bird species during migration. Interruption of natural flooding
regimes via dams, overgrazing, logging, and agricultural and urban development
threaten cottonwood gallery forests. To date, 26 sites are designated Important Bird Areas (IBA) in Montana, with the majority occurring on publicly owned lands already receiving some level of protection. Although approximately 65 percent of the land in Montana is privately owned, few private lands have been surveyed for their bird species composition—the first step towards identifying potential sites for IBA nomination. Therefore, project partners at Montana Audubon will train and assist teams of citizen scientists in systematically inventorying bird species on privately owned tracts of riparian cottonwood forest, with landowners’ permission. From late May to late July 2004 and 2005, project crews will record all bird species seen and heard on these tracts, located along the Tongue and Powder Rivers in southeastern Montana. They also will estimate the number of breeding pairs present for a suite of bird species considered by Partners in Flight and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to be a conservation priority for Montana and for Bird Conservation Region 17 (Badlands and Prairies). Project activities will not only provide critical data needed to make IBA nominations, but will also create opportunities in which to educate local participants and landowners about the importance of this unique habitat to migratory birds. |
| PUERTO RICO | |
| Project: Río
Encantado Migratory Bird Wintering Habitat Conservation Project. Location: Puerto Rico’s Ciales, Florida, and Manatí Municipalities. Grantee: Conservation Trust of Puerto Rico. Contact: Blanca Santos, (787) 722-5834, blanca@fideicomiso.org. Partners: . Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $250,000. Matching Funds: $1,463,000. Nonmatching Funds: None. Joint Venture Region: Atlantic Coast. BCR: None. Flyway: Atlantic–Caribbean. Ecoregion: NT0155. |
This 2-year project will conserve important migratory bird habitats in
the northern karst region, an area considered to be the top conservation
priority by federal and commonwealth agencies and nongovernmental organizations
throughout Puerto Rico. More than 110 migratory bird species have been
recorded in the karst forests, with the majority occurring in the project
area of Río Encantado. Migrants such as the ovenbird, Louisiana
waterthrush, northern parula, American redstart, and numerous warbler
species seasonally occupy this habitat along with several endemic forest-bird
species. Some 30 threatened and endangered bird species are present in
the project area. The northern karst region contains the most important aquifer recharge area on the island. The region is threatened by increasing demands for urban development, pasture and agricultural lands, and mineral extraction, particularly limestone. Conversion of traditionally managed shaded-coffee plantations to full-sun operations poses an additional, ongoing threat. With the natural canopy layer gone, the land is vulnerable to forces that cause soil erosion and the runoff of pesticides and fertilizers. The Conservation Trust of Puerto Rico (Trust) will acquiring 1,000 acres of karst forest habitat, to be designated the Río Encantado Natural Reserve. The Trust will protect and manage the reserve in perpetuity, enriching the 17,000-acre network of conserved lands it already manages islandwide. As needed, partners will carry out restoration, sign-posting, and other management activities on the reserve. They also will continue to educate the public about the importance of the northern karst ecosystem, and will work with landowners through the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program to promote shade-grown coffee and sustainable agricultural practices. |
| WISCONSIN | |
| Project: Glacial
Lake Grantsburg Bird Habitat Initiative Project. Location: Wisconsin’s Burnett County. Congressional District: 7. Grantee: Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. Contact: Peter Engman, (715) 463-2896, peter.engman@dnr.state.wi.us. Partners: Friends of Crex, Inc., Wisconsin Sharp-tailed Grouse Society, and Northwest Wisconsin Concentrated Employment Program, Inc. Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $92,300. Matching Funds: $277,100. Nonmatching Funds: None. Joint Venture Region: Upper Mississippi River/Great Lakes. BCR: 12 and 23. Ecoregion: NA0415, and NA0416. |
The Glacial Lake Grantsburg Wildlife Management Complex
consists of four properties encompassing nearly 54,000 acres of diverse
grassland and
wetland habitats, particularly pine/oak barren, a globally rare habitat
type. One of the properties, 30,000-acre Crex Meadows, has been designated
a Globally Important Bird Area by the American Bird Conservancy. The
entire complex hosts a myriad of bird species, including many of conservation
priority to Partners in Flight such as yellow rail, Nelson’s sharp-tailed
and LeConte’s sparrows, sandhill crane, bobolink, and black tern.
During migration, the area’s wetlands also support thousands of
waterfowl and shorebirds. The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (Department) has been managing the Glacial Lake Grantsburg complex since the late 1940s, but limited administrative resources have kept it from achieving its landscapewide goals for the area. This project is an example of how the Department has begun to work in partnership to help meet the extensive management needs of the complex. Partners will acquire fee title to 173 acres of pine/oak barrens habitat and protect it for grassland/shrubland-dependent bird species. Another 300 acres of pine/oak barrens and jack pine/oak stands will be restored. Partners will enhance 4,500 acres of pine/oak barrens to promote prairie grass and forb diversity and early successional species. Some 2 miles of permanent firebreaks will be created to facilitate seasonal prescribed burning on 2,600 of these acres. Partners also will manage and maintain 1,500 acres of sedge marsh via prescribed burning. |
U.S. - Latin American and Caribbean Projects
| Alaska, California—MEXICO | |
| Project: Protecting
Neotropical Migrants from Invasive Species on North American Islands
Project. Location: coasts of Alaska, California, Canada and Mexico. Congressional District: . Grantee: Island Conservation and Ecology Group. Contact: Bernie Tershy, (831) 459-1461, tershy@islandconservation.org. Partners: University of California-Santa Cruz, Canadian Wildlife Service, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, California Department of Fish and Game-Office of Spill Prevention and Response, MacArthur Foundation, Mexico’s National Commission on Biodiversity and Mexico’s National Institute of Ecology. Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $250,000. Matching Funds: $925,365. Nonmatching Funds: None. Joint Venture Region: . BCR: . Ecoregion: . |
The 3,000 islands off the western coast of the United
States, Canada, and Mexico support an estimated 50 million breeding seabirds,
1.5 million
breeding waterfowl, and 175 species of neotropical migratory birds. The
presence of introduced species such as rats, cats, foxes, goats, and
pigs on the islands have had devastating effects on some endemic and
migratory bird populations, due to predation and habitat degradation.
Project partners’ ongoing efforts to eradicate these introduced
species from a myriad of islands have largely been successful, and bird
populations have increased. In this 2-year project, partners will focus on eradicating rodents, perhaps the most damaging of all introduced mammals, from three islands off the coast of California and Mexico. They will then monitor the success and impacts of the eradication. Partners also will implement plans designed to prevent future introductions of rodents to islands off of Canada (British Columbia) and Mexico (Baja California). Rodent eradication teams created in Mexico, the United States, and Canada will be further developed, and a new Caribbean team will be trained. Additionally, partners will continue researching the impacts of introduced rodents, eradication techniques, and native species’ responses on islands in the project area. Activities in Canada will be supported with partner funds only. |
| Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, Texas—MEXICO | |
| Project: Gulf
Crossings Technical Assistance Project. Location: 14 counties in Texas; St. Tammany, Jefferson, and Cameron Parishes in Louisiana; Hancock County in Mississippi; Mobile County in Alabama; Osceola County in Florida; and Tamaulipas, Veracruz, Campeche, Yucatán, and Quintana Roo in Mexico. Congressional District: Texas' 2, 9, 14, 15, 22, 27, and 29; Louisiana's 1, 3, and 7; Mississippi's 4; Alabama' 1; Florida's 5. Grantee: Gulf Coast Bird Observatory, Inc. Contact: Cecilia M. Riley, (979) 480-0999, criley@gcbo.org. Partners: Meadows Foundation, Houston Endowment, and National Fish and Wildlife Foundation’s Shell Marine Habitat Fund . Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $33,328. Matching Funds: $268,905. Nonmatching Funds: $25,000. Joint Venture Region: Gulf Coast. BCR: six bird conservation regions. Ecoregion: 15 ecoregions. |
Coastal ecosystems, particularly in and around the Gulf
Coast of Mexico, offer some of the most important habitats to migrating
birds. In response
to ongoing loss and degradation of gulf habitats and other threats to
bird populations, Gulf Coast Bird Observatory (GCBO) developed the “Gulf
Crossings” program, which facilitates conservation activities at
47 sites, to date, in the United States and Mexico. Some 27 organizations,
called Site Partners, are involved. Site Partners need more on-site,
technical assistance from GCBO; a coordinated communications plan and
programwide outreach products; and training in fundraising to help them
build self-sustaining operations.
To this end, and to the benefit of all sites within the program’s
region, project partners will create a new Conservation Science Director
position at GCBO. He/she will provide programwide planning and direction, strengthen and expand partnerships, and help give technical assistance to Site Partners. Project partners will host training seminars designed to provide Site Partners with outreach, marketing, fundraising, and ecotourism skills. Partners also will publish a comprehensive, bilingual sourcebook containing general program information and site-specific details, which will double as an outreach tool and visitors’ guide. A plan will be developed for increasing ecotourism throughout the site network. In Texas: A total of 27 sites are located across 14 counties. In Louisiana: St. Tammany, Jefferson, and Cameron Parishes host a total of three sites. In Mississippi: The Hancock County Marsh site is located in Hancock County In Alabama: Mobile County is the location of the Dauphin Island Bird Sanctuaries’ site. In Florida: The Reliant Energy Osceola site is in Osceola County. In Mexico: A total of 14 sites occur throughout five Mexican states. Tamaulipas: Barra del Tordo, Laguna Madre, and Rancho Rincon de Anacahuitas. Veracruz: Centro de Investigaciones Costeras La Mancha, Humedales Alvarado, Rio de Rapaces, and Selva Zoque. Campeche: Reserva de la Biosfera Calakmul. Yucatán: Reserva de la Biosfera Ria Lagartos, Reserva Ecologica Municipal Cuxtal, and Reserva Especial de la Biosfera Ria Celestun. Quintana Roo: Parque Nacional Isla Contoy, Reserva de la Biosfera Banco Chinchorro, and Reserva de la Biosfera Sian Ka’an. |
| Alabama, Louisiana—MEXICO | |
| Project: Migratory
Stopover Habitat Protection Along the Gulf of Mexico Phase II Project. Location: Baldwin County in Alabama; Vermilion and Cameron Parishes in Louisiana; and Tamaulipas, Veracruz, Nuevo León, and San Luis Potosí in Mexico. Congressional District: Alabama's 1 and Louisiana's 7. Grantee: The Nature Conservancy. Contact: David Mehlman, (505) 244-0535 ext. 24, dmehlman@tnc.org. Partners: The Nature Conservancy-Migratory Bird Program, The Nature Conservancy of Alabama, The Nature Conservancy of Louisiana, Pronatura Noreste, and Pronatura Veracruz. Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $250,000. Matching Funds: $750,000. Nonmatching Funds: None. Joint Venture Region: Gulf Coast. BCR: five bird conservation regions. Ecoregion: five ecoregions. |
Stopover areas, or places where birds rest and refuel
before continuing on to their breeding or wintering grounds, play a critical
role in the
journey of migration. Annually, the Gulf Coast of Mexico provides hundreds
of thousands of birds with a diversity of stopover habitats. Many of
the gulf’s habitats, however, are in need of conservation. Project
partners, building on their accomplishments in the first phase of this
project, will advance a variety of habitat protection and management
actions in phase two. In Alabama: Partners will acquire fee-simple title to 360 acres of land containing longleaf pine savanna and small stream wetlands and timber rights on 425 acres of wetlands. The Nature Conservancy will hold title to the acquisitions, which are located in the forested corridor between the Perdido River and Mobile-Tensaw River Delta and are adjacent to the State’s 735-acre Splinter Hill Bog Preserve. In Louisiana: Coastal woodlands of the Chenier Plain offer critical habitat for enormous numbers of migratory birds, but are threatened by conversion to grazing land. Partners will identify high-quality or restorable woodlands and will work with private landowners to conserve them, using a variety of conservation mechanisms. Depending on the cost per acre of sites to be acquired, partners will protect between 10 and 45 acres of habitat. In Mexico: Partners will carry out priority-setting exercises for conservation in three ecoregions spanning all or part of the States of Tamaulipas, Veracruz, Nuevo León, and San Luis Potosí. Working ecoregionally, partners will compile and analyze data on species, habitats, and threats; select and map priority conservation areas; and develop strategies for conservation. Additionally, in Tamaulipas project partners will expand the recently formed private landowners’ network within the internationally important and vast Laguna Madre ecosystem. Partners will continue to cultivate good relations with landowners and provide them with technical and financial assistance to help manage their land for conservation. |
| California—MEXICO | |
| Project: Bird
Use of Restored Riparian Habitat in the Overwintering Period Project. Location: Shasta, Glenn, Tehama, Sacramento, and San Joaquin Counties in California and Baja California, Sonora, Jalisco, Quintana Roo in Mexico. Congressional District: California’s 2, 3, 11, and 18. Grantee: PRBO Conservation Science. Contact: Steven Latta, (415) 868-0655 ext. 304, slatta@prbo.org. Partners: Goldman Foundation, California Bay Delta Authority, D. Marlou Foundation, National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, The Nature Conservancy, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service), U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, Reserva Bio-cultural Santa Maria, Pronatura Sonora, Terra Peninsular, Universidad de Guadalajara, 15 other U.S. partners and 4 other Mexican partners. Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $143,280. Matching Funds: $656,650. Nonmatching Funds: None. Joint Venture Region: Central Valley, Intermountain West, Sonoran, and California’s Riparian Habitat. BCR: four bird conservation regions. Ecoregion: seven ecoregions. |
Riparian habitat is one of the most important types of habitat for migratory
birds, particularly in arid regions. However, urban development, water
diversion, conversion to agriculture, and other land uses diminish and
threaten riparian areas. Much effort has been invested in riparian habitat
restoration, yet little is known about migratory birds’ response
to it. Project partners will simultaneously study birds using well-conserved and restored riparian plots in six watersheds in California and Mexico during the nonbreeding season. They will focus on widely distributed species of warblers, kinglets, sparrows, and other upland birds that rely on riparian habitats in the winter. Their goal is to relate bird use, site fidelity, and survivorship to restoration design, silvicultural practices, water-flow regimes, and other restoration-related variables. Partners will then test if favorable conditions for breeding birds are also good for wintering birds by comparing their data to existing breeding-bird data from these sites. Latin American students and biologists will participate at many of the sites, incorporating a field-research training component in to the project. In California: Study sites will be located at 12 places in the Sacramento and San Joaquin Valleys, with some on the Service’s Sacramento River and San Joaquin National Wildlife Refuges and several on preserves belonging to The Nature Conservancy. In Mexico: Partners will carry out their research in four states in Mexico at a total of 12 sites. Baja California: two sites in the Rio Santo Tomás watershed. Sonora: four sites in the Colorado River Delta area. Jalisco: four sites in the Ayuquila River watershed. Quintana Roo: two sites on the Yucatán Peninsula. |
| Colorado—MEXICO | |
| Project: U.S.–Mexico
Grassland Bird Conservation II. Location: Colorado’s Weld County and Mexican State of Chihuahua. Congressional District: Colorado’s 4. Grantee: The Nature Conservancy. Contact: Bob McCready, (206) 780-1102, bmccready@tnc.org. Partners: Kaplan Foundation, LaSalle Foundation, Great Outdoors Colorado, Saskatchewan Wetlands Conservation Corporation, Commission on Environmental Cooperation, USDA Forest Service, Colorado Division of Wildlife, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, Mexican Secretariat of the Environment’s Chihuahuan Delegate Office, Ecology Departments in the States of Nuevo León and Chihuahua, Mexican National Institute for Forestry and Agricultural Research, Mexican National Institute of Anthropology and History, Profauna, Agrupación Dodo, and Agrupación Pradera. Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $228,125. Matching Funds: $683,375. Nonmatching Funds: None. Joint Venture Region: . BCR: 18 and 35. Ecoregion: . |
As a group, grassland-dependent bird species have declined
more dramatically, more consistently, and over a more geographically
widespread area than
any other in North America in the last 25 years. The primary factors
driving population declines are most likely habitat loss and degradation
on both the breeding and wintering grounds. Many species of high conservation
concern will benefit such as mountain plover, long-billed curlew, ferruginous
hawk, burrowing owl,
Sprague’s pipit, Baird’s and Cassin’s sparrows, lark
bunting, and McCown’s and chestnut-collared longspurs. In Colorado: Partners will acquire conservation easements on 6,000 acres of shortgrass prairie habitat on private lands within or adjacent to Pawnee National Grassland. This area is within the State’s Western High Plains, where such habitat is being fragmented by an increasing number of roads, human settlements, and other land uses. Project lands are adjacent to a 4,640-acre tract on which partners are acquiring conservation easements with Phase I funding. In Mexico: The arid Janos/Casas Grandes grassland complex of northeastern Chihuahua provides extremely important migration and wintering habitat to grassland bird species. This complex is threatened by ongoing agricultural conversion and destructive grazing regimes. Project partners will continue their bird monitoring program and collect data on habitat use and conditions. Partners will broaden environmental education and outreach to communities by working with the local government to create and fund an environmental specialist position in the Municipality of Janos. The opportunity to acquire some 48,000 acres of private ranchland, on which to establish an ecological research and education center, also will be pursued. |
| Delaware, New Jersey—ARGENTINA, CHILE | |
| Project: Multi
- National Conservation of Red Knots. Location: Cumberland, Cape May, and Salem Counties in New Jersey; Kent, Sussex, and New Castle Counties in Delaware; Argentina; and Chile. Congressional District: New Jersey's 2. Grantee: Manomet Center for Conservation Sciences. Contact: Charles Duncan, (207) 871-9295, cduncan@manomet.org. Partners: State of New Jersey-Endangered and Nongame Species Program, Fundación Inalafquen, Universidad Nacional de Patagonia Austral, Province of Tierra del Fuego, and Bahía Lomas Shorebird Expedition.. Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $222,653. Matching Funds: $667,690. Nonmatching Funds: None. BCR: 30. Ecoregion: NA0411, NA0517, NT0402, NT0802, NT0804and NT0805. |
Red knots are long-distance migratory shorebirds, breeding
in the Arctic and wintering in southern South America. Their population
has declined
an alarming 45 percent over the past 20 years. In New Jersey and Delaware: The Delaware Bay is a Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network (WHSRN) Hemispheric Site and a prominent staging area for red knots en route to Arctic breeding grounds. The concurrent spawning of horseshoe crab eggs at the bay offers them a key fuel source for the journey. However, egg abundance has been declining in recent years. Using 7-years-worth of data on horseshoe crabs and shorebirds, project partners will develop a model that quantifies the crab eggs needed to support red knots during their stopover, considering an array of environmental and other variables. In Argentina: At San Antonio Oeste, a WHSRN International Site, partners will create a Nature Interpretation Center to serve as an environmental education and nature-guide training facility and as a control point for restricting beach access during critical shorebird-use times. Partners also will help develop a management plan for the site. At the 12-kilometer Río Gallegos Estuary Provincial Reserve, project partners likewise will create a Nature Interpretation Center to provide environmental education and nature-guide training programs, and to serve as a base for reserve guards. Partners will collect data necessary to develop a management plan for the area and to nominate it as a WHSRN site. In Chile: Bahía Lomas hosts the hemisphere’s largest population of wintering red knots. Since a lack of on-site facilities and appropriate access has hampered needed research and conservation actions in the area, project partners will create a modest research and education station. Using existing data from an intrepid research team, partners also will nominate Bahía Lomas as a WHSRN site. |
| Ohio—VENEZUELA | |
| Project: Demography
of Cerulean Warblers on Breeding and Wintering Grounds. Location: Athens, Vinton, and Jackson Counties in Ohio and Venezuela. Congressional District: Ohio’s 6 and 18. Grantee: The Ohio State University-School of Natural Resources. Contact: Amanda Rodewald, (614) 247-6099, rodewald.1@osu.edu. Partners: Ohio Department of Natural Resources, and The Nature Conservancy-Ohio Chapter. Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $57,204. Matching Funds: $171,612. Nonmatching Funds: None. BCR: 28. Ecoregion: NA0402 and NT0175. |
Debates continue over whether events and conditions on the breeding grounds
versus the wintering grounds pose the greatest limiting factor to declining
migratory bird species, especially the cerulean warbler. This species
breeds in large tracts of mature, deciduous forests in the U.S. mid-Atlantic
region, and winters in submontane forests on the slopes of the Andes
Mountains in South America. It has been experiencing the most severe
decline of any warbler breeding in North America, yet very little demographic
data have been collected on this species. The Cerulean Warbler Technical
Group, an international public-private partnership, recognizes that studies
must be conducted in core areas of the species’ breeding and wintering
grounds to help guide conservation efforts. In Ohio: Cerulean warblers are considered to be area-sensitive; therefore, habitat fragmentation occurring on the breeding grounds is thought to be negatively affecting the population. Project partners will evaluate how arrival date, density, reproductive success, site fidelity, and condition of the warblers are related to forest management practices at multiple spatial scales. In Venezuela: Andean forests, the wintering grounds of cerulean warblers, are intensively logged and often converted to other uses. Shade-grown coffee plantations may serve as refugia for birds in highly deforested areas. Project partners will compare density, sex and age segregation, condition, and site fidelity of the warblers in primary forest and in shade-grown coffee plantations within the Venezuelan Andes. |
Latin American and Caribbean Projects
| ARGENTINA | |
| Project: Management
Plan for Migratory Bird Conservation, Mar Chiquita Ramsar Site. Location: Argentina. Grantee: Universidad Nacional De Cordoba. Contact: Enrique H. Bucher, [54] 351-433-2055, buchereh@uolsinectis.com.ar. Partners: . Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $45,860. Matching Funds: $141,470. Nonmatching Funds: $7,900. Ecoregion: . |
|
| ARGENTINA, BRAZIL, URUGUAY | |
| Project: Shorebird
Conservation and Rice Cultivation in Southern South America. Location: Brazil; Uruguay; and Argentina. Grantee: Wetlands International. Contact: Daniel Blanco, [54] 11-4-312-0932, dblanco@wamani.apc.org. Partners: . Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $20,932. Matching Funds: $63,250. Nonmatching Funds: None. Ecoregion: . |
|
| BAHAMAS | |
| Project: Tools
for Sustainability: Benefitting from All Dem Birds. Location: Bahamas. Grantee: Bahamas National Trust. Contact: Susan Larson and Lynn Gape, (242) 393-1317, slarson@bahamas.net.bs. Partners:. Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $99,550. Matching Funds: $294,005. Nonmatching Funds: None. Ecoregion: . |
|
| BRAZIL | |
| Project: Conservation
of Neotropical Migratory Birds in Brazil. Location: Brazil. Grantee: Conservation International. Contact: Dr. Jose Maria Cardoso Da Silva, (202) 912-1223, j.silva@conservation.org.br. Partners: . Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $100,000. Matching Funds: $957,426. Nonmatching Funds: None. Ecoregion: . |
|
| Project: Protecting
Migratory Shorebird Habitats in the Amazon Estuary and Coast. Location: Brazil. Grantee: The Nature Conservancy: Brazil Program. Contact: Dr. David Cleary, (55) 91-230-4953, Dcleary@tnc.org. Partners: . Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $100,000. Matching Funds: $655,000. Nonmatching Funds: None. Ecoregion: . |
|
| CARIBBEAN REGION | |
| Project: The
West Indian Whistling Duck and Wetlands Conservation Project. Location: Caribbean-wide Grantee: Society for the Conservation and Study of Caribbean Birds. Contact: Lisa G. Sorenson, Ph.d., (617) 353-2462, lsoren@bu.edu. Partners: . Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $100,000. Matching Funds: $777,010. Nonmatching Funds: $90,000. Ecoregion: All throughout the Caribbean. |
|
| COLOMBIA | |
| Project: Aves
Migratorias en la Laguna de Fuquene. Location: Colombia. Grantee: Fundacion Humedales (Colombia). Contact: Sr. German I. Andrade, [57] 1-616-4777, gandrade@aya.yale.edu. Partners: . Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $21,300. Matching Funds: $64,000. Nonmatching Funds: None. Ecoregion: . |
|
| Project: Conservacion
de Aves Migratorias en la Zona Cafetera de la Sierra Nevada de Santa
Marta. Location: Colombia. Grantee: Alianza Para Ecosistemas Criticos (ALPEC). Contact: Ralf Strewe, Ph.d., [57] 5-431-7571, ralf.strewe@t-online.de. Partners: . Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $33,727. Matching Funds: $103,282. Nonmatching Funds: None. Ecoregion: . |
|
| Project: Humedal
La Conejera. Location: Colombia. Grantee: Fundacion Humedal La Conejera. Contact: German Galindo Hernandez, [57] 1-688-0768, humedalconejera@sky.net.co. Partners: . Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $105,514. Matching Funds: $349,270. Nonmatching Funds: None. Ecoregion: . |
|
| Project: Silvopastoral
Systems as Habitats for Wintering Neotropical Migratory Passerines. Location: Colombia. Grantee: American Bird Conservancy. Contact: Drs. Robert Chipley and George C. Wallace, (540) 253-5780, Rchipley@abcbirds.org. Partners: . Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $41,108. Matching Funds: $124,820. Nonmatching Funds: None. Ecoregion: . |
|
| COLOMBIA, VENEZUELA | |
| Project: Providing
Safe Haven: Habitat Conservation for Migratory Birds in the Orinoco River
Basin. Location: Colombia and Venezuela. Grantee: The Nature Conservancy, Northern Southern America Operating Unit. Contact: Manuel Benjamin Vivas, (575) 664-7335, mbvivas@tnc.org. Partners: . Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $150,000. Matching Funds: $679,129. Nonmatching Funds: None. Ecoregion: . |
|
| COSTA RICA | |
| Project: Conservation
Project for Migratory Birds in Costa Rica. Location: Costa Rica. Grantee: Fundacion Conservacionista Costarricense. Contact: Debra Hamilton Derosier, (506) 645-6320, fccmonteverde@racsa.co.cr. Partners: . Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $55,128. Matching Funds: $167,510. Nonmatching Funds: None. Ecoregion: . |
|
| ECUADOR | |
| Project: Aves
Libres Project: Sharing the Beauty of Neotropical Birds. Location: Ecuador. Grantee: Fundacion De Proteccion Animal. Contact: Elizabeth F. Daut, DVM, 011-593-7-258-6821, fpa@loja.telconet.net. Partners: . Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $5,060. Matching Funds: $15,580. Nonmatching Funds: None. Ecoregion: . |
|
| Project: Protection
of Neotropical Migrants in Lowland Chaco Forest in Ecuador. Location: Ecuador. Grantee: Fundacion Jocotoco. Contact: Francisco Sornoza Molina, (593-2) 2432-240, fsornoza@pi.pro.ec. Partners: . Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $45,000. Matching Funds: $135,000. Nonmatching Funds: None. Ecoregion: . |
|
| GRENADA | |
| Project: Caribbean
Pride. Location: Grenada. Grantee: Rare Center for Tropical Conservation. Contact: Megan Hill, (703) 522-5070, mhill@rareconservation.org. Partners: . Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $75,000. Matching Funds: $753,190. Nonmatching Funds: $31,000. Ecoregion: . |
|
| MEXICO | |
| Project: Consolidation
of the National Program for Managing and Monitoring Bird Populations. Location: Chiapas, Colima, Durango, Jalisco, Michoacán, Morelos, Oaxaca, Tabasco, Veracruz, and Yucatan in Mexico. Grantee: Fundacion Manantlan Para La Biodiversidad De Occidente A.C. Contact: Dr. Eduardo Santana C., (52-317) 381-0015, esantana@megared.net.mx. Partners: Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $124,850. Matching Funds: $374,563. Nonmatching Funds: None. Ecoregion: . |
|
| Project: Management
Plan for Bird Conservation in Cacaxtla National Park. Location: State of Sinaloa, Mexico. Grantee: Pronatura Noroeste, A.C. Contact: Xicoténcatl Vega Picos, [011] (52) (667) 759-1653, xicovega@itesm.mx. Partners: Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $80,000. Matching Funds: $468,181. Nonmatching Funds: None. Ecoregion: . |
|
| Project: Protecting
Black-capped Vireo and Golden-cheeked Warbler. Location: Chihuahua, Coahuila, Nuevo Leon, San Luis Potosi, Tamaulipas in Mexico. Grantee: Universidad Autonoma De Nuevo Leon. Contact: Dr. Jose I. Gonzales Rojas, (81) 83 52 96 49, josgonza@fcb.uanl.mx. Partners:. Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $68,468. Matching Funds: $205,404. Nonmatching Funds: $16,000. Ecoregion: . |
|
| Project: Protection
and Restoration of Grassland Ecosystem in Northweastern Mexico. Location: Nuevo Leon, San Luis Potosi in Mexico. Grantee: Pronatura Noreste, A.C. Contact: Miguel Angel Cruz Nieto, (81) 8345-1059, mcruz@pronaturane.org. Partners: . Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $250,000. Matching Funds: $890,810. Nonmatching Funds: None. Ecoregion: . |
|
| Project: Proyecto
De Conservacion De Aves Migratorias En Calakmul. Location: Municipality of Calakmul, State of Campeche, Mexico. Grantee: Friends of Calakmul. Contact: Ximena De La Macorra, (650) 430-4089, xmacorra@avantel.net. Partners: . Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $101,000. Matching Funds: $303,000. Nonmatching Funds: None. Ecoregion: . |
|
| Project: Western
North American Migratory Landbird Project: Wintering Habitats in Mexico. Location: State of Sonora, Mexico. Grantee: Sonoran Joint Venture. Contact: Robert Mesta, (520) 882-0047, Robert_Mesta@fws.gov. Partners: None. Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $100,000. Matching Funds: $339,350. Nonmatching Funds: $52,500. Ecoregion: . |
|
| NEOTROPICAL REGION | |
| Project: Advancing
a Rangewide Approach to Waterbird Conservation. Location: Neotropics-wide. Grantee: Birdlife International Americas Division. Contact: Ian Davidson, 593-2-2-453645, ian.davidson@birdlife.org.ec. Partners: . Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $200,000. Matching Funds: $699,270. Nonmatching Funds: None. Ecoregion: All throughout United States, Latin America, and the Caribbean. |
|
| PANAMA | |
| Project: Panama:
Partnerships for Mig Bird Cons in the Canal Area. Location: Panama. Grantee: Panamanian Center for Research and Social Action (CEASPA). Contact: Charlotte Elton, (507) 226-6602, coord.@sanlorenzo.org.pa. Partners: . Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $53,133. Matching Funds: $475,590. Nonmatching Funds: None. Ecoregion: . |
|
| PERU | |
| Project: Freshwater
Wetland Habitat, Pacific Coastal Lowlands of Peru. Location: Peru. Grantee: Naymlap Proyecto 2000. Contact: Heinze Plenge, [51] 74-452-299, chaparri@terra.com.pe. Partners: . Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $66,600. Matching Funds: $200,064. Nonmatching Funds: None. Ecoregion: . |
|
| Project: Reforestacion
En El Humedal De Wakarpay. Location: Peru. Grantee: Fundacion Natura. Contact: Francesc Giro, 00 34 93 237 38 02, info@fundacionatura.org. Partners: . Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $16,740. Matching Funds: $50,260. Nonmatching Funds: None. Ecoregion: . |
|
| VENEZUELA | |
| Project: Neotropical
Migratory Birds and Mangrove Restoration. Location: Venezuela. Grantee: PROVITA. Contact: Dr. Jon Paul Rodriguez, (58-212) 794-2234, presidencia@provitaonline.org. Partners:. Funding Approved: May 2004. Grant: $100,320. Matching Funds: $301,400. Nonmatching Funds: None. Ecoregion: . |
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/birdhabitat/Grants/NMBCA/2004.shtm was last updated 10/20/09 11:12:09
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