External Affairs
They're back!First pair of endangered songbirds to nest in Central Valley in 60 years returns to San Joaquin River National Wildlife Refuge |
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July 26, 2006They've hatched! See first photos. Draft recovery plan for species Listen to least Bell's vireo's song 
Habitat restoration transformed farmland, seen in March 2002 above, into a dense riverside forest in April 2005, below. 
Photos by River Partners |
For high-resolution version of the above photo (2.17 MB)
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Al Donner 916/414-6566 916/712-2004 (cell) Jim Nickles 916/414-6572 Like last year, they build nest in 4-year-old restored habitat Last year, two least Bell's vireos became the first pair of that endangered songbird to nest in the Central Valley in more than 60 years. Biologists were delighted, but wondered if it was just a one-year occurrence. Now, to the glee of biologists at the San Joaquin River National Wildlife Refuge (NWR), the birds are back, underscoring the success of a riparian, or riverside, habitat restoration project begun just four year ago. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service biologists confirmed this week that the pair has returned, built a nest and are caring for four eggs. The male was confirmed as the same bird as last year by a leg band. The new nest is near the 2005 nest site in a 3-year-old arroyo willow. In 2005, the pair nested in a 3-year-old tree of the same species. Least Bell's vireos exhibit high faithfulness toward breeding sites. Their return signals early success in a remarkably rapid restoration of riparian habitat once common in the Central Valley. In 2002 it was open, plowed land that had been planted in row crops for years. Willow and cottonwood cuttings were planted that year, along with native shrubs and grasses. They flourished in the rich riverside soil. Most of the young trees already reach over 15 feet in height, with some reaching 30 to 40 feet. And the dense underbrush has turned into a habitat for numerous native bird and animal species. Biologists were uncertain whether the vireos would return this year because the nest site flooded late this spring and remained under 3 to 8 feet of water through June. Nesting in mid-July is very late for songbirds in the Central Valley. In 2005 they nested in early June. The 7,000-acre San Joaquin River NWR - the newest component of the San Luis National Wildlife Refuge Complex - lies along the San Joaquin River about 10 miles west of Modesto and about 60 miles south of Sacramento. The refuge played a key role in the recovery and ultimate de-listing of the Aleutian cackling goose, and is now becoming a haven for the endangered riparian brush rabbit. The least Bell's vireo has a very distinctive song, making it a favorite of bird watchers. It once was common in the Central Valley from Red Bluff to Bakersfield, and southward as far as Baja California, Mexico. But with the disappearance of 90 percent of the Central Valley's dense riparian forests, the birds have been absent from the region since the 1940s. The last time least Bell's vireo breeding was confirmed in the Valley was 1919. Exhaustive searches for the bird in the 1970s and 1980s also came up empty-handed, and biologists sadly concluded that the bird no longer nested in the valley. Until last year, the only known breeding sites were in Southern California, including San Diego, Riverside and Ventura counties, and in Baja California. Kim Forrest, manager of the San Luis Complex, said the Fish and Wildlife Service had lots of help in bringing the least Bell's vireo back to the Central Valley. "This success is the outcome of a broad partnership involving at least nine different organizations," Forrest said. "The CALFED Bay-Delta Program spawned the effort in 1998 when it provided key funds to purchase an 800-acre farm owned by the late Ed Hagemann. Many other agencies also contributed, among them the Natural Resources Conservation Service, the California Resources Agency, the Army Corps of Engineers, and the Audubon Society." Four years ago, CALFED provided funds to restore the 164-acre section along the San Joaquin River where the least Bell's vireo now has nested. Over 1,000 acres of new riparian habitat has been planted on the San Joaquin River NWR - the largest effort in California resulting in one of the Valley's largest contiguous blocks of riparian woodland. Over 250,000 native trees and plants have been established as part of this effort. Forrest said biologists are conducting surveys to see if any additional birds turn up. "We are hoping to find more," she said. "We are doing more thorough surveys even than last year looking for more birds." The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is the principal Federal agency responsible for conserving, protecting and enhancing fish, wildlife and plants and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. The Service manages the 95-million-acre National Wildlife Refuge System which encompasses 544 national wildlife refuges, thousands of small wetlands and other special management areas. It also operates 69 national fish hatcheries, 63 fishery resource offices and 81 ecological services field stations. The agency enforces Federal wildlife laws, administers the Endangered Species Act, manages migratory bird populations, restores nationally significant fisheries, conserves and restores wildlife habitat such as wetlands, and helps foreign governments with their conservation efforts. It also oversees the Federal Aid program that distributes hundreds of millions of dollars in excise taxes on fishing and hunting equipment to State fish and wildlife agencies. |
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