March/April 2009

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Decline of Bird Species Signals a Warning
(WASHINGTON, D.C. – March 19, 2009) Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar recently announced the release of the first ever U.S. State of the Birds report. Based on a new analysis of 40 years of data, the report was developed by a partnership among the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Geological Survey, state government wildlife agencies and non-governmental organizations. The report documents the decline of bird populations in many habitats due to habitat loss, invasive species and other factors. At the same time, it provides heartening examples of how sustained habitat conservation and other environmental efforts can reverse the decline of many bird species.

“Our collective ability to prevent extinction and reverse environmental degradation are reflected in this report, exemplified by the remarkable recovery of waterfowl populations across the continent and the comeback of species that were once endangered, including the bald eagle and peregrine falcon,” said Secretary Salazar. “This shows that we can meet these challenges and maintain the integrity of our nation’s natural resources.”

“The issue of declining bird populations is not just pressing for bird biologists and conservationists – nearly 50 million Americans are bird-watchers, and each year more than 45 billion dollars are expended on some form of wildlife watching,” Salazar added. “Americans love wild birds and are willing to spend their hard-earned dollars to see them in the field. This report provides actionable information that will help us secure a future for birds, and a future for the next generation of wild-bird lovers.”

The U.S. State of the Birds report synthesizes data from three long-running bird censuses conducted by thousands of citizen scientists and professional biologists. The report calls attention to the crisis in Hawaii, where more birds are in danger of extinction than anywhere else in the United States. In addition, the report documents a 40 percent decline in grassland birds over the past 40 years, a 30 percent decline in birds of arid-lands, and high concern for many coastal shorebirds. In addition, 39 percent of species dependent on U.S. oceans have declined.

However, the report also reveals convincing evidence that birds can respond quickly and positively to conservation action. The data shows dramatic increases in many wetland birds, a testament to numerous cooperative conservation efforts that have resulted in protection, enhancement and management of more than 30 million wetland acres.

“These results emphasize that investment in wetlands conservation has paid huge dividends,” said Kenneth Rosenberg, director of Conservation Science at the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. “Now we need to invest similarly in other neglected habitats where birds are undergoing the steepest declines.”

“Habitats such as those in Hawaii are on the verge of losing entire suites of unique bird species,” said Dr. David Pashley, American Bird Conservancy’s Vice President for Conservation Programs. “In addition to habitat loss, birds also face many other man-made threats such as pesticides, predation by cats, and collisions with windows, towers and buildings. By solving these challenges we can preserve a growing economic engine – the popular pastime of birdwatching that involves millions of Americans – and improve our quality of life.”

“While some bird species are holding their own, many once common species are declining sharply in population. Habitat availability and quality is the key to healthy, thriving bird populations,” said Dave Mehlman of The Nature Conservancy.

Surveys conducted by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and U.S. Geological Survey, including the annual Breeding Bird Survey, combined with data gathered through volunteer citizen science program such as the National Audubon Society’s Christmas Bird Count, show once abundant birds such as the northern bobwhite and marbled murrelet are declining significantly. And the possibility of extinction also remains a cold reality for many endangered birds.

“Citizen science plays a critical role in monitoring and understanding the threats to these birds and their habitats, and only citizen involvement can help address them,” said National Audubon Society’s Bird Conservation Director, Greg Butcher. “Conservation action can only make a real difference when concerned people support the kind of vital habitat restoration and protection measures this report explores.”

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service coordinated creation of the new report as part of the U.S. North American Bird Conservation Initiative, which includes partners from American Bird Conservancy, the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Klamath Bird Observatory, National Audubon Society, The Nature Conservancy and the U.S. Geological Survey.

View the report online here.

Despite Record Population Lead Contamination Still Hindering California Condor’s Recovery
By Steve Holmer, American Bird Conservancy

(Washington, D.C., March 3, 2009) The California Condor has reached a significant milestone: for the first time in more than 20 years, there are now more birds flying free in the wild than there are in captivity. California Condors dwindled to a low of only 22 individuals in 1982, at which point birds were taken into captivity as part of a recovery program. The program has been a great success, with the condor population now flying high at 332. Nine chicks fledged in the wild in 2008, and there are now 87 birds in the wild in California, 68 in Arizona, and 19 in Baja California, Mexico.

“The public perception is that condors have recovered, but the reality is that without constant intervention, many of the birds would die of lead poisoning from bullet fragments in their food, and chicks would succumb to starvation due to trash accumulated in their guts,” said Dr. Michael Fry, American Bird Conservancy’s Director of Conservation Advocacy. “Several emergency surgeries have been needed to remove bottle caps, glass fragments, and other objects from the stomachs of condors, and many birds have had to be caught and treated for lead exposure.”

The American Ornithologists’ Union recently asked six experts, including Dr. Fry, to review the condor program and make recommendations for continuing the recovery. Their report confirms the absolute necessity of eliminating the sources of lead that are poisoning condors, primarily lead fragments from hunting bullets. This presents a critical problem, because condors are scavengers and they often supplement their diet with carcasses left behind by hunters.

California recently required the use of non-toxic bullets within the condor’s range. Arizona has been providing lead-free ammunition to hunters for two years, and a similar program is now underway in the Zion region of Utah, but better communication with hunters is needed, including education on the lead exposure problem. A recent study found that California’s ban was being complied with by 99% of hunters, and that the voluntary measures in Arizona had a 90% compliance rate.

“Two condors died of lead poisoning in California in 2008,” said Dr. Fry. “Unfortunately, there will continue to be lead ammunition deaths due to non-compliance. The best enforcement tool will be a statewide requirement for non-toxic ammo.”

The California Fish and Game Department has created a website to educate and provide resources for hunters. The state has now certified 17 ammunition manufacturers of non-lead ammunition.

The panel recommended that each release program continue supplemental feeding of condors until the lead issue is resolved. The feeding program allows biologists to trap and monitor the birds frequently and treat for lead exposure when birds are poisoned. The feeding and monitoring aspects of the program are very expensive and time consuming, and are preventing the program from releasing additional birds into the wild.

The panel also noted that condors in California have begun to frequently feed on carcasses of marine mammals along the Big Sur coast, and recommended that a contaminants monitoring program be initiated to ensure that the condors are not being poisoned by this new food source. Despite the problems, the panel was confident that once lead exposure has been greatly reduced, the condor populations in several states have the potential to become self-sustainable. Read the AOU report here.

Yellow-billed Cuckoo Working Group formed
The Yellow-billed Cuckoo Working Group was recently formed in an effort to coordinate research efforts and develop a conservation plan to guide the management of the western Yellow-billed Cuckoo and its habitat. The current breeding range of this distinct population of cuckoo includes California, Arizona, and New Mexico, although historically they also bred in Washington, Oregon, Nevada, Idaho, Utah, Wyoming, Colorado, and west Texas. The western Yellow-billed Cuckoo is a candidate for listing under the Endangered Species Act due to range reduction and habitat loss.

A group is currently developing a conservation plan for the Yellow-billed Cuckoo and invites participation from other federal, state, academic, or non-governmental organizations within the current or historic range of the species. Participation may include subscribing to our email list, attending on-going meetings (in person or by telephone), writing portions of the plan, submitting information to be used in the plan, or reviewing the document and submitting comments.

For more information contact Rick Kuyper at USFWS Conservation Partnerships Division, Sacramento Field Office, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 2800 Cottage Way, Room W-2605, Sacramento, CA 95825, phone: (916) 414-6562.

2008 Birds of Conservation Concern published
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Division of Migratory Bird Management recently announced the availability of its publication,
Birds of Conservation Concern 2008. This publication identifies species, subspecies, and populations of migratory and nonmigratory birds in need of additional conservation actions. It is designed to stimulate coordinated and collaborative proactive conservation actions among Federal, State, tribal, and private partners. The species that appear in Birds of Conservation Concern 2008 are deemed to be the highest priority for conservation actions.

ASWM Stimulus Bill implementation website
The Association of State Wetland Managers (ASWM) has put together a listing of funding opportunities coming out of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act that may be of interest to SJV partners. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Stimulus Bill) includes funding for green infrastructure and wetlands and river restoration. ASWM has established a new website where they are collecting information on the stimulus funding that can be used to conserve, manage and protect wetlands and other water resources. Currently the web page includes information about funding available through EPA, Corps, NOAA, FHA and NRCS. In the coming months many federal agencies will be awarding contracts or taking on temporary employees to address the increased workload. Vist the website by clicking here.

Upcoming grant deadlines
We have recently added information about a number of new funding opportunities for those doing work in the SJV region. Please take the time to browse through the complete list of funding opportunities.

• Acres for America
  Deadline: 1 April 2009 (preproposal); 1 June 2009 (full proposal)
  Description: Acres for America is a partnership between Wal-Mart Stores, Inc. and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. The Acres for America program was established to provide funding for projects that conserve important habitat for fish, wildlife, and plants through acquisition of interest in real property. The goal of the Acres for America program is to offset the footprint of Wal-Mart's domestic facilities on at least an acre by acre basis through these acquisitions.
• TogetherGreen Conservation Leadership Fellowships
  Deadline: 15 April 2009
  Description: The Conservation Leadership program seeks to recognize and nurture individuals from across the country who is contributing to environmental conservation and restoration. Each year 40 promising and proven leaders will receive professional development opportunities, a $10,000 grant to help support an innovative Conservation Action Project, and an opportunity to network with a cadre of committed leaders.
• TogetherGreen Innovation Grants
  Deadline: 1 May 2009
  Description: The TogetherGreen Innovation Grants Program supports creative and ambitious projects that engage diverse communities and find innovative solutions to environmental challenges. Each year, TogetherGreen grants fund projects that (1) Conserve or restore habitat and protect species, improve water quality or quantity, and reduce the threat of global warming; (2) engage new and diverse audiences in conservation actions; and (3) Inspire and use innovative approaches and technologies to engage people and achieve conservation results. Innovation Grants awards go to organizations in the Audubon network, working with partners in their communities, who have the passion, commitment, and vision to move people to take action and achieve lasting conservation results.
• Fund for Wild Nature
  Deadline: 1 May 2009; 1 November 2009
  Description: The Fund for Wild Nature provides money for campaigns to save and restore native species and wild ecosystems, including actions to defend wilderness and biological diversity. The fund supports advocacy, litigation, public policy work, development of citizen science, and similar endeavors. The fund does not support basic scientific research, private land acquisition, individual action or study, or conferences, and rarely supports proposals from organizations with annual budgets greater than $250,000. The fund will only support media projects that have a clear strategic value and a concrete plan for dissemination of the final product. The fund gives special attention to ecological issues not currently receiving sufficient public attention and funding. The fund seeks proposals with visionary and yet realistic goals to create tangible change. All proposals must be highly cost effective and be for projects in the United States, Canada, or Mexico.
• Enhancing Ecosystem Services From Agricultural Lands: Management, Quantification, And Developing Decision Support Tools
  Deadline: 26 May 2009
  Description: The U. S. Department of Agriculture, as part of its Agricultural and Food Research Initiative (AFRI) Competitive Grants Program and the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, as part of its Science to Achieve Results (STAR) program, are seeking applications proposing research on the ecosystem services provided by agricultural lands.
• Multi-Species Conservation Program, American Recovery and Reinvestment Act Funding Announcement
  Deadline: 30 May 2009
  Description: With recent enactment of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (Recovery Act), the Bureau of Reclamation, Lower Colorado Region (Reclamation), is requesting applications for RECOVERY ACT Funding for implementation of the Lower Colorado River Multi-Species Conservation Program (LCR MSCP). The LCR MSCP is a multi-stakeholder, Federal and non-Federal partnership which balances the use of the Colorado River water resources with the conservation of native species and their habitats in compliance with the Endangered Species Act. Funding will be available to fund LCR MSCP projects to complete conservation measures described in the Habitat Conservation Plan. Each project will be awarded based on the LCR MSCP program priorities, Recovery Act priorities, and cost effectiveness. Project completion shall be commensurate with the tasks being proposed. Applications may be taken for species and habitat research requirements, ecosystem monitoring protocol design, habitat creation design and implementation, and native fish augmentation projects. All projects must enable the LCR MSCP to complete conservation measures.

Upcoming meetings and workshops
See complete details about upcoming meetings and workshops.

Marshbird Monitoring Training Workshop: 1-3 April 2009, Yuma, Arizona. Contact: Courtney Conway.

Wilson Ornithological Society/Association of Field Ornithologists Annual Meeting: 8-12 April 2009, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Cooper Ornithological Society Annual Meeting: 16-18 April 2009, Tucson, Arizona.