abstracts of oral and poster presentations - Pacific Seabird Group

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Lake National Wildlife Refuges during 2002–2003. Pre-winter sampling occurred during early October; postwinter sampling occurred during early March. SAV biomass ranged from 294 to 620 kg/ha. Over-winter depletion of roots and tubers ranged from 0 to 66% and was positively correlated with pre-winter biomass. We used energetic modeling with estimates of metabolizable energy of SAV to estimate carrying capacity of this habitat for waterfowl. BEACHED-BIRD SURVEYS WITHIN THE WADDEN SEA TRILATERAL MONITORING AND ASSESSMENT PROGRAM (TMAP) David M. Fleet (fleet@nationalparkamt.de); Schleswig–Holstein Wadden Sea National Park Authority, Toenning GERMANY, and Common Wadden Sea Secretariat (CWSS), Wilhelmshaven GERMANY Beached-bird surveys have been carried out on southern North Sea coasts since the 1970s in The Netherlands and since the mid 1980s in Germany and Denmark. The TMAP, which was established in 1994, is carried out in the framework of the Trilateral Cooperation on the Protection of the Wadden Sea, which includes Denmark, Germany, and The Netherlands. Its objective is an integrated monitoring and assessment of the Wadden Sea ecosystem. Beached-bird surveys use trilateral standardized procedures and are assessed and evaluated as part of the TMAP. The results are published at regular intervals in Wadden Sea Quality Status Reports by the CWSS. The results of the surveys within the Wadden Sea and adjoining regions show steady declines in pollution levels since the mid 1980s. Oil rates-the proportion of beached birds that are oiled-of especially pelagic and offshore species are, however, still high on southern North Sea coasts. An Ecological Quality Objective (EcoQO) “proportion of oiled Common Guillemots Uria aalge among those found dead or dying on beaches” is being developed within the OSPAR Convention on the Protection of the Marine Environment of the North East Atlantic. Present oil rates for this species in the southern North Sea are still much higher than the proposed 10% of the EcQO. USING LONG-TERM BEACH MONITORING DATA IN OIL-SPILL DAMAGE ASSESSMENTS R. Glenn Ford (eci@teleport.com); R.G. Ford Consulting, Portland, OR USA An important rationale for beached-bird monitoring programs is that they provide data that are useful in assessing oil-spill damages to seabirds. The primary use of these data so far has been to help measure the extent to which normal or ambient deposition is elevated by an oil-spill incident. Ideally, these monitoring data can be used to establish a baseline of natural carcass deposition. The rate of baseline deposition is subtracted from the deposition rate observed during a spill response, and the difference is assumed to be a measure of the effect of the oil spill. But monitoring data are generally collected using protocols that result in much higher estimates of the deposition rate than protocols used during a spill response. This results from several factors, the most important of which is the interval between searches. If interpreted incorrectly, the monitoring data can suggest that the effect of the oil spill was minimal or that the spill in fact decreased the ambient deposition rate. The usefulness of beach monitoring data in oil-spill damage assessment could be increased by making the search protocols of monitoring programs and oil-spill response agencies more directly comparable. BYCATCH OF WATERBIRDS IN MID-ATLANTIC COASTAL ANCHORED GILLNETS ESTIMATED FROM BEACHED-BIRD SURVEYS Doug Forsell (doug_forsell@fws.gov); USFWS, Chesapeake Bay Field Office, Annapolis, MD USA The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service conducted a study of bird mortality in anchored gillnets in the nearshore ocean waters from New Jersey through Virginia during the spring of 1998. Beached-bird surveys and live-bird counts were important components of the study. Beached-bird surveys were conducted repeatedly from vehicles at 20 locations along the 565-km shoreline. Two hundred and ten (210) dead diving birds were found on 1,732 km of surveyed beach. Approximately ten times more dead birds were found on beaches within 2 km of gillnets than on beaches without nets. A minimal mortality estimate based on the beached-bird surveys is 1,265 diving birds/season. Ninety-two percent of 27 marked Red-throated Loons remained on the beaches less than 24 hours or one tidal cycle. Beached-bird surveys on beaches with steep banks may underestimate the mortality of medium-sized birds in areas with numerous large scavenging gulls. Experienced observers can also count gulls and shorebirds on beaches and count the birds in the near shore waters to 400 m providing additional
indexes to bird numbers. Birds were counted to 400 m offshore on 590 km of shore with nets deployed within 1 km and on 953 km of shore with no nets deployed. For all diving birds, birds/km were counted in waters without nets and 4.6 birds/km were counted in areas with nets. DISTRIBUTION AND ABUNDANCE OF WINTERING WATERBIRDS IN MID-ATLANTIC WATERS TO 12 NAUTICAL MILES OFFSHORE: CONSERVATION AND MONITORING IMPLICATIONS Doug Forsell 1 (doug_forsell@fws.gov) and Mark D. Koneff 2 ; 1 USFWS, Chesapeake Bay Field Office, Annapolis MD USA; 2 USFWS, Division of Migratory Bird Management, Owings, MD USA We have only a limited knowledge of bird distribution and abundance beyond 500 m from shore in most mid-Atlantic waters. Marine birds face numerous hazards, including gillnet fisheries, oil spills, and overfishing of forage fishes. A relatively new impact on marine-bird habitats is sand mining for beach replacement. Due to large variability in bird usage of shoals and our limited understanding of their ecological linkages, we are unable to predict the impacts of sand mining. Another possible new impact is the proposed construction of thousands of large wind turbines in over thirty sites on continental shelf waters of the northeastern US. The winter distribution of most marine birds is strongly linked to their food resources. By understanding the feeding ecology of birds and the abundance of their food resources, we can identify critical offshore habitats. We suspect that large spring concentrations of scoters may be feeding on eggs or larvae of fish, such as menhaden, in preparation for migration. We recently completed winter aerial surveys in waters to 12 mi offshore from Virginia through northern New Jersey. Black Scoters, Surf Scoters, Northern Gannets, Common Loons, Redthroated Loons, and large gulls were the most abundant wintering birds. All bird groups were found to be more abundant over shoal waters than non-shoal waters. LACK OF PROTECTION FOR MIGRATORY MARINE BIRDS FROM THE EFFECTS OF OFFSHORE OIL AND GAS ACTIVITIES ON THE GRAND BANKS, NEWFOUNDLAND G. S. Fraser 1 (gsfraser@yorku.ca), J. R. Russell 2 , and W. von Zharen 3 ; 1 Faculty of Environmental Studies, York University, Toronto, ON CANADA; 2 Alder Institute, Tors Cove, NF CANADA; 3 Department of Marine Sciences, Texas A&M University, Galveston, TX USA Migratory species defy national boundaries and require international efforts for their protection. Because protection of migratory species requires international collaboration, it is important that nations sign and integrate the precepts of treaties designed to protect these species. We examine Canada’s role in protecting migratory marine birds on the Grand Banks, Newfoundland. Specifically, we outline how migratory birds are placed at risk from offshore oil and gas activities, briefly discuss the treaties in place to protect them, and outline recommendations to assist Canada in adopting more effective stewardship of migratory birds and stronger leadership in setting the standard for international cooperation. ARE FLIGHT-LINE COUNTS USEFUL FOR ESTIMATING NUMBERS OF NESTING WADING BIRDS A FIELD TEST Peter C. Frederick 1 (pcf@mail.ifas.ufl.edu), Ann F. Paul 2 , Richard T. Paul 2 , and Bruce B. Ackerman 2 ; 1 Dept. of Wildlife Ecology and Conservation, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL USA; 2 Audubon of Florida, Tampa, FL USA Resource managers need a rapid, non-invasive technique to census wading bird colonies. Direct counts are preferred but often are problematic, due to visibility bias, errors in nest identification, high manpower investment, and unacceptable disturbance effects. An alternative is to estimate colony size from the rates of birds arriving and departing the colony from observation points outside the colony (flight-line method). We measured flight rates of Great Egrets at five colonies in Florida where we could also obtain accurate counts of nests. We found a slightly positive, nonsignificant correlation between numbers of nesting Great Egrets and flight rate (r 2 = 0.055, n = 20 days). However, using only the data from the two colonies in Tampa Bay, a highly significant correlation was found (r 2 = 0.903). At the most synchronous colony (Seahorse Key), we found large effects of year, time of day, date, and nesting stage on flight rate. The flight-line method provides reliable information on species composition and nesting phenology. The level of accuracy in estimating numbers of nests may vary by location, year, stage of nesting, and time of day. Utility of this technique is probably greatest
Page 1 and 2: ABSTRACTS OF ORAL AND POSTER PRESEN
Page 3 and 4: different for any year (P > 0.25 fo
Page 5 and 6: of Oil Spill Prevention and Respons
Page 7 and 8: 15 (80%) nests for which we were ab
Page 9 and 10: POWER TO DETECT TRENDS IN MARBLED M
Page 11 and 12: although this was rare (3%). Using
Page 13 and 14: WING SHAPE AS CORRELATED WITH FLIGH
Page 15 and 16: local population trends with relati
Page 17 and 18: varies greatly with distance from s
Page 19 and 20: was low (29% on average), and only
Page 21 and 22: Twitter and Chick Peers), plus one
Page 23 and 24: wetlands to the Ramsar Convention o
Page 25 and 26: POTENTIAL USE OF LIDAR DATA IN SHOR
Page 27: chick in each brood as soon as it w
Page 31 and 32: eradications from islands to facili
Page 33 and 34: analyses. Stable-isotope analyses a
Page 35 and 36: BREEDING-SEASON SPATIAL REQUIREMENT
Page 37 and 38: VARIABLE PREY ABUNDANCE AND ADJUSTM
Page 39 and 40: eached-bird data tend to be the foc
Page 41 and 42: FISHERIES, SEABIRDS AND OCEANOGRAPH
Page 43 and 44: for only 4% of the total adult fema
Page 45 and 46: IS THERE A BIMODAL FORAGING PATTERN
Page 47 and 48: México is federally protected; how
Page 49 and 50: (e.g., marine vs. freshwater) from
Page 51 and 52: significant exponential growth in b
Page 53 and 54: CLAM PREDATION AND FORAGING BEHAVIO
Page 55 and 56: Cormorants (Phalacrocorax auritus)
Page 57 and 58: chick-rearing constraints occur. Af
Page 59 and 60: archipelagos that had stunted or we
Page 61 and 62: trophic level were found between ma
Page 63 and 64: contain lower or higher levels of p
Page 65 and 66: at banding (proxies for hatching da
Page 67 and 68: CHARACTERIZING THE EFFECTS OF CURRE
Page 69 and 70: winter, lower ice concentrations we
Page 71 and 72: iomagnification cannot be argued to
Page 73 and 74: TYPE E BOTULISM-CAUSED WATERBIRD MO
Page 75 and 76: flight patterns of individual birds
Page 77 and 78: RICE DEPLETION BY WINTERING WATERFO
Page 79 and 80:
the years 1990, 1993-1997, and 2004
Page 81 and 82:
JAPAN; 3 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Ser
Page 83 and 84:
egarding illegal discharges of harm
Page 85 and 86:
that gulls and Common Mergansers we
Page 87 and 88:
California (42 km west of San Franc
Page 89 and 90:
corticosterone level. We related th
Page 91 and 92:
anging Thick-billed Murres, Common
Page 93 and 94:
is only “coastal” where coastli
Page 95 and 96:
inexperienced observers. Observers
Page 97 and 98:
POPULATION DYNAMICS OF COMMON MURRE
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