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WOS 2010 ~ ABSTRACTS p. 12
condition influence a migrating bird’s competency and susceptibility for several zoonotic diseases, including WNV,
eastern equine encephalitis, and avian influenza. Energetic condition is an important factor in a bird’s response to a
viral infection and subsequent antibody response, but not always in the direction predicted and is likely pathogen
specific. Given birds are the likely dispersal agent for a variety of pathogens that infect other animals, both wild and
domestic, and humans, it is essential to understand how fluctuations in their energetic condition, particularly during
migration, affect their competence as a reservoir and their susceptibility to disease.
Symposium 2: The Effects of Energy Development on Birds
S07 Can natural habitats survive the energy revolution Nels Johnson, The Nature Conservancy, Pennsylvania
Chapter, Harrisburg, PA 17110
The Nature Conservancy believes that development of new energy sources in the Northeast has the potential to
cause significant negative environmental impacts—namely habitat fragmentation and reduced water flow and
quality—unless practical planning, siting guidelines and incentives are proactively put in place. The Conservancy,
with technical support from the Pennsylvania Audubon Society and Western Pennsylvania Conservancy, is
conducting an intensive 6 month program to analyze how the newest forms of energy development—Marcellus
Shale natural gas, woody biomass, and wind and associated transmission infrastructure—might impact valuable
conservation habitats across the state of Pennsylvania. Existing energy facilities and associated development are
being plotted, the scale and location of future energy development is being projected, and overlaid with data on
sensitive habitat areas and species. Upon completion, the results will be shared with state and federal agencies,
energy developers, conservation groups, and local governments to shape strategies that that can be used to avoid,
minimize, or mitigate energy impacts on high priority conservation areas.
S08 Avian responses to gas well development in West Virginia. Gregory A. George and James Sheehan, WV
Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, West Virginia Univ., Morgantown, WV 26506, Petra Bohall Wood,
U.S. Geological Survey, WV Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, West Virginia Univ., Morgantown, WV
26506, and Harry Edenborn, National Energy Technology Laboratory, U.S. Dept. Energy, Pittsburgh, PA 15236
Natural gas deposits across the central Appalachians are a valuable commodity due to increased energy demands
and advancements in technology. The forests of the central Appalachians also are key areas for conservation of
avian populations. Drilling activities on our study area occur primarily in stream valleys and on ridges, and result in
heavy equipment disturbance when building well pads, ponds, and access roads within the forest-dominated habitat
matrix. To quantify the effects on breeding birds, we conducted songbird point counts (n = 142) during the 2008-09
breeding seasons on ridges and streams on a study area of ~3,400 hectares in Wetzel County, West Virginia. We
compared avian species abundance and richness between points in undisturbed forest and points in forest impacted
by roads, clearings, and forestry activity. At the current level of habitat disturbance, we identified few negative
effects on forest-interior species and found an increase in species richness and habitat available for earlysuccessional
species. In 2009, we also investigated nest success and territory density of a riparian obligate
bioindicator, the Louisiana Waterthrush. Based on visual assessment and a habitat suitability index, we found that of
40.7 km of stream reaches surveyed across 15 1st and 2nd order streams, 7.5 km (18%) were impacted by drilling
activities. Louisiana Waterthrush used both impacted and unimpacted riparian habitat for territories (n=70) and nest
sites (n = 42). Nesting success was not significantly different in impacted (54.4%) and unimpacted (66.5%) habitat.
Territories that included impacted habitat were significantly longer (550m) than those in unimpacted habitat (406
m). These data provide a valuable baseline for considering long-term avian response within this changing landscape.
S09 Energy Development and Fragmentation Effects. Kim Van Fleet, Important Bird Area Coordinator, Audubon
Pennsylvania
The habitats upon which many birds and other wildlife depend are currently under siege by rapid pace energy
development like industrial scale wind, Marcellus shale gas extraction and associated infrastructures in
Pennsylvania. This “energy sprawl” is occurring with little regard for the direct and more insidious indirect effects
of habitat fragmentation and loss especially along forested ridges and within large tracts of interior forest. In
addition no attention has been directed towards the cumulative impacts of project after project on terrestrial
communities and ecosystems across a wider geographic range. Many interior forest bird species particularly
sensitive to habitat disturbance and edge effect and dependent on contiguous tracts of healthy forest for their
reproductive success will be most likely be the greatest losers. The concerns are multi-fold as the clearing of forests
for industrial scale wind and Marcellus shale continue to increase across the forests of Pennsylvania. There is an
urgent need for more science based research and actions that focus on individual projects and the long term
cumulative impacts on these forest communities.