Reddish Egret (Egretta rufescens) Conservation Action Plan

Reddish Egret (Egretta rufescens)
Conservation Action Plan
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Reddish Egret Conservation Action Plan serves as a guide for conserving the Reddish Egret as
a species throughout its range, proposing processes to identify focal colony sites and foraging areas,
defined as the locations that should be priorities for collective conservation effort. This plan also
provides the context to support management action for locally important locations.
THE OVERARCHING CONSERVATION STRATEGIES CALLED
FOR IN THE PLAN ARE:
• Actively manage factors directly affecting Reddish Egret
populations
• Ensure that long-term stewardship and management of
habitat is effectively implemented in focal colony sites and
foraging areas
• Develop and implement long-term monitoring of populations
to support better decision-making at all scales
• Identify mechanisms for implementing and sustaining
protected status for focal areas
Reddish Egret Working Group and
Conservation Planning
The Reddish Egret Working Group first met
in October 2005 to discuss the status of reddish
egret populations in Texas, Mexico, and
Florida. From there, it was decided a status
assessment was necessary as the majority of
information was at least a decade old (Paul
1991). The Status Assessment was completed
in 2006 (Green 2006) and formed the basis
for the guidance from the working group.
To create the Conservation Action
Plan, the Reddish Egret Working Group
used the “Open Standards Approach for
Conservation Measures” framework, which
involved creating a range-wide conceptual
conservation model for this species that
highlights and ranks the greatest threats
to maintaining population stability and
expanding the population, explores the
underlying causes of those threats, and
identifies strategies to address them.
After setting goals for selected
conservation targets, the next step was to
use the conceptual model to determine
the key strategies to reduce the threats
to the Reddish Egret and its habitats that
serve as obstacles to achieving these goals.
Selection of overarching conservation
strategies allowed the working group to
begin to develop a comprehensive plan of
activities to address the most significant
aspects of the conservation problem.
Activities work together to reduce threats,
increase population viability, increase
conservation capacities (capacity-building)
and capitalize on opportunities.
Although this plan lists activities to
address threats and proposes specific
objectives to measure progress, this plan
is not a business strategy—yet. Next steps
include further articulating activities,
formulating objectives to measure success
of all activities, assessing capacity and
risk, and making this plan operational.
It should be viewed as a milestone in an
ongoing and evolving campaign by the
Reddish Egret Working Group to restore
and maintain viable Reddish Egret
populations throughout the species’ range.
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Species Description
The Reddish Egret is the rarest and least
known of the egrets and herons of North
America. The population lies within
a narrow latitudinal range extending
east from the Baja California peninsula,
including the Gulf of California, the
Yucatan Peninsula, the northern coast of
Gulf of Mexico to peninsular Florida and
islands in the Caribbean basin, namely
Bahamas and Cuba. The global population
of Reddish Egrets is estimated to be
5,000 – 7,000 individuals, with 3,500 to
4,250 breeding pairs. The Reddish Egret
is an international resource, with Mexico
and the U.S. appearing to support about
equally the bulk of the global breeding
population, complemented by a number
of Central American and Caribbean
nations. Despite its large range, the
Reddish Egret occupies a restricted belt of
coastal habitat, is patchily distributed and
has a relatively small and declining global
population. Accordingly there is broad
agreement that the Reddish Egret is in
need of our conservation effort.
Status
Reddish Egrets are federally listed
as a species of special concern in
Mexico (NOM-059-SEMARNAT-2010,
SEMARNAT 2010) and as a Bird of
Conservation Concern in the U.S.
(USFWS 2008). Likewise, it was identified
as a regional priority species in need
of Critical Recovery or Immediate
Management in the 2006 Southeast U.S.
Waterbird Conservation Plan (Hunter
et al. 2006). The species is listed as
Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List
of Threatened Species, and labeled as
“red,” or species of greatest conservation
concern, on Audubon’s Watchlist due
to its moderately small population and
suspected population declines (Butcher et
al. 2007, IUCN 2009).
Given that there are two subspecies
of Reddish Egret, and that threats and
management situations vary greatly across
the hemispheric range of the species, three
management units – Eastern, Central, and
Western – were identified for purposes of
conservation planning.
Direct threats to Reddish
Egret Populations and
Habitats
• Elevated predation from
predators associated with
human activities
• Human disturbance due to
recreational and commercial
activities
• Habitat shifting and alteration
from sea-level rise and
subsidence
• Increased frequency and
intensity of storms and
flooding
• Tourism and residential
development
• Coastal engineering
• Marine transportation
• Energy development
• Invasive species
• Local ranching and other land
use activities
• Shrimp aquaculture
Goals
Population Goals
Area
Eastern
Management Unit
Central
Management Unit
Western
Management Unit
Current Population
Estimate
Population Goals
700 breeding pairs 1,400 breeding pairs
2,750 breeding pairs 4,600 breeding pairs
800 breeding pairs 1,500 breeding pairs
Global Population 4,250 breeding pairs 7,500 breeding pairs
Objectives Associated with Strategies
Nesting Habitat Goals
• Interim Goal: Establish,
maintain and increase
habitat at focal colony
sites, defined as the
locations that should be
priorities for collective
conservation effort. A
list of the proposed focal
colony sites is available
at the reddishegret.org
website.
• Anticipated Goal:
A quantitative goal for
focal colony sites.
Foraging Habitat Goals
• Interim Goal: Identify and
protect foraging areas
• Anticipated Goal: A
quantitative goal for
focal foraging areas.
The Working Group is
committed to compiling
and mapping information
on known foraging areas
and identifying potential,
currently unknown, areas.
CONCEPTUAL MODEL
FOR REDDISH EGRET
CONSERVATION
The conceptual model is a
graphic summary of how the
Reddish Egret Working Group
envisions the context within
which it is working and is
used to brainstorm potential
conservation strategies. It
represents the Working Group’s
common understanding of the
overall situation surrounding
conservation efforts for the
Reddish Egret and its habitats
(conservation targets), the main
direct threats, and the social,
cultural, political and economic
factors that are contributing
to those threats. This visual
representation includes the
conservation targets, critical
threats, contributing factors, and
strategies. Using the conceptual
model to prioritize factors
most in need of influence,
the working group seeks to
understand where intervention
is necessary and/or effective –
and also where it is not.
Develop and implement long-term monitoring of
populations to support better decision-making
at all scales
OBJECTIVES:
• By November 2013, the Reddish Egret Working Group has
compiled existing knowledge on focal breeding sites, including
the nature and level of specific threats.
• By this time, the group will have reached consensus on and
applied criteria for the selection of focal colonies. By November
2013, the Reddish Egret Working Group will have mapped known
foraging areas based on existing data, and begun modeling
potential, but unconfirmed foraging areas.
• By 2015, the Reddish Egret Working Group has undertaken
field studies to fill in gaps in knowledge about Reddish Egret
populations and their habitats across the range. This work will
focus particularly on birds occurring in Caribbean and Central
America as well as on confirming use of and threats to foraging
areas throughout the range.
• By 2015, the Reddish Egret Working Group has reached
consensus on criteria for focal foraging areas and applied these to
available maps.
• By December 2013, the Reddish Egret Working Group has
developed standardized protocols for counting breeding pairs on
colonies, counting wintering birds, resightings, breeding habitat
and foraging habitat.
• By December 2013, a REEG Clearinghouse is established, a
protocol for data entry is developed, and existing data input into
the Clearinghouse.
Actively manage factors directly affecting reddish egret
populations
OBJECTIVES:
Invasive Species
• Beginning in 2015, exotic fauna are actively managed and their
effects are minimized on at least 75% of focal breeding sites
affected by exotic fauna.
Predation Rates
• Beginning in 2015, all focal colonies are being monitored for the
presence of predators.
• Beginning in 2015, predators are controlled on at least 75% of
focal colonies.
• By 2016, fisherman in priority areas where offal disposal presents
a problem are aware of the impacts of improper offal disposal on
predation of Reddish Egret.
Disturbance/Direct Harvest
• By 2016, recreational boaters/fisherman/photographers/
resource managers in priority areas where disturbance is a
problem are aware of impacts to Reddish Egret.
• Human disturbance trend is reduced by 25% by 5 years after
launching outreach/enforcement campaigns.
• By 2016, target groups participating in chick harvesting and
egging activity are made aware so that they understand the status
of Reddish Egret and the impact of this activity.
• By 2016, chick harvesting and egging activity is reduced by 50 %
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Ensure that the long-term stewardship and management of
habitat is effectively implemented in focal colony sites and
focal foraging areas
OBJECTIVES:
Development
• None yet identified for tourism and residential development,
but can be developed once goals for habitat are quantified.
• By 2016, no further energy development will occur in the areas
identified by the Reddish Egret Working Group as focal foraging areas.
• By a date to be determined, an alliance of natural resource protection
organizations has been formed to address appropriate siting of
energy development in coastal areas with the stated goal that no
further energy development occurs in the areas identified by
the Reddish Egret Working Group as focal foraging areas.
• By 2014, understand extent of existing problems caused by
coastal engineering by assessing (through past observation
or new study) effects at focal breeding and foraging sites.
• By 2016, information is shared with the USACE about the
positive effects of dredge spoil islands on Reddish Egret
breeding and US Army Corps of Engineers commits to
further beneficial uses that would assist the species.
Marine Transportation
• From now until 2020, at least 80% of focal Reddish Egret
nesting habitat suffering erosion caused by marine
transportation is maintained.
• By 2016, decision-makers responsible for 50% of foraging
areas with boating damage agree to limited closure areas.
Identify mechanisms for implementing and
sustaining protected status for focal areas
Activities and Objectives under development.
NEXT STEPS
Our efforts towards Reddish Egret conservation
need to continue on multiple fronts: additional
planning at the range-wide scale, implementation
of identified activities, and monitoring and
sharing of associated results. Moreover, as this
plan is range-wide in scope, from it must flow
a business plan that lays out the details of local
strategies and projects and develops actions that
link funding to measurable conservation results.
Rangewide Map of Reddish Egret Colonies
BREEDING DISTRIBUTION
OF REDDISH EGRETS
Surveys within the last 5 years
less than 10 pairs
10 - 50 pairs
51 - 100 pairs
101 - 200 pairs
greater than 200 pairs
Surveys older than 5 years
less than 10 pairs
10 - 50 pairs
greater than 50 pairs
Unknown colony size
0 250 500 1,000
Kilometers
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