The Important Bird Areas of Florida - National Audubon Society

The Important Bird Areas of Florida: 2000–2002 – Pranty – 2-Jul-02 194ST. JOHNS NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGEBrevard County6254 acres (2501 ha)LOCATION: two separate parcels in the northern half of mainland Brevard County: north of State Road 50and west of Interstate 95, and inside the triangle formed by State Road 407, State Road 528, andInterstate 95. Contiguous with part of the Upper St. Johns River IBA to the west. Near part of theBrevard Scrub Ecosystem IBA to the north and south, and the William Beardall Tosohatchee StateReserve IBA to the west.DESCRIPTION: an inland salt marsh fed from saline upwellings from a confined aquifer in the easternfloodplain of the St. Johns River. The refuge was established in 1971 in an unsuccessful attempt topreserve the “Dusky” Seaside Sparrow, which has been extinct in the wild since 1981 and in captivitysince 1990. Most of the refuge remains closed to the public, but plans are underway for somecompatible wildlife-oriented uses.OWNERSHIP: U.S. Fish and Wildlife ServiceHABITATS: *inland salt marsh, temperate hammock, sawgrass marsh, artificialLAND USE: *conservationIBA CATEGORIES: significant populations of FCREPA species; and significant natural habitatsAVIAN DATA: Few bird data are available because the refuge has never been open to the public.However, it is known to support perhaps the largest population of Black Rails in Florida, one of onlytwo known inland breeding sites in the state. [Is a bird list available?].SPECIES DATES NUMBERS COMMENTSBlack Rail 1993–2000 >30 birds (B)Data provided by Mike Legare; see also +Legare (1996) and +Legare et al. (1999)OTHER RESOURCES: • The Refuge preserves two large expanses of brackish marsh on the east side ofthe St. Johns River.THREATS: *habitat succession, exotic plants, feral hogsCONSERVATION ISSUES: St. Johns National Wildlife Refuge was purchased between 1970–1976 toprotect the western population of the “Dusky” Seaside Sparrow. However, the US Fish and WildlifeService failed to properly manage the property: a drainage ditch dug before public acquisition was notfilled in, and fire lanes were not built. During 1970–1977, six wildfires burned the Refuge, and thesparrow population plummeted as a result from 143 males to only 11. By the time the USFWS hadbuilt the firelanes—in 1979—the total “Dusky” population that remained within the Refuge was ninebirds, all males +(Walters 1992). For other information on the “Dusky” Seaside Sparrows, and theactions and inactions that drove it to extinction, see +(Sharp 1970), +(Delany et al. 1981), and +Kale(1996). • The primary management objective of the Refuge is to restore the marsh to its originalcondition through prescribed fire and marsh restoration (e.g., filling in drainage ditches). • Exoticplants are controlled as needed. • A legal case is currently pending over illegal dredging and filling ofrefuge wetlands by a neighboring developer(!).NOMINATED BY: Mike Legare (Dynamac Corporation)REFERENCES: +Delany, M.F., W.P. Leenhouts, B. Sauselein, and H.W. Kale, II. 1981. The 1980 DuskySeaside Sparrow survey. Florida Field Naturalist 9:64–67. • +Kale, H.W., II 1996. Dusky SeasideSparrow (Ammodramus maritimus nigrescens). Pages 7–12 in Rare and Endangered Biota of Florida,Volume V, Birds (J.A. Rodgers, Jr., H.W. Kale, II, and H.T. Smith, editors). University Press ofFlorida. Gainesville, FL. • +Legare, M.L. 1996. The effectiveness of tape playbacks in estimatingpopulation densities of breeding Black Rails (Laterallus jamaicensis) in Florida. M.Sc. thesis.