Partnership Project Promotes Conservation of Central Maine Wetlands

Habitats for flora and fauna within the Caribou Bog-Penjajawoc corridor of central Maine will be conserved through an ongoing effort by a partnership of local, state, and federal groups.

The project, which recently received funding from the North America Wetlands Conservation Act managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, was "created by the Caribou Bog-Penjajawoc Project Committee of the Bangor Land Trust and the Orono Land Trust. The vision of the project partners is to create a continuous greenway corridor including a total of about 6000 acres of undeveloped land for wildlife habitat and public use commencing just north of the Bangor Mall and running north between Interstate-95 and Pushaw Lake to Hirundo Wildlife Refuge in Hudson."

Total funding of $2 million includes $666,566 from the federal grant and $1.4 million from Land for Maine's Future, Bangor Land Trust, University of Maine, University of Maine Foundation, Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, Maine Outdoors Heritage Fund, Orono Land Trust, The Nature Conservancy, Ducks Unlimited and Maine Audubon.

These funds will be used to acquire about 3100 acres and place a conservation easement on another 686 acres of habitats including wetlands, adjacent uplands, and "over three miles of lake, stream and pond shoreline." The acreage is spread among ten parcels within a larger 21,758 acre wetland complex.

"This NAWCA grant allows us to purchase a large parcel of 850 acres and conserve several other large parcels through donated easements and fee purchases that bridge gaps to provide much improved connectivity among parcels already conserved," said Sally Jacobs, spokesperson for the Caribou Bog-Penjajawoc Conservation Project Committee. "The two land trusts and the LMF Program had initiated this project prior to receiving the grant and had already made selected purchases in the corridor."

"The University of Maine and the University of Maine Foundation donated land and easements to be used as matching funds needed to make the project eligible for grant funding. The UM donations were combined with funds previously obtained by the two land trusts from the Land for Maine's Future Program, private donations, and Maine Outdoor Heritage funding to complete the necessary match."

The project area has "crucial" American Black Duck and American Woodcock habitat.

"The beaver-created wetlands, and peatlands, make a matrix of ideal nesting habitat within large blocks of unfragmented land that provide the isolated habitats preferred by the American Black Duck," said Jacobs. "The Penjajawoc Marsh is good brood-rearing habitat and is an extremely valuable staging area for migration of American Black Ducks and other water fowl.

"The 850 acres of the Sewall land that is being bought with NAWCA and Land for Maine's Future Funds includes early successional habitat that will be managed for the American Woodcock. The mixed deciduous/conifer forests, some in early successional stages that is being acquired are ideal nesting habitat for the woodcock and Whip-poor-will."

The area is also important other waterbirds, including the Canada Goose, Mallard, Wood Duck, Ring-necked Duck and American Bittern.

"The rich maple/yellow birch, white pine/oak forests, and spruce/fir forest along with black spruce and red maple forested wetlands are important habitat to priority songbirds." Neotropic species of concern identified are the Wood Thrush, Chestnut-sided Warbler, Canada Warbler, Blackburnian Warbler, Black-throated Blue Warbler, and Olive-sided Flycatcher.

The Penjajawoc Marsh has more webless, wetland-dependent bird species than any other marsh studied in Maine," Jacobs explained. "Furthermore, as of 2001, Penjajawoc Marsh contained more endangered/special concern species than any of 106 inland marshes in the state recently studied by the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife."

Wetlands types present include "emergent marsh, submerged aquatic vegetation, red maple swamp, coniferous forested wetlands, and palustrine shrub habitat" according to the NAWCA grant. "The wetlands are surrounded by northern hardwood and spruce-fir forests and provide valuable water quality protection from human development and encroachment."

The Caribou Bog-Penjajawoc corridor has been a target for conservation for about two decades, the grant summary said. The area is under intense commercial and residential development pressure due to its location in the fast-growing Bangor/Orono suburbs area adjacent to Interstate-95.

"All lands acquired through the Caribou Bog-Penjajwoc Project will be available for research and teaching," Jacobs said, "including on subjects of hydrology and sustainable forestry with a special emphasis on management for wildlife habitat. Low impact recreation also will be available.

"Proceeds from forestry on the 850 Sewall tract will be going to the University of Maine to support scholarship and research efforts in forestry and wildlife management. The proximity to the University campus make this tract particularly valuable. Students in forestry, wildlife and recreation/tourism will be using all of the lands in the corridor for their studies."

Selected wetlands in the corridor are on the Maine Birding Trail. The local Audubon Society, the two local land trusts, and Hirundo Wildlife refuge all provide tours on these lands, Jacobs said. The Penjajawoc Marsh, a primary target for conservation in the Caribou Bog-Penjajawoc Project, is an important destination along this trail.

"The Caribou Bog has been studied extensively and is considered the third most important peatland in Maine and is listed as an Exemplary Natural Community by Maine Natural Areas Program. It also has been studied extensively by researchers at the University of Maine who have found a number of endangered invertebrate species there. The entire corridor is an area of special interest to the State's Beginning with Habitat Program."

An estimated 50,000 people use the area each year for hunting, fishing, wildlife watching, photography environmental education and interpretation, and outdoor recreation, according to the NAWCA grant summary. Another 30,000 annually use the trails and the Orono Bog boardwalk with its interpretive stations that provide educational information about the wetlands.

"Many of the visitors are students who come from elementary and high schools, and the University, for guided tours by the boardwalk volunteer guides," Jacobs said.

"The project has been extremely successful in accomplishing its initial vision of guiding development into the most appropriate areas and balancing development with the preservation of large blocks of open land and prime wildlife habitat," Jacobs said. "It is exciting to see the project become a recognized part of the landscape and to see the positive effect it has had on regional municipal planning. Much of the vision has been incorporated into town planning and recently has expanded to a Trust for Public Land 13-town green-printing project.

"The project continues to move forward and is being recognized by state planning and conservation agencies as well as state-wide non-profit conservation organizations. Recently the Maine Chapter of the Wildlife Society recognized the two land trusts with an award for their visionary collaboration and their extraordinary work to establish the Caribou Bog-Penjajawoc Project: A Conservation-Recreation Corridor."

The land acquisition and easements are expected to be completed within two years.

Research to Help Understand Bird Conservation in the Arctic

Joe Liebezeit (right) and Ruby Hammond watching a shorebird reveal its nest location. Images courtesy of Steve Zack, Wildlife Conservation Society.

A research initiative sponsored by the Wildlife Conservation Society is developing information essential to understanding the values of coastal Alaska for a variety of wild birds.

Research is underway at the Teshekpuk Lake Special Area in the northeast corner of the National Petroleum Reserve, and in the nearby Beaufort Sea region.

Funding is provided from a Neotropical Migratory Bird Conservation Act Grant provided by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, foundations (Liz Claibourne / Art Ortenberg Foundation, Disney Conservation Fund, the Duke Foundation) and private donors, according to Joe Liebezeit, an associate conservation biologist, with the Society.

Research is being conducted on several bird-related topics, and Liebezeit provided further details in an email interview:

What is the research mission and its methods?

"Our mission is to conserve wildlife and wild places in Arctic Alaska. Our research is centered on understanding the main threats to wildlife in the Arctic: climate change and energy development; and to identify key areas for protection. For this latter issue, our focus has been Teshekpuk.

"This season, we are finishing up a 4-year study examining the breeding success, or how successful birds are at raising young to the point where they can leave the nest. Currently, there is little information on the importance of this region as a bird 'nursery' since no other studies have examined nest survivorship of the full suite of birds that utilize this region. This study is important because the Teshekpuk region of the Arctic Coastal Plain of Alaska is recognized for its importance to wildlife yet it is currently threatened with oil development. The Bureau of Land Management is currently selling oil exploration bids to oil companies in this region. At the same time we are working with other non-governmental organizations to help protect key areas in this important region.

"We will investigate post-breeding shorebird abundance, species composition, and fitness in the Teshekpuk Lake Special Area since so little is known. In addition to the threat of oil development, the coastline in this region is rapidly eroding. As the polar ice cap shrinks due to climate change, wave action in the Arctic Ocean has intensified, particularly in the fall during storms. Because of this, coastal erosion rates have accelerated and salt water has intruded into freshwater habitats utilized by the feeding post-breeding shorebirds. In Alaska, this intensified coastal erosion is most dramatic on the Beaufort Sea coastline north of Teshekpuk Lake with over 1 km of erosion over the past 50 years. For this reason, we will investigate how climate-mediated coastal erosion may be impacting shorebird habitat use in this region.

Joe Liebezeit flushes a Semipalmated Sandpiper (lower left) from its tundra nest.

Joe Liebezeit “rope-dragging” to aid finding shorebird nests.

"In addition to our breeding bird project, we will be initiating a new study on the Beaufort Sea coast north of Teshekpuk Lake examining the use of this area by post-breeding shorebirds. Other researchers have found that after the breeding season, vast numbers of shorebirds congregate in coastal habitats along the Arctic Ocean coastline to fatten up on energy reserves before they begin their long southward migration.

What particular species are focused upon, and why?

"For our breeding bird study, we monitor nests of all birds in ourstudy plots including about 12 shorebirds species. The most common are: Semipalmated Sandpiper, Pectoral Sandpiper, Red-necked Phalarope, Red Phalarope and Dunlin; over five waterfowl species, including the King Eider, Greater White-fronted Goose; and other birds such as the Lapland Longspur and Willow Ptarmigan. We focus most of our investigation on the shorebirds and Lapland Longspurs since they provide the largest samples sizes.

"For the post-breeding work, the main species we will focus on will be shorebirds, in particular the Semipalmated Sandpiper, Dunlin, and Pectoral Sandpiper. We are focusing on this group of birds because they are the most numerous migratory birds in this region and some of them are of special conservation concern because their population numbers are low. Many of these species are of international importance because of their long migrations that take them to all parts of the globe.

Ruby Hammond and Joe Liebezeit “rope-dragging” to locate nests.

Joe Liebezeit measuring the angle and amount of shell floating to aid age determination in a shorebird egg.

"Methods during the breeding season (nest success study): we attempt to find all bird nests on 16 10-hectare plots. After nests are discovered we monitor them every few days until we determine whether the eggs hatched and the chicks successfully left the nest or they failed (e.g. failed due to predation, weather, etc.). From this information we can estimate "nest success" for the individual species and we will examine this with respect to other key variables that we measure (including predator numbers, habitat type, nest density) to learn which factors impact nest success the most.

"Methods during the post-breeding season: we will conduct line-transect surveys of shorebirds in key habitat types to estimate species composition, abundance, and timing of migration. We will also capture birds and individually mark them with color bands and take blood samples. The color-bands will enable us to re-sight the birds during surveys and thus estimate the 'tenure time' or how long birds stay in this area before moving on. The blood samples will be analyzed for triglyceride levels which is a measure of rate of fat gain. Birds that have a higher rate of fat gain are finding more food and thus this measure allows us an indirect measure of habitat quality."

How many years have these surveys been conducted? And what is the importance of long-term monitoring?

"We have been conducting surveys for breeding birds for four years at Teshekpuk and for six years at another site in the Prudhoe Bay region. Annual variation in the arctic is high so if we are to detect changes in populations it is important that we monitor over many years to help overcome the 'noise' of high annual variation to tease out the underlying trends."

Please comment on the importance of your survey efforts.

"The Arctic is an important region to study impacts of human disturbance (in our case via oil development) since these disturbances can be compared to nearby remote areas. Even more importantly, climate change is occurring most dramatically in the arctic (compared to the rest of the world) and so it is the most important place to investigate climate change impacts right now."

Are there any changes at your study locales which are affecting local birds?

"Climate change is impacting bird species. We have evidence that some bird species are initiating their nests up to seven days earlier than 20 years ago - a likely response to a warming climate. There is concern that this change in timing may be decoupled from insect emergence or other components of their life cycle. We have not investigated the details of this issue as of yet. Right now our main focus with climate change is investigating how climate-mediated erosion may be impacting post-breeding shorebirds."

What is the importance of the region being studied for birds,locally and globally?

"The Teshekpuk Lake Region is one of the most important areas for wildlife on the Alaskan Arctic coastal plain. Internationally important populations of shorebirds, numbering in the hundreds of thousands nest and stage here, up to 20% of the Pacific flyway brant goose population molts here every summer. The 45,000 head Teshekpuk Lake caribou herd give birth to and rear their young here every year. At the same time, oil development pressure and climate change impacts are important threats in this region. "Globally, this region supports an international assemblage of migratory birds that winter and stopover in all other parts of the planet."

In addition to society reports and published findings, research results are contributed to the Arctic Birds website where findings can be readily accessed. "We post our results on the website so that our data can be shared with other collaborators and scientists," Liebezeit said. This allows different researchers to "begin to detect trends in breeding birds across large geographic regions."

Additional details indicate the importance of the Teshekpuk Lake region for birds.

"The Teshekpuk Lake area is part of a vast network of coastal lagoons, deep water lakes, wet sedge grass meadows, beaded streams & river deltas that cover almost one third of the 23.5 million acre Reserve. Thousands of freshwater lakes cover more than half of the coastal plain," according to information presented on the Northern Alaska Environmental Center website, which also has a map showing development activities.

"The Teshekpuk Lake area sustains the largest goose molting concentration in the Arctic - with up to 60,000 geese (including the lesser Snow Goose, Canada and White-fronted Goose and up to 20% of the entire Pacific Black Brant population) congregating at once. The coastal plain of the Reserve, including the Teshekpuk Lake area, is the primary arctic habitat for threatened Spectacled Eiders and also supports the entire breeding population of Stellar's Eider."

The Teshekpuk Lake region - sprawling across 1.7 million acres - was designated in 1977 by the Department of the Interior as a "Special Area"with significant natural values that required "maximum protection," in recognition of the habitat utilized by vast numbers of nesting and molting waterfowl, and other birds that gather prior to their annual southerly migration.

"The Wildlife Conservation Society is working with diverse stakeholders including other NGOs, government agencies, and industry," Liebezeit said, "to balance protection of the most important places for wildlife in this region along with responsible development."

---

Administration Relents on Drilling Near Teshekpuk Lake

"Washington, DC, May 16, 2008 - The Secretary of Interior announced today that the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) would defer additional oil and gas leasing around Teshekpuk Lake in the Northeast National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska (NPRA) for at least 10 years. The decision came with the release of a final revised environmental statement and activity plan for Northeast NPRA, after a lawsuit blocked a controversial September 2006 lease sale in that area."

This news is from a press release issued by the National Audubon Society.

Duck Decoys Use by Native Peoples For Two Thousand Years

The use of duck decoys by native peoples in the southwest was established by the excavation of material at Lovelock Cave in the Humboldt Valley. The decoys had bodies made of tules and rushes, and were dated to ca. 2160 years before present. An additional use of duck decoys was recently located in the narrative of an historic exploration in 1852. The author was the commissioner for the U.S. boundary survey, which originated in Texas. The author was in central California when the following was written in his journal.

Caption: Interior of Indian huts, California. Note: the decoys are prominently shown on the right.

March 21st (1852)

An Indian village stood a few hundred yards from the house; and at my request Mr. Knight went out and brought me three of the most intelligent among them, from whom I obtained a full vocabulary of their language. Like many other tribes of the country, and of this region in particular, they appeared to have no name for themselves as a people. By the white people, these and all other Indians between the Sacramento and the coast, and thence through the central parts of the State, are called "Diggers," or "Digger Indians," from the fact that they live chiefly on roots, which they collect by digging. I therefore set them down as Indians of Napa Valley. We had met with several small bands, and passed a few villages on our way up; but from none could I learn that they had any name for their tribe. This fact will account for the great diversity in the names of the California Indians as given by travellers. In examining the various books on this country and articles in scientific journals, I find tribes mentioned by names which are not elsewhere to be found; and in my own inquiries I have found tribes who called themselves by names which I never heard of before. This has induced me to believe that the small tribes or bands, which abound here more than in any other part of North America, when asked to what tribe they belong, give the name of their chief, which is misunderstood by the inquirer to be that of the tribe itself.

Summer huts of California Indians.

Their houses are circular, and from twelve to thirty feet in diameter, the interior usually excavated about three feet below the surface of the ground. Within this circle posts are planted, forked at the top, upon which rest poles reaching from one to the other. The spaces between the posts are filled in with sticks or tules, against which the earth is firmly banked up outside. The roofs are dome-shaped, and, in the smaller houses, supported by a single post in the centre, on the forked top of which rest two main rafters, with their outer ends planted in the ground. From these are stretched stout poles, about a foot apart and thatched with sticks and tules, or rushes closely interwoven, and covered with a solidly pressed layer of earth about a foot thick, making a roof completely water proof in the heaviest rains. In some villages the houses have but one aperture, which is on the top of the roof, and serves for both door and chimney. This is entered by a sort of rude ladder, or by notches cut in the centre-post. Others have an opening at the side, so small as not to be entered except by crawling on the hands and knees. Around the sides of the interior are wide shelves, formed of poles and rushes resting on forked posts, which serve for beds.

In the view of the interior of one of their dwellings is seen a number of decoy ducks which they use to good advantage. Although the California tribes exhibit much skill in fishing and in trapping game, and the erection of their dwellings, they show little ingenuity in the arts of design. ...
John Russell Bartlett. Personal Narrative of Explorations and Incidents in Texas, New Mexico, California, Sonora and Chihuahua 1850-1853.

Discovery of Piculet Woodpecker Conveys Importance of Conserving Neotropic Habitats

The recent discovery of a new species of a piculet woodpecker conveys the importance of understanding bird diversity in natural environments of the tropics.

An as yet unnamed species was recently discovered in the Cerrado region of Brazil by Professor Luís Fábio Silveira, of the Departamento de Zoologia, Universidade de São Paulo.

Pictures of the Cerrado Region.

All images taken by Fábio Schunck. Used with permission.

Three birds were collected during intensive studies of the regional avifauna. First a male and then a pair of birds were taken using a shotgun, using small-sized shot in order to obtain the specimens essential for documenting the species for identification and classification.

Professor Silveira, with experience studying "species of this genus, since the beginning of the field work in January of 2008, had heard an unusual voice, which certainly was from a Picumnus, a genus of piculet. The bird was not observed despite intensive searches and listening to them in several localities without being able to locate the species among the dense vegetation. After one week the first specimen, a male, was collected. Some days after that, in another locality, a pair was collected. "

With three birds having the same morphological characteristics in hand, tape-recordings of the voices and specimens from two different localities, he realized the birds were a new taxon.

Piculets are small, distinctive woodpeckers which occur primarily in South America. There are about 25 recognized species. Particular characteristics include a large head, lack of the stiff tail typical of many woodpecker species, short bills used to extract insects from decaying wood, and a habit for using the holes in tree cavities dug-out by other woodpeckers. About a half-dozen other piculet species occur in China, southeast Asia, central American and Africa.

Prof. Silveira and his students - Vitor Piacentini, Érika Machado and Fábio Schunck - are still working on the scientific description needed to recognize a new species. The name probably will allude to the place where the birds were collected, or the habitat, he said.

Map of the Cerrado region and the ecological station. Map courtesy of Conservation International.

"Discovery of a new species of bird is always exciting," Silveira said. "Birds are a really well known group of vertebrates and discover a new species is quite rare today. I've described a new species of a wonderful parakeet and now we're working hard to describe a new antwren, two new tapaculos, a bellbird and a treehunter with other colleagues from Brazil and USA. New things are coming to our attention due our intensive field work in the last few years."

Dr. Silveira's work as a taxonomist played an essential role in identifying the new species.

"If I had a limited experience with this genus I could simply fit the voice or the birds within previously known species," Silveira said. The professor and his students will conduct further studies to learn more about the natural history of the new species.

"We´re studying our specimens and preparing the scientific description, which will appear probably in the next year," Silveira said. "After that we plan to start a project to understand better its habitat requirements and refine the distribution in the region. Fortunately this species is protected in a large conservation unit and its situation can be considered quite safe."

The site where the species was find was within the Serra Geral do Tocantins Ecological Station, a 716,000-hectare (1,769,274 acres) protected area.

"The Serra Geral harbours a enormous diversity of birds, including the Brazilian Merganser, a species Dr. Silveira has studied since 1996. The Hyacinth Macaw and Dwarf Tinamou, are among other endemic or threatened species in the Cerrado area. And we were able to find jaguars and deers. This place is simply wonderful and is one of the most isolated lands that I ever seen."

Coal-crested Finch. Charitospiza eucosma.

Ruby-topaz Hummingbird. Chrysolampis mosquitus.

Guira Tanager. Hemithraupis guira.

The O Boticário Foundation, Conservation International, and Pequi-Pesquisa e Conservação do Cerrado provided funding that was essential in supporting the research that led to the new discovery.

Recent efforts by researchers documented 14 new species in the Cerrado region, including eight fish, three reptiles, one amphibian, and one mammal. Several threatened species were also documented during a 29-day field expedition, according to a news release by Conservation International.

The Cerrado's wooded grassland which once covered an area half the size of Europe - comprising about 21% of the land area of Brazil - is now being converted to cropland and ranchland at twice the rate of the neighboring Amazon rainforest, resulting in the loss of native vegetation and unique species.

"The geographic distribution of some of the species registered is restricted to the area of the ecological station; thus their survival depends on the good management of the protected area and its immediate surroundings," said Professor Silveira. "From the survey we can obtain data concerning the anatomy, reproductive biology, life cycle, and distribution of the species, all of which help us in future conservation programs."

Additional views of the Cerrado region at the ecological station.

Habitat of Wood Creek and Happy Hollow Creek Continue to be a Bird Haven

View of the Elmwood Park Ravine on 4 May 2008.

Woodland habitat along two creeks in midtown Omaha continue to be a haven for an interesting variety of birds.

Wood Creek flows through the south and eastern edge of Elmwood Park, then splits under Dodge street and continues along the western edge of Memorial Park. Happy Hollow Creek is on the east edge of Memorial Park and the Brownell-Talbot school grounds.

It was July 11, 1909 when Frank Shoemaker, a extraordinary naturalist visited the grounds of Elmwood Park and noted in his personal journals that 18 species were present.

This was the first known visit by bird enthusiasts and just the beginning of a tradition for outings to the park lands.

There were numerous visits from 1913 through the 1930s, by bird watchers such as the dedicated newsman Miles Greenleaf, sportsman Billy Marsh, and others, including members of the Audubon Society.

The history is noted in occasional articles in the local newspapers.

The educational value of birds was the reason for a bird census conducted April 29, 1916 at the park, "by Miss Alice Hill, supervisor of drawing in the schools, and Miles Greenleaf, both of the Audubon" Society educational committee. It was part of the group's "Teaching the Teachers" campaign. There were 36 species noted, including the unusual sighting, then, of a rarely seen Scarlet Tanager.

Bird records from this count can be compared to records from similar dates in the modern era.

Comparison of tally of birds at Elmwood Park - 1916 & 2008. The value is the number seen. No numbers were available for the 1916 count.

Common Name	4/29/1916	4/27/2008	4/29/2008	4/30/2008
Canada Goose	- -	- -	2	- -
Wood Duck	- -	8	2	1
Green Heron	- -	1	1	- -
Turkey Vulture	- -	1	- -	- -
Red-tailed Hawk	0	- -	- -	- -
American Kestrel	0	- -	- -	- -
Mourning Dove	0	6	- -	1
Barred Owl	- -	- -	- -	1
Chimney Swift	- -	3	- -	- -
Belted Kingfisher	- -	1	- -	- -
Red-bellied Woodpecker	- -	2	- -	1
Downy Woodpecker	0	1	1	1
Hairy Woodpecker	0	- -	- -	- -
Northern Flicker	0	1	1	1
Eastern Phoebe	0	1	1	- -
Eastern Kingbird	0	- -	- -	- -
Red-eyed Vireo	0	- -	- -	- -
Vireo	0	- -	- -	- -
Blue Jay	0	5	2	- -
American Crow	0	- -	- -	- -
Horned Lark	0	- -	- -	- -
Tree Swallow	0	- -	- -	- -
Barn Swallow	- -	6	- -	- -
Black-capped Chickadee	0	2	- -	2
Red-breasted Nuthatch	- -	2	- -	1
White-breasted Nuthatch	0	1	2	1
House Wren	0	3	3	- -
Ruby-crowned Kinglet	0	2	2	2
Eastern Bluebird	0	- -	- -	- -
American Robin	0	6	6	6
Northern Mockingbird	- -	1	- -	- -
Brown Thrasher	0	- -	4	1
European Starling	- -	3	- -	- -
Cedar Waxwing	0	- -	- -	- -
Orange-crowned Warbler	- -	2	- -	- -
Yellow-rumped Warbler	0	3	6	- -
Palm Warbler	- -	1	- -	- -
Scarlet Tanager	0	- -	- -	- -
Eastern Towhee	0	- -	- -	2
Chipping Sparrow	- -	4	- -	- -
Field Sparrow	0	- -	- -	- -
Vesper Sparrow	0	- -	- -	- -
Grasshopper Sparrow	0	- -	- -	- -
Song Sparrow	0	- -	1	- -
Lincoln's Sparrow	- -	- -	1	- -
White-throated Sparrow	0	2	3	5
Harris's Sparrow	0	- -	- -	- -
Northern Cardinal	0	10	2	4
Western Meadowlark	0	- -	- -	- -
Common Grackle	0	14	6	- -
Brown-headed Cowbird	0	- -	- -	- -
Baltimore Oriole	- -	- -	- -	1
Pine Siskin	- -	- -	4	2
American Goldfinch	- -	5	2	3

Notably absent now are the Horned Lark, Eastern Bluebird and Grasshopper Sparrow, species of open country or grasslands.

Pine Siskins at a seep area at Elmwood Park, 28 April 2008.

Tree removal was the concern in March 1919 when the park commissioner and the park foreman were removing an extensive number of trees. The writer of the editorial noted Elmwood Park was the "best public bird and nature preserve in possession of the city of Omaha."

Crows feeding at the 12 feeding stations with suet were the topic of discussion in January 1923. The wire soap-racks nailed to the trees, were filled each Sunday, according to the bird editorial in the Sunday World-Herald.

The renowned sports writer Sandy Griswold wrote about the January 1927 bird census, which included Elmwood Park. The 2.5 hour count was "taken by Mary and Emma Hillsworth, Dr. C.A. Mitchell and L.O. Horsky, members of the Nebraska Ornithologists' Union. Most prevalent were the long-tailed chickadee and tree sparrow, along with the White-breasted Nuthatch, cardinals and juncos..

Bird nests were the topic of the May 1931 Bird Lore column. The big excitement was the nest of the Red Crossbill, which was destroyed by wind of a storm. A Field Sparrow nests was located between hole no. 1 and hole no. 3 on the golf course. There was also a towhee nest carefully hidden under a log, with "cigaret stubs, cigar butts, wrappers from chewing gum and all that sort of thing were all around the nest."

The Bird Lore column of the October 1931 Sunday Bee, discussed the winter birds of the park, and the expectation of the Winter Wren to be coming soon. The writer recalled their excitement of seeing redpolls, Red Crossbills and White-winged Crossbills.

In August 1934, there was a report of the observation blind financed for $1,500 by members of the Ad-Sell League. It was located "on a sort of peninsula just south of Dodge street between two branches of the Elmwood ravine," and the surrounding terrain was "left untouched - a wild scramble of bushes, underbrush, weeds and grass - ideal for birds." There were 33 species noted as using the water pool and feeding mounds, according to a story in the Omaha Sunday Bee-News. The blind burned down in December 1940.

History wanes during the 1940s and the following three decades. The park was apparently the destination for students of the ornithology class at nearby University of Nebraska at Omaha, and occasionally by birders.

Fledgling Wood Duck on Wood Creek, 5 May 2008. There have been no subsequent sightings of fledgling ducks in the area.

Mallard pair at Wood Creek, 9 May 2008.

The tradition got a fresh start in the late 1980s, when Clyde and Emma Johnson, moved into the neighborhood, and went on regular walks in the park, noting their birdly observations during their forays. Birders in the neighborhood continue to visit the woodland bird haven along the creeks, and document their sightings.

Overall, the results of these birders' efforts is that about 180 species have been documented in Elmwood Park, and its midtown creeks. There are more than 2800 records for these locales.

Number of species noted during particular periods shows no consistency, with values quite different based on extent of effort, number of available records, and other variables.

Time Period - No. of Species

1910s - 100

1920s - 39

1930s - 57

1980s - 87

1990s - 126

2000s - 102

Now absent, though historically present include the Northern Bobwhite, Tree Swallow, Bank Swallow, Yellow-breasted Chat, Lark Sparrow, Dickcissel, Bobolink, and both meadowlark species.

The Wood Duck is now prevalent, though it was not noted during any of the visits in the 1910s and 1920s. A greater variety of vireos and warblers have also been recorded.

Some of the species seen in the 1990s, though not seen subsequently include the Double-crested Cormorant, Great Blue Heron, Great Egret, Merlin, American Coot, Killdeer, a lesser variety of warblers, Orchard Oriole and Red Crossbill.

There have been 105 species documented along the creeks since 2000.

Tally of Elmwood-Memorial Birdlife - 2000 to 2008. The value given is the number of times noted.

Common Name	Wood Creek, Elmwood Park	Elmwood Park	Shadow Lake, Elmwood Park	Elmwood Park Ravine	Happy Hollow Creek	Memorial Park	Wood Creek, Memorial Park
Greater White-fronted Goose	- -	- -	- -	- -	- -	1	- -
Canada Goose	4	4	- -	- -	- -	1	- -
Wood Duck	12	12	4	14	14	- -	3
Mallard	6	6	3	1	7	- -	- -
Blue-winged Teal	- -	2	- -	- -	- -	- -	- -
Wild Turkey	- -	1	- -	- -	- -	- -	- -
Pied-billed Grebe	- -	1	- -	- -	- -	- -	- -
Green Heron	2	1	- -	- -	- -	- -	- -
Turkey Vulture	1	4	1	2	- -	4	- -
Osprey	- -	- -	- -	- -	- -	1	- -
Sharp-shinned Hawk	- -	1	- -	- -	- -	2	1
Cooper's Hawk	- -	2	- -	- -	1	- -	- -
Red-tailed Hawk	2	8	- -	4	2	3	2
American Kestrel	- -	5	- -	- -	- -	1	- -
Spotted Sandpiper	- -	1	- -	- -	- -	- -	- -
Rock Pigeon	- -	4	- -	1	- -	2	- -
Mourning Dove	5	13	5	15	7	3	5
Eastern Screech-Owl	- -	- -	- -	- -	1	- -	- -
Great Horned Owl	- -	1	- -	- -	1	- -	- -
Barred Owl	- -	3	1	5	- -	- -	- -
Common Nighthawk	- -	3	- -	- -	- -	5	- -
Chimney Swift	- -	7	- -	4	2	10	3
Ruby-throated Hummingbird	- -	1	- -	- -	1	- -	- -
Belted Kingfisher	1	3	- -	1	- -	- -	- -
Red-headed Woodpecker	- -	1	- -	- -	- -	1	1
Red-bellied Woodpecker	9	11	10	11	6	1	5
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker	- -	6	- -	- -	- -	- -	- -
Downy Woodpecker	8	14	8	15	10	4	8
Hairy Woodpecker	1	5	- -	1	- -	- -	- -
Northern Flicker	4	12	2	11	2	3	3
Olive-sided Flycatcher	- -	2	- -	- -	1	- -	- -
Eastern Wood-Pewee	- -	2	- -	- -	- -	- -	- -
Least Flycatcher	2	3	2	5	1	- -	1
Eastern Phoebe	7	3	1	3	- -	- -	- -
Great Crested Flycatcher	- -	2	- -	- -	- -	- -	- -
Eastern Kingbird	1	2	- -	- -	- -	1	- -
Blue-headed Vireo	- -	2	- -	- -	- -	- -	- -
Warbling Vireo	- -	1	- -	- -	- -	- -	- -
Red-eyed Vireo	- -	1	- -	- -	- -	- -	- -
Blue Jay	10	18	5	16	4	7	13
American Crow	- -	14	- -	2	3	7	4
Northern Rough-winged Swallow	- -	2	- -	- -	- -	- -	- -
Cliff Swallow	- -	2	- -	1	- -	- -	- -
Barn Swallow	1	10	- -	3	- -	5	3
Black-capped Chickadee	9	16	11	14	8	6	17
Red-breasted Nuthatch	1	9	8	4	2	3	- -
White-breasted Nuthatch	8	17	10	12	4	1	7
Brown Creeper	2	10	2	2	1	- -	1
Carolina Wren	4	2	1	2	- -	- -	- -
House Wren	5	8	1	9	1	- -	1
Winter Wren	5	- -	21	1	- -	- -	- -
Golden-crowned Kinglet	3	1	2	2	- -	- -	- -
Ruby-crowned Kinglet	4	2	2	5	2	- -	1
Blue-gray Gnatcatcher	- -	- -	- -	1	- -	- -	- -
Veery	- -	- -	- -	1	- -	- -	- -
Swainson's Thrush	1	2	1	5	1	- -	1
Hermit Thrush	1	1	- -	4	1	- -	1
Wood Thrush	- -	- -	- -	1	- -	- -	- -
American Robin	12	22	17	21	16	17	16
Gray Catbird	4	7	1	6	- -	- -	4
Northern Mockingbird	1	- -	- -	- -	- -	- -	- -
Brown Thrasher	1	4	- -	3	1	1	- -
European Starling	5	19	1	12	5	9	13
Cedar Waxwing	1	2	- -	1	- -	2	- -
Tennessee Warbler	- -	1	- -	- -	- -	- -	1
Orange-crowned Warbler	1	3	- -	2	- -	- -	- -
Nashville Warbler	- -	2	- -	- -	1	- -	- -
Northern Parula	1	- -	- -	- -	- -	- -	- -
Yellow Warbler	- -	3	1	2	2	- -	- -
Chestnut-sided Warbler	- -	2	- -	- -	- -	- -	- -
Magnolia Warbler	- -	- -	- -	1	- -	- -	- -
Yellow-rumped Warbler	6	4	1	6	11	- -	2
Palm Warbler	1	1	- -	- -	- -	- -	- -
Black-and-white Warbler	- -	2	- -	4	1	- -	- -
American Redstart	1	3	- -	1	- -	- -	- -
Prothonotary Warbler	1	- -	- -	- -	- -	- -	- -
Louisiana Waterthrush	1	- -	- -	1	2	- -	- -
Common Yellowthroat	2	1	- -	- -	- -	- -	- -
Hooded Warbler	- -	- -	- -	1	- -	- -	- -
Wilson's Warbler	- -	2	- -	1	- -	- -	- -
Spotted Towhee	- -	1	- -	- -	- -	- -	- -
Eastern Towhee	- -	1	- -	1	- -	- -	- -
American Tree Sparrow	- -	- -	- -	1	- -	1	- -
Chipping Sparrow	2	8	- -	1	3	10	2
Clay-colored Sparrow	- -	1	- -	- -	- -	- -	- -
Field Sparrow	- -	1	- -	- -	- -	- -	- -
Fox Sparrow	- -	2	1	- -	- -	- -	1
Song Sparrow	4	6	6	2	- -	- -	- -
Lincoln's Sparrow	1	1	- -	- -	- -	- -	- -
White-throated Sparrow	2	4	2	7	3	- -	2
Harris's Sparrow	- -	1	- -	1	- -	- -	- -
White-crowned Sparrow	- -	1	- -	- -	- -	- -	- -
Dark-eyed Junco	6	14	9	10	5	8	7
Northern Cardinal	13	18	14	20	9	7	15
Rose-breasted Grosbeak	- -	5	- -	- -	- -	- -	- -
Indigo Bunting	1	1	- -	- -	- -	- -	- -
Red-winged Blackbird	1	1	- -	- -	1	- -	- -
Common Grackle	6	12	1	9	7	6	8
Brown-headed Cowbird	- -	3	- -	4	3	1	1
Baltimore Oriole	4	3	4	5	1	- -	2
Purple Finch	- -	3	2	1	- -	1	2
House Finch	1	7	- -	4	3	6	1
Pine Siskin	3	3	1	2	- -	- -	- -
American Goldfinch	8	12	5	13	8	7	9
House Sparrow	3	15	- -	3	1	3	2

This spring, a Hooded Warbler present among the fine trees of the Elmwood Park Ravine, was a new addition to the bird list for the locale. Other notables have been the Northern Mockingbird, Prothonotary Warbler, Louisiana Waterthrush, Magnolia Warbler, Indigo Bunting.

Reforestation area at Elmwood park, 15 May 2008. The new sign has not yet been installed.

Wood Ducks are a common species, but the apparent demise of the one young noted, indicates a lack of breeding success this season.

Conditions for the birdlife along the creek is expected to improve with one particular change in management of a small area of the park. A tract along the upper road, along the south side of Wood Creek, is being designated as a reforestation area, instead of a meadow in the making. The change will allow tree growth to develop which will slightly increase the extent of the woodland. Park management made the change in response to the suggestion of a local resident, since little or no active management effort will be needed for trees to regrow, whereas establishing a meadow would require time and money to establish a suitable growth of grasses typical of a meadow.

There is also some consideration being given to creating some small reforestation areas along the east side of Wood Creek, in the ravine area; with the possibility of planting native shrubs and other vegetation. A small area on the west side already has a regrowth of a variety of volunteer trees.

Tree Management To Improve Woodlands of Central Niobrara Valley

Planning is underway for tree management to improve woodland resources on the Niobrara National Scenic River east of Valentine.

The project - one of the first on state managed property in the area - will occur at the leased Krzyzanowski Tract with the renowned Smith Falls along a spring-branch creek, to the south across the river from the state park.

"With the fuels treatment effort, we are getting back to general forest management and providing avenues to increase forest health through proper stocking densities," said Jessica Yahnke, a forest fuels management specialist with the Nebraska Forest Service.

"Increased forest health means a healthier ecosystem," Yahnke said, and will enhance "wildlife habitat for deer, elk, turkeys and other animals. Snags will be left at a minimum of 2-5 per acre, to provide bird habitat."

The clearing will reduce the extent of "ladder" fuels and improve the vitality of the remaining trees.

"The Niobrara woodlands are growing 10-20 times the number of trees per acre than were present historically," Yahnke said. "If there is no fuel treatment by thinning or controlled burns, then there will eventually be a catastrophic wildfire, which could destroy whole woodland stands or large areas and thus, remove habitat for birds adapted and dependent on the horizontal and vertical edge that forests provide along the Niobrara River valley.

"The upper slopes that consist of ponderosa pine and eastern redcedar understory, will have both of these species mechanically removed. On the lowlands, most of the invasive redcedar trees will be removed from among the hardwood tree growth. Some hand thinning will occur on the midslope areas.

"Most of the understory trees consist of eastern red cedar, but also include ponderosa pine and hardwoods. Of these understory trees, most are considered 'ladder' fuels, which means they provide a means for a surface fire to gain easy access to tree crowns and a higher potential for fire spread. These ladder fuels combined with flashy fine fuels - such as grasses and yucca - in mountainous type terrain creates a volatile situation and thus, proposes a high risk threat for stand replacing wildfires."

The Big Rock Fire in mid-July 2006 on the north side of Valentine, is an example of this type of destructive fire which burns the trees and destroys the woodlands.

"A thinning project may cause the numbers of some bird species to decline to historic levels of occurrence in localized areas, as birds - American robins, for example - that utilize the cedar berries are displaced," Yahnke said, "but other redcedar trees are located both up and down river from the project area. Isolated patches of redcedar may still also remain where ladder fuel characteristics are not a concern and a break in fuel continuity can be accomplished to reduce the threat of unmanageable wildfire."

An evaluation visit with potential contractors will occur in mid-summer, Yahnke said.

Eradication of invasive Redcedar trees has been carried out elsewhere in the area along the Niobrara National Scenic River, especially by controlled burns and/or mechanical removal at the Niobrara Valley Preserve, owned by The Nature Conservancy, and to a lesser extent by private landowners.

Burning is also used as a grassland management tool at the Fort Niobrara National Wildlife Refuge, just east of Valentine.

Birds of New Spain Recorded by Mocino ca. 1800 Identified by Researchers

Least Bittern. Images courtesy of the Hunt Institute for Botanical Documentation. Used through news reporting fair use condition as given on terms of use page. Images have been cropped to reduce file size.

A detailed investigation of records for birds noted more than 200 years ago in New Spain indicate the importance of historic ornithology in determining the former occurrence of birds in different regions.

A group of international researchers studied records from the 1787-1803 Real Expedicion Botanica a Nueva Espana (Royal Botanical Expedition to New Spain), under commander Martin de Sesse. Jose Mariano Mocino was the scientist that joined the expedition in 1790.

Adolfo G. Navarro-Siguenza, of the Museo de Zoologia at the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico, collaborated with A. Townsend Peterson of the Natural History Museum and Biodiversity Research Center at the University of Kansas at Lawrence, Miguel Angel Puig-Samper of the Instituto de Historia of the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas in Madrid, and Graciela Zamudio of the Laboratorio de Historia de la Biologia at UNAM, identified Mocino's efforts as a "stellar example of inventory and analysis of bird fauna" with "an impressive level of detail and scientific commentary," and "consistent and mostly complete" information," according to their recently published journal article.

"We definitely consider Mociño as the greatest Mexican ornithologist of his times, and one of the greatest of all times," Adolfo said.

"It was very rewarding to collaborate closely as ornithologists with personnel working on the history of biology at the Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales in Madrid that found the manuscripts and, as experts in the Sesse and Mociño expedition, invited us to do a deeper analysis of the ornithological results," Adolfo said. "Our ornithology groups at the Museo de Zoologia and University of Kansas have been interested in history of science, especially ornithology, for many years" and this study was a chance to contribute to a better understanding of the birds present more than two centuries ago, especially in southern North America.

Gray-necked Wood-Rail.

The primary reference works used included images of paintings previously published in other sources, and photocopies of the two volumes of the ornithological manuscripts preserved at the museum in Madrid, Spain.

"The greatest challenge was to put together the different pieces of evidence in the texts and paintings, all of which were dispersed among several institutions on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean," Navarro-Siguenza said. "Then, it was a challenge to accurately identify the species involved based on the original descriptions given in Latin."

The different species had been identified, and were named according to a variety of historic nomenclature. Mocino used sources such as the Systema Naturae of Carl Linnaeus and works by J.F. Gmelin. Many of the names matched the names used in later-era publications by William Swainson, William Bullock, Charles Lucien Bonaparte, for example.

One of the major tasks of the researchers was to update the historic scientific names to match those of currently accepted, modern nomenclature. The journal paper specifically notes how nomenclature was "unstable" during the late 1700s and early 1800s.

List of bird species determined for the Royal Botanical Expedition (Navarro-Siguenza et al., November 2007, Condor 109: 808-823). The 262 species recognized, are listed in modern taxonomic sequence. Numerous other bird types with vague description or unrecognizable nomenclature could not be identified to a modern equivalent.
• Black-bellied Whistling-Duck • Greater White-fronted Goose • Muscovy Duck • Gadwall • Blue-winged Teal • Green-winged Teal • White-winged Scoter • Plain Chachalaca • Crested Guan • Red Junglefowl • Wild Turkey • Scaled Quail • Elegant Quail • California Quail • Northern Bobwhite • Montezuma Quail • Least Grebe • Double-crested Cormorant • Anhinga • Magnificent Frigatebird • American Bittern • Least Bittern • Bare-throated Tiger-Heron • Great Blue Heron • Great Egret • Snowy Egret • Green Heron • Black-crowned Night-Heron • Yellow-crowned Night-Heron • Boat-billed Heron • Roseate Spoonbill • Wood Stork • Turkey Vulture • King Vulture • Osprey • Northern Harrier • Cooper's Hawk • Common Black-Hawk • Harris's Hawk • White-tailed Hawk • Red-tailed Hawk • Harpy Eagle • Crested Caracara • Laughing Falcon • American Kestrel • Merlin • Aplomado Falcon • Prairie Falcon • Virginia Rail • Sora • Common Moorhen • Sandhill Crane • Black-bellied Plover • Semipalmated Plover • Killdeer • Black-necked Stilt • American Avocet • Spotted Sandpiper • Willet • Upland Sandpiper • Least Sandpiper • Wilson's Snipe • Laughing Gull • Marbled Murrelet • Tufted Puffin • Rock Pigeon • Red-billed Pigeon • Band-tailed Pigeon • White-winged Dove • Mourning Dove • Inca Dove • Common Ground-Dove • Blue Ground-Dove	• Orange-fronted Parakeet • Military Macaw • Thick-billed Parrot • Barred Parakeet • White-fronted Parrot • Lilac-crowned Parrot • Red-lored Parrot • Yellow-headed Parrot • Squirrel Cuckoo • Yellow-billed Cuckoo • Lesser Ground-Cuckoo • Lesser Roadrunner • Greater Roadrunner • Groove-billed Ani • Great Horned Owl • Whip-poor-will • Canivet's Emerald • Broad-billed Hummingbird • White-eared Hummingbird • Berylline Hummingbird • Amethyst-throated Hummingbird • Blue-throated Hummingbird • Lucifer Hummingbird • Costa's Hummingbird • Rufous Hummingbird • Black-headed Trogon • Citreoline Trogon • Violaceous Trogon • Mountain Trogon • Elegant Trogon • Russet-crowned Motmot • Blue-crowned Motmot • Belted Kingfisher • Green Kingfisher • Emerald Toucanet • Collared Aracari • Keel-billed Toucan • Acorn Woodpecker • Black-cheeked Woodpecker • Golden-cheeked Woodpecker • Ladder-backed Woodpecker • Hairy Woodpecker • Strickland's Woodpecker • Smoky-brown Woodpecker • Golden-olive Woodpecker • Northern Flicker • White-striped Woodcreeper • Black Phoebe • Vermilion Flycatcher • Great Kiskadee • Social Flycatcher • Scissor-tailed Flycatcher • Fork-tailed Flycatcher • Masked Tityra • Loggerhead Shrike • Rufous-browed Peppershrike • Steller's Jay • White-throated Magpie-Jay • Green Jay • Brown Jay • Purplish-backed Jay • Azure-hooded Jay • Western Scrub-Jay • Mexican Jay • Common Raven • Horned Lark • Purple Martin • Gray-breasted Martin • Mangrove Swallow • Northern Rough-winged Swallow • Barn Swallow	• Mexican Chickadee • Bushtit • Brown Creeper • Band-backed Wren • Gray-barred Wren • Boucard’s Wren • Rock Wren • Canyon Wren • Bewick's Wren • Golden-crowned Kinglet • Black-tailed Gnatcatcher • Eastern Bluebird • Brown-backed Solitaire • Orange-billed Nightingale-Thrush • Clay-colored Robin • American Robin • Gray Catbird • Northern Mockingbird • Ocellated Thrasher • Curve-billed Thrasher • Blue Mockingbird • Gray Silky-flycatcher • Phainopepla • Nashville Warbler • Yellow Warbler • Yellow-throated Warbler • Black-and-white Warbler • Louisiana Waterthrush • Common Yellowthroat • Hooded Warbler • Wilson's Warbler • Red Warbler • Painted Redstart • Slate-throated Redstart • Yellow-breasted Chat • Red-breasted Chat • Hepatic Tanager • Western Tanager • Yellow-winged Tanager • White-collared Seedeater • Rufous-capped Brush-Finch • Spotted Towhee • Canyon Towhee • Stripe-headed Sparrow • Striped Sparrow • Chipping Sparrow • Black-chinned Sparrow • Yellow-eyed Junco • Black-headed Saltator • Black-faced Grosbeak • Crimson-collared Grosbeak • Northern Cardinal • Yellow Grosbeak • Black-headed Grosbeak • Blue Grosbeak • Indigo Bunting • Red-winged Blackbird • Yellow-headed Blackbird • Great-tailed Grackle • Slender-billed Grackle • Bronzed Cowbird • Black-cowled Oriole • Orchard Oriole • Streak-backed Oriole • Audubon’s Oriole • Yellow-winged Cacique • Yellow-throated Euphonia • House Finch • Red Crossbill • Lesser Goldfinch

The detailed analysis identified 78 of the paintings to a particular species of bird, with 242 species determined from the manuscripts. Overall, more than 260 species were identified.

Nearly fifty different locales are represented in the sites where a particular species was noted to occur. Most of the locales are in the area of modern Mexico, with a few from the coastal area of the northern Pacific Ocean near Monterey and Nootka Sound.

Sites with birds records as recorded during the Royal Botanical Expedition. These locales are based on a compilation of the records for the species listed in the published article, with the site designation based on locality information given for a particular species.
• Acaponeta • Acapulco • Acayucan • America • Amoles • Apatzingan • Cayenne • Coahuayana • Cuernavaca • Desierto de los Leones • Guadalajara • Gulf of Mexico • Huasteca • Huasutepeque • Huauchinango • Huehuetla	• Hueytlalpan • Lake Texcoco • Lake Tixtla • Los Tuxtlas • Malacatepec • Martinica • Mazatlan • Mexico • Mexico City • Monterey • Nootka Sound • Paramita • Puebla • Queretaro • San Agustin • San Angel	• San Blas • San Felipe del Obraje • San Nicolas • Santo Domingo • Sinaloa • Temascaltepec • Tepic • Tepic Lakes • Toluca • Tropical Mexico • Tulancingo • Uruapan • Valle de Mexico • Zacatlan • Zacatlan de la Manzanas • Zitacuaro

"This analysis fills a large gap on the knowledge of scientific ornithology in Mexico," Navarro-Siguenza said. "It also demonstrates the high level of scientific skills of naturalists of this epoch in New Spain and is a good glance at the impressive biodiversity of the region. And personally, this was a fascinating challenge, a kind of research done just because it is outstandingly fun."

Tri-colored Heron.

In addition to documenting the occurrence of many species in historic Mexico, the records also indicate variations in distribution when site records by Mocino are compared to modern range of a species. Changes were especially notable for the Double-crested Cormorant, Anhinga, Sandhill Crane, Boat-billed Heron, and Slender-billed Grackle. The species occurred in areas where they are no longer present.

Navarro-Siguenza further emphasized the importance of natural history chronicles from this expedition: "Mariano Mociño has been 'venerated' as a major contributor to the botany of Mesoamerica. After this research, we are almost sure that his heart was more closely related to ornithology, and were surprised about the detail and care of his ornithological contributions. It is sad that the work was never published in the 1800s, otherwise nomenclature of North American birds would be really different."

If Mocino's findings had been published soon after the expedition returned from New Spain, the scientific names for many of the species he observed would be based on the names he would have designated, since his citation would have been the first in the historic record. Modern nomenclature is typically derived from the genus and species name given in a published work by the initial observer of a particular species.

"The history of ornithology is important for the history of the science in general, given that many general thoughts in biology - biogeography, conservation, systematics, evolution and ecology - have been based in the study of birds," Navarro-Siguenza said.

"As museum people, we are really aware of the importance of recovering historical information and we hope more people can get involved in this kind of analyses. We have learned through the years that birds are one of the best studied groups at the beginning of any natural history survey in the ancient times in every part of the world, so comparing bird distribution from different periods in time can give a hint on changes of biodiversity in any region.

"Through these records we witness environmental changes, populations health, and geographic structure of faunas. But besides that, we use those records as base data for developing many research projects on avifaunas, including future projections of bird diversity as a result of climate change, emergent diseases" and other factors which influence the distribution of bird species.

"For several years my research group, and others we have worked with in the U.S.A. and Europe especially the University of Kansas and the Natural History Museum in Britain, have stressed the value of scientific collections and historical records as a source of information valuable for conservation, biogeography and systematics of birds and other taxa."

Wind Farm Developers Proactive in Minimizing Threats to Birds

Measures to minimize the threats to birds are an essential part of the planning and construction process by Midwest Wind Energy for a wind farm facility in Knox County, northeast Nebraska.

"We have a proactive approach to addressing environmentally sensitive issues," said Patrick Dalseth, a project coordinator with the Chicago-based company. "We are an environmentally conscious company, so we contacted state and federal agencies early in the planning process while preparing our proposal to the Nebraska Public Power District. The agencies preliminary feedback on environmental concerns were included in the proposal."

The power district had requested proposals to evaluate from which they could select a project that would increase their use of wind-generated power.

The Elkhorn Ridge Wind Project was chosen from among ten proposals submitted, Dalseth said.

Wind turbines at the Ainsworth Wind Energy facility.

In March, NPPD signed an agreement with Midwest Wind Energy to purchase the 80 megawatts of electricity that would be generated on an annual basis by a turbine farm in the rolling hills near Bloomfield.

"The environmental assessment for this project was relatively easy," Dalseth said. "There were hardly any environmentally sensitive issues" such as wetlands or concerns with turbines being placed along an apparent bird migration corridor.

An avian assessment - step #6 in the companies 12 steps to building a wind farm - was carried out by consulting partners. "Sites undergo thorough ornithology studies to ensure migratory routes stay safe," according to the company web site.

Results indicated there are no state or federally listed species on the project site, which is also east of the migration corridor for the Whooping Crane, a species of special concern in regards to potential impacts of wind farm placement. About 58 different species of birds were noted in the area during site visits.

Two leks of the Greater Prairie-Chicken were present, including one in a crop field.

Their occurrence prompted the company to agree to contribute $37,000 to the Nebraska Land Trust. The funds - $1,000 per turbine plus administrative fees - will be used to "benefit the conservation of grassland nesting birds through acquisition of conservation easements in the Verdigre-Bazille Creek Watershed Biologically Unique Landscape area in conjunction with the Nebraska Legacy Project," according to letters of understanding from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and Nebraska Game and Parks Commission.

An agreement of understanding on this contribution is expected to be approved by the end of May.

Several other measures to protect avian resources are being included with the project, according to the letters of understanding by the two agencies in late April:

"In acknowledgement that the wind project and ancillary facilities can have an adverse affect on state trust fish and wildlife species including threatened and endangered species and migratory birds, the project proponent has made the following items a part of the proposed project:"

1) Power lines between turbines and to substations at the project site will be buried.

2) Bird flight diverters will be installed on the existing transmission lines that extend through the project area. Midwest Wind Energy will work with NPPD on installing these devices, Dalseth said.

3) All facilities within the project site will be constructed in a manner consistent with guidelines set forth by the Avian Powerline Committee to reduce and avoid mortality and injury to migratory birds.

4) Post-construction monitoring will be conducted for two years to determine the affect of operations on wildlife species. Results will be provided to the oversight agencies for evaluation, and discussion of results, if necessary, Dalseth said.

The company also received a nationwide permit, through a Section 404 evaluation with the Army Corps of Engineers, for underground transmission lines that will cross both natural wetlands and one man-made pond on the project site.

Including the cost of the contribution for protecting habitats for grassland species, about $65-70,000 dollars was spent on environmental review and assessment activities, Dalseth said.

It will cost $140 million to construct the Elkhorn Ridge Wind Project, which will have 27 wind turbines with a height of 410 feet spread across about 8,355 acres, which is about 95% cropland, Dalseth said. Each turbine - except for one - will be placed in tilled cropland, generally along a preexisting, high-voltage transmission line. Red-flashing lights will be placed atop the turbine hubs, to mark their location for planes, following regulatory guidelines of the Federal Aviation Authority.

Construction of the project is currently underway, and expected to be completed about December, 2008.

The steps used to develop the Elkhorn Ridge Wind Project are the same procedures that will be utilized for the construction of any other facilities to generate power from wind, Dalseth said. Midwest Wind Energy is currently evaluating the construction of two other wind facilities in Nebraska, and elsewhere within its area of operation.

Land Donation and Federal Grant to Help Waterfowl Conservation in Louisiana

A donation of 71,300 acres by British Petroleum and an additional grant of more than $1 million will conserve coastal wetlands and prairie in southwest Louisiana.

Funding of nearly $1 million was awarded to Ducks Unlimited through the North American Waterfowl Conservation Act, sponsored by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, along with an additional $2.1 million - including a $2 million land donation from BP America Production Company - in matching funds provided by Stream Companies and a private land-owner.

The BP grant is based on a donation of 71,300 acres of habitat, that will be managed by the Louisiana Department of Fish and Wildlife.

There will be 850 acres restored and 1,487 acres enhanced, according to the NAWCA grant summary, to provide "dependable, seasonal habitat for waterfowl and other wetland-dependent wildlife" by:

1) enhancing 1,458 acres of moist-soil / agricultural wetlands;

2) enhancing 29 acres of coastal freshwater marsh; and

3) restoring 850 acres of coastal prairie uplands that provide critical nesting habitat for breeding Mottled Ducks.

Management efforts will be completed at several locales:

White Lake Wetland Conservation Area - 71,300 donated acres.

Lacassine National Wildlife Refuge - wetland enhancement on 570 acres of moist-soil / agricultural wetlands (primarily rice) via replacement of existing pumping station with a new surface pump and renovation of 3,900 linear feet of existing levee.

Goose Lake Site

* upland restoration on 361 acres of prairie habitat, using aerial application of herbicide to control expansion of noxious Chinese tallow trees;

* wetland enhancement on 375 acres of moist-soil / agricultural wetlands (primarily rice), with the installation of a groundwater well and renovation of 16,250 linear feet of existing levee;

* wetland enhancement on 177 acres of moist-soil / agricultural wetlands (primarily rice) by refurbishment of an existing surface water pumping station;

* upland restoration on 148 acres of prairie habitat, with an application of herbicide spray to control expansion of noxious Chinese tallow trees; and

* wetland enhancement on 29 acres of freshwater marsh wetlands via installation of two water control structures.

Ranch Site

* upland restoration on 90 acres of prairie habitat be mechanical clearing of vegetation to control expansion of noxious Chinese tallow trees;

* wetland enhancement on 182 acres of moist-soil / agricultural wetlands (primarily rice), with the installation of a groundwater well and renovation of 13,000 linear feet of existing levee; and

* upland restoration on 251 acres of prairie habitat by an aerial application of herbicide to control expansion of noxious Chinese tallow trees.

"This proposal represents a continuation of long-term efforts to protect, restore and enhance important wetland habitats in the Gulf Coastal Prairies," according to the NAWCA grant summary. "The coastal prairie region within southwestern Louisiana has lost more than 99% of its native grasslands due to intensive agricultural practices and urban development."

"These native prairie grasslands are critical habitat for several priority species of grassland birds. Grassland restoration herein should specifically benefit Short-eared Owls, Northern Harriers, assorted other raptors, Loggerhead Shrikes, several species of wintering sparrows, and perhaps Sprague's Pipit which occurs in southwestern Louisiana in winter on grazed wet prairies. In addition, resident Mottled Ducks will directly benefit from improved nesting opportunities within restored prairie upland habitat. Wet and/or flooded areas within these grasslands offer foraging habitat for a host of other landbirds, shorebirds, wading birds, and waterfowl.

"Conservation projects included in this proposal will partially compensate for the region's loss of emergent wetlands and coastal prairie grasslands and will maximize waterfowl and other migratory bird values by increasing breeding, migration and wintering habitat. This proposal will provide breeding habitat primarily for Mottled Ducks, as well as wintering/migration habitat for Northern Pintails, Mallards, Gadwalls, American Wigeon, Green-winged Teal, Blue-winged Teal, and other waterfowl, shorebirds, wading birds, and grassland dependent landbirds.

"Ten priority waterfowl species and an additional ten wetland-dependent migratory bird species were identified as benefiting from the habitat conservation results. Other birds that utilize the coastal wetlands and prairie area will also benefit."

The project will restore "wetland functions and values on private lands that make the Louisiana coastal wetlands a sustainable ecosystem that provides economically valuable and ecologically significant goods and services to humans, including improvements to water quality, storage and/or reduction of flooding associated with tropical storms and hurricanes, and a host of fish and wildlife habitat-related aspects. All of these goods and services are beneficial to the general public."

Expedition in 1853 Notes the Importance of Aransas Bay for Fowl in the Winter

During 1850-1853, an expeditionary force was assigned to define the northern boundary of Mexico. The leader of the United States-Mexican boundary Commission, 45-year-old John Russell Bartlett, kept a personal narrative of explorations and incidents in Texas, New Mexico, California, Sonora and Chihuahua.

The preface to the lengthy account said: "...of the botany and zoology I have endeavored to keep before the reader a correct idea of the character of the country throughout which he was to follow me, without lists and descriptions, scientific or otherwise, of every plant, quadruped, bird, and reptile that came in my way."

Notes about local birds among the daily diary entries, started soon after the party got underway. A first notation in September 1850, referred to prairie fowl, curlew and quail at Indianola, on the gulf coast of Texas. Subsequent mentions - only periodically in Bartlett's ongoing narrative - typically only cited one or two generic types of birds such as ducks, teal, plover, sparrows and blackbirds.

In one instance on October 20, 1850, when traversing a plateau near Bradys Creek in west-central Texas, a vast prairie dog town - including "small brown owls" that flitted about - was enough of an inspiration that Bartlett drew a sketch which also depicted the Burrowing Owls. The men and their wagons marched for three hours through the "dog-town," with it extending onward far enough to be present during the entire next day. On the 22nd, the day's entry said: "The community and domain of the prairie dogs, which we entered two days ago, continues." The locale may have been a wintering habitat for the owls. On the 23rd, more owls were noted when beyond "Potato Spring" and near Antelope Creek.

The brief mentions of birds for this expedition account are interesting records, but certainly are not a significant contribution to historic ornithology for the region visited.

However, near the end of the survey expedition early in 1853, Bartlett remarked on the conditions where a great number of fowl were present on the eastern extent of Corpus Christi Bay. This notation is exquisite for the inference of the presence of a particular species.

"January 5th. The morning found us on the opposite side of Corpus Christi Bay, a light breeze wafting us eastwards towards Aransas Pass. The navigation here is carried on with boats of light burden through the shallow bays or lagunas, which line the west and north-west shores of the Gulf of Mexico. These bays are exceedingly shallow, sometimes presented a breadth of ten or fifteen miles, by a hundred or more in length. Yet these broad spaces of water are often not more than three or four feet deep, even in the middle. This depth would admit flat-bottomed vessels of large capacity, were it not for the numerous bars which intersect them, sometimes leaving but a few inches of water; hence, none but flat-bottomed boats can navigate these waters, and even these may be suddenly arrested in their progress, should a norther occur and drive the water out of the bays.

"Our course lay through a channel less than twenty yards wide for miles, with bars of sand on both sides but an inch or two above the water. These were covered with myriads of water-fowl, including cranes, swans, herons, ibises, geese, ducks, curlews, plover, sand-pipers, etc. The large cranes and swans stood in lines extending for miles, appearing like a light sandy beach or white cliff; and it was impossible to dispel the delusion, until the vast flock, with a simultaneous scream that could be heard for miles, rose from their resting place. Occasionally, we would round a point which concealed a bay the surface of which was filled with ducks and geese; these, taking the alarm, would rise in one continuous flock, making a noise like thunder, as they flapped their wings on emerging from the water. Notwithstanding the vast numbers of these birds, I shot but few; for the water was so shallow that we could not get within gun shot of them with our boat. With a light skiff, and a few bushes or a bunch of grass, a gunnder would have such sport as no other portion of the world can surpass."

Their route continued until entering Aransas Bay, later in the day's boat trip, just days before Bartlett explorations were to end, and he returned to the east coast.

This entry is certainly notable for its mention of the large cranes, with its additional notation to their appearing as part of a "white cliff" with the swans.

This can be interpreted as referring to a large white crane, which can be readily distinguishable as the Whooping Crane, rather than the smaller, gray crane, which would be the Sandhill Crane. And the notation is about cranes, not herons, or egrets. It is possible that the Great Egret and Snowy Egret were also among the species present, since this is an area where the species would occur in January.

Bartlett's notes obviously indicate an extensive number of the particular cranes, spread along a distance given in "miles" rather than for just a short distance. There must have been a very large number present, indicating the importance of the locale as wintering habitat.

The scene was obviously remarkable, presenting an impression dramatic enough for Bartlett to mention a greater variety of bird types than he noted on any other occasion during the 2.5 years of the boundary survey.

More than 150 years later, Aransas Bay is still the winter home for the remaining remnant - compared to historic numbers - of the interior population of Whooping Cranes.

Peregrine Falcons First Nested Sixteen Years Ago in Omaha

Sixteen years ago the Peregrine Falcons began a flight to new heights when they laid the first eggs in a hack box atop the Woodmen Tower.

The nesting was the culmination of a release effort that had started in 1988.

Eastward view from the hack box location atop the Woodmen Tower.

Their introduction to a new home and nesting locale, was the result of months of meetings and fund raising necessary for an initiative that would be a soaring success.

Planning meetings for the Nebraska Peregrine Falcon Project were well underway in the late-summer of 1987, as representatives from the Audubon Society of Omaha, Fontenelle Forest Association, Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, and Raptor Recovery Center collaborated on bring the majestic falcons to the Omaha urban scene.

Raising the $15-20,000 needed to finance the project was the initial focus, and was enough of a success to continue with the reintroduction effort.

Each of the five birds to be released from the hack box were expected to cost at least $1500. Funds for their purchase and other project expenses were provided by the Papio Natural Resources District, Nebraska Wildlife Federation, the state income tax nongame checkoff program of the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, and numerous donations from individuals, school classes, sportsmen clubs and other sources.

A visit to evaluate two potential release sites occurred in late autumn of 1987. The two prominent options were the Woodmen Tower and Mutual of Omaha building. The Woodmen Tower - the "best cliff in Omaha" - was the obvious choice, and once the project people agreed upon the site, things were well on their way to bring the swift falcons to the city.

The Woodmen organization was an avid supporter from the start, according to information published at the time. The Alfred G. Thomsen Company, the building's manager, was also instrumental in insuring the successful placement of the hack box on the tower roof.

A primary reason for releasing falcons at the Woodmen Tower were that the 30-story Woodmen building mimicked a natural cliff, according to Bruce Lund, a project leader, in a January 1988 article in Shavings, the newsletter of the Woodmen of the World Life Insurance Society. Also, "the rooftop was clear of obstructions, such as air vents and fans, which cause injury of problems for the falcons. Pigeons and starlings are also abundant, providing the falcons with a food supply. Finally, the building overlooks the Missouri River Valley which should make a good imprint on the birds for their return the following spring."

Ken Seger, of Omaha, carefully crafted the painted white, wooden hack box - about five feet wide, three-four feet high, and with a depth of four feet - which was put in place near the edge of the east side of the building's rooftop by several volunteers in latter May, 1988.

Volunteer crew preparing the hack box for placement.

Jerry Toll, Ken Seger and Mike Gilbert putting together the hack box.

Five falcons were placed in the hack box a few weeks later, then fed domestically raised quail for a several weeks to provide a reliable source of food as they grew and once fledged, learned to fly and soar above the canyons of downtown, and then to survive on their own, in the wild environs of the river valley.

In addition to hired attendants for the hack box, many people were volunteer helping with public education or willing to be an emergency contact. Each individual involved helped make the project a success.

An office window facing west at the Northwestern Bell telephone building a couple of blocks east, was used as an observation point, where the daytime attendants kept an eye on the fledgling falcons.

The goal at the time of release was to establish a self-sustaining population by 1993.

The first wild progeny were raised in 1992 by two falcons named Woody - a bird released at Woodmen in 1989 - and Windy, released at Des Moines in 1991, according to an article published in the Nebraska Bird Review.

Between May 7th and 9th, three eggs were laid in the hack box, according to the article by Rosalind Morris. Hatching took place between June 11-13.

The three chicks named Aerial, Zenith and Skywalker successfully fledged, according to records kept by project watchers whom work at the Woodmen of the World Life Insurance Society.

This was the first known hatching of Peregrine Falcons in eastern Nebraska. Adults and young had been noted in Dawes County, west of Fort Robinson in 1903.

The tower falcons now nest on a simple platform, still atop the best cliff in town.

During the twenty years the project has been underway at the Woodmen Tower, 46 chicks have hatched, according to the records kept by the Society personnel. A genealogy of the falcons - with identity of the birds based, when possible, on leg bands - is available at the project website.

Bruce Lund getting a falcon's eye view.

The hack box installation crew, including Bruce Lund, Ken Seger, Jim Ducey, and Jerry Toll.

Mississippi Valley Mecca for Wintering Birds to be Enhanced

Habitat which provides a winter mecca for waterfowl other migratory birds in Arkansas, will be enhanced through a project funded by a federal grant and local conservationists.

View of project area wetland. Images courtesy of Richard W. Johnson.

A recent grant of $909,138 from the North American Wetlands Conservation Act will be used for habitat management at Bayou Meto Wildlife Management Area. Partners in the grant proposal include Ducks Unlimited, Wetlands America Trust, Arkansas Game and Fish Commission, M.E. Black Farms, Bear Bayou L.L.C., Arkansas Audubon, Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission, Stuttgart Chamber of Commerce, Farmers & Merchants Bank, Rich-N-Tone Duck Calls, Mack's Prairie Wings, Benny Petrus Chevrolet, 5-Oaks Lodge, Pine Bluff Sand & Gravel Co., Hardly Able L.L.C., and private individuals. They provided about $200,000 in matching funds and another $1.9 million of in-kind contributions.

Activities that will result include easements donated on 5,200 acres, restoration of 4,874 acres, and enhancement of 2,730 acres. A portion of the funds will also help a habitat enhancement project at the White River National Wildlife Refuge.

"This proposal is the first of at least two to restore and enhance the Bayou Meto Basin (BMB) of the Lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley (LMAV) to meet conservation objectives for migratory birds and other wetland dependent fish and wildlife," according to the NAWCA grant summary.

The "proposal secures perpetual protection of 4,066 acres of palustrine forested wetlands, 26 acres of palustrine emergent wetlands, 117 acres of palustrine scrub-shrub wetland, 472 acres of riparian habitat, and 519 acres of agricultural-upland habitats via donated conservation easements. The proposal also will restore 5,442 acres, including 844 acres of palustrine emergent or seasonally-flooded wetlands, 4,393 acres of palustrine forested wetlands, and 205 acres of palustrine scrub-shrub wetlands, and it will enhance 2,730 acres, including 586 acres of palustrine emergent wetlands, 376 acres of palustrine forested wetlands, 96 acres of lacustrine wetland, and 1,672 acres of seasonally-flooded rice field. Forest restoration and enhancement in this project will help ameliorate for the estimated 80% loss of this wetland resource in the LMAV.

"This grant will provide an estimated 869,607 Duck Use Days (a measure of carrying capacity or the number of waterfowl a given area of land can support in terms of forage) on wetlands restored and enhanced by this grant. Collectively, this represents 3,794,705 DUDs toward the LMVJV goal of providing approximately 490 million DUDs that will benefit at least 19 species of waterfowl, including five NAWCA high priority species and five NAWCA other priority waterfowl species. Restoration, enhancement, and protection of 9,307 acres of forested wetlands and riparian habitats in or near three LMV joint venture-designated Forest Bird Conservation Areas (FBCA) will benefit at least ten NAWCA priority species for the LMAV (Bird Conservation Region 26) and 15 other wetland dependent forest bird species using the proposal area. At least three NAWCA BCR 26 Priority Species of shorebirds and 20 other species of shorebirds that migrate through or winter in the LMAV also will benefit directly from work proposed herein. Protection, restoration and enhancement activities proposed herein will benefit the NAWCA BCR 26 priority species Little Blue Heron and at least 8 other species of marsh or wading birds.

Waterfowl use of wetland habitat.

“The Halowell Project will benefit numerous species of waterfowl, primarily the Northern Pintail, Mallard, Ring-necked Duck, American Wigeon, Green-winged teal, Blue-winged Teal, Gadwall and Northern Shoveler,” said Richard W. Johnson, wetlands program coordinator with the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission. “Other species that will use moist-soil habitat occasionally but not exclusively include Lesser Scaup, Greater Scaup, Wood Duck, Redhead, Canvasback, Ruddy Duck and the Hooded Merganser. Although the wood duck and hooded merganser use forested areas more often than moist-soil and the others are most often associated with deep open water habitats, they can be seen in the moist-soil areas, just not in the great numbers as with the other species. Greater White-Fronted Goose, Lesser Snow Goose and Ross’ Goose will use moist-soil areas as well. Some other birds that will utilize these areas include the Stilt Sandpiper, American Woodcock, White Ibis, Least Bittern, King Rail, Greater Yellowlegs, Solitary Sandpiper and Least Sandpiper.

“The moist-soil areas provide habitat to a wide variety of birds throughout the year. They provide a suite of natural vegetation that provides a “balanced diet” for waterfowl and a substrate for invertebrates that are important to egg-laying hens. Shorebirds will use them and during the summer other species will use them like deer, turkey, rabbits and other small mammals, reptiles and amphibians,” he said.

Wetlands conserved by this proposal provide significant ecological goods and services, especially water quality benefits. The 3,102 acres of seasonally flooded wetland and rice fields to be enhanced and restored by this work will prevent an estimated 47-1,551 tons of topsoil being lost to streams and rivers in the proposal area."

Wetland and forest habitat.

"Plans for the enhancement project call for Halowell's west and central units to be divided into two units each, for a total of four units," Johnson said. "The reservoir's east unit will be used as a storage compartment for surface water. Other enhancements include the installation of a tailwater recovery system and water-transfer canals that will allow each unit to be flooded and drained independently.

"Until recently, Halowell had never been actively managed as a moist-soil unit," Johnson said. "Moist soil management is a lot like farming - the more you put into it, the more you get out of it. This grant will improve management efficiency and enable us to actively manage this area and create more food for ducks and other migratory birds.

"Basically, we're setting up Halowell as a small-scale farm to grow beneficial plants for waterfowl," Johnson said.

"Ducks don't just sit on one area and never move," said Luke Naylor, AGFC waterfowl program coordinator. "They're going to get up and move into the timber to loaf and feed. Improving habitat at Halowell Reservoir should also be beneficial to duck hunters in Bayou Meto WMA."

Johnson said the projects will increase and enhance waterfowl habitat in one of the Mississippi Flyway's most important wintering areas, help Arkansas meet its habitat goals under the North American Waterfowl Management Plan, and help attract ducks and other migratory birds to the state.

The project partners "fully endorse implementation of long-term wetlands conservation strategies to meet regional goals and objectives of this proposal. This proposal integrates important public lands with those of dedicated private landowners who sought to restore or enhance valuable wetlands on their property in the Bayou Meto Basin."