Coalition Protects Habitat in Historic Plantation District of South Carolina

A team effort of public and private partners have purchased an easement to conserve a 3,732-acre tract of the unique Ashley River district in the low-country of eastern South Carolina. Another 230 acres will be protected through the donation of a protective easement.

Funding of $3.1 million allowed the purchase of an easement on the acreage at the Middleton Place Woodlands. The donated easement will conserve lands at the Uxbridge Plantation.

A third of the funds were provided through a North America Wetlands Conservation Act, managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Other contributors were Ducks Unlimited, landowner Charless Duell, Middleton Place L.L.C., the South Carolina Conservation Bank, and the Doris Duke Conservation Foundation.

The Lowcountry Open Lands Trust and The Nature Conservancy also assisted with the required legal transactions. Ducks Unlimited will monitor and enforce the easement.

"The Middleton Place Woodlands easement is an important part of the multi-year effort to protect South Carolina's Lowcountry," said Jason Johnson, South Carolina director for The Conservation Fund. "We are pleased to be a part of these efforts and are thankful to all the partners for working to protect the historic and scenic character of the Ashley River corridor in the face of development."

"The Conservation Fund worked with the owners of Middleton Place Woodlands to facilitate the placement of a conservation easement on this historic property, solidifying the family's generations-long commitment to preserving the property in its natural state while allowing only limited potential for future development."

"Located in the fastest growing county in South Carolina, the Ashley River historic district is considered one of the country's most endangered places," according to the Conservation Fund. "Three years ago, Ducks Unlimited began its Ashley River Historic District Project, an effort aimed at protecting critical habitat and undeveloped land between Charleston and Summerville. With the Middleton Place Woodlands easement and another easement recently secured by Ducks Unlimited on 2,441 acres of Millbrook Plantation, more than 12,000 acres have been protected within the historic district."

"This area consists of former rice plantations which are largely undeveloped and harbor important natural habitats including tidal, managed, and forested wetlands, as well as upland forests and agricultural areas. The area also has important historical and archeological sites which are relatively intact and well documented."

"The conservation easement placed on Uxbridge Plantation will protect approximately 64 acres of wetlands composed of bottomland hardwoods and approximately 166 acres of upland for a total of approximately 230 acres," according to the project summary for the NAWCA grant. "The Middleton Place Woodlands conservation easement will protect approximately 2,458 acres of wetland composed of approximately 2,420 acres of forested wetlands" and another 38 acres of other types of marsh.

There are about 1274 acres of upland habitat.

The "high-quality" habitats are utilized by Wild Turkey, Northern Bobwhite, and waterfowl such as the American Black Duck, Mallard and Wood Duck, the grant proposal says. Birds of high priority for conservation that occur are the Little Blue Heron, American Woodcock, Wood Thrush, and endangered species such as the Wood Stork, Red-cockaded Woodpecker, and Swallow-tailed Kite.

"We are always glad to be involved with projects like this one," said Craig LeSchack, Director of Conservation Programs for Ducks Unlimited. "Protecting areas through permanent easements is an excellent way to provide for future generations, and permanent protection of areas that are so historically and ecologically significant is exceptionally gratifying."

"Middleton Place is an icon in the historic plantation district and represents a special time in the history of South Carolina that typifies moss-draped cypress trees, wide verandas and a gentler way of life," said Marvin Davant, director of the South Carolina Conservation Bank. "It is a statement of our traditions and our heritage. It is important to the future of South Carolina to recognize the value of our past. The South Carolina Conservation Bank is pleased and honored that it could be a partner in conserving this wonderful property."

For the Duell Family, owners of the Middleton Place Woodlands, the project was an opportunity to preserve a unique heritage on a property that has been owned by family members for nearly 300 years.

"Our family is pleased to make possible these conservation easements that protect, in perpetuity, the rural character of the Historic Ashley River Plantation District," said Charles Duell. "With the Carter and Hanahan families placing similar easements on Millbrook and Uxbridge plantations, we have gone a long way to protecting the entire District from additional unwanted, high-density development."

The easements along Ashley River Road will help to "retain the historic atmosphere of the plantation district and protect the viewshed of this historic area for the public in addition to enforcing the urban growth boundary that the City of Charleston has attempted to establish through this area,"

Recreational hunters and boaters will also benefit by having the current land use maintained. Preservation of water quality is a third benefit provided by the easements.

The project partners in the area are working to conserve valuable habitats and open spaces as transitions in land use occur.

"A coalition of groups has worked together to make sure as much land as possible is retained in its natural condition and any development that occurs is consistent with the historic land uses of the plantation area," according to the federal grant summary. "The potential for development became greater in May, 2007 when the MeadWestvaco Corporation announced that it would begin planning for disposition of almost 400,000 acres of land in South Carolina, 70,000 of which is just west of Middleton Place. The protection of the Ashley River Historic District Properties creates a conservation corridor from the Ashley River through to the ACE Basin."

Conserving Migratory Shorebird Habitats in Northeast Brazil

Salt flats and mangroves at Ceará. All pictures courtesy of Alberto Campos of AQUASIS.

A multi-faceted research and monitoring project is getting underway to help conserve essential habitat for migratory shorebirds on the Atlantic coast of Ceará, in northeast Brazil.

The initiative will, according to Caio J. Carlos the project coordinator at AQUASIS, produce "reliable information on Nearctic migratory shorebird species richness and seasonal abundance; shorebird prey abundance and seasonal variation in different intertidal habitats (mudflats, salt flats, sand bars, mangroves), and, shorebird habitat loss to shrimp ponds in the past twenty years. We expect to produce conclusive spatial data about the extent of the impact of shrimp farming and to provide baseline information to support the planning, monitoring and management of priority areas for the conservation of migratory shorebird habitats."

The main objective, Carlos said in an email, "is to improve the understanding on shorebird seasonal abundance and stopover habitat quality and concurrently, the impacts of shrimp farming on intertidal environments used by shorebirds. In this sense, an intensive research program will quantify shorebird seasonal abundance and species composition and estimate shorebird prey abundance in different intertidal habitats."

Coastal landscape at Ceará.

"Four main questions are expected to be answered: (1) which species of Nearctic migratory shorebirds occur in Ceará and when, (2) what food resources are available for migratory shorebirds in this region and in which coastal habitats, (3) are salt flats important stopover habitats for shorebirds, and (4) how many hectares of intertidal shorebird habitats1 have been converted into shrimp ponds."

Total funding for this project exceeds 500 thousand dollars, with $125,934 provided by a recent Neotropical Migratory Bird Conservation Act grant from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, $122,000 from AQUASIS, $115,770 from the Department of Biology/Marine Invertebrates Laboratory at the Federal University of Ceará, and $140,300 from the Department of Geography/Laboratory of Digital Cartography, also at the Federal University of Ceará.

The 18 months of research and monitoring supported by these funds, will start with 12 months of intensive effort to quantify shorebirds abundance and species composition at three sites on the coast of Ceará, Carlos said.

"Preliminary surveys have indicated that intertidal mudflats and salt flats are used by foraging shorebirds, such as Ruddy Turnstones (Arenaria interpres) and Whimbrels (Numenius phaeopus). Flocks of poorly understood species such as the Stilt Sandpiper (Calidris himantopus) have been recently observed in Ceará, and the threatened Piping Plover (Charadrius melodus) has been mist netted in the neighboring Rio Grande do Norte State. Several sightings of color-banded shorebirds with U.S. dark-green flags have also confirmed the presence of North American migrants in Ceará, especially Red Knots (Calidris canutus rufa) and Ruddy Turnstones.

Whimbrels at Ceará.

Red Knots at Ceará.

"Of the 20 migratory shorebirds recorded for Ceará (60% of the species known to Brazil), nine are of high conservation concern. Breeding populations of these species include the American Oystercatcher (Haematopus palliatus), Black-necked Stilt (Himantopus mexicanus) and Wilson's Plover (Charadrius wilsonia). The following species are priorities, with an asterisk (*) indicating more abundant species: *Black-bellied Plover, American Golden-Plover, *Semipalmated Plover, *Greater Yellowlegs, *Lesser Yellowlegs, Solitary Sandpiper, *Willet, Spotted Sandpiper, *Whimbrel, *Ruddy Turnstone, Red Knot, *Semipalmated Sandpiper, Least Sandpiper, White-rumped Sandpiper, Pectoral Sandpiper, *Stilt Sandpiper, and *Short-billed Dowitcher.

Wilson's Plover chick at Ceará.

Ruddy Turnstones, including one which is banded.

"In northeast Brazil progress towards recognizing the significance of salt flats for these birds and formulating appropriate conservation strategies has been hampered by the lack of baseline information," Carlos said. "The need for this data is heightened by the ever increasing pressures for shrimp farm development in the region. Unfortunately, shorebirds are some of the least studied birds in northeast Brazil and available information consists mainly of a few check-lists and short-term surveys.

"The loss of mangrove-associated habitats, for example, salt flats, remains unrecognized as a threat to coastal ecological processes including long-distance shorebird migrations. Coastal wetlands like salt flats are being targeted for development because they are considered barren wastelands, are 'non-mangrove,' and are not clearly protected by national legislation in most countries. In the Neotropics the role of these wetlands as stopover areas for migratory birds remains ignored or unknown by resource managers in most countries."

Impacts to habitats in the area are the primary cause for concern, according to Carlos.

Shrimp farm among mangroves.

"Virtually all estuaries of Ceará and Rio Grande do Norte are impacted by the construction and operation of shrimp ponds. As a result of its rapid expansion, especially since 1998, extensive areas of mangroves and salt flats have been converted into ponds bringing about environmental degradation and social conflict. In Brazil, appropriate conditions for marine shrimp aquaculture occur in its northeast region, which accounts for more than 96% of the country's output. The State of Ceará alone accounted for almost 30% of this production in 2002. The activity has expanded so fast in the last 10 years that the total area of ponds in operation is now unknown, and worse, may be grossly underestimated by 'official statistics.' According to the Brazilian Association of Shrimp Growers there are approximately 16,000 hectares of ponds but this appears to be a gross underestimation, and this figure could be 2-3 times greater."

Shrimp was formerly consumed locally, but is now a major agricultural export, Carlos said. "The states of São Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Minas Gerais and Bahia are thought to be the largest shrimp consumers in Brazil. Up to 1999 most of the shrimp produced in Brazil was sold within the country. However, since the devaluation of Brazilian currency in 1999, exports have increase rapidly. Shrimp in Brazil has been mainly exported to the U.S.A. and Japan, but more recently exports to Europe increased, with Spain, France and the United Kingdom being the largest markets."

In June 2007, AQUASIS co-hosted with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, an "Atlantic Flyway Migratory Birds and Shrimp Farming" workshop to evaluate the impact of shrimp farming on Atlantic flyway migratory birds.

"Brazilian and U.S. participants met in Ceará to discuss the conservation challenge posed by the rapid growth of the shrimp aquaculture industry along the northeast coast of Brazil and the transformation of coastal wetlands that are important as stopover and/or wintering sites for migratory shorebirds," Carlos said. "After discussions, there was a common understanding that coastal habitat conversion is a critical shorebird conservation issue, especially where the occupation of coastal habitats is occurring at an alarming rate."

Workshop participants said "Urgent attention should be directed to the coastal migratory corridor of Piauí, Ceará and Rio Grande do Norte, since this is a semi-arid coastline with fragile hypersaline estuaries that present low food availability during the dry season, and the increasing conversion of coastal habitats may be creating an approximately 1000 kilometer-long gap and bottleneck for migratory birds in the Western Hemisphere Atlantic Flyway."

During the workshop, it was suggested that remote sensing techniques would be useful to identify trends and to monitor coastal ecosystems, especially concerning the growth in shrimp pond areas.

The current project will make significant use of this methodology to analyze land use.

"In parallel with the shorebird research," Carlos said, "remote sensing will be used to determine how many hectares of intertidal shorebird habitats have been converted into shrimp ponds in the past twenty years along 700 km of Ceará coastline and portions of the neighboring State of Rio Grande do Norte. The team of the Laboratory of Digital Cartography will produce a cartographic representation of the evolution of the occupation of intertidal habitats potentially available for shorebirds since 1998, using Landsat and Ikonos satellite imagery. Besides updating information on shrimp pond area, we will also quantify other forms of occupation that may be reducing the availability of shorebird habitats (saltworks, urban expansion, tourism equipments) and mapping the remaining viable intertidal habitats like mudflats, salt flats, sandbars, tidal deltas, and mangroves. In the estuarine systems associated with the sampling areas a detailed mapping of land cover will be performed in a yearly basis since 1996, when shrimp farming boomed in northeast Brazil.

Carlos provided some additional comments regarding the dramatic increase in shrimp farming, and how its ongoing development is changing coastal wetlands:

"Society has progressively experienced the paradox of an unprecedented increase in understanding and awareness about environmental problems alongside a seemingly growing incapacity by governments and society to successfully address them. The precarious state of global fisheries, denudation of forests, and climate change, are examples that have received widespread press coverage, but coastal shrimp aquaculture is an emerging issue that despite of its appalling ecological and social costs, has received less attention and only apathetic concern.

"The prospects for high profits and rapid return on investments, coupled with high uncertainty in the industry's future have promoted a modality of resource use that seeks maximum profits in the least time. Such approach undermines planning and disregards the benefits of gradual adaptive, harmonious growth, surrenders long-term benefits and undermines the industry's own ultimate sustainability. The current surge and increasing momentum of growth of coastal aquaculture on a global scale, and the sweeping changes that would be needed to make it sustainable and environmentally compatible makes it highly unlikely that changes in its exploitation modality will take place in the short-term.

"This becomes apparent given the reluctance of the industry so far to self-regulate, and the continued willingness of financial institutions and governments to keep on supporting a manifestly unsustainable modality of development in spite of calls for ecosystem and sustainable management in newly developed international environmental law instruments and declarations. In the Americas these include the 'Western Hemisphere Convention,' the 'Ramsar Wetlands Convention' and the 'Convention on Biological Diversity.' These instruments are not mere eloquent expressions of general aspirations; they are legally binding and impose performance obligations that include the development of legal and institutional frameworks to ensure that national laws and policies are compatible with the obligations undertaken, as well as for improving standards of compliance. As an example, the legal commitments accepted by Ramsar's parties involve non-site specific (applying to all wetlands), site specific (related to listed sites) and a third obligation that involves engagement in international cooperation for the coordinated management of shared resources such as migratory species. These treaties, conventions and declarations reflect the growing global consensus that all States and the international community have a keen interest in the conservation of wild species and the habitats in which they live.

"Unfortunately, this international framework has not been able to cope with the explosive growth of aquaculture and its occupation of coastal wetlands; the conversion of these critical transition zones remains essentially unabated and unregulated. Particularly neglected are its effects on little understood but frail coastal ecological processes, or the potential long-term impacts of widespread degradation on the function of the narrow coastal critical transition zones from which millions of local people depend for their livelihoods. Also neglected is the potential irreversible impact that the loss of coastal wetlands may have on long-distance shorebird migrations; an irreplaceable global ecological phenomena. Furthermore, there is little recognition that the degradation of coastal areas by aquaculture represents the erosion of critical natural capital that undermines sustainability.

"Aquaculture will not disappear, as shrimp remains a prized commodity in the global market, but may persist as a 'proliferate-and-run' business causing widespread social, ecologic and economic turmoil. This pattern of resource depletion is best exemplified in Ceará by the Spiny Lobster fisheries, where unsustainable practices and lack of regulations led to over fishing and a total collapse after 40 years of exploitation. Today, most industrial lobster enterprises are shifting to shrimp farming, adapting the lobster processing plants to process farmed shrimp, and reproducing this unsustainable model based on the exhaustion of natural resources, with the aggravation of the occupation of keystone coastal ecosystems like mangroves.

"It is likely that ultimately more educated consumers will make market decisions that will force the industry to adopt an environmentally friendly approach by shunning products from certain producing countries. Unfortunately until that time, social problems and environmental damage to sensitive systems and a lengthy legacy of irreparable damages must be expected if prompt actions are not taken by governments and the regional and global financial institutions that fuel its growth to regulate its development."

AQUASIS (Associação de Pesquisa e Preservação de Ecossistemas Aquáticos) is a nonprofit, non-governmental organization that has been actively involved in resource conservation since its inception in 1994.

The organization, Carlos said, "conducts conservation processes (not just projects) to deal with some of the most pressing environmental issues in the State of Ceará and neighboring areas. Our focus is on endangered species and their habitats, and we have been working with four Critically Endangered taxa in our region: the birds Araripe Manakin (Antilophia bokermanni) and Grey-breasted Parakeet (Pyrrhura griseipectus); the Caatinga Red-handed Howling Monkey (Alouatta ululata); and the Antillean Manatee (Thrichechus manatus).

"After conducting preliminary surveys in the past two years with migratory shorebirds, we have enhanced our understanding about the importance of our coastline for these birds and the pressing needs to preserve some critical stopover sites.

The group has "a team to devise strategies, establish long-term partnerships, and implement projects for the conservation of shorebirds and their habitats. In this sense, we expect to conduct a long-term process to gather information and use it to protect some critical habitats, and this proposal is part of a continuing strategy we intend to conduct in our region."

"The results of the current project," Carlos said, "could trigger a second workshop to evaluate the impacts of shrimp farming on shorebird habitats, based on the updated data and the strategies proposed."

"AQUASIS has also been conducting education and outreach activities along the coast of Ceará for more than a decade; during this period we have created a network of collaborators in coastal communities. Although this project does not have specific outreach components, our local collaborators - or environmental agents, as we call them - will be taking part of the research and monitoring activities, as part of our training and local capacity building policies. In two of the study sites our local partners have already been taking part of conservation projects related to shorebird monitoring and protected area creation and implementation."

Partnership to Enhance Wetlands in California's Central Valley

A $1 million federal grant was awarded to the California Waterfowl Association for wetland and riparian habitat work that will continue efforts underway for the last four years to conserve wetland habitat in the North Sacramento River valley.

The North Sacramento Valley Wetland Habitat Project, Phase II was funded in March of 2008.

About 1,559 acres of wetlands and associated upland habitats will be will be restored, and another 3,398 acres enhanced with funding provided by the North American Wetlands Conservation Act, managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and private landowners. In total, $1.8 million will be used to improve habitat management capabilities and increase overall habitat acreage through this two year grant.

"California Waterfowl has been working for more than 20 years to restore the state's wetlands and this grant continues with our extensive conservation efforts in the north Sacramento Valley," said Chadd Santerre, senior biologist and project supervisor with California Waterfowl. "By increasing and improving overall habitat conditions for all species that rely on wetland and riparian habitats this grant and the partners involved are making a difference for all wildlife."

Spring brood ponds. All pictures courtesy of Chadd Santerre, California Waterfowl Association.

Wetland waterfowl.

"Restoration and enhancement projects on both private and public lands will provide protection, expansion and improvements to a diversity of habitats that will benefit NAWCA designated priority species such as six "high priority waterfowl species," seven "other priority waterfowl species" and sixteen "other waterfowl species," according to the project summary for the federal grant. Also additional benefits will include "numerous NAWCA priority birds and hundreds of wetland associated fish and wildlife will benefit overall as a result of completed projects.

"In addition, eight federal and state listed species will benefit. When completed, shallow seasonal and semi-permanent wetlands and the associated uplands will provide long-term management capabilities and improved foraging opportunities."

“The greatest benefits to bird species will come from those that are most dependent upon wetland and riparian habitats," said Santerre. "This would include all waterfowl and shorebirds which breed within and migrate through the region throughout the year. Additional benefits will come to those raptor species which depend up those species as prey as well as a host of neotropical migrants. Highlighted species that will receive direct benefits from projects will include Tricolored Blackbirds, White-faced Ibis and the western Yellow-billed Cuckoo.“

The "proposal covers an area that has been described by the Central Valley Joint Venture as the "most important wintering area for waterfowl in the Pacific Flyway. It is estimated that 60% of the Pacific Flyway's waterfowl population (excluding seaducks), representing 20% of the entire continental waterfowl population, either winters or migrates through the Central Valley of California."

Cinnamon Teal at a wetland.

Mallards at a wetland.

A variety of conservation measures will be used to achieve the project goals.

"Twenty-four restoration and enhancement projects on 20 private, two federal and two state owned properties, will be completed by de-leveling agricultural fields, constructing new levees, installing water control structures, improving water delivery systems, developing new water sources, rehabilitating degraded wetlands, planting of riparian trees and the seeding of upland areas."

"All of the 24 projects fall within four of the nine Central Valley Joint Venture watershed basins or focus areas, including the American, Butte, Colusa, and Sutter Basins." The project "will contribute directly and immediately to these focus areas by restoring and enhancing 4,957 acres of emergent wetlands, forested wetlands and associated upland habitats."

"This proposal is unique in its combination of federal agencies, state agencies, a non-profit organization and 20 private properties (fourteen are new to NAWCA), encompassing four of the nine priority basins within the Central Valley Joint Venture" program, according to the FWS information. "The partnerships that have been established within the Phase I and Phase II grants have been very successful in accomplishing habitat goals and milestones." Major contributing partners include the 20 private landowners themselves and the California Wildlife Conservation Board.

Efforts of the partnership will help to offset "current threats to wetland values in the project area from an increasing human population, urban development, agriculture, and watershed and drainage encroachment," according to the FWS project summary. "Natural wetlands in California have declined by over 90% from an estimated five million acres historically, to less than 450,000 acres at the present time."

The public benefits identified, by the grant proposal are: "projects that are taking place on DFG and FWS properties are open to the public year-round to provide outdoor recreation such as hiking, birding, hunting, fishing and research opportunities. Private land projects are improving a significant resource to wildlife that will help to maintain and increase populations throughout the year. Improved habitat conditions will be maintained by the landowners for the long term. These improvements will benefit not only wildlife populations but those people who like to partake in outdoor recreational activities involving wildlife. Increased wildlife use of these projects may ultimately lead to improved opportunities for the public to experience wildlife throughout the Pacific Flyway."

Work on the project will begin in the spring of 2008 and will continue through the end of 2009.

During the past twenty years, California Waterfowl has actively conserved more than 300,000 acres of wildlife habitat, and educated more than 250,000 children of the values and importance of natural places. The group received the Conservationist of the Year award in 2006 from The Wildlife Society.

Captive Parrot Shown in Details of an 1860s Quilt

A sewn image included on quilt dated to 1867 from Brooklyn, New York, depicts what is perhaps the first image known to show a Carolina Parakeet being kept as a captive bird.

The 246 x 215 centimeters Reconciliation Quilt, was made by Lucinda Ward Honstain during the Civil War era portrays forty scenes of every-day life, images that represent typical scenes of the era.

Detail of a parrot from the Reconciliation Quilt. Image courtesy of the International Quilt Study Center.

One especially interesting panel, shows a green bird in a cage.

There are several features of the bird that match the characteristics of the Carolina Parakeet, when compared to the wonderful painting by John James Audubon that shows a group of the parakeets in all their vivid color.

• general shape of the body, with its long tail
• green body color
• yellowish head
• beak shape
• tinge of yellow on the wing, similar to the natural yellow on the parakeet's wing
• similarity of the feet size and shape, and their coloration

Also, the only native parakeet in the states, was the Carolina Parakeet, and it is less likely for a non-native species to be be present, and probably less likely, be kept in captivity.

And although the wings are shown in a color that does not match the actual, natural color of the parakeet, an alternate color was probably used to distinctly convey the idea of wings, an obvious feature to show for a bird pattern. Another color would be more obvious than a different shade of green that would be more similar to a living bird's plumage.

This artistic license would also apply to the way the tail is shown, with the colors used obviously more depictive of the tail and its distinct feathers.

The Audubon image does not give a really good presentation of the parakeet's tail, so it is not easy to determine the true hues of these feathers. There are not any other known color images of these parakeets that can be used as a comparison.

Audubon's image of the Carolina Parakeet.

These two variances do not detract from the general matching of the quilt bird to the appearance of the living Carolina parrot.

A Carolina Parakeet may have been shown on the quilt because it was a bright, colorful, and raucous species, one of the most beautiful among the wild birds of the 1860s.

It is entirely possible that the quilt maker - or an acquaintance - may have had a captive bird. Perhaps it was a fledgling taken from a nesting group somewhere in the region, especially somewhere to the south in Virginia or the Carolinas where the parrots were more prevalent.

There are more than 150 known occurrences of this species from 1550 through 1857 in the historic United States that shown the widespread range of the species during the historic period. Additional sighting are available in the bird literature for more recent times.

Among the records is a journal entry that describes the taking of live birds.

In July, 1736, Commissary Von Reck, when at Ebenezer near the Abercorn landing on the Savannah River in Georgia, described how the gaudy birds were taken alive:

"The little paraquetes are green with some red and yellow feathers. They fly in large flocks and make a great crying sound when they fly. They are taken young from the nest, or else they are shot at with water that is put on a wadding of sandal-wood. They are also caught by means of heavy smoke from rosin and pitch, which stupifies them so that they fall to the ground. ..."

The captured birds taken could have been fixed for dinner or supper, used for some other unknown reason, and perhaps even kept alive to enjoy their color and life. And maybe to try to get them to talk, in the fashion parrots were capable of.

Carolina Parakeets, were known to readily adapt to the captive life.

A notation from the same period of time, mentioned how quickly the parrots adapted to being held as captives.

Of the Birds.
The Parakeetoes, are for the most part of a fine Green colour, only their Head, and part of their Wings, are of a beautiful Orange colour. They have thick Beaks of Bills, exactly like those of the Hawks. They are a Species of the Parrots, and generally about the bigness of a small pigeon. In April they feed on the Birch-buds, and seldom come down amongst the Planters until the Mulberries are ripe, which they eat, and are extremely fond of. They are likewise very mischievous to Orchards, and peck the Apples to eat the Kernels, so that the fruit quickly rots and perishes. They build their Nests in hollow Trees, in low swampy Grounds. They lie hidden in the Winter, when the Weather is extream hard and frosty, and never appear all that time. There are none of these Birds or Alligators to be met with to the North-ward of this Province, by the best Information I could learn, during my Residence in those parts. They are often taken alive with Traps, Bird-lime, &c., and will become tame and familiar in two or three Days time; yet they are not so docile or apt to learn to speak as Parrots generally are. They are most commonly very fat in the Mulberry and Fruit time, and are excellent good Food, preferably to any Pigeon. - John Brickell, M.D. 1737. The Natural History of North Carolina.

Thomas Nuttall provided some natural history for the "Carolina Parrot" - as he called it - in his treatise A Manual of the Ornithology of the United States and Canada published in 1832.

The brief description of the species characteristics was: "green; head and neck yellow; forehead and cheeks orange; tail elongated - the young without the yellow color."

Image of the Carolina parrot in Nuttall's tome on birds.

Additional details described the species' response to being kept in cavity.

"The Carolina Parrot is readily tamed, and early shows an attachment to those around who bestow any attention on its wants; it soon learns to recollect its name, and to answer and come when called on. It does not, however, evince much, if any capacity, for mimicking human speech, or sounds of any kind; and, as a domestic, is very peaceable and rather taciturn. It is extremely fond of nuts and almonds, and may be supported on the vegetable food usually given to other species. One which I saw a Tuscaloosa, a week after being disabled in the wing, seemed perfectly reconciled to its domestic condition; and as the weather was rather cold, it remained the greater part of the time in the house, climbing up the sides of the wire fender to enjoy the warmth of the fire. I was informed, that when first caught it scaled the side of the room, at night, and roosted in a hanging posture by the bill and claws; but finding the labor difficult and fruitless, having no companion near which to nestle, it soon submitted to pass the night on the back of a chair.

"When placed in a cage out of doors, in a suitable situation, the call of prisoner instantly awakens the sympathy of the passing flocks, who from the neighbouring trees sometimes enter into communion with their disabled or detained companion. A caged bird, as with some of the other species, and particularly the 'Inseparable,' is extremely pleased with the society of a companion, and they are observed to roost side by side, even thrusting their heads, at such times, into the plumage of each other, and thus, by a variety of delicate attentions, succeed in ameliorating the misfortunes of confinement and unnatural restraint. Even her own image in a looking-glass often seems to diminish the weariness of solitude, and by the side of this pleasing phantom, the Parrot or the Canary sinks satisfied to repose."

Most of the first historic references to the bright and colorful "parakeetos," or "parroquets," as they were commonly called, were to their depredations on crops, the noisy clamor when gathered in flocks, or when they were killed to make a tasty "parrot-pie."

There are also references to captive parrots in the narratives of explorers and travelers.

Christopher Gist of Great Britain explored the western frontier on two voyages.

During the first voyage to explore the Ohio country of west Virginia, on 14 April 1751 he noted: "... in climbing up the Cliffs and Rocks this Day two of our Horses fell down, and were pretty much hurt, and a Paroquete, which I got from the Indians, on the other Side of the Ohio (where there were a great many) died of a Bruise he got by a Fall; tho it was but a Trifle I was much concerned at losing Him, as he was perfectly tame, and had been very frisk all the Way, and I had still Corn enough to feed Him ..."

Gist was at the Lower Shawnee Town, along the Ohio River, in the southern part of what became the state of Ohio.

In his account of an American Journey, Moreau de St. Mery wrote in his journal: "October 13, 1794. ... On leaving Newark for Brunswick we experienced a delay rarely encountered on this route. M. Loutherbourg, son of the celebrated painter and himself a portrait painter, was traveling with us in the stage. He had with him a highly intelligent green parrot, and when he let the parrot out of his cage, the bird went and perched high up in one of the trees that bordered the road. The stage willingly stopped at the request of the grief-stricken M. Loutherbourg, who got out, called the parrot and showed him the cage, whereupon the deserter again imprisoned himself."

There are numerous other references to the parakeet being kept in captivity after the period when the Reconciliation Quilt was sewn. Early issues of ornithological journals had articles about captive birds.

A Dr. Nowotny had a pair that laid eggs, as described in an article titled "The Breeding of the Carolina Paroquet in Captivity" in the 1898 issue of Auk, a journal of ornithology.

Renowned ornithologist, Robert Ridgway had young hatch from birds he kept. One was given to an acquaintance Paul Bartsch, and was named Doodles. In 1906, Doodles was his picture taken while he was clinging to the neck of a Mr. Bryan.

The last known living Carolina Parakeet, Incas, died in captivity on 21 February 1918 at the Cincinnati Zoo.

All that now remains of the species are published notes and a few drab research skins in a museum.

The depiction in the Reconciliation Quilt adds another bit of history for a bird species that has been extinct for nine decades.

The Reconciliation Quilt was acquired in 2001 by the International Quilt Study Center. It is currently on display in the gallery of the newly opened "Quilt House," on the University of Nebraska-Lincoln campus.

Michigan Conservation Initiative Receives Support from Wetland Grant

An ongoing initiative to conserve habitats for Great Lake avifauna has received additional major support with funding from a federal wetlands grant.

A $1 million grant for phase III of the St. Mary's River Bird Migration Corridor project was awarded to the Little Traverse Conservancy from the North American Wetlands Conservation Act, managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Additional matching funds of $2,118,000 will be provided by the Conservancy, the Offield Family Foundation, the Les Cheneaux Foundation, J.A. Woollam Foundation, several private individuals and the Michigan chapter of The Nature Conservancy. The U.S. Forest Service is also involved in the project.

Vermillion ground. Images courtesy of the Little Traverse Conservancy.

The funds will be used to acquire 382 acres of lake-side habitat, with easements purchased on 220 acres, as well as a donation of an easement on 17 acres.

The acreages of particular importance, in the Les Cheneaux region, are two tracts that will protect 245 acres of land along a mile and a half of northern Lake Huron shoreline, according to the Conservancy. The lands are adjacent to the Hiawatha National Forest, a “Globally Important Bird Area” according to the 2005 draft Waterbird plan, prepared by the American Bird Conservancy, for the Upper Mississippi Valley/Great Lakes region.

Ten tracts totaling 664 acres with nearly 4 miles of riparian shoreline will be protected with the current grant, according to its summary. Several of the tracts lie directly adjacent to previously protected tracts of land, comprising an additional 3,600 acres and 12 miles of riparian shoreline. Most of the project work is expected to be completed by the end of 2008.

Specific sections in the grant proposal explained in detail how the federal funding would contribute to the conservation of waterfowl habitat and other wetland-associated migratory birds. Also assessed was how the project would help conserve geographic priority wetlands as described by the North American Waterfowl Management Plan, Partners in Flight, the U.S. Shorebird Conservation Plan, and/or the North American Waterbird Conservation Plan.

"The tracts included in this proposal are most significant for stopover habitat for migrating birds as well as the substrate they provide for vernal insect hatches for both migrating and nesting species," said Tom Will, of Partners in Flight for the Midwest Region.

Shoreline of Round Island.

The initiative affects birds and their habitats by "providing permanent land protection of significant nesting, feeding, and migratory stopover wetland habitats." Several habitat types and indicator bird species were identified in the grant proposal.

"Coastal marshes represented in this project are important for nesting American Black Ducks, Mallards, Blue-winged Teal, and occasionally American Wigeon, Gadwall, and American Shoveller. Diving ducks that utilize these marshes for breeding are Ring-necked Duck, Common Goldeneye, and Red-breasted and Common Mergansers. Canada Geese are common nesters in both the marshes and wetlands adjacent to the shore. Wood Ducks and Hooded Mergansers nest in the wooded upland tracts adjacent to marshes. Migration seasons see spectacular flights of diving ducks with rafts of scaup, Redhead, Bufflehead, Ring-necked Ducks, and Long-tailed Ducks numbering many thousands. Large proportions of the North American populations of Red-throated Loons and Red-necked Grebes have been documented migrating through and stopping over in the project area. Common Loons are both passage birds in large number and stopover in the open waters adjacent to the project lands. Common Loons also frequently nest in bog-lakes and marshes of the project area. Greater Sandhill Cranes migrate, stopover, and nest in the project area in large numbers.

"Passerine species have been documented in heavy migration along all the shorelines within this project area, and at least two projects, conducted by the Whitefish Point Bird Observatory (WPBO), Lake Superior State University, University of Southern Mississippi, and Central Michigan University, have monitored the flights" to document the variety and number of species which occur.

"Species of NAWCA priority that nest within the project lands are Yellow-bellied Flycatcher, Sedge Wren, Marsh Wren, and Le Conte's Sparrow. The project lands feed birds into a designated important bird area for migrating birds of prey as documented at WPBO, Sault Ste. Marie, and Straits of Mackinac. Raptor migrations are spectacular throughout the region, and at least two of the project sites are raptor migration focal points. Diurnal migrant raptors include Peregrine Falcon, Merlin, Goshawk, Bald and Golden Eagle, and Red Shouldered Hawk. Nesting diurnal raptors include Peregrine Falcons, Merlins, Goshawk, Red-shouldered Hawk, and Northern Harrier.

Nocturnal migrants (owls) are abundant at many shoreline - and inland up to two miles - locations and include Saw-whet, Boreal, and Long-eared Owls. Snowy, Short-eared, Great Horned, and Great-Gray Owls which migrate through this region. Short-eared Owls nest in wetlands of the project area, and Northern Harriers nest and forage on or near project lands. Common Terns nest near project lands and Black Terns nest within project wetlands, or on their periphery (five sites), and utilize wetlands of the project for foraging. American Woodcock is a common nester in the wet uplands of the project sites, and it is super abundant during migration in alder thickets and aspen stands of the project sites. American Bitterns nest in many of the wetlands."

Surveys efforts documenting the value of the project locale habitats are provided by published papers, unpublished records of the Whitefish Point Bird Observatory, records of the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, and based on personal observations of Dr. William C. Scharf, who has worked extensively on or near some of the properties.

The St. Mary's River bird migration corridor originates in southeastern Lake Superior, continues through the St. Mary's River channel and down into Lake Huron, including the shore of Lake Huron and the interface of both Lake Huron and Lake Michigan at the Straits of Mackinac where the upper and lower peninsulas of Michigan converge.

The corridor has been identified as an "Area of Concern" by the Lake Superior Binational Program in their Lake Superior Lakewide Management Plan (LaMP) 2000 and a "Region of Concern" in the Waterbird Conservation Plan for the Upper Mississippi/Great Lake Region. The Great Lakes Ecoregional Plan has identified the Northern Lake Huron Conservation Area as an Action Area of The Nature Conservancy which considers the Northern Lake Huron Conservation Area as one of the richest and most productive biological areas in the country.

“Perhaps one of the most compelling pieces of evidence that we uncovered for the unifying importance of the tracts of land included within this project was research conducted through a loon watch coordinated by biologist C.J. Sanders, with results published in 1993, said Anne Fleming, NAWCA grant coordinator with the Little Traverse Conservancy. "A research paper published with results “documents the enormous quantity and directional movement of Common Loons in eight spring seasons, establishing the St. Mary’s River Bird Migration Corridor as a reality. In addition, the lands included within this proposal provide significant substrate important for vernal insect hatches. These hatches are significant food sources for both migrating and nesting birds.”

The grant proposal recognized that this project "has been and continues to be one of the most proactive land protection efforts conducted in recent history within the St. Mary's River Bird Migration Corridor and the eastern portion of Michigan's Upper Peninsula."

Map showing the sites for projects by the Little Traverse Conservancy.

"The eastern Upper Peninsula," according to information provided by LTC, "is a vital Great Lakes avian staging area and provides migratory habitat for tens of thousands of waterbirds, passerines, and raptors during seasonal migrations. Coastal wetlands along Lake Huron and the St. Mary's River are critical stopover points for migrating waterfowl."

"Intense human activities are occurring with increasing frequency in the Upper Peninsula including residential development which is beginning to encroach on formerly undisturbed areas. Timely acquisition of sensitive parcels ensures that habitats will be protected in perpetuity. Land prices in the project area will increase with demand but are still relatively low. Protecting lands from development through acquisition now is a wise use of funds and will guarantee our ability to provide necessary habitats in the future."

Five of the ten tracts acquired with the most recent funding initiative, will be acquired as nature preserves to be held by the Little Traverse Conservancy, the summary for the federal grant said. "All Conservancy preserves are open to the public and managed for protection in perpetuity. One tract will be held by The Nature Conservancy - Michigan Chapter and will add to their already protected 879-acre Gerstacker Preserve on Dudley Bay, Lake Huron. One tract is currently held as a preserve and may be later sold or transferred to the state of Michigan to become state land. One purchased tract became an addition to the Hiawatha National Forest in 2007."

This third phase of the project "demonstrates the ongoing relationships of successful partnerships created in earlier phases of this project including state, federal, non-profit, foundation, and landowner partners," according to representatives of the Little Traverse Conservancy.

The St. Mary's bird migration corridor project was initiated in 2002. Funding from the NAWCA was also received in 2001, and then received several small grants and significant NAWCA funding in 2003, 2003, and again in 2008.

“Over the years, we have found that it is very difficult to fundraise in the eastern Upper Peninsula and that general region of our service area,” said Fleming. “The NAWCA grants have allowed us to protect lands that we otherwise would likely not have been able to raise funds to protect.

“Land protection opportunities come and go and change each year so it is beneficial to have several years of work to protect lands in a particular region. Little Traverse Conservancy operates in a five-county service area, and through through all three phases of the St. Mary’s project, a total of 4,264 acres have been protected as well as nearly 16 miles of Great Lakes shoreline (primarily Lake Huron, St. Mary's River, and a bit in the Straits of Mackinac/Lake Michigan.”

Partners for these projects “have ranged from the State of Michigan to local conservation groups,” Fleming added. “This has helped us ensure that our priorities are overlapping with those of other groups, although generally we aren't duplicating any efforts of others in any way. Local land trusts are free to mobilize private funding in ways that can't be done by government and we have been able to work directly with individuals and private foundations to effectively and quickly achieve land protection.”

Banding With a Message the Focus for a Nebraska Birder

Bird banding with a focus on educating people of all ages about the importance of birds in the environment has been the focus for Ruth Green, a Nebraska birder for more than three decades.

"I work to change people's attitude to one where they value and appreciate birds," she said. "My greatest joy is teaching kids about birds in the environment," Green said. "Banding is how to get children involved. Children are always interested to some extent. Adults are more interested and concerned with the use of chemicals such as pesticides."

Besides regular banding programs, an important teaching opportunity has been at 36 different Elderhostel events, both in Nebraska and elsewhere in the U.S. Introductory birding classes have also been taught at the local natural resources district.

Master bander Ruth Green at a banding/educational program at Schramm Park.

Green's teaching skills were honed by 35 years as a teacher, with 26 years in Bellevue, until her retirement in 1988. Much of her time is now devoted to banding spreading the word on the value of birds.

Green first learned about banding from Mr. and Mrs. Fitzhugh Diggs, of Hamburg Iowa. After seeing them banding birds, she knew this was something she wanted to do, and got started in 1966, helped along by a scholarship to attend a six-week class in nature study.

"I went from there," she said, starting as a volunteer at Fontenelle Forest - a wonderful haven for birds along the Missouri River in eastern Nebraska, near her Bellevue home. She kept doing this for 26 years, and banded there for twenty years.

Kris Hammond has been learning the necessities and skills of banding from master bander Green, since 2001. Also learning the necessary skills from Green are Penny Zahurones, a young man from Council Bluffs, and occasionally someone from Kansas.

There have been many instances where birds have been found to have tumors. Robins and Blue Jays have been noted with overgrown, malformed beaks. When three birds with this abnormality were captured one morning in the same area, Green evaluated the situation to determine how chemical runoff from a sod farm into a stream where the birds drank, was the likely culprit.

"An environment that isn't safe for birds, isn't safe for you," she tells people during her volunteer banding programs.

On a recent Saturday morning at Schramm state park, Green and her assistants banded Harris's Sparrow, Black-capped Chickadee, Dark-eyed Junco, House Finch and Purple Finch.

During her comments to the group - including two Boy Scout troops - present on a recent Saturday morning, she often referred to the importance of birds as environmental indicators. The impacts are explained with banding of the songbirds captured in the mist nets so they can receive a band.

With a dainty Black-capped Chickadee in hand and being used as a teaching aide, it can provide an opportunity to discuss West Nile virus and how the number of little chickadees has varied in recent years, since this species is dramatically impacted by the extent of the virus.

Holding up an Eastern Bluebird, for the crowd to appreciate.

Roaming cats were especially mentioned, as Green took the time - asking the crowd to listen closely - to explain that cats' should not be let out around towns and in the wild where the roaming predators kill many birds. Even at the unsettled environs of Halsey Forest, cats are known to eat young bobwhite quail.

"Cat's kept in the house don't destroy our song birds," she said.

A couple of times a bird was held close to someone's ears, so they could hear its fast, beating heart.

Among the lessons in the natural history of birds were how they are adapted for flight, Green taking time to explain how wings, lightweight feathers and hollow bones each are essential for this ability. Other birdly knowledge shared with the visitors was how a bird's bill shape determines the type of food eaten, when and where different species nest, the field marks essential for proper identification, and resident versus migratory species.

The lessons were cleverly done to keep the youngsters interested. Facts were shared, and the kids were asked questions to help them learn and recall what they had heard. Their interest was obvious with the many hand's excitedly held high to be the one chosen to provide an answer.

During the informal presentation, the strictures of banding were explained, so the crowd could understand the importance of keeping accurate records, aging the bird, understanding of band sizes and other essential details of the endeavor. Banding is managed by the Bird Banding Laboratory of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

The legal status of birds was even a part of the message, told through the point that birds should not be killed - especially not being shot with a youngster's bb-gun - and that it was not legal to possess feathers or nests.

A different youngster was allowed to carefully hold and release the birds back outdoors, once they received their special leg band.

The bird banding program is "good education for the children," said Jill Fulfs, present with her two young children. "Birds are a good place to start" for them to learn about nature and the outdoors.

Penny Zahurones holding a male Eastern Bluebird prior to its release.

A special hit for the group was a male Eastern Bluebird. It had been the goal of Penny Zahurones to capture and band this vibrant species. A male with its vivid breeding plumage of spring, was captured and received quite a bit of attention. As it was banded, Green explained a bit about the plight of the species as its populations had declined due to loss of cavities it had formerly used for nesting, and the value of bluebird trails with numerous nest boxes which have helped the species to thrive. The beautiful bird was carefully held while being photographed numerous times, after it got its leg band.

Zahurones banded the bluebird, giving the moment special importance in recognition of a friend's 50th birthday.

A Red-bellied Woodpecker was also a favorite with the visitors, drawing great attention as its image was captured in photographs.

Rare or unusual species - or a bird with notable features - are documented by a photograph, and she has many images of her banding work. The pictures are very helpful for a class she teaches, called "Things Your Field Guides Don't Tell You." The images show a chickadee with an odd brown coloration, the coloration of hybrid flickers at Halsey, a Mourning Dove with rare gold iridescence, or the traits of different subspecies or races.

"Pictures can prove the skeptics wrong," Green added.

Not all her pictures are bird related, as she also enjoys taking other types of photographs, including scenic views and flora. She started the camera club at Shramm fifteen years ago, and the members now have an annual photography contest, and have an annual show at the park aquarium.

During a lull in the banding, Green mentioned some of the highlights of her bird banding since 1978, especially some unusual occurrences of species, including:

• a Curve-billed Thrasher at Scottsbluff
• a Hammond's Flycatcher at Halsey Forest
• a Black-throated Sparrow at South Omaha

She shared a picture showing a rare black-and-white House Finch, the odd coloration revealing leucosistic and melanastic traits on the same bird.

Returns from bands are an important tool to learn about migration patterns. For example, a Pine Siskin banded at Chadron in April, was recaptured in December at a bird feeder at Springfield, Oregon. A Gray Catbird caught in the net in Nebraska, had been banded eleven years earlier in Rhode Island.

An important place where Green has banded is at the 4-H camp at Halsey National Forest, with its planted tree haven in the intrepid Sand Hills. She occasionally teaches classes here, on birds for kids from area towns, and is often present at some of the annual meetings of the Nebraska Ornithologists' Union that are held at this manmade forest.

Banding about 100,000 birds has exposed Green to many interesting details of different birds, mentioning an apparent greater variation in plumage of different species now, when compared to the past, the changes due to some environmental influence.

"People now are much better educated in the value of birds," than in the past, Green said. "Nebraska is ahead in some ways, with excellent natures centers teaching people about the value of birds in the environment. These places do a superb job."

Challenges for birds will continue to worsen with the changes always occurring in the environment, Green said. One of the biggest threats is the ongoing loss of the natural habitats essential for birds to survive.

Impacts to habitats even occur as more corn is grown for use in ethanol fuel, with the crop production altering land use, consuming large amounts of water from the valuable Ogallala aquifer that creates wetlands and nourishes streams and rivers, and application of chemicals used to grow crops and can cause water quality problems.

Light pollution is also affecting how birds migrate, especially passerine species. During her many years of banding at Halsey, a notable change has been seeing species more typical of other regions.

"Birds are seeking new migratory routes," Green said. "Eastern and western species are pushing into the dark corridor still present in central Nebraska," she said. The explanation is the light pollution that extends from Council Bluffs, westward to the Grand Island and Kearney area that is obvious on a night light map of the United States. There is then a dark corridor, and the night skies are bright again in the high plains of western Nebraska and Colorado.

Bird banding is a regular event the first Saturday morning of the month, from September through May, at 9:00 to 12:00 A.M. at Schramm Park, along the Platte River hills. Green has been conducting this volunteer effort for 15 years.

North Florida Habitat Conserved With Partnership Funding

Conservation of 3,328 acres of wetlands and adjacent uplands in North Central Florida will be possible with the recent award of a $1 million federal grant, and contributions from local partners.

Funding for the North Florida Wetlands Conservation Project came from the North America Wetland Conservation Act, funded by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. An additional $2,045,000 in matching funds will be provided by the Alachua Conservation Trust, Alachua County, the Florida Communities Trust, the Conservation Fund, and three private individuals.

The project - within five miles of Gainesville - "provides perpetual preservation of 3,328 acres of imperiled wetland habitat and related upland habitat," according to the grant summary. "There will be 2,643 acres protected through fee simple acquisition and 685 acres protected through a perpetual conservation easement."

"We will complete site protection with the funding provided by the NAWCA grant," said Robert Hutchinson, Executive Director of the Alachua Conservation Trust, Inc.

The Alachua Conservation Trust will hold title to 410 acres at Lake Tuscawilla and have a conservation easement over 685 acres at Kanapaha Prairie. Alachua County will have ownership of 2,233 acres at Barr Hammock.

The project site is in the general area of a band of "perched wetlands called wet prairies in the southern portion of Alachua County, Florida," Hutchinson said. "Wetland habitat types include prairie lake, depression marsh, basin marsh, and others."

Aerial view of Lake Tuscawilla. All photographs courtesy of Robert Hutchinson.

Several tracts of land are part of the habitat conservation initiative.

"The Tuscawilla and Kanapaha Prairie tracts are primarily palustrine emergent wetlands fringed by hardwood hammock," Hutchinson explained. "The Barr Hammock tract is primarily palustrine forested and palustrine emergent wetlands intermixed with a variety of upland habitat types. The largest (20,000+ acres) is called Paynes Prairie, and is a National Natural Landmark, in part due its importance for migratory birds."

"These lands provide essential habitat for some of the rarest plants, animals, native communities and migratory birds, needed to sustain populations into the future," according to the grant application. "The North Florida Wetlands project is part of a unique Florida feature, the Sinkhole Lake, in this case, Pierson's Sink, into which the Barr Hammock and Kanapaha Prairie tracts drain. This sinkhole lake is small, and the surrounding land floods quickly and deeply, draining into the Floridan Aquifer and ultimately the lower Suwannee River. Its subterranean connection to the Suwannee River results in a direct impact to the Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge and the Gulf of Mexico."

The habitat conservation has several recognized benefits for resident and migratory birds.

"The project site hosts migratory and resident Whooping Cranes as well as migratory and resident Sandhill Cranes, Wood Storks and several other federal and state listed endangered species, threatened species, and species of special concern. Kanapaha Prairie alone is a staging area for thousands of migratory Sandhill Cranes every year. The project area also hosts numerous migratory and resident waterfowl species, including priority species such as Northern Pintail, Mottled Duck, Lesser Scaup, Mallard, American Black Duck, Fulvous Whistling Duck, and Black-Bellied Whistling Duck. Herons, egrets, ibis and other waterbirds and wading birds utilize the area year-round. The properties in the project area also host neo-tropical migrants. Raptors congregate and forage within the area, notably Swallow-tailed Kite, Northern Harrier, Bald Eagle, Red-shouldered Hawk, Coopers Hawk, Osprey, and American Kestrel."

"The birding community is especially excited about Lake Tuscawilla Preserve, as it will now be fully accessible to the public," said John Winn, a member of Alachua Audubon Society.

"Lake Tuscawilla Preserve, even before its purchase by Alachua Conservation Trust, was known as a good birding spot because it is so visible from U.S. Highway 441. Winter is the best time for seeing unusual birds there, and these have included White-faced Ibis and Vermilion Flycatcher. These are birds usually found west of the Mississippi River, but they occasionally appear in the east. Another mostly western bird, White Pelican, although fairly common in winter along the Gulf coast, was essentially unknown from Alachua County up until about ten years ago; sometimes a single individual would show up, but now large flocks in winter are almost commonplace. But they can be quite irregular. On one Christmas Bird Count a few years ago, there were only two individuals counted, whereas in other years there have been hundreds. The winter of 2006-07 was particularly noteworthy for White Pelicans at Lake Tuscawilla.

"Tuscawilla and Kanapaha Prairies, due to their open vistas, consistently offer rewarding birding; there is always something to see, soaring hawks, elusive sparrows, the whites and blues of our wading birds," Winn said. "In winter, the area's large flocks of migratory Sandhill Cranes frequent the prairies. In summer, the fairly uncommon resident subspecies of Sandhill Crane, almost always in a pair, and sometimes with a chick, can be spotted by a careful observer. The prairies are dynamic places with fluctuating water levels, so the variety of birds is constantly changing. In wet winters, the prairies can host many species of migratory waterfowl, mostly ducks, but sometimes a few geese. In drier winters, such as we've had the past few years, standing water can be at a premium and these places can be even more important.

"Annual Christmas Bird Counts by the Alachua Audubon Society have been held in the area since the 1970s. The count circle is centered on Paynes Prairie State Preserve, and include portions of both Tuscawilla and Kanapaha Prairies. The diversity of the area's birdlife is reflected in the high number of species noted on the counts, usually over 140, an unusually high number for an inland location in Florida.

Whooping Cranes and Sandhill Cranes at Kanapaha Prairie.

"At the Lake Tuscawilla Preserve, owned by Alachua Conservation Trust, a regime of prescribed burning will restore the prairie to a more natural condition and also insure that trees do not encroach into the prairie basin and alter its value as bird habitat. The addition of adjacent acreage will facilitate burning. At Kanapaha Prairie, the conservation easement insures that development will be limited and prevent degradation of the habitat."

The NAWCA proposal indicated the "North Florida Wetlands Project represents phase I of an effort to protect critical habitat for migratory birds and other wetland-dependent species in north central Florida." Its "karst geology is also vital to the many springs in the north central Florida area and provides a direct connection to the aquifer. Keeping these lands in conservation is not only vital for wildlife, it is vital for a healthy human water supply," the grant said.

"The project site is a key component of a connected and diverse part of Florida's landscape, linking the Ocala National Forest, Paynes Prairie Preserve State Park, Goethe State Forest, and finally the Gulf Coast, including the Lower Suwannee National Wildlife Refuge. The majority of the project site falls within the Florida Ecological Greenways Network (FEGN)."

The FEGN, developed by the University of Florida and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, is a decision support model used to help identify the best opportunities to protect ecological connectivity statewide.

The project site is within the Partners in Flight Bird Conservation Area 31 in peninsular Florida and lies within the Atlantic Coast Joint Venture's Orange Creek/Oklawaha Basin Waterfowl Focus Area.

The locale was also recognized as a "top 10" project site by the Alachua County Ecological Inventory done in 1996.

"Two smaller wetlands are miniature versions of Paynes Prairie: one is called Tuscawilla Preserve and the other is Kanapaha Prairie (these are Seminole Indian names)," said Hutchison. "In both cases, the wet prairies are partially protected, and our hope is to gain protection of the entire basin. These prairies have become very popular for upscale suburban development around the rim, and this causes management headaches for both fluctuating the water levels and fire, as well as problems with pets and exotic plants.

"In the case of Kanapaha Prairie, the neighbors attempted to buy the prairie basin when the owner sought to sell it for development. When their fundraising fell short, The Conservation Fund stepped in to make up the difference, and they will be selling a conservation easement to permanently protect the property. The majority of Tuscawilla was protected a few years ago by ACT with a grant from Florida Communities Trust."

White Ibises at Tuscawilla Preserve.

The FWS grant says that "Florida's rapid conversion of natural areas to agricultural, urban, and other land uses has caused the loss and degradation of critical habitat for breeding, wintering, and migrating birds including waterfowl, waterbirds, and neo-tropical migrants. Human encroachment and disturbance also threaten to adversely impact birds' ability to successfully breed, forage, and rest in what areas remain."

Public benefits identified by the federal grant application are: "The Tuscawilla property will have public access via a trailhead, nature trail and scenic overlook for wildlife viewing, as well as 12 educational classes per year. The Kanapaha property will have limited, organized access for Audubon's Christmas bird count, Whooping Crane and Sandhill Crane research, and conservation activities planned in advance and with supervision. The Kanapaha property also has volunteers conducting bluebird box maintenance and study. The Barr Hammock Preserve will have public access on more than 14 miles of hiking/biking trails, as well as a parking area/trailhead, several scenic overlooks, interpretive signage, and 12 regularly scheduled educational classes. In general, the public at large will benefit if wetland dependent species, such as Sandhill Crane and Whooping Cranes, continue to visit this region, which is critical for the species' survival."

"I think most birders appreciate that habitat conservation is essential if we are going to be able to continue to enjoy our hobby, passion, obsession, or whatever it is," Winn said. "We increasingly realize that habitat conservation entails spending money to purchase or otherwise protect land."