Sep. 26, 2013
Great blue herons rebound in the Chesapeake Bay
VCU Rice Center collaborator: Center for Conservation Biology
Breeding populations of great blue herons have made a dramatic comeback within the Chesapeake Bay according to a 2013 survey conducted by The Center for Conservation Biology. As with bald eagles and osprey, great blue heron populations suffered deep declines during the DDT era, reaching a low in the late 1960s of approximately a dozen known breeding colonies. The 2013 survey documented 14,126 pairs within 407 breeding colonies making the species the most widespread and abundant breeding waterbird in the Chesapeake Bay. The population would consume an estimated 8,200 metric tons of fish annually. Colonies were documented within every county along the tidal reach of the estuary.
An interesting finding of the survey is that the size of breeding colonies has been declining for more than a decade. The average colony size in 2013 was 35 pairs, compared to more than 110 pairs in 1985. Large colonies that were stable for decades have begun to splinter and scatter across the landscape. Although the underlying cause of the decline remains unclear, one possible contributing factor may be the recovery of bald eagles. Bald eagles now nest in a growing number of heron colonies. The largest colony in the Chesapeake Bay on Pooles Island (1,450 pairs) now contains four bald eagle nests, and the second largest colony on Mason Neck (1,250 pairs) now contains two eagle nests.
In addition to great blue herons, the survey also included great egrets. More associated with coastal waters and never as common as great blue herons in the Chesapeake Bay, 1,775 egret pairs were found in 39 colonies. This number represents a nearly threefold increase in the population over the past 30 years.
The 2013 aerial survey conducted by Bryan Watts and Bart Paxton required 200 hours of flying and covered more than 900 tidal tributaries of the Chesapeake. Funding for the survey was provided by the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, the Maryland Department of Natural Resources and The Center for Conservation Biology. The Center for Conservation Biology is a research unit within the College of William and Mary and Virginia Commonwealth University.
Map of great blue heron and great egret colonies along tidal tributaries of the Chesapeake Bay. Colonies were mapped and surveyed as part of a 2013 population assessment.
Wings of great blue heron in bald eagle nest with chicks along the Chickahominy River. Bald eagles may be altering heron colony dynamics. Photo by Bryan Watts.
Brood of great egrets in the lower Chesapeake Bay. Photo by Bryan Watts.
Sep. 12, 2013
Machi and Goshen’s conservation legacy
VCU Rice Center collaborator: Center for Conservation Biology
By Bryan Watts
The loss of Machi and Goshen on Guadeloupe (two whimbrel being tracked by CCB scientists) to hunters on Sept. 12, 2011 was a watershed event in shorebird conservation. The shooting of these two birds shined a light on the dangers of migration for this declining population and heightened awareness of shorebird hunting within the conservation community. The outcry was heard. Shortly after this event occurred, an international working group was formed to begin assessing the potential impact of hunting on shorebirds using the Atlantic Flyway. The group has focused on sustainable shorebird harvest limits, current harvest levels, hunting policy and law enforcement. Although work is ongoing in all of these areas, the effort is beginning to bear fruit.
Several changes to hunting policies have been made within major hunting communities in the West Indies. The Ministries for the Environment of both Guadeloupe and Martinique have agreed to several regulation changes including 1) addition of red knots and solitary sandpiper to the no-hunt-list, 2) a bag limit of 20 birds per day per hunter and 3) a three-year moratorium on the shooting of Hudsonian godwits and whimbrels (implemented on Martinique in 2013). A recent determination by the Environmental Ministry in Paris has set penalties for shooting red knots. Hunting is a long-standing part of French culture. Policy changes by the ministries are a tremendous step toward shorebird conservation.
In addition to positive policy changes on Guadeloupe and Martinique, the Barbados Wildfowlers Association has passed a series of self-imposed regulations. These include 1) limiting the total annual harvest on the island to 22,500 birds, 2) limiting the annual harvest to 2,500 birds per swamp, 3) limiting the daily harvest to 300 birds per swamp, 4) limiting the annual harvest of lesser yellowlegs to 1,250 birds per swamp, 5) limiting the harvest of American Golden Plovers to 100 birds per day per swamp and 6) limiting the number of active hunters to 3 per swamp. The group had previously passed a self-imposed moratorium on hunting whimbrel. The voluntary adoption of hunting policy is a positive development for shorebird conservation.
Machi and Goshen have proven to be a catalyst for change. Following their widely publicized loss, the conservation community, government agencies, environmental ministers, and responsible hunting groups have come together to move toward sustaining vulnerable shorebird populations.
The working group includes The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, The Canadian Wildlife Service, Birdlife International, The Society for the Study and Conservation of Caribbean Birds, AMAZONIA, New Jersey Audubon, and The Center for Conservation Biology.
Libby Mojica fits Machi with a satellite transmitter in the fall of 2009. Photo by Bart Paxton.
Port Louis shooting swamp in Guadeloupe where Goshen was shot in September 2011. Photo by Fletcher Smith.
Aug. 30, 2013
VCU’s Bukaveckas delivers keynote at international Baltic Sea conference
The Ninth Baltic Sea Science Congress convened in Klaipėda, Lithuania, on Aug. 26-30, where Dr. Paul Bukaveckas presented a keynote speech entitled, “Research on Harmful Algal Blooms to Meet Science and Policy Needs.” A VCU Rice Center researcher, Bukaveckas drew on his current research monitoring and modeling algal blooms in the James River that is part of a six-year, $3 million dollar project to evaluate existing water quality standards for the James and their associated nutrient load allocations.
In recognition of the value of exchanging information and strengthening interdisciplinary approaches to solve the problems facing the Baltic Sea today, the congress was devoted to the presentation of results of research on the climate, physics, chemistry, biology and geology of the Baltic Sea. The objective of the congress is to bring together marine scientists and experts, as well as young researchers of Baltic Sea region, and invite them to participate in other European marine researcher communities.
VCU congratulates Dr. Bukaveckas on continuing the VCU Rice Center’s tradition of informing public policy through research and making a global impact.
TweetAug. 14, 2013
VCU Rice Center facilities water quality advisory group
The Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) held its second James River Stakeholder Advisory Group meeting at the VCU Rice Center on Tuesday, Aug. 13th. The Stakeholder Group is comprised of
representatives from advocacy groups, local businesses and government agencies which deal directly with water quality issues in the James River.
Presentations were given by Dr. Paul Bukaveckas (VCU Rice Center) and Dr. Arthur Butt (DEQ) to update the group on recent progress in monitoring and modeling algal blooms in the James River. This work is being conducted as part of a six-year, $3 million dollar project to evaluate existing water quality standards for the river and their associated nutrient load allocations. Dr. Bukaveckas reported that 2012 was an active year for algal blooms in the James, with spring and summer dinoflagellate blooms occurring in the lower, saline James, and persistent cyanotoxins observed in the upper, freshwater James. Dr. Butt presented research plans for 2013 that focus on assessing potential deleterious effects associated with the occurrence of algal blooms.
TweetAug. 13, 2013
Rivers in real time
It’s rare we have the opportunity to catch a glimpse into the prehistoric past, but the Atlantic sturgeon, a fish that once swam with the dinosaurs, offers just that. It also played an important role in Virginia’s history when it served as a critical food source for the early European colonists in Jamestown, helping them stave off starvation during the grim winter of 1609-1610, also known as “The Starving Time.”
And now, moving forward, the giant prehistoric fish promises to help paint a broader picture of how many elements of the environment connect.
First, however, researchers need to better understand the biology of the fish itself and to partner with others to help restore the population, which has declined significantly in the past 100 years.
In 2012, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration added the Atlantic sturgeon to its Endangered Species List. A mix of overharvesting and the construction of dams that altered its habitat are to blame in part for the decline. Other threats to sturgeon include ship strikes and nets intended for other fish.
Aug. 9, 2013
Hands-on learning at the Rice Center: the net of it
Last week, VCU’s Summer Ornithology Lab mist-netted birds around the Rice Center. Students set up fine-fibered nylon nets and practiced extracting, identifying and measuring birds caught in the nets. Students were able to handle both year-round resident birds — such as northern cardinals, Carolina chickadees and tufted titmice — as well as migrants here just for the summer, including prothonotary warblers, wood thrush and red-eyed vireos.
Just before closing the nets, students were rewarded with two very special birds: an indigo bunting and an ovenbird. Both are migratory breeders that are commonly heard, but difficult to see, around the Rice Center.
Aug. 7, 2013
Camera trapping underway
We are not alone. In fact, it looks like we’re greatly outnumbered.
As a pilot project for a new laboratory exercise in the Department of Biology’s Vertebrate Natural History (VNH) course, five camera traps were deployed at the VCU Rice Center this spring to enable researchers and students to determine the numbers of common mammals, including deer, raccoons, opossum and squirrels, present at the center.
The camera traps use Bushnell 8MP Trophy Cam HD Max Black LED Trail cameras
A passive infrared motion sensor captures heat and motion to trigger the camera. Most of the time the animal doesn't even know it’s been photographed — in the daytime, the only giveaway is a slight click when a camera triggers, while at night there is a LED flash.
Primarily, these traps are a minimally-invasive way to educate VCU students about our wonderful Virginia mammal fauna and about modern animal census tools. Camera traps are now widely used in wildlife and conservation biology. A more measurable benefit is that results from these lab classes will contribute to a growing database on mammal records to enhance our understanding of local (VCU Rice Center) and national (emammal) mammal patterns.
Over time, these cameras will provide long-term data on mammal abundance and habitat use at the Rice Center. These data will be funneled into a larger citizen science project developed by VCU Rice Center collaborator Roland Kays and colleagues called emammal. The data thus will be informative for the Rice Center and also will become part of a large national database.
Broader impact
There are plans to set up a rural vs. urban forest comparison by camera trapping in the James River Park in town as well as at the Rice Center. This has been a successful way to compare urban versus rural wildlife in other urban park systems, such as Rock Creek Park in Washington, D.C.
Origins
The camera trap lab has been developed in an effort to develop inspiring coursework that can be managed with the recent growth in lab sections and students in the VNH class, using the VCU Rice Center as a bountiful resource.
Emeritus biology professor Dr. John Pagels was one of the originators of the camera trap lab: when he started teaching the VNH lab at VCU more than 30 years ago, there was only one section with 12 students, and labs entailed camping for the weekend in the Virginia mountains. Now there are often more than 12 sections with more than 300 students in VNH each year. Logistically, it would be difficult to maintain the extensive outdoor experience students had years ago. Using camera trap labs, however, does give students some outside experience of setting up camera trap sampling arrays. One of VCU’s own alumni — Rachel Komosinski, a biology student with an M.S. — has been instrumental in getting this pilot lab exercise up and running, and is working on developing it further in VNH labs this summer.
The camera trap lab will give us a greater understanding of the abundance of wildlife and will train our researchers to be able to conduct similar studies in their future work.
TweetAug. 5, 2013
Earth-shaking research
Why are the Appalachian Mountains rising when they should be breaking down? What patterns are occurring that could give better insight to geological events such as earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, leading to better detection?
As part of a massive seismological study, the VCU Rice Center has been selected as the eastern terminus of a study on tectonic movements in the eastern United States — the Mid-Atlantic Geophysical Integrative Collaboration, or MAGIC.
MAGIC researchers prepare site for installation of seismograph at VCU Rice Center
MAGIC is a three-year collaborative research project led by The College of New Jersey and Yale University, and funded by the National Science Foundation, Earth Scope, IRIS and GeoPRISMS. This project is focused on studying the structure of the Earth’s crust and upper mantle in the area of the Appalachian Mountains. Students and faculty are currently installing a series of 28 seismograph stations stretching from the VCU Rice Center in eastern Virginia to the western border of Ohio. These stations will record earthquake data allowing the imaging and modeling of the hidden geological structures deep below the Earth’s surface, as well as help to explain the origins of the Appalachian Mountains and Mid-Atlantic geography.
As part of the larger, more comprehensive study on North America’s geological evolution, EarthScope, the seismograph at the Rice Center will be installed and collect data for four years before being removed cleaned, recalibrated and redistributed to other scientific institutions as part of the EarthScope Flexible Array program.
What is EarthScope?
Designed to track North America’s geological evolution, EarthScope is the largest science project on the planet. This earth-sciences observatory records data over 3.8 million square miles of the earth’s surface. Since 2003, its more than 4,000 instruments have amassed 67 terabytes of data — equivalent to more than a quarter of the data in the Library of Congress — and they add another terabyte every six to eight weeks.
Courtesy of popsci.com
How does it work?
Researchers are using EarthScope, which consists of many kinds of experiments, to examine all facets of North America’s geological composition. Across the continental U.S. and Puerto Rico, 1,100 permanent GPS units track deformations in the land’s surface caused by tectonic shifts below. For example, seismic sensors next to the active San Andreas Fault in California record its tiniest slips, while rock samples pulled from a drill site that extends two miles into the fault reveal the grinding and strain on the rocks that occur when the two sides of the fault slide past each other during an earthquake.
Over the course of 10 years, small crews have hauled a moveable array of 400 seismographs across the country using backhoes and sweat. By the time the stations reach the East Coast next year, they will have collected data from almost 2,000 locations. The end result will be a far more complete picture of the past evolution of earth’s land masses, and possibly what the future may hold for our planet.
TweetJuly 30, 2013
Red-cockaded woodpeckers fledge 20 birds at Piney Grove Preserve
VCU Rice Center collaborator: Center for Conservation Biology
The red-cockaded woodpecker population at the Nature Conservancy’s Piney Grove Preserve had another good year of productivity in 2013 with the successful fledging of 20 birds from nine breeding pairs. This is the third consecutive year the population has produced at least 20 fledglings following bumper yields of 25 and 26 birds for 2011 and 2012, respectively. The slightly lower productivity for 2013 compared to the previous two years was due to a combination of one group not breeding and a lower than normal number of fledglings among the remaining breeding groups. However, among the successful breeders this year was a 13-year old male that has remained at his natal location and has held onto breeding status there since 2005.
The Piney Grove Preserve supports the only population of red-cockaded woodpeckers in Virginia and is the northernmost location for the species in the world. Since 2001, the number of birds and breeding groups has tripled with the help of population management, translocation, cavity competitor control, artificial cavity installation and a well-orchestrated regime of habitat management that includes prescribed fire and selective tree removal. Currently, the population is 51 adult birds and the 20 new fledglings (10 males and 10 females). We will follow up with another census in winter to determine the status and distribution of all individuals in the population. Typically, only 50-75 percent of the fledgling birds are still present during the winter survey.
July 26, 2013
Tsunami batters Rice Center pier
At 3:30 pm on June 13, a tsunami of 25-centimeter wave height struck the East Coast and was recorded at tide gauges from New Jersey to Puerto Rico.
A surface water elevation anomaly was detected at the VCU Rice Center pier approximately three hours later.
Tsunamis are characterized by a drop in water level preceding the wave passage. The wave itself was likely too short-lived to be detected by the Rice Center’s 15-minute sampling intervals, but a five-centimeter drop in the level of the James is apparent.
Tsunamis are usually attributed to underwater seismic activity, but this event is speculated to have been caused by the passage of the “derecho” storms, which initially pushed water away from the coast, and then resulted in “slosh-back” effect.
No damage to the pier was reported.
July 26, 2013
Whimbrelwatch 2013
VCU Rice Center collaborator: Center for Conservation Biology
By Bryan Watts
One of the great spectacles of spring along the Delmarva Peninsula is the parade of whimbrel flocks leaving on their flight to arctic breeding grounds. Flocks begin to depart during a three- to four-hour window before dusk. The event begins with rallying calls as birds rise up from the marsh and begin to swirl upward and assemble in V-formation. For many of these birds, this is the last time they will touch the earth until they settle down on their breeding grounds thousands of miles to the north.
In the spring of 2009, The Center for Conservation Biology (CCB) and The Nature Conservancy initiated a watch program to count whimbrels leaving our primary study area on the seaside of the Delmarva Peninsula. Birds are counted in flocks as they fly north during the last two weeks of May. The objective of this effort is to understand the phenology of leaving for birds staging along the Delmarva Peninsula and to make comparisons with birds moving through locations to the north and arriving on breeding grounds. The effort is now synchronized with a similar effort organized by the Toronto Ornithological Club in strategic areas around the Great Lakes.
Alex Lamoreaux managed the whimbrelwatch for CCB in 2013 and counted shorebirds as they left the site from May 17 through June 1. A total of 11,329 shorebirds were counted flying over Boxtree dock, including 7,260 whimbrel, 1,896 black-bellied plover, 1,139 short-billed dowitchers, 729 dunlin and 222 semipalmated plover. Whimbrel reached a record peak count of 2,492 birds, equating to more than 850 birds leaving per hour, on May 26, following strong north winds the previous two days.
Alex Lamoreaux managed the whimbrelwatch project during the spring of 2013. Here, Alex scans an oncoming flock of shorebirds as they approach the Boxtree dock. Photo by Bryan Watts.
A flock of whimbrel flying over Boxtree Creek heading north to the breeding grounds. Photo by Alex Lamoreaux.
Temporal pattern of leaving rates for whimbrel moving over the Boxtree Study Site.