Bird and Terrestrial Species Conservation

Originally from East Africa, the giant African land snail (Achatina fulica), has been established throughout the Indo-Pacific Basin, including the Hawaiian Islands. Since 2011, these snails have been found in Miami, Florida. Although the current range is limited to the southern latitudes of Florida, this snail can withstand freezing and go into hibernation for as much as a year. This allows them...

The North American Breeding Bird Survey program (BBS) provides critical science-based population data for more than 400 bird species to improve our understanding of how these federally entrusted species respond to environmental variability and ecosystem change. The BBS generates results that inform Federal wildlife managers in the Fish and Wildlife Service, the National Park Service, Department of...

Mallard duck as such as this pair may be reservoirs of Type A influenza viruses, which under some circumstances may potentially become pathogenic to waterfowl, other wildlife and even humans.

The Challenge: Wild birds are exposed throughout their lives to natural and synthetic chemicals that are present in the environment, many of which interfere with the animal’s physiological and developmental systems. Relative concentrations, routes, frequency, and the environment in which chemical exposure occurs will determine to a large extent the bird’s response. Well-designed avian field...

The Challenge: The Akeke’e (Loxops caeruleirostris) and the Akikiki (Oreomystis bairdi), two species of Hawaiian honeycreeper, are critically endangered bird species endemic to high elevation ohia forests on the Hawaiian island of Kauai. Both species have suffered severe population declines and range contractions in recent decades. Akeke’e are currently thought to number ca. 950 wild individuals...

The Challenge: Mercury is a highly toxic element found throughout our environment. Although it occurs naturally in some environments, human industrial pollution has greatly increased the amount of mercury and the range of environments in which mercury is found. Recent studies have confirmed clear differences in the sensitivity of various bird species to methylmercury. Because the causes of these...

The Challenge: The Canada Goose Branta canadensis was historically a highly migratory species. However, this species has recently established resident populations in urban, suburban, and agricultural areas in many parts of the U.S., including the Chesapeake Bay region. The enormous success of these populations has led to consideration of this species as a nuisance, largely due to its excessive...

The Challenge: Terns in coastal areas of the Northeastern US likely will be impacted by construction and operation of offshore wind turbines. The “Cape Cod & Islands” (CCMA) area of Massachusetts is a particularly important area for the endangered Northwest Atlantic Roseate Tern (ROST) population as most ROSTs from throughout the breeding range (Nova Scotia to Long Island, New York) congregate...

The dresseri race of common eiders breed from central Labrador to southern Maine and winter from Newfoundland to Massachusetts. The breeding population in the mid-1980s was estimated to be 71,000 pairs, of those 40% were in Maine. In Maine, nesting eiders increased from a few pairs in the early 1900s to approximately 28,000 pairs in 1989. Although the number of birds seems to be stable, the number...

The Challenge: Is it possible to monitor numbers of migrating red-necked phalaropes (Phalaropus lobatus) in the Bay of Fundy? Currently aerial surveys are flown during late summer to determine location and approximate size of current stopover concentrations. This research will assess the effectiveness of using aircraft to conduct surveys; determine a protocol for the placement and spacing of...

The Challenge: Research goals of this project seek to take an adaptive approch to habitat management for American woodcock. Under this process a mix of early successional forest habitat will be created following the allowable guidelines of state forest management, National Wildlife Refuge management plans, and commercial timber management plans; management actions will consist of various...

The Challenge: Research goals of this project seek to determine if survey routes for American woodcock are sampling represenative habitats and whether routes are distributed proportionally to early successional habitats and biophysical regions across Maine, Vermont, and New Hampshire. If routes are not representatively distributed (i.e., biased), we will evaluate the effects of this bias on...