Center for Conservation Biology
May-August 2009 E-Newsletter

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Virginia Eagle Nest Locator Launched

Reunion with Rehabilitated Eagle

Migrating Whimbrels connect Virginia with
  Toronto

View of Chincoteague Marsh.
Photo (c) Bryan Watts

Impacts of Sea Level Rise on Marsh Birds

If realized, projected changes in the level of the world’s oceans will have profound consequences on the biological and social systems of the world. The earth’s sea-levels are forecasted to rise 0.5-2 meters before the end of the century. This global sea change will consume dry land, reshape our coastlines, and reconfigure our wetlands. It will also pose new limits on biological production and money economies that are tied to the near-shore environment. Understanding the impact from these dramatic changes is a necessary first step toward taking appropriate action.

Full story at CCB's online newsletter

CCB's tagged whimbrel, Hope, spotted in Great Pond on St. Croix, USVI. Photo (c) Lisa Yntema

Flight of Hope

Hope, a whimbrel carrying a satellite transmitter, embarked on an incredible journey after being captured by CCB researchers on Virginia’s Eastern Shore on May 19th, 2009. She left Virginia on May 26 and flew to the western shore of James Bay in Canada. She staged on James Bay for 3 weeks before flying to the MacKenzie River near Alaska and then on to the Beaufort Sea where she spent more than 2 weeks before flying back to Hudson Bay. Hope then staged on South Hampton Island in upper Hudson Bay for 3 weeks before leaving on a non-stop flight south on 10 August. The bird flew south over Hudson Bay, crossed the interior of Canada and New England to emerge from the coast of Maine and out over the open ocean. Flying more than 1,600 kilometers (1000 miles) out over the ocean and east of Bermuda, Hope then turned south, making landfall on St. Croix, U.S.V.I. on the evening of August 14.

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RCW chicks are carefully examined before they are returned to their nest. Photo (c) Bobby Clontz

Red-cockaded woodpeckers in Virginia had a very successful year in 2009 with six breeding pairs successfully fledging fifteen birds. The nine females and six males hatched and fledged in 2009 represent the greatest production of young since recovery efforts were initiated a decade ago. The 2009 season also marks only the second time since the late 1980s that six breeding pairs have bred successfully.

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Great black-backed gull chicks on the Eastern Shore of Virginia. Photo (c) Bryan Watts

Colonial waterbirds are highly visible components of coastal avifauna species that share the unusual characteristic of nesting in dense assemblages. Due to their close association with aquatic resources, they are often good indicators of wetland and aquatic health. However, one consequence of having large portions of populations nesting in few locations is that even restricted disturbance may have profound consequences on a population level.

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Azalea, in May 2009, the day the satellite transmitter was fitted on her, day one of EagleTrak. Photo (c) Stephen Coleman

Azalea is a young eagle hatched from the nest at Norfolk Botanical Garden. She is one of a three-chick brood that has been followed by web-cam viewers from around the world during the 2009 breeding season via the NBG EagleCam. On 20 May, 2009 CCB biologists fitted Azalea with a 70-gram, solar-powered, satellite-GPS hybrid transmitter that is programmed to record locations hourly during the day and another location at midnight. You can follow her travels with researchers at EagleTrak blog and WildlifeTracking.

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Bryan Watts, Director of The Center for Conservation Biology, holds a satellite-tagged adult female bald eagle before her release.
Photo (c) Bart Roberts

More than thirty bald & golden eagles have been fitted with lightweight, solar-powered, satellite transmitters by CCB researchers. You, too, can follow eagles from around the Chesapeake Bay, including Norfolk Botanical Garden eagle, Azalea (HH), finding each bird's detailed profile at WildlifeTracking.org. You can subscribe to updates, and also support The Center for Conservation Biology's eagle tracking projects by adopting one or more eagles. Satellite-transmitters enable CCB to collect (and share) detailed geographical data on where and when these species migrate and how they spend their time in the Chesapeake region and beyond.

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