Past water patterns drive present wading bird numbers

Wading bird numbers in the Florida Everglades are driven by water patterns that play out over multiple years according to a new study by the U.S. Geological Survey and Florida Atlantic University. Previously, existing water conditions were seen as the primary driving factor affecting numbers of birds, but this research shows that the preceding years' water conditions and availability are equally important.

"We've known for some time that changes in water levels trigger a significant response by wading birds in the Everglades," said James Beerens, the study's lead author and an ecologist at USGS. "But what we discovered in this study is the importance of history. What happened last year can tell you what to expect this year."

From 2000 to 2009, scientists examined foraging distribution and abundance data for wading bird populations, including Great Egrets, White Ibises, and threatened Wood Storks. To do the research, they conducted reconnaissance flights across the Greater Everglades system, an area that includes Big Cypress National Preserve and Everglades National Park. They found climate and water management conditions going as far back as three years influenced current bird population numbers and distribution.

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Past water patterns drive present wading bird numbers

Date:June 25, 2015

Source:United States Geological Survey

Summary:Wading bird numbers in the Florida Everglades are driven by water patterns that play out over multiple years according to a new study. Previously, existing water conditions were seen as the primary driving factor affecting numbers of birds, but this research shows that the preceding years' water conditions and availability are equally important.

"We've known for some time that changes in water levels trigger a significant response by wading birds in the Everglades," said James Beerens, the study's lead author and an ecologist at USGS. "But what we discovered in this study is the importance of history. What happened last year can tell you what to expect this year."

From 2000 to 2009, scientists examined foraging distribution and abundance data for wading bird populations, including Great Egrets, White Ibises, and threatened Wood Storks. To do the research, they conducted reconnaissance flights across the Greater Everglades system, an area that includes Big Cypress National Preserve and Everglades National Park. They found climate and water management conditions going as far back as three years influenced current bird population numbers and distribution.

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Wading Birds: The Canary In The Coal Mine?

It's not a canary or a coal mine in Florida, but the idea from Audubon of Florida is the same. Wading birds hold the same function as the canary, and in this case the coal mine is the Everglades. Tabitha Cale with the society says things are dire.

The 20th annual Wading Bird Report shows some positive and negative stories about Everglades Restoration.

The 20th anniversary of the Wading Bird Report is out and there's some bad news. Everglades restoration is not going well. The report shows that in 2014 there were 34,714 wading bird nests in the Greater Everglades. That's 28 percent fewer than in 2013. 

The biggest drops included little blue herons, 83 percent, tricolored herons, 42 percent, and snowy egrets, 47 percent.

Counting wading bird nests is an indicator of where water flows are improving. The report shows the area with great progress is the Kissimmee River Basin. Meanwhile, Everglades National Park still needs improvement.

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Big winners and losers in UK wading bird numbers

The number of ringed plovers in the UK has declined by a massive 39 per cent

The spectacle of multitudes of wintering birds on an estuary in the UK is changing, according to a new report from the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO).

The results of analysis of the latest data collected by thousands of Wetland Bird Survey (WeBS) volunteers has shown that populations of the UK’s most familiar coastal waders have declined markedly in the last 10 years.

Ringed plover has fared worst with a 39 per cent decline followed by redshank at 26 per cent down, dunlin at 23 per cent, curlew at 17 per cent and oystercatcher at 15 per cent.

These are among the eight most abundant wintering waders on UK estuaries, yet the populations of all of them are declining.

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Gamekeepers plan wading bird action

SCOTLAND'S gamekeepers are taking action to try to prevent the country's wading bird populations from suffering the drastic declines seen in Wales.

The move has been welcomed by RSPB Scotland with whom the Scottish Gamekeepers Association (SGA) is often at odds.

The SGA says that ground nesting waders such as lapwing, curlew and plover breed up to three times more successfully on grouse moors, due to heather burning and legal predator control by gamekeepers.

The SGA has declared 2014 the Year of the Wader and will invite all grouse moors in Scotland to report counts in an attempt to provide an accurate picture of how waders are faring on keepered land.

The SGA says Scotland has lost 56% of its lapwing and curlew in only 17 years, with conservationists blaming climate change and habitat loss through farming practices.

However the gamekeepers say that unless the Scottish Government listens to practical land managers, waders could pass the point of no return. They cite Wales as an example, where 75% have been lost in the last few decades.

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