The
Kirtland’s Warbler — one of the rarest nesting migratory songbirds in the
United States and Canada — now has additional support, thanks to the
establishment of an avian ecologist position geared to executing conservation
activities on the bird’s wintering grounds in The Bahamas. Scientist
Bradley Watson has been hired by the Bahamas National Trust (BNT) as part of
the plan to keep the Kirtland’s Warbler population growing after its expected
removal from the U.S. endangered species list this spring.
Watson,
who is Bahamian, holds a Master of Science from the University of
Nebraska-Omaha, along with a Bachelor of Science from the College of
Charleston. Prior to accepting the new position, Watson worked with the Cape
Eleuthera Institute and The Bahamas Reef Environmental Education Foundation. He
has contributed to multiple studies on terrestrial ecology, while his graduate
research focused on carbon sequestration in prairie systems.
On the
verge of extinction, the Kirtland’s Warbler numbered only 167 breeding pairs in
1987. Today, the population is approximately 2,300 breeding pairs, thanks to
science-driven management by state, federal, and nongovernmental partners,
supported by protection and funding through the U.S. Endangered Species Act
(ESA). However, the species will require long-term habitat management and
ongoing support to continue to thrive after ESA protections are removed.
