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2012 Annual Report THE PEREGRINE FUND Conserving Birds of Prey Worldwide letter from the president . 3 arctic conservation alliance . 4 wind energy Impacts on raptors . 6 california condor restoration . 8 aplomado falcon restoration . 12 If we were logIcal, gulf oil spill monitoring . 15 american kestrel partnership . 16 the future would be neotropical raptor conservation program west Indies project. 19 bleak, Indeed. but we are harpy eagle conservation. 20 neotropical raptor network. 21 orange-breasted falcon project . 22 more than logical. we are neotropical science and student education . 26 pan africa raptor conservation program human beIngs, and we have faIth, east africa project. 31 madagascar project . 33 and we have hope, and we can work. asia-pacific raptor conservation program philippine eagle conservation . 37 asian vulture crisis. 40 —Jacques Yves Cousteau conservation science global raptor Information network . 42 research library . 43 scientific publications and presentations. 44 raptor conservation genetics research . 45 student education . 47 education program . 48 the archives of falconry . 50 cooperators . 52 supporters donors. 54 In memory. 56 legacy circle. 59 financial statements. 58 8 staff and volunteers . 60 48 The Peregrine Fund 2012 Annual Report ©2013 Edited by Pat Burnham and Susan Whaley Design ©2013 by Amy Siedenstrang Printing and manufacturing donated by MyPublisher.com Cover image by Rob Palmer 37 12 employees worldwide countries worked 8266in since 1970 5.6operating million budget for 2013 advanced degrees earned 90by students with our support 25,publications000 in our percent of donations reference library 2,095 spent on programs individuals given hands-on training 94 volunteers worldwide children13,939 toured our 117 visitor center in 2012 184,000 page views per month 1,408books, articles, and at www.peregrinefund.org 6,raptors183 produced in reports published captivity since 1970 2 the peregrIne fund The Peregrine Fund has earned a solid reputation in the conservation community for over four decades. So solid, in fact, that even long-time supporters are surprised to find that we operate with a staff of just 82 people. Even more surprising: we cur- rently manage projects with 34 species in 27 countries. How has a small staff established such a worldwide presence? Simply put, it’s about priorities: 63 of us (77% of the staff) are in the field engaged hands-on with birds of prey. Seven are public educators, and 12 serve members and manage day- to-day business. Each individual conserves birds of prey using a necessary and unique set of skills, but the intimate knowledge gained only in the field makes our organization truly stand out from all others. Even in my role as President, I spend time in the field collecting bio-samples from Peregrine Falcons to track contaminants from oil spills, pesticides, and climate change. There are myriad examples of our other field work, from building treetop release sites for Ridgway’s Hawks to drawing blood from California Condors to test for lead. There’s no way to achieve these tasks with a computer keyboard or a com- mittee meeting; somebody has to get their hands dirty, and that’s us. To complete the big picture, the data generated by our fieldwork must be trans- lated into published results and policy recommendations. To do this, we cultivate exceptional individuals who possess both field expertise and academic rigor. To date, katherine elston we have supported 23 Ph.D. and 67 M.Sc. level scholars. Many of these former gradu- Peter and Barbara Jenny were joined by Devon Elston (center) to collect samples ate student trainees are now among the world’s leading experts on birds of prey. from Peregrine Falcons on the Gulf coast. Although we are undeniably unique, I would never claim that we are alone in this work. We partner with literally thousands of people and organizations who share our goals: hunters who voluntarily switch to non-lead ammunition, lawmakers There’s no way to achieve these tasks with a balancing economy and environment, foundations committed to children’s educa- computer keyboard or a committee meeting; tion, citizen scientists installing kestrel boxes, pilots carrying young Aplomado Fal- somebody has to get their hands dirty, and that’s us. cons to release sites, members donating every year without fail… I could go on. My point is this: it may take only 82 people to run a world-class non-profit organization, but it takes a world of caring individuals to conserve birds of prey. I thank you for doing your part. conservIng bIrds of prey worldwIde 3 As top predators, Gyrfalcons are a key indicator species illuminating the effects of Arctic climate change. arctic conservation alliance Project Director: David Anderson his project began when we convened an international conference in 2011 on the ecology and conservation of the Gyrfalcon and its prey in Arctic ecosystems. This first meeting of its kind attractedT more than 120 scientists from all the circumpolar nations who contributed 70 papers and presentations. The first lasting legacy of the conference was the publication of the conference proceedings. The conference showed that climate change is measurable, and it is happening more rapidly in the Arc- tic than anywhere else on Earth. Though Gyrfalcons are not yet endangered, evidence points to diminished populations and breeding in the south of their range. The second lasting legacy will be a long-term project of Gyrfalcon research and collaboration among scientists from the eight nations of the circumpolar north. Climate models have become more sophisticated over the past 20 years as our understanding of climate science has improved, and predictions are now more certain than ever. These models forecast a 50-60% loss of suitable habi- tat for Gyrfalcons and their prey over the next 80 years, a time span equivalent to our grandchil- dren’s lifetime. The Gyrfalcon is one species in an ecological web that will be affected by a changing climate in the Arctic. Our project will focus not only on important Gyrfalcon population parameters, but on the interactions among Gyrfalcons, their prey, and other species of the Arctic tundra. Our research will help prepare future generations to meet the challenge that climate change presents to the survival of many Arctic species. cal sandfort 4 the peregrIne fund tConference proceedings Inlet. In general, work included surveys published by helicopter, boat, and on foot between The lasting legacy of our successful Steensby Inlet and Milne Inlet from June 2011 conference “Gyrfalcons and to August 2012. More than 368 cliffs have Ptarmigan in a Changing World” was been identified as raptor breeding sites publication of the proceedings, both along the proposed road and rail corri- online and free to anyone in the world dor from Steensby Inlet in the south to with internet access and in print for per- Milne Inlet in the north as part of min- manent archive in the libraries of the ing operations associated with the world. This two-volume, 800-page publi- Baffinland Iron Mine. Of these, 317 were …climate change is measurable, cation included papers, extended surveyed. Raptors occupied 131 sites, and it is happening more rapidly in the abstracts, and transcripts of 73 presenta- while the remaining sites were unoccu- tions and posters given at the confer- pied. Eighteen unique nest sites are Arctic than anywhere else on Earth. ence, and forms a major baseline refer- known to have been used by Gyrfalcons. ence for all future research on climate Nest sites located in the Steensby change effects on Gyrfalcons and Inlet area were monitored more fre- ptarmigan in the Arctic. quently and biologists confirmed that raptors in this area experienced poor tSmall grant provided reproductive success. A total of 54 Pere- The Peregrine Fund provided fund- grine Falcon nests were documented, ing for work on north Baffin Island, compared to 75 in 2011. There were 74 Nunavut, Canada. As part of a larger Rough-legged Hawk nests documented, the region and no Long-tailed Jaegers ming abundance on Baffin Island was project by Arctic Raptors Inc., field which was very similar to the previous recorded breeding in the Regional significantly lower than in 2011 and staff monitored raptor sites for occu- year. Despite surveying the region ear- Study Area. reflects the absence of Snowy Owls and pancy and reproductive success on lier (8 June) and for an additional six Poor reproductive success was likely jaegers breeding in the region. Avian Baffin Island as well as two other study weeks, only three Gyrfalcon nests were due to high rainfall in all study areas. distance sampling indicated that shore- areas (Rankin Inlet, NU and Iglulik, found compared to seven in 2011. Only For example, in the Coxe Islands west of bird abundance was much reduced. NU). The motivation for the broad- one Gyrfalcon site was successful, pro- Iglulik, 149 mm of rain was recorded Mining operations usually begin in scale survey on Baffin Island was to ducing a single chick. Four Gyrfalcon compared to 35 mm and 22 mm in 2010 early June each year, which prevents delineate the highest density of Pere- nest sites previously classified as and 2011, respectively. At Rankin Inlet, early season occupancy surveys for grine Falcons and Gyrfalcons with the unique locations were reclassified as 126 mm of rainfall was recorded for the Gyrfalcons. As a result, it is suspected goal to further establish the boundary alternates resulting in 18 unique sites. summer, which included a storm that that early season reproductive failure for a long-term study. A total of one Gyrfalcon, 34 Peregrine saw 46.7 mm precipitation in a 24-hour may partly explain low occupancy The study design proposed three sep- Falcons, and 20 Rough-legged Hawks period on 13 and 14 July when most rates, and logistics are being investi- arate areas of study on Baffin Island were banded.
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