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Conservation Planning for Endemic Damselflies of the Northeast

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Conservation Planning for Endemic Damselflies of the Northeast Conservation Planning for Endemic Damselflies of the Northeast L-R: New England, Scarlet, and Little Bluets. Photos by Pamela Hunt A report to the Sarah K. de Coizart Article TENTH Perpetual Charitable Trust Submitted by Pamela D. Hunt, Ph.D. New Hampshire Audubon 84 Silk Farm Road Concord, NH 03301 (603) 224-9909 x328 [email protected] January 30, 2020 Overview In 2018, New Hampshire Audubon was awarded a total of $90,000 by the Sarah K. de Coizart Article TENTH Perpetual Charitable Trust for work on conservation planning for four species of damselflies largely endemic to northeastern North America. These species occur primarily from New Jersey to Maine, with one also widespread in Maritime Canada. They are all bluets in the genus Enallagma as follows: New England Bluet (E. laterale), Little Bluet (E. minusculum), Scarlet Bluet (E. pictum), and Pine Barrens Bluet (E. recurvatum). All are considered “Regional Species of Greatest Conservation Need” and each is listed as “threatened” or “special concern” by at least one of the seven states within their core United States range. Because of their endemism and occurrence in one of the most human-impacted areas of North America, there was interest across the region in developing a more comprehensive approach to these species’ conservation. Our proposal included seven distinct objectives, all leading toward development of a conservation plan. Those seven steps were in turn grouped into three broader project components, as show below: 1) Status assessment a. Compile existing data on all focal species b. Field surveys, with a focus on updating records that were >20 years old 2) Habitat Models a. Collect habitat data at survey sites using a standard protocol b. Create habitat models for each focal species 3) Conservation Plan a. Develop a monitoring framework to guide future monitoring across the region b. Prioritize sites based on their ecological condition and perceived risk c. Generate a list of conservation actions that could benefit these species and their habitats. The project officially began in March of 2018, when NH Audubon convened partners from each state within the core range of these species. Partners on this call included representatives from the Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, University of Maine Farmington, New Hampshire Audubon, Massachusetts Natural Heritage and Endangered Species Program, Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, New York State Natural Heritage Program, and New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife, as well as an independent Odonata expert from Rhode Island. Together, these individuals comprise the project’s steering committee, and convened regularly by conference call to move the project along during 2018 and 2019. The report that follows presents the project’s accomplishments in the order the objectives were presented above. It includes a number of appendices, and the Conservation Plan as a stand-alone document. Component 1: Status Assessment The first task given to each state was a compilation of existing data for each species (objective 1a), including a breakdown of the ages of each record (i.e., the last time a given species was reported at a given site). In the process, we decided to add a fifth species to the project, the Attentuated Bluet (E. daeckii). While not endemic to the Northeast (it ranges from southern New England south and east to Texas), this species is of conservation concern here at the northern edge of its distribution, and often co-occurs with the four original focal species. The results of this compilation are presented in Appendix 1a, which also includes data from Pennsylvania and Vermont, two states peripheral to the core ranges of all the target species. Once all data were compiled, the steering committee agreed that the first priority for surveying known sites should be locations where records were over 20 years old. This would update state databases and provide more current data on which other project components could be based. Before surveys could begin, we needed a consistent methodology that would collect information on both damselflies and the habitat characteristics of the ponds and wetlands where they occur (or didn’t occur). To this end, a pilot protocol was finalized by the end of May (objective 2a, in part; Appendix 2a). Key to its development was consideration of the data needs for our proposed habitat models, meaning that data had to be relevant to the way damselflies may select habitats and easily measurable in a short time by field personal scattered across the region. The protocol was modified slightly in 2019 following field testing in 2018. Surveys focused on the focal damselflies were conducted in every partner state except Connecticut in 2018, and in all states in 2019 (objective 1b, Appendix 1b). Over 400 sites were eventually surveyed region-wide in the course of this project. The extent of survey effort varied considerably by state as a result of weather (there were several extended rainy periods), water levels, a late start to survey implementation in 2018, and staffing capacity. Appendix 1b shows the distribution of survey effort over the two years across the region. Over the course of the two seasons, all seven states were able to visit the majority of known sites for their highest priority species. In most cases where a high percentage of sites were “unsurveyed” for a species in Appendix 1b, this is because that species was not as high a priority in that state. Habitat data were collected in all states as well, although not at all sites surveyed in Massachusetts and New Jersey. Overall, target species were recorded at 43-66% of historic sites that were surveyed, but there was considerable variation within the region in detection likelihood and discovery of new sites. These results are presented in Appendix 1b, but also summarized by species below. Although at present we lack the data to fully evaluate success rates (see Conservation Plan), we have opted to use 50% as a rough cut-off between good and poor detectability at historic sites. Enallagma daeckii (Attenuated Bluet) This southern species is gradually expanding its range in the region, as evidenced by several new records in southern New England, especially Connecticut. It was also documented on Long Island for the first time. In New Jersey, the species is not a conservation priority, but even without a concerted survey effort it was found at several new sites. If this range expansion continues, the Attenuated Bluet may be less in need of conservation attention than once believed. Enallagma laterale (New England Bluet) This species was detected at roughly half the known sites that were surveyed. Success rates were much higher in New Hampshire (73%) and New Jersey (71%), and much lower in Rhode Island (21%). The low detection rate in Rhode Island may be partially due to poor survey conditions, and it should be noted that this state only surveyed a small proportion of known sites. At the same time several new sites were discovered in Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Connecticut, indicating that the regional population generally healthy. Concern is still warranted in New York and New Jersey where there are still far fewer sites than the other states. Enallagma minusculum (Little Bluet) This is the most northerly-distributed of the five focal species. Because it is common in the north, it was not a survey priority in Maine or New Hampshire, but both states detected it at 40-60% of known sites. In southern New England, the success rate declined from Massachusetts to Rhode Island to Connecticut, although there were several new sites found in Massachusetts and Connecticut. There are only three known sites in New York and New Jersey for this species, and it was found at only one of these – on Long Island. Here at the southern edge of its range, this species may be barely hanging on, and the single site in southern New Jersey may not even represent an established population. Enallagma pictum (Scarlet Bluet) The detection rate for this species was the highest of the four, averaging 66%. At the state level, only Massachusetts (10%) was significantly lower that 50%. Large numbers of new sites were also discovered, particularly in Maine, New Hampshire, and Connecticut, making it the most widespread species of the four in terms of occupied sites in 2018-19. It is particularly widespread at the northern and southern extremes of its range in Maine, New Hampshire, and New Jersey. Relatively low detection rates in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and New York are sufficient reason to retain this species as a conservation priority in those states, and follow up surveys are recommended in Massachusetts to determine if the low detections in 2018-19 are an indication of local extirpation. Enallagma recurvatum (Pine Barrens Bluet) The core range of this species has generally been southern New Jersey, Long Island, Rhode Island, and Cape Cod. Surveys in 2018-19 found it roughly 50% of known sites region- wide, although detection success was particularly low on Long Island. In states peripheral to the core range, a new site was found in Connecticut, bringing that state’s total to two, but it was not relocated at the only known site in New Hampshire. It is likely that populations at the northern range edge are ephemeral, and additional survey effort is warranted to determine if the species exists at other suitable sites nearby. Component 2: Habitat Models As noted above, standardized habitat data were collected at the majority of sites across the region (Objective 2a, Appendix 2a). However, because there were some data gaps and inconsistencies in data collection across the region, we were unable to use all survey sites in the final models.
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