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Rats Out, Murrelets Back

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Rats Out, Murrelets Back Vol. 7, No. 2 BIRD CALLS Contents p. 2 JULY 2003 Landmark Feral Anacapa Island - Cat Policy Passes Rats out, in Florida Murrelets Back On May 30, 2003, the Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission Following the eradication of black rats (FWC) unanimously passed a policy, from Anacapa Island in Channel to: “protect native wildlife from Islands National Park, California (Bird predation, disease, and other impacts Calls Vol. 6, No. 2), the population of presented by feral and free-ranging Xantus’s Murrelet is showing cats.” Domestic cats in Florida prey immediate signs of recovery. Radar on migratory songbirds and shorebirds studies show that nesting activity has as well as rare, endemic species such increased markedly, and two nests as Florida Scrub-Jay. have been found in locations where ABC spearheaded public support for murrelets have not bred since the the policy, along with several other Florida Scrub-Jay is among the many species that 1920s. Both nests have hatchlings. conservation groups, federal and state will benefit from the new FWC policy. Photo: FWS ABC, Pacific Seabird Group, the agencies, and wildlife rehabilitators, Endangered Species Recovery including the American Birding Florida: The Fur and Feathers Are Council, and others intervened on Association, Defenders of Wildlife, Flying (http://conservation.law. behalf of the National Park Service, National Audubon Society, the ufl.edu/spotlight.html), commissioned whose plans to eradicate black rats Ornithological Council, The Wildlife by FWS, presents a convincing from Anacapa Island were blocked by Society, FWS, Florida Department of argument that TNR violates the a law suit brought by the Fund for Health, and USDA Wildlife Services. Migratory Bird Treaty Act, the Animals. The Judge ruled in favor of At the Commission’s hearing in Endangered Species Act, and Florida the Park Service, enabling Island Kissimmee, Linda Winter, Director of state law prohibiting abandonment and Conservation and Ecology Group to ABC’s Cats Indoors! Campaign, and release of non-native animals. ABC begin the successful rat eradication. Dr. Christine Storts, DVM, of Brevard encourages federal, state and local Besides rapid improvement for the County Veterinary Association, led the governments to enforce applicable murrelet, other species such as Ashy testimony in support of the policy. wildlife protection and animal cruelty Storm-Petrel have also benefitted from Opposition to the proposal came from laws against the release of domestic the rat removal, and the overall island cat colony advocates, who expressed cats where they impact native wildlife. ecology appears greatly enhanced. The their fear that all of the state’s stray Florida was the first state to adopt number of birds visiting nesting and feral cats would be killed. ABC’s Cats Indoors! Campaign, colonies has more than doubled in However, the Commissioners pledged hiring a part-time coordinator who some cases, and other Channel Island that cats would be removed from FWC distributes educational materials to endemics such as deer mice, side- lands in the most humane way possible veterinarians, conservation groups, blotched lizards, and slender and expressed a willingness to work animal control agencies, schools, and salamanders have also begun to with all stakeholders. the public. Florida has now set an rebound. University of Florida law student, example for other state wildlife For more information on the rat Pamela Jo Hatley, shared with the agencies to follow. To view the policy removal project visit: www.nps.gov/ Commissioners her review of wildlife visit: www.abcbirds.org/cats/states/ chis/naturalresources/airp.html . protection and animal cruelty laws. florida_policy.htm. Contact: Linda Contact: Gerald Winegrad, ABC, Her report, “Feral Cat Colonies in Winter, ABC, <[email protected]>. <[email protected]>. BIRD CALLS JULY 2003 CONTENTS Horseshoe Crab Landmark Cat Policy in Florida 1 Anacapa Island - Birds Return 1 Horseshoe Crab Success 2 Conservation Opposition of Cormorant Kills 3 Oregon Cascades Birding Trail 3 Success Benefits FWS Reviews ESA Listings 4 Mute Swan Removal Blocked 4 Bird Budget Facts & Figures 5 Shorebirds Boreal Forest Critical for U.S. Birds 5 Patagonian Toothfish Developments 6 Thick-billed Parrot Sighting 6 The Horseshoe Crab Management Flightless Grebe Plummets 7 Red Siskin Population Discovered 7 Board of the Atlantic States Marine Shorebirds such as Dunlin will benefit from improved horseshoe crab harvesting regulations. Photo: FWS NWR Management Controversy 8 Fisheries Commission voted in June ABC Opposes Carbofuran 8 2003, to dramatically reduce Critical Habitat Debate Heightens 9 West Nile Migrates South 9 horseshoe crab landings in New Jersey, bait-bags that cut bait use in half (Bird Mystery Indian Vulture Deaths 10 Delaware, and Maryland. The vote Calls Vol. 5, No. 3). Virginia already Saving Playa Lakes 10 was a result of concern over declining mandates the use of such bags. AVM Declining 11 Delaware Bay crab populations and ABC, National Audubon Society, Reprieve for Cerulean Warblers 11 U.S. Navy Leaves Vieques 12 associated declines in populations of New Jersey Audubon Society, and NJ Cats Indoors! Campaign 12 shorebirds that rely on the crab eggs other partners have been pressing the Bayer Withdraws Fenthion 13 to fuel their northerly migration (Bird Horseshoe Crab Management Board Peregrine Chicks to Falconers 13 Birds in Brief 14 Calls Vol. 6, No. 3). New Jersey and for stricter measures governing crab Swan Hunt to Go Ahead 15 Delaware agreed to cap landings at harvesting. Years of effort by these Alliance for Zero Extinction 15 150,000 crabs each (a drop of about groups led to significant cuts in crab IBA Book to be Published 16 50 percent), and Maryland agreed to a landings from 1998 to 2002, but as Abbreviations 170,000-crab cap. Equally significant concerns over the decline in shorebirds was a ban on all harvesting from May increased, reported harvests went up ABC: American Bird Conservancy FWS: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 1 through June 7, the most critical time in 2002 by 25% to 1.25 million crabs. NMFS: National Marine Fisheries Service for crab spawning and shorebird The Shorebird Technical Committee EPA: Environmental Protection Agency feeding. This is being hailed as an Report to the Horseshoe Crab USGS: U.S. Geological Survey IUCN - World Conservation Union important victory for shorebirds such Management Board confirmed as Red Knot and Semipalmated declines in Red Knots and Sandpipers, which congregate in the Semipalmated Sandpipers, and recommended reductions in bait Bird Calls is the Newsletter of Delaware Bay in vast numbers each American Bird Conservancy spring. New Jersey has adopted their landings for New Jersey, Delaware and and the ABC Policy Council. new quotas, but implementation of Maryland. The report noted that a 75% Bird Calls is partially funded by a grant from the Delaware’s regulations was delayed by reduction in landings would be International Affairs Division of the U. S. Fish & Wildlife Service legal action brought by crab fishermen, required to insure some crab Editorial Committee: and will now attempt to adopt their population growth. Contact: Gerald George Fenwick Winegrad at <[email protected]>. Merrie Morrison new rules in July. Delaware crabbers Mike Parr have been sweeping beaches clean of Gavin Shire George Wallace crabs and have already landed more Gerald Winegrad than 266,000. A similar gold rush 1834 Jefferson Place, NW mentality caused Maine to close its The next meeting Washington, DC 20036 202-452-1535/fax 202-452-1534 crab harvest and legislation has been of the ABC E-mail: [email protected] introduced to the New York State Web: http://www.abcbirds.org Policy Council is Assembly to cap that state’s take at ABC Policy Council Officers: at 10am on Chair: Jim Kushlan 100,000 crabs. <[email protected]> Most crabs are caught for use as bait November 13, in Vice Chair: Perry Plumart <[email protected]> in conch pots. In addition to reduced Washington, D.C. harvest quotas, the new regulations also require the use of devices such as 2 BIRD CALLS JULY 2003 Opposition Grows “Every study for about a century has shown that cormorants do not impact to Cormorant significantly the demography of desirable fish, except at very small Slaughter scales . The results of peer-reviewed studies show no significant impact by More than 10,000 citizens filed cormorant predation on desirable fish comments on the proposed FWS plan . The evidence does not support to allow the boundless slaughter of control at winter roosts as being Double-crested Cormorants. More effective or having the desired than 90 percent of the comments were consequences, and we believe that it opposed to the FWS proposal that Double-crested Cormorant. Photo: Clipart.com should not be allowed.” They went on would let 24 states begin killing to accuse FWS of treating perceptions unlimited numbers of cormorants personnel to decide which damage and sociology in the same way as without permits or prior review if the management techniques are most scientific findings, confusing birds are “injurious to a public appropriate in a given situation.” economics with natural history, and resource.” The proposal would also Ornithologists do not share that trust disregarding geographic scale. allow USDA’s Wildlife Services to kill and have resoundingly condemned the ABC and its partners have supported unlimited numbers of cormorants at FWS proposal, citing a lack of sound a science-based approach to the winter roosts in 12 fish-farming states, science. ABC spearheaded a letter of cormorant issue. Conservationists are without permits, and without requiring comment against the order, co-signed hopeful that the final FWS ruling meets non-lethal methods to be tried first. by 21 national and regional their concerns, and that cormorants are More than 47,000 Double-crested organizations. ABC also used its not made scapegoats for fishery Cormorants are killed annually under action alert system, BirdWire, to declines caused by other factors.
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