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The Impact of Human Disturbance on Shorebirds at a Migration Staging Area

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The Impact of Human Disturbance on Shorebirds at a Migration Staging Area Biological Conservation 1992. 60. 115-126 "" ... '~>..,r -.<o:"fL'"'. ' The impact of human disturbance on shorebirds at a migration staging area Charles Pfister * School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27706, USA Brian A. Harringtont Manomet Bird Observatory, PO Box 936, Manomet, Massachusetts 02345. USA & Michael Lavine Institute of Statistics and Decision Sciences. Duke University. Durham. North Carolina 27706. USA (Received 27 September 1990; revised version received 6 June 1991; accepted 31 July 1991) Human disturbance was investigated as a factor that might limit the capacity of a staging area to support migrating shorebirds. Long-term census data were used to test the hypothesis that human disturbance at an important coastal mi­ gration staging area has a negative impact on shorebird movement patterns be­ cause of (I) displacement of shorebirds from preferred resting areas within the study area; and (2) abandonment of the study area. Results revealed that four of seven species showed one or more types of movement in response to distur­ bance. The impact of disturbance was greater on species using the heavily dis­ tributed front side of the beach. The abundance of impacted species may be re­ duced by 50% at high disturbance levels. Abundance of front-beach species. such as red knot Calidris canutus and short-billed dowitcher Limnodromus griseus. declined between 1972 and 1989 more than back-beach species. such as black­ bellied plover Pluvialis squatarola and semipalmated plover Charadrius semi­ palmatus; red knot and short-billed dowitcher declined more at Plymouth Beach than at two comparable. but less disturbed. coastal staging areas and more than the overall eastern North American population. Disturbance is implicated as a potential factor in long-term declines in shorebird abundance at Plymouth Beach. The impacts of disturbance could be reduced or perhaps eliminated by closing one or more small portions of the front beach as refuge resting areas during migration. INTRODUCTION fat needed for long-distance, non-stop flights to their next staging area, frequently thousands of Shorebirds are one of the most highly migratory kilometers away (Morrison, 1984; Senner & Howe, groups of animals known to science. The migra­ 1984). The concentration of shorebirds during mi­ tion strategies of many species include a series of gration raises a concern that populations of some visits to staging areas between wintering and breed­ species are highly vulnerable if the well-being of ing areas, where they feed intensively to acquire strategic staging areas is compromised. This con­ cern was recently heightened by the finding that • Present address: 1918 Montclair Avenue, Bloomington. Indiana some popUlations of nearctic shorebirds may have 47401, USA. declined dramatically since the 1970s (Howe et af., t To whom reprint requests should be addressed. 1989). The causes of these declines are unknown, Biological Conservation 0006-3207/92/$OS.OO © 1992 Elsevier but potential factors include loss or degradation Science Publishers Ltd, England. Printed in Great Britain of habitat in wintering and staging areas due to 115 116 C. Pfister, B. A. Harrington, M. Lavine development, human disturbance, pesticide use, at low tide (lwanowicz et al., 1974), is sheltered water pollution, and oil spills (Senner & Howe, behind Plymouth and nearby Duxbury Beaches 1984; Myers, 1988). In order to enact conservation (Fig. 1). Data from the International Shorebird measures for shorebirds, information is needed on Survey (ISS) show that the large concentrations of factors that may affect the capacity of staging shorebirds at Plymouth Beach make the site one areas to support migrating shorebirds. This study of conservation importance (Harrington et al., 1989). assesses how human disturbance impacts migrating Abundance of most shorebird species at Plymouth shorebirds at an important coastal staging area. Beach during fall migration peaks during late July Although the impact of human disturbance on and early August, coinciding with the peak period breeding shorebirds has been documented (Senner of human recreational use of the beach. Passage & Howe, 1984; Flemming et al., 1988), few studies of adult shorebirds at Plymouth Beach is generally have evaluated how the impact of human distur­ followed by the passage of juveniles, as at most bance may affect non-breeding shorebirds. In one North American staging areas during fall migra­ study, shorebirds were the most sensitive group of tion (Morrison, 1984); however, the periods of coastal birds in immediate behavioral reaction to juvenile and adult migration may overlap (Manomet disturbance (Burger, 1981). Interspecific differences Bird Observatory (MBO), unpublished data). among shorebirds in sensitivity to disturbance have Shorebirds feed on the tidal fiats behind the also been shown (Furness, 1973a). Human distur­ barrier beaches and move to high-tide resting areas bance has been associated with a lower frequency on Plymouth Beach and Duxbury Beach (3-5 km of occurrence in (Burger, 1981), and abandonment from Plymouth Beach). The intertidal fiats behind of (Furness, 1973b; Mitchell et al., 1989), pre­ Plymouth Beach are the muddiest in the estuary ferred resting or feeding areas by non-breeding and receive the most intense shorebird use. Most shorebirds. In this study, we used long-term census shorebirds resting here apparently follow the same data to relate abundance and distribution of rest­ ing shorebirds to disturbance levels at the time of censusing. This method of assessing the impact of disturbance has been termed 'indirect', as opposed to 'direct' methods that rely on behavioral obser­ vation (Burger, 1981). We test the hypothesis that human disturbance is associated with movement of shorebirds at a high-tide resting area, either (1) through changes in shorebird resting site selection; or (2) through reduced overall shorebird abun­ dance. The hypotheses are not mutually exclusive. In addition, we explore the hypothesis that long­ term abundance declines may be associated with human disturbance. STUDY AREA N The study site, Plymouth Beach (42 0 00' N, 70 0 40' W), a 5-km long sand spit extending into Ply­ mouth Bay (Fig. 1), is one of the northernmost of a series of barrier beaches running along the I Atlantic coast of the United States between Florida 2 3 ! and Cape Cod Bay. The east side faces Cape Cod ! km Bay and is an open, sandy beach subject to high wave-energy, especially during the winter. The west side is sheltered from strong wave action and is Fig. 1. The study area: -- -, Intertidal flats exposed at low typical of a low-energy beach, with extensive de­ tide. (Adapted from a diagram originally published as Fig. I in Schneider, D. C. & Harrington, B. A. (1981). Timing of velopment of tidal fiats, mussel beds, and some salt shorebird migration in relation to prey depletion. Auk, 98, marsh. A 4070-ha bay, of which 45·7% is exposed 801-11.) Human disturbance on shorebirds 117 Table 1. Abundance of shorebird species in first and last four years of the study at Plymouth Beach, Plymouth, Massachusetts (1972-J 989) Species Mean peak" Mean peak" Resting-site abundance abundance selection 1972- 1975 1986-1989 Black-bellied plover Pluvalis squatarola 738 474 Back-beach Semipalmated plover Charadrius semipalmatus 380 455 Back-beach Ruddy turnstone Arenaria interpres 160 61 Back-beach Sanderling Calidris alba 1200 327 Front-beach Semipalmated sandpiper Calidris pusilla 5912 1844 Front-beach Red knot Calidris canutus 295 57 Front-beach Short-billed dowitcher Limnodromus griseus 299 34 Front-beach "Mean of highest annual census counts. cycle day and night, since they are not present at Beach access for recreation beyond the first lower tides at night. Night feeding is widespread kilometer of Plymouth beach is generally re­ among shorebirds (Burger, 1984; Robert el at., stricted to four-wheel-drive vehicles because of the 1989). Observation of individually color-marked distance from the nearest paved road. Summer shorebirds has shown that local movement occurs recreational activities center on sandy sections of between Plymouth and Duxbury Beaches but that the outer beach (Fig. I). The back beach is little most individuals show fidelity to a particular high­ used for recreation except as an alternative access tide resting area (MBO, unpublished data). route to the tip of the beach along a narrow trail. The seven most abundant shorebird species at The tip of the beach is used primarily for fishing Plymouth Beach during southbound migratio!1, and at times remains relatively undisturbed even July through September (Table 1), all breed in the when the outer beach is crowded. The number of North American arctic and subarctic regions and vehicles allowed on the beach was not limited winter primarily in Central and South America, prior to 1988, at which time restrictions were ap­ although some species have populations that plied only under conditions of unusually high winter along the United States Atlantic and Gulf tides. Numbers of vehicles on the beach during fall coasts (Hayman et al., 1986). No shorebirds shorebird migration ranged from none, at times winter at Plymouth Beach, except as vagrants. At such as early in the morning and during bad Plymouth Beach there is a division among species weather, to more than 1000 on peak use days, in resting site selection. Black-bellied plover Pluvialis such as holidays and warm, sunny weekend days. squatarola, semipalmated plover Charadrius semi­ The number of vehicles on peak visitation days palmatus, and ruddy turnstone Arenaria interpres increased over the course of the study, generally occur in greatest numbers along the marshy edges ranging from 75-200 in the 1970s to 200-600 in of the back side of the beach; semi palma ted sand­ the 1980s. piper Calidris pusilla, sanderling C. alba, red knot C. canutus, and short-billed dowitcher Limnodromus griseus occur in larger numbers along the open tip METHODS and front side of the beach. The former species will be referred to as 'back-beach' species and the Field data collection latter as 'front-beach' species.
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