A Moving Story for the Birds

USGS scientist Chandler Robbins has been a research biologist with the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center for more than 50 years. He is the author of the Golden Guide Birds of North America, originally published in the late 1960s and updated in 2001. Last spring on Midway Atoll, Robbins rebanded an albatross that he later discovered he had banded previously -- in 1956. It is estimated that this bird is at least 51 years old---and was brooding a chick! This breaks the longevity record for North American birds in the wild, the previous record being for this same species at the age of 42 years 5 months. Click for photo and info and click on "June 2002." Chandler Robbins is noted for his founding of the Breeding Bird Survey, recruiting thousands of volunteers to monitor birds. This work helped to document the far-reaching harm of DDT on birds -- an issue Rachel Carson cited in her book Silent Spring --and resulted in the ban placed on DDT. His work has also documented population trends, such as the decline of North American migratory birds and the invasion of non-native bird species. Robbins is well known among bird enthusiasts -- he received the 2000 Audubon Medal; previous recipients include Walt Disney, Rachel Carson, and Jimmy Carter.

Contact Diane Noserale, Reston, VA 703-648-4333

Trade in Painted Buntings discussed in Bangkok, Thailand

On June 21, USGS Patuxent Scientist J. Michael (Joe) Meyers, was invited to review the proposed listing on Appendix II of CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) of the Painted Bunting in North America and the Caribbean. The IUCN (World Conservation Union, http://www.iucn.org/) organizes and collects information on listings to protect animals and plants under CITES. Recent reports of trafficking of male Painted Buntings indicate that many thousands may be captured and shipped from the Americas to Europe and other exotic bird markets. Painted Bunting are a species at risk of endangerment and have become a priority species for research and recovery in the southeastern U.S. Dr. Meyers will provide his review of the proposal, which will be discussed at the forthcoming meeting of the Conference of Parties in October 2004 in Bangkok , Thailand .

Contact J. Michael Meyers, Athens , GA , 706-542-1882.

Presentations 

Dr. Roy McDiarmid of Patuxent’s Biological Survey Unit at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History attended the annual Joint Meeting of Ichthyologists and Herpetologists hosted by the University of Oklahoma from May 26 – 31, 2004. In addition to having a great time and spending three enjoyable days in the field looking for amphibians and reptiles, he and his colleagues presented the following three papers at this meeting:

Mary F. Mickevich, Dave Hardy, and Roy McDiarmid presented a paper in an ASIH symposium honoring Bruce B. Collette titled Collette and Computers; their presentation acknowledged Collette’s significant contributions to bioinformatic efforts within the National Marine Fisheries Service, the National Museum of Natural History, the ichthyological and systematics communities, and several national and international biodiversity projects.

Maureen A. Donnelly and Roy W. McDiarmid presented a paper titled The herpetofauna of the “Lost World”: A multivariate statistical approach to study patterns of diversity. Maureen is a Research Associate of the Smithsonian’s Division of Amphibians and Reptiles and an Associate Professor at Florida International University in Miami .

Diego F. Cisneros-Heredia and Roy W. McDiarmid presented a paper titled Observations on the taxonomy, distribution, and conservation status of the centrolenids from Ecuador (Anura: Centrolenidae). Diego is from the Universidad San Francisco de Quito, Ecuador and was an undergraduate intern with Roy in the Research Training Program in 2002. He has been accepted into the graduate program at Boston University and will start his graduate student career in the Fall.

Contact Roy McDiarmid, Washington DC , 202-357-2780

More Thorough Spatial Evaluation of Contaminant Exposure in Ospreys throughout the Chesapeake is Warranted

The Chesapeake Bay osprey population has more than doubled in size since restrictions were placed on the production and use of DDT and other toxic contaminants in the 1970’s. However, ospreys are now nesting in the most highly polluted portions of the Bay, including Baltimore Harbor and the Patapsco River , the Anacostia and middle Potomac Rivers, and the Elizabeth River . The findings of a research study examining contaminant exposure and reproductive effects of environmental contaminants on ospreys nesting in the Chesapeake were just published (Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology 46:126-140, 2004). A “sample egg” from each study nest was collected for contaminants analyses, and the fate of eggs remaining in each nest was monitored at 7-10 day intervals from egg incubation through fledging. Ospreys fledged in regions of concern (observed success: 0.88-1.53 fledglings/active nest), although productivity was marginal for sustaining local populations in Baltimore Harbor and the Patapsco River , and the Anacostia and middle Potomac Rivers. Concentrations of p,p’-DDE and other organochlorine pesticides, total PCBs and several toxic PCB congeners, and polybrominated flame retardants were often greater in eggs from these polluted regions compared to the reference site. In view of concerns related to new toxicants, the presence of moderate levels of PCBs in eggs from the South, West and Rhode rivers reference area, and the absence of ecotoxicological data for vertebrates in many Bay tributaries, a more thorough spatial evaluation of contaminant exposure in ospreys throughout the Chesapeake is warranted.

Contact Barnett Rattner, Laurel, MD 301-497-5671

BBS and the Quad 30 Campaign

Noel Cutright, a 30-year participant in the USGS North American Breeding Bird Survey (BBS), attempts to sample 30 BBS routes in 30 days to raise $30,000 in 2004 for bird conservation in his Quad 30 Campaign (www.quad30campaign.org). In addition to highlighting the conservation importance of long-term avian monitoring programs like the BBS, all funds raised by the campaign will go to support the Important Bird Areas program. Normally, Noel samples 4 BBS routes per year in his home state of Wisconsin and a fifth in Michigan but decided to challenge himself with an additional 25 routes this year in four states to demonstrate the need for more support for the BBS and bird conservation in general. Getting an early jump in Ohio on May 30, as of June 24 he had completed 26 consecutive BBS routes!

The BBS is the foundation of modern non-game, land-bird conservation in North America . These data, along with other indicators, are used by Partners in Flight, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Canadian Wildlife Service, and numerous state conservation agencies to develop bird conservation plans at national and regional scales. Since its inception at Patuxent in 1966, BBS participation has grown 4-fold with about 3000 routes sampled annually. But despite the success of the BBS and its importance to avian conservation, there are still over 1000 vacant routes in need of skilled birding partners. Thus the Quad 30 Campaign is a timely reminder of the need for renewed support for the BBS and its important mission.

Contacts Keith Pardieck, Laurel, MD, 301-497-5843

USGS Assists with Bioinventory of Global Diversity Hotspot in Southwestern China

Diann Prosser, Patuxent biologist, assisted an international team of ornithologists, mammalogists, and ichthyologists with a bioinventory of the Gaoligongshan Mountains in Southwestern China this spring. The Gaoligong mountain region, located on the border of China and Myanmar , has been recognized by Conservation International as one of the top 25 biodiversity hotspots on the globe. In 1998, scientists from the California Academy of Sciences, and the Kunming Institutes of Zoology and Botany (part of the Chinese Academy of Sciences) launched the China Natural History Project in an effort to survey (and eventually protect) the flora and fauna of this region. Seasonal expeditions are scheduled through 2007. As part of the spring 2004 ornithological team, Prosser assisted with specimen preparation and surveying of the avifauna within this region.

Contact Diann Prosser, Beltsville, MD ; 301-497-5914.

HiLites Contact: Regina Lanning, USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, 301-497-5509

See Previous HiLites:

June 2, 2003
June 16, 2003
June 23, 2003
July 7, 2003
August 11, 2003
November 10, 2003
December 15, 2003
March 15, 2004
May 3, 2004
May 17, 2004
May 24, 2004
June 7, 2004