News from Scientists at the USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center
Tuesday, March 3, 2003
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USGS Deputy Assistant Secretary Tom Weimer Spends Day at Patuxent On February 14, Deputy Assistant Secretary Tom Weimer spent a day visiting the USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center. Dr. Weimer met Patuxent Center Director Dr. Judd A. Howell, the Research Managers, and many of the staff. The tour included visits to Nelson, Merriam, Stickel and Gabrielson Laboratories, the Veterinarian Hospital, and the Endangered Species Captive Propagation Facility. Many of the Patuxent staff had the opportunity to meet and visit with Mr Weimer during an all-hands-invited lunch session.
Deputy Assistant Secretary Tom Weimer tries out one of the ultralight aircraft used in the Whooping Crane Migration project under the watchful eye of pilot Dan Sprague. Pictured (l-r) are Harry Coulombe, Dan Sprague, Barron Bradford, Al Sherk, Graham Smith, Scott Phillips, Judd A. Howell, Glenn Olsen, and John French. Photo by B.H. Powell Contact: B.H. Powell, Laurel, MD, 301-497-5782 Patuxent's Meyers Attends Georgia DNR Planning Meeting to Help Develop Comprehensive Wildlife Strategy On March 18-19, 2003 USGS scientist Joe Meyers will attend a Georgia Department of Natural Resources planning meeting to develop research and a draft list of high priority bird species for the State. Dr. Meyers has assisted in reviewing of a proposal to develop a Comprehensive Wildlife Strategy for Georgia. Numerous other Department of Interior partners, such as the USFWS, as well as NGOs and university researchers, will also participate. The proposal is comprehensive and includes rare species databases, biological surveys, conservation lands, local and state government conservation plans, technical support for private conservation efforts, review of conservation laws, and public input and educational outreach. Contact: Joe Meyers, Athens, GA, 706-542-1882. Meyers Participates in Annual Graduate Student Symposium at University of Georgia On March 7, 2003, Dr. Joe Meyers will participate in the Warnell School of Forest Resources' Sixth Annual Graduate Student Symposium at The University of Georgia. Students will present the results of their research in fisheries, wildlife, forest management, and forest soils/hydrology. USGS sponsored and collaborative research will be included in the fisheries and wildlife sessions. Joe will also be donating three memberships of the journal Southeastern Naturalist for the best presentations in Fish and Wildlife. Contact: Joe Meyers, Athens, GA, 706-542-1882. Robbins Presents Annual Richard Heise Memorial Lecture entitled "Summer in Antarctic" On March 6 at 6 p.m., Patuxent's Chan Robbins will present the Annual Richard Heise Memorial Lecture for the Anne Arundel Bird Club in the Blue Heron room at Quiet Waters Park in Annapolis, Maryland. His topic, Summer in Antarctic, will emphasize the difference between snowbound Maryland, which is teaming with songbirds even in the worst of winters, and the Antarctic which has no songbirds at all. Contact: Chan Robbins, Laurel, MD, 301-497-5641 Patuxent's Sykes Speaks on the Status, General Biology and Annual Survival of the Eastern Population of the Painted Bunting at Spring Island, SC Paul Sykes gave a one-hour presentation to members of the Spring Island Trust at Spring Island , SC on 13 February on the Status, General Biology, and Annual Survival of the Eastern Population of the Painted Bunting. The Spring Island Trust has been a supporter of "Annual Survival in the Southeastern Atlantic Coastal Breeding Population of the Painted Bunting" research project since its inception in 1999. Two study sites of this project are located on the island, which is privately owned. Spring Island has been carefully developed to minimize impacts on the habitats through the efforts of the Spring Island Trust. If development is to take place, Spring Island is the model to follow. Contact: Paul Sykes, Athens, GA, 706-542-1237 Award Plaques Presented to B.H. Powell and Randy Perry for Assistance with Central Flyway Duck Banding InitiativeAward plaques were presented at the recent Patuxent Centerwide Meeting to BH Powell, Office of Communication, and to Dr. Randy Perry, Acting Chief of the Bird Banding Laboratory (BBL), by the Central Flyway Council in recognition of BH's and the BBL's assistance with the Central Flyways recent duck banding initiative. Over the last 1/2 dozen years the Central Flyway undertook a major banding effort of waterfowl species in order to calculate vital rates and other information from banding and recovery data. This information is critical to allow waterfowl managers to make informed management decisions. BH, at the time with the BBL, was critical in disseminating information on the use of newly developed software that allowed the electronic submission of the banding data. The BBL processed both the banding and recovery information allowing analyses to proceed in a timely manner. Contact: Graham Smith, Laurel, MD, 301-497-5860
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Patuxent Hosts
Meeting entitled "Anacostia Wetlands and Associated
Landscapes Update"
On February 13, 2003 the Patuxent Wildlife Research Center hosted a meeting entitled "Anacostia Wetlands and Associated Landscapes Update". The session included seventeen technical presentations covering studies and planning efforts involving the reconstructed urban freshwater tidal wetlands and adjacent landscapes along the Anacostia River in Washington, D.C. Participation included the Corps of Engineers, US Geological Survey, Fish and Wildlife Service, National Park Service, several District of Columbia agencies, Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments, Maryland National Capital Parks and Planning Commission, University of Maryland and University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science, several counties and the Anacostia Watershed Society. The meeting exposed the wealth and diversity of work being conducted to better understand the wetland and associated landscapes associated with the rebuilding of Anacostia habitat. Contact: Dick Hammerschlag, Laurel, MD, 301-497-5555 USGS Patuxent and Amphibian Research and Monitoring Initiative (ARMI) Launch a new Website for ARMI Atlas On 3 March 2003, USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, with support from the Amphibian Research and Monitoring Initiative (ARMI), launched a new website: The ARMI National Atlas for Amphibian Distributions (or simply, the ARMI Atlas). URL: http://www.pwrc.usgs.gov/armiatlas/ The ARMI Atlas presents distribution records of occurrence for all amphibians known to occur in the United States, with counties or sub-counties as the mapping unit. These distribution maps represent a compilation of records from peer-reviewed, scientific publications, state field guides or herpetological atlases, museum records, and validated personal observations. The website and maps were also peer-reviewed prior to this release date. It will be updated on an ongoing basis, thus continuously improving and refining records in order to portray the most accurate known distributions of amphibians in the United States. The ARMI Atlas was created to identify where amphibians occur in the United States, and to identify potential gaps in our knowledge of amphibian distributions. It allows users to determine where amphibians have been documented in their area. In areas where amphibians have not been documented, researchers may decide to investigate further to see if they really are there, or if not, why this may be the case. The ARMI Atlas will likely be used by the general public (e.g., schoolchildren, teachers) and professionals to learn about amphibians and their distributions in the United States (e.g., which species occur in certain counties or states). The ARMI Atlas is meant to be an educational tool for people wanting to learn or teach others about amphibians. The ARMI Atlas also serves as a reference for habitat managers and researchers, identifying areas where more research is needed, as well as providing information about research that has previously been done. Researchers (specifically federal, state, regional, private, and university biologists and herpetologists) will also be of key importance in providing additional records for the ARMI Atlas, and helping to make it as complete a database as possible.Contact: Priya
Nanjappa, Laurel, MD, 301-497-6811 On January 24, 2003, Dr. George Gee received the L.H. Walkinshaw Crane Conservation Award from the North American Crane Working Group at their international meeting in Sacramento, California. Dr. Gee recently retired as the chief biologist on the whooping crane research program at the USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, and now holds the title of researcher emeritus at the Center. Dr. Gee was unable to attend the meeting, but was presented with the award at a ceremony at Patuxent on February 12. The North American Crane Working Group is a professional organization of biologists working on crane research and management issues in North America. They publish a newsletter and sponsor a workshop every three years for the exchange of information on cranes. The L. H. Walkinshaw Crane Conservation Award is the highest award given by the organization and is awarded on the basis on nominations from the membership. Contact: Glenn Olsen, 301-497-5603, Laurel, MD North American Breeding Bird Survey Methodology Training Program Receives Award of Distinction from The Communicator AwardsThe North American Breeding Bird Survey (BBS) Methodology Training program received the Award of Distinction from The Communicator Awards, an international awards program founded by communications professionals to recognize excellence in the communication field. They hold annual competitions for Audio, Video/Film/Multimedia, and Print Media where entries are judged against a high standard of excellence rather than against each other. The Award of Distinction is their second highest award category and is presented for projects that exceed industry standards in quality and excellence. The BBS Methodology Training program was developed in 2002 in response to the BBS Review recommendation to develop programs to train participants to consistent high standards which in turn will help reduce variation between observers when sampling routes. All new BBS participants beginning with the 2003 season will be required to successfully complete the methodology training program. Contact: Keith Pardieck, Laurel, MD, 301-497-5843 Salamander Migration to be Filmed by BBCBBC Series producer Miles Barton had been in touch with Robin Jung for a future filming of the BBC's Journey of Life series. On February 22, Michael Male, a film maker contracted out by the BBC visited Patuxent . Robin took him to Laura's Pond (in the worst rain/thunder/lightning in memory), where she have been conducting spotted salamander surveys the past 2 years. Once the weather cooperates, Michael will return to Patuxent and film a spotted salamander migration to Laura's Pond. Contact: Robin Jung, Laurel, MD, 301-497-5875 |
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