The Great Lakes Marsh Monitoring Program: 18 years of surveying birds and frogs as indicators of ecosystem health

Transcription

1 The Great Lakes Marsh Monitoring Program: 18 years of surveying birds and frogs as indicators of ecosystem health By Doug Tozer Bird Studies Canada, Port Rowan, ON

2 Swamp Sparrow (Degraded) Environmental Condition Howe et al J Great Lakes Res 33 (Special issue 3): (Pristine) (Degraded) Environmental Condition (Pristine) Price et al J Great Lakes Res 33 (Special issue 3):

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4 1: Assess populations of marsh birds and frogs at various scales. Mean number of individuals / station 0.6 Virginia Rail

5 2: Investigate associations between marsh birds, frogs, and habitat.

6 3: Contribute to conservation management and planning.

7 4: Increase public awareness of the importance of wetland conservation.

8 4: Increase public awareness of the importance of wetland conservation.

9 100 m Station

10 A F B B C D C A D F E E ROUTE 1 ROUTE 2

11 Bird surveys -no rain, little wind, not too cold -15 min at each station per visit -morning or evening -at least two visits per year

12 Frog surveys -some rain okay, little wind -3 min at each station per visit -night only -at least three visits per year according to temperature: 1 st >5 o C 2 nd >10 o C 3 rd > 17 o C

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15 100 Detection probability (%) % 84% 0 3-min passive 15-min w/t broadcast

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17 American Bittern American Coot American Toad Bullfrog Mean number of individuals / point Common Gallinule Pied-billed Grebe Virginia Rail Least Bittern Sora 0.00 Southern Ontario Great Lakes Basin Probability of a point being occupied Chorus Frog Gray Treefrog Spring Peeper Southern Ontario Great Lakes Basin Green Frog N. Leopard Frog Wood Frog

18 Birds and/or f rogs Birds Frogs Stations Surveyed / year Routes 0

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20 Ontario US 57% 43% Lake Erie and Ontario Other basins 57% 43% 39% 61% AOCs Outside AOCs 41% 59% Coastal 64% 36% BCR 13 BCR 12, 23 Inland

21 2.0 Great Lakes basin Minimum detectable annual population trend (%) Secretive birds Frogs Shown are box-andwhisker plots. Dash is median; box is interquartile range; whiskers are minimum and maximum.

22 Annual change in probability of a station being occupied (%) Green Frog +1.8 Spring Peeper Wood Frog 0.6 N. Leopard Frog 0.9 Gray Treefrog 1.1 Bullfrog Annual change in mean number of individuals / station (%) 1.1 American Toad Trumpeter Swan Sandhill Crane Chorus Frog Mute Swan +4.6 Wilson's Snipe Common Yellowthroat Common Grackle 0.4 Red-winged Blackbird Swamp Sparrow Marsh Wren Least Bittern Canada Goose Sora American Bittern Virginia Rail Pied-billed Grebe Common Gallinule Forster's Tern American Coot Black Tern Great Lakes basin Error bars are 95% credibility intervals.

23 Great Lakes basin Mean number of inviduals / station Probability of a station being occupied Virginia Rail Coastal Inland Wood Frog Open circles indicate significant differences.

24 Great Lakes basin Mean number of individuals / station Probability of a station being occupied Virginia Rail Area of Concern Outside Area of Concern Wood Frog Open circles indicate significant differences.

25 Area of Concern Outside Area of Concern Annual change in mean number of individuals / station (%) American Bittern Sora Least Bittern Pied-billed Grebe Virginia Rail Common Gallinule American Coot Great Lakes basin Error bars are 95% credibility intervals.

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27 Coastal AOC Inland Non-AOC

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30 10 Area of Concern Outside Area of Concern Wood Frog Spring Peeper Least Bittern AOC Non AOC Probability of a station being occupied Mean number of individuals / station Great Lakes basin Great Lakes basin

31 Click on Current program report

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33 With support provided by the Government of Ontario Past Funders and supporters: Brant Waterways Foundation Ducks Unlimited Canada Eastern Habitat Joint Venture Great Lakes Sustainability Fund Great Lakes United Audubon Society Ontario Nature Ontario Stewardship Ontario Trillium Foundation Wetland Habitat Fund Wildlife Habitat Canada US Great Lakes Protection Fund