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1 New Recovery Plan Review from the Gulf of Mexico Alliance Caroline Gorga, Wildlife Legacy Biologist, Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission Julia Lightner, Fisheries Biologist, Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Amber Whittle, Habitat Research Administrator, Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission Instructions for Joining the Webinar Call In #: , Code # Please MUTE your lines and do NOT place this line on hold. Hang up and call back in. For Full Screen of the PowerPoint, click on the following icon

2 Recovery Plan Review for Downlisting/Delisting Species Project PI: Ashley Ballou Presented by: GOMA Wildlife & Fisheries PIT Members Caroline Gorga, Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission Julia Lightner, Louisiana Department of Wildlife & Fisheries Amber Whittle, Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission

3 3 Gulf of Mexico Alliance MISSION: enhance the ecological and economic health of the Gulf of Mexico through increased regional collaboration Focus funding priorities Share knowledge & expertise Reduce duplication of effort 501c3 non-profit organization Partnership of the 5 Gulf States, federal agencies, academic organizations, non-profits, and businesses in the region.

4 4 Governors Action Plan III for Healthy and Resilient Coasts 6 Priority Issue Teams (PITs) Wildlife & Fisheries Coastal Resilience Data & Monitoring Education & Engagement Habitat Resources Water Resources Cross-PIT Regional Initiatives Ecosystem Services Marine Debris Comprehensive Conservation, Restoration, & Resilience Planning

5 5 Gulf Star Partnership Public-Private partnership administered by GOMA Gulf Star partners: o State & Federal Agencies o Businesses o Private organizations o Citizens Inaugural Year Partners provide funding for regional projects Projects must address the priorities identified in the Governors Action Plan Check out the 2016 Gulf Star Report online!

6 6 Focus Areas from the Governors Action Plan: STATUS & TRENDS: provides tools and information regarding status, trends, threats and habitat linkages of wildlife and fisheries to better support decision-making. COLLABORATION: collaborate with other PITs and partners to share knowledge and inform actions that impact wildlife and fisheries. CONSERVATION: support and enhance efforts to protect and conserve wildlife and fisheries in the Gulf of Mexico.

7 7 Project Introduction PROJECT OBJECTIVE: Gather, compile and synthesize existing standards for downlisting or delisting species found in the Gulf of Mexico ecosystem. PURPOSE: A tool to determine how upcoming restoration projects will accomplish recovery actions for threatened and endangered species. DELIVERABLE: An easily referenced document to support the coordinated implementation of species recovery actions along the Gulf of Mexico.

8 8 Methods STEP 1: Determine focal species for the project. Objective: Find all species that occur in at least 3 Gulf of Mexico states. o Added additional species from Federally Listed Wildlife and Plants Threatened by Gulf Oil Spill o Did not include species that may only be affected in extreme conditions

9 9 Methods STEP 2: Compile all federal recovery plans and 5 year review documents related to focal species.

10 10 Methods STEP 3: Compiled all recovery actions and priority levels, 5 year review actions, and implementation status into an Excel table. STEP 4: Remove all actions marked as complete, obsolete or discontinued, as well as those actions that do not occur in Gulf of Mexico states.

11 11 Methods STEP 5: Develop multi-species actions based on similar habitats occupied by the species: Beaches/Ocean Florida Keys Aquatic Upland Miscellaneous Category Beaches/Ocean Aquatic Upland Florida Keys Miscellaneous Species Leatherback Turtle Hawksbill Turtle Kemp's Ridley Turtle Loggerhead Turtle Green Turtle Alabama Beach Mouse Perdido Key Beach Mouse Choctawhatchee Beach Mouse St. Andrews Beach Mouse Piping Plover West Indian Manatee* Alabama Heelsplitter Alabama red belly turtle Yellow blotched map turtle Atlantic Sturgeon West Indian Manatee* Red-cockaded Woodpecker Eastern Indigo Snake Gopher Tortoise Audubon's Crested Caracara Lower Keys Marsh Rabbit Key Deer Key Largo Woodrat Key Largo Cotton Mouse Rice Rat Gray Bat Wood Stork Florida Salt Marsh Vole

12 12 Multi-species Action Development Based on Habitat Type, Not Location EXAMPLE: Maintain programs, and take actions to remove predators, especially feral cats. 4 beach mice and the piping plover FNAI St Andrews Beach Mouse Perdido Key Beach Mouse Choctawhatchee Beach Mouse Alabama Beach Mouse FNAI FNAI FWC

13 13 Methods STEP 6: Prioritize multi-species actions based: a. Number of species addressed. b. Average priority calculated for the multi-species action. c. The number of states the action is relevant in.

14 Final Report: See Table 1 14 Results Compiled actions for 27 species (Step #1) Total # of States Original Focus: work on species in 3+ GoM states only Common Name Scientific Name GoM States 5 Leatherback Turtle Dermochelys coriacea AL, FL, LA, MS, TX Hawksbill Turtle Eretmochelys imbricate AL, FL, LA, MS, TX Kemp s Ridley Turtle Lepidochelys kempii AL, FL, LA, MS, TX Loggerhead Turtle Caretta caretta AL, FL, LA, MS, TX Red-cockaded Woodpecker Picoides borealis AL, FL, LA, MS, TX West Indian Manatee Trichechus manatus AL, FL, LA, MS, TX Piping Plover Charadrius melodus AL, FL, LA, MS, TX 4 Atlantic Sturgeon Acipenser oxyrinchus desotoi AL, FL, LA, MS 3 Alabama Heelsplitter Potamilus inflatus AL, LA, MS Gray Bat Myotis grisescens AL, FL, MS Gopher Tortoise Gopherus polyphemus AL, LA, MS Wood Stork Mycteria americana AL, FL, MS

15 15 Final Report: See Table 1 Total #of States Common Name Scientific Name GoM States 2 Eastern Indigo Snake Drymarchon corais couperi AL, FL Perdido Key Beach Mouse Peromyscus polionotus trissyllepsis AL, FL Alabama Red-Belly Turtle Pseudemys alabamensis AL, MS 1 Audubon s Crested Caracara Polyborus plancus audubonii FL Results Additional 15 species added as time permitted Green Turtle Chelonia mydas FL Choctawhatchee Beach Mouse St. Andrews Beach Mouse Peromyscus polionotus allophrys Peromyscus polionotus peninsularis Key Deer Odocoileus virginianus clavium FL Florida Salt Marsh Vole Key Largo Cotton Mouse Microtus pennsylvanicus dukecampbelli Peromyscus gossypinus allapaticola Lower Keys Marsh Rabbit Sylvilagus palustris hefneri FL Rice Rat Oryzomys palustris natator FL Key Largo Woodrat Neotoma floridana smalli FL Yellow-Blotched Map Turtle Graptemys flavimaculata MS FL FL FL FL Alabama Beach Mouse Peromyscus polionotus ammobates AL

16 16 Results ~1,530 actions compiled from federal recovery plans and 5 year review documents for 27 species (Step #2 & #3) Resulted in 1,405 total actions after previously described actions were removed (Step #4) Final Report Appendix 1 (page 18) Excel version is also available

17 17 Results Developed 80 actions that address multiple (2-8) species (Step #5) Most multi-species actions are sea turtles, beach mice, piping plover, and FL Keys species. Wood stork and gray bat no overlap of actions. Final Report: Table 2

18 18 Example Multi-Species Action Address 5 Species, Beaches/Ocean Habitat Green Turtle Reestablish dunes and native vegetation (2) Remove exotic vegetation and prevent spread to nesting beaches (3) Leatherback Turtle Re-establish dunes and native vegetation (3) Re-establish natural dune structure and native vegetation, and remove exotic vegetation from dune habitats Piping Plover 1.5. Maintain native vegetation by managing invasive species (2) Map dune systems in need of restoration (3) Loggerhead Turtle Re-establish natural dune structure and native vegetation during sand placement projects. (2) Restore dunes systems on private lands (2) Develop restoration plan for dune systems on public lands (2) Restore dune systems on public lands (2) St. Andrew Beach Mouse

19 19 Results - Prioritizing the 80 multi-species actions (Step #6)

20 20 Piping Plover Leatherback Multi-Species Action 1: Acquire and/or ensure long-term protection of sea turtle nesting beaches, beach mouse habitat, and piping plover roosting and foraging areas Hawksbill Alabama Beach Mouse Choctawhatchee Beach Mouse Loggerhead USFWS AL Cooperative Fish & Wildlife Research Unit Kemp s Ridley Green Perdido Key Beach Mouse # Species - 9 Avg. Priority - 1 # States - 5 FWC

21 21 Multi-Species Action 6: Identify, protect and/or acquire appropriate land or aquatic habitats Atlantic Sturgeon Alabama Red-Belly Turtle # Species - 5 Avg. Priority - 2 # States - 4 Alabama Heelsplitter NOAA West Indian Manatee Yellow-Blotched Map Turtle Auburn University

22 22 Multi-Species Action 7a: Eliminate exotic vegetation in the Florida Keys Key Largo Wood Rat Photo by Clay DeGayner Key Largo Cotton Mouse USFWS Rice Rat USFWS # Species - 5 Avg. Priority - 2 # States - 1 Lower Keys Marsh Rabbit FWC Key Deer FWC

23 23 Multi-Species Action 19a: Acquire and/or manage and protect habitat (private landowner programs, easements, acquisitions and donations) Red-Cockaded Woodpecker Eastern Indigo Snake Gopher Tortoise # Species - 3 Avg. Priority - 3 # States - 5

24 24 Recommended Uses Can be used to determine how upcoming restoration projects will accomplish recovery actions for threatened and endangered species. Identify priority restoration efforts that will also benefit listed species and aid in delisting/downlisting efforts. Regional Coordination & Planning Tool: All five Gulf states could set a goal to accomplish the highest priority multi-species action. Pool funding, resources, and expertise to accomplish high priority multi-species actions with the goal of meeting federal recovery goals. Regional Identification of Priority Research Questions Avoid duplication of efforts

25 25 Final Report Available Online!

26 26 THANK YOU! Project PI: Ashley Ballou, Presenters: Caroline Gorga, Julia Lightner, Amber Whittle,

27 Thank you for joining the webinar! This presentation will be posted on the website: For more information on the PFLCC, visit