RARITY FOCUS
Our recent practice in the E-bulletin since the rise of the coronavirus has been to avoid highlighting monthly mega-rarities in North America, so this month’s issue will be no different. There’s no value in showcasing rare birds when most readers are probably incapable of traveling and seeing them during these unique times.
In light of this situation, we will simply focus on a rare event which occurred toward the end of December: the bi-partisan passage and Presidential signing of the huge, 5,000+ page omnibus COVID relief bill into law.
While we typically avoid delving into political issues, this rare and last-minute resolution was surprisingly beneficial for many aspects of natural resources, conservation, and birds.
The funding bill extends until September 30, 2021, and provides meaningful support in areas such as National Forests, Parks, and the Refuge System. But funding survival doesn’t necessarily mean funding growth and development.
For example, the increase for the National Wildlife Refuge System’s Operations and Maintenance was miniscule - from $502.4 million to $503.853 million. This figure falls far short of the $600 million the Refuge System should be receiving had funding simply been increased over the last decade to keep pace with inflation.
Gratefully, a number of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service programs that benefit birds and wildlife habitat remained basically unchanged, such as the North American Wetlands Conservation Act, Neotropical Migratory Bird Conservation Act, and the National Wildlife Refuge Fund.
A disappointing item, however, included additional border wall-funding in the bill. Already, the Cabeza Prieta NWR (New Mexico) and Lower Rio Grande NWR (south Texas) have suffered extensive damage from massive habitat destruction due to emptying underground aquifers. Added funding simply means the work will continue, potentially even into the incoming Administration. In this bill, the bird-rich Santa Ana NWR remains the only refuge excluded from construction, keeping vulnerable the other four NWRs found along the U.S.-Mexico border. (More on this situation below, under “IBA News.”)
One would hope that the incoming 117th Congress and the Administration of President-elect Biden will address some of these important issues. Sadly, the last decade of funding erosion has reduced the wildlife and ecological value of many Federal lands, an intolerable situation in the age of climate change and ecosystems at risk.
ACCESS MATTERS: DESERT NWR VICTORY
In our July issue, we reported on the threats by the U.S. Air Force to slice off more parts of the Desert NWR by expanding the Nevada Test and Training Range (NTTR - part of neighboring Nellis Air Force Base). See the situation here:
The refuge provides habitat for the iconic desert bighorn sheep, and the NTTR-expansion proposal threatened dry lakes and other habitat for wildlife. Le Conte's and Crissal Thrashers have strong associations with Atriplex (i.e., saltbush, etc.) and creosote-dominated communities, and desert wash vegetation and soils. The refuge has a high density of nesting and breeding pairs of these generally scarce thrashers. Other species, such as Gambel's Quail, Gray Flycatcher, Loggerhead Shrike, Brewer's Sparrow, Lucy's Warbler, Sage Sparrow, and Phainopepla also utilize key habitats within the Refuge.
With such an NTTR expansion, the western portion of the Desert National Wildlife Refuge would cease to be an actual refuge.
Fortunately, in late July, in an effort to preserve the Desert NWR in its current state, the Horsford Amendment was added to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2021. This amendment leaves the refuge under the control of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and accessible by the public and local tribes for whom it has cultural value.
Poor timing and strange bedfellows put the veto-override of the NDAA into question, but at almost the last moment, the override cleared both the House and Senate.
TIP OF THE MONTH: MUMMERATION
Birding is generally considered to be an accessible activity, and even with the Covid-19 pandemic we have witnessed increasing backyard and locally-based birding. The diversity and inclusiveness of the birding community have simultaneously become important topics for concerned birders.
In Massachusetts, to address this issue, a group has developed an interesting and creative open-access tool called “The Murmuration.” The Murmuration is a Google Spreadsheet where contributors can provide details about popular birding hotspots, with the goal to reduce and eliminate the barriers to local birding knowledge, and thereby potentially encourage new birders of all backgrounds to more safely and easily explore unfamiliar birding locations.
To start crowdsourcing local hotspot information, the team compiled the top 100 eBird hotspots in Massachusetts through a Google Spreadsheet. For any birding spot, contributors can add a variety of area/trail descriptions, accessibility information, and safety concerns.
The information would include: a general description of the trail; trailhead instructions; ideal seasons or species to be looked for; safety concerns and reference to known incidents; public/private property status, and, if available, contact information for access permission; and descriptions of parking and trail conditions that are especially informative for people with disabilities and mobility issues.
This is a novel team/birding-community effort, with every contribution making a potential difference in enhancing the safety and accessibility of birding and birding localities.
It remains to be seen if The Murmuration accomplishes its objective, but the intent and the creativity involved are admirable. Other regions in the US and Canada might consider this as a potential model for 2021.
Find The Murmuration details for Massachusetts here:
BIRDFEEDING BOOM
Last month, we suggested that bird-feeders would be ideal for holiday gifts, especially since many of us remain almost homebound during the pandemic. Indeed, we noticed that the “backyard scene” has been experiencing a genuine revival during these strange times, with birds at feeders and birdbaths entertaining millions of people.
If anything, this has become even more obvious through the holiday season, with the backyard feeding-station now filling a role as real entertainment – for adults and youth alike – during hours when we all might otherwise be away at work or occupied in school classrooms.
Not altogether surprisingly, the Cornell Lab of Ornithology recently noted that registration for eBird Yard Lists rose 900% and that 150,000 observers downloaded the Lab’s app for bird ID.
The bird-feeding industry – and particularly the sunflower sector – has experienced the busiest year of sales in over a decade.
The bird-feeding issue, of course, is related to the previous report on The Mumeration, helping newcomers access the experience of bird watching. How many people will be introduced to birds via their backyards during this pandemic? And how many will translate that interest and curiosity into leaving their homes after the pandemic to continue learning, sharing, and saving birds?
The answer is up to us once we decide exactly how welcoming and nurturing will birding activity be once we break out of our caves.
In the meantime, there is a nice podcast interview that took place last month on Minnesota Bound where the host, Ron Schara, got bird-feeding tips from Carrol Henderson, now retired director of the Nongame Wildlife Program at the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. It’s under a half-hour and might be helpful for newcomers to backyard bird-feeding:
IBA NEWS: SALINEÑO THREAT CONTINUES
For the last two months in this Important Bird Area (IBA) section of the E-bulletin, we reported on the border-wall threats to that little gem of a birding opportunity in the Lower Rio Grande Valley: the 2.5-acre Salineño Preserve, owned and managed by the Valley Land Fund. As some readers may know, every winter the site in western Starr County, Texas, serves as a special stop for visiting birders, eager to see or photograph the “South Texas specialties” such as Black-bellied Whistling-Duck, Ringed and Green Kingfishers, Great Kiskadee, Green Jay, Altamira and Audubon's Orioles, and Olive Sparrow that all frequent the preserve.
Unfortunately, being adjacent to the Rio Grande has put the property in jeopardy for proposed border-wall construction. See here for our stories in November:
and December:
Debralee Garcia-Rodriguez, executive director of the Valley Land Fund, reported that as of 15 December, the Fund received a “Notice of Condemnation” on 0.723 acres of the Preserve for the border-wall project.
As a regional land trust with limited staff and an all-volunteer board, the Valley Land Fund is facing daunting challenges in terms of legal redress, publicity, restoration of habitat and/or maintenance of the remaining property on the preserve.
To find out more details on the situation, see here:
For additional information about worldwide IBA programs, including those in the U.S., check the National Audubon Society's Important Bird Area program web site at:
LAST WORD
With the start of 2021, your editors wish for your good health, joy, peace, and an ongoing connection to the natural world… with the hopes of better things to come.
If you have any friends or co-workers who wish to join the monthly Birding Community E-bulletin mailing list, you can simply refer them to this link:
