RARITY FOCUS
 
In the June Birding Community E-bulletin, we highlighted the La Sagra’s Flycatcher that was in Florida the previous month. Doing so, we bypassed a few excellent rarities that had occurred in Arizona, including a trio of flycatchers: Nutting’s, Tufted, and Pine.
 
Since the Pine Flycatcher – the second record for the United States – was one that lingered into the end of June, the species deserves highlighting this month. It is a species distributed throughout the mountainous pine-oak woodlands of Mexico and Guatemala. The very first record of this Empidonax flycatcher was a vagrant bird found at Aliso Spring in the Santa Rita Mountains, Arizona, in late May 2016.
 
“Empids” can really be difficult to identify, and such was the case this time. This recent Pine Flycatcher, in the vicinity of Rose Canyon campground, northeast of Tucson in the Santa Catalina mountains, was originally identified as a Cordilleran Flycatcher on 11 April.
 
It was a month later, on 11 May, before this subtly-plumaged endemic Mexican flycatcher was re-identified. The Pine Flycatcher was deemed to be similar in shape and size to Cordilleran Flycatcher. Still, the Pine Flycatcher was slimmer, the breast color appeared slightly darker, wingbars less contrasting, and a slimmer eyering than most Cordilleran, but it was its vocalization- a fairly sharp and mellow pwhip or whiup – that was the clincher.
 
You can view a photo by Shawn Cooper here:
 
 
RECOVERING AMERICA’S WILDLIFE ACT: ONE DOWN
 
Last month, we highlighted the opportunities for birds and other wildlife with the potential Congressional passage of the Recovering America’s Wildlife Act:
 
Then, on 14 June, the U.S. House of Representatives voted 231 to 190 in favor of this far-reaching and bipartisan bill to conserve wildlife, creating the opportunity to make much-needed federal funding, mainly via the states. You can read a summary from National Public Radio here:
and from the National Wildlife Federation here:
While the House has now given the green light to this effort, the Senate vote awaits. One down; one to go. If passed, the Recovering America’s Wildlife Act would, among other things:
  • Provide $1.3 billion in dedicated funding annually for the implementation of state fish and wildlife agencies’ wildlife action plans.
  • Provide $97.5 million in dedicated funding annually for tribal agencies to work on at-risk species recovery.
  • Assign 15% of the funds for protecting the 1,673 species that are federally listed as either Threatened or Endangered,
  • Allot 10% of dedicated annual funds towards the implementation of a competitive grants program aimed at innovative conservation efforts with partners.
  •  Leverage funds from state agencies, universities, and non-governmental organizations to boost the power of federal conservation spending.
  • Create outdoor education and wildlife-associated recreation opportunities, using up to 15% of the available state funds.
  • Provide greater regulatory certainty for industry and private partners by proactively conserving species and avoiding the need to list them under the Endangered Species Act.
 
In the words of Rep. Debbie Dingell, a Michigan Democrat who co-introduced the House bill, “We are in the midst of an unprecedented biodiversity crisis and we need action now.” Rep. Jeff Fortenberry, a Republican from Nebraska who co-introduced the House bill with Dingell, called the Act “[t]he single most exciting fish and wildlife protection initiative in decades.”
 
Under the provisions of the bill, the greatest amount of federal funding would be distributed to the states with the greatest need. (Hawaii, for example, home to almost one-third of plants and animals on the federal Endangered species list, would receive $60 million a year, more than any other state.)
 
The Senate bill (S. 2372) – backed by at least 20 Democrat and 16 Republican co-sponsors – might just come up for a vote before the end of this month.
 
Earlier this year, over 1,700 organizations and businesses, including large and small birding and bird-conservation groups, had called on Congress to pass the bill. If you want to find out how to promote this bill’s Senate passage through a number of the larger organizations, you can try any of these four, including those beyond “the usual suspects”:
National Audubon Society:
National Wildlife Federation:
The Wildlife Society:
Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership:
 
 
ACCESS MATTERS: SUMMER BEACH-SHARING
 
This summer, millions of our neighbors - and our birds - will be using beaches along our ocean coasts, lakeshores, rivers, islands, and even sandbars. Some of the birds in question include American Oystercatcher, Black Skimmer, Least Tern, and Snowy, Piping, and Wilson's plovers, nesting, foraging, and raising their young.
 
The beach scene can surely get crowded! Beachgoers and island visitors will need to watch out for birds that are already nesting and raising young, depending on the location. This is where the concept of “access” bumps into the reality of “recreation.” The American Bird Conservancy recommends that beachgoers help coastal birds by staying a safe distance from birds and avoiding nesting areas. ABC makes a number of solid suggestions:
  • Celebrate responsibly
  • Pick up trash, and pack it out
  • Don't feed gulls
  • Watch where you step
  • Watch where you drive
  • Pay attention to signs
  • Teach children to play responsibly and avoid nesting areas
  • Keep your dogs on leashes - or at home
  • Know the cues
  • Stay close to the water
More details on these recommendations can be found here:
 
To these points we would recommend one additional suggestion while you are birding and enjoying shore activities: Share the wonder of these birds with others around you - from a distance (e.g., with a scope) - and go on to explain the safety considerations in the process!
 
Finally, this is not simply a U.S. situation. Here is a summary of the parallel beach scene from Canada, focusing on Piping Plovers from the fine folks at Birds Canada:
 
 
DISAPPOINTING SPACEX REPORT RELEASED
 
And on the subject of risks to coastal birds, we have the continuing case of SpaceX. Last month, the Federal Aviation Administration announced that it would require Elon Musk’s SpaceX project in Texas to make dozens of environmental adjustments in order to conduct further Starship flight tests and begin operational launches from its facility at Boca Chica, near the South Texas coast.
 
As part of the FAA’s review, a report earlier this year from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service found a correlation between SpaceX activity in the area and recent declines in the local population of the Piping Plover, an Endangered species. However, the FWS has suggested minimal spending or conservation commitments from SpaceX at this time.
 
This possible SpaceX location is a site that American Bird Conservancy (ABC), among others, has been raising concerns about for the past two years. This included a recent petition generating more than 30,000 signatures from concerned citizens. 
 
You can find more details on the general scene here:
and a critical assessment here, from Bird Watching magazine:
 
 
IBA NEWS: CHESAPEAKE BAY DESIGNATION
 
The Chesapeake Bay – also known by biologists and conservationists as the Chesapeake Bay Estuarine Complex – is composed of multiple, physically separate protected and semi-protected areas, touching on the states of Maryland and Virginia. There are about 10 rivers that enter the system. And natural habitats include sand beaches, dunes, mudflats, islands, open water with submerged beds of aquatic vegetation, intertidal marshes, freshwater marshes, and more. The Bay is of particular importance for very large numbers of staging and wintering waterfowl, long-legged waders, shorebirds, marshbirds, and one of the more significant and long-term populations of Bald Eagles on the East Coast.
 
Within the complex, rests one of the largest Important Bird Areas in Maryland; the Southern Dorchester County IBA occupies approximately the southern half of Dorchester County, notable for having the one of the largest contiguous areas of tidal marsh in the northeastern U.S., including Blackwater National Wildlife Refuge:
 
The entire region also constitutes a RAMSAR site:
 
These are all reasons why creating another layer of protection for the Chesapeake Bay, and another way to provide conservation and access, is a potentially important development. Last month, Rep. John Sarbanes and Sen. Chris Van Hollen (both D-MD) announced a planning system to guide work in creating a coherent Chesapeake National Recreation Area (CNRA). The effort is intended to bring together federal and state lawmakers and over 30 regional stakeholder organizations cooperating over the coming months in crafting a draft bill for public comment aligned with 10 key principles.
 
A unified National Park Service designation could provide an opportunity to help conserve the Bay, improve public access, deliver additional federal resources to the region, and spur appropriate growth across the watershed. This CNRA would consist of hubs and partner-sites of regional importance. Done properly, and with enough funding, this CNRA could amplify protection for the Bay. The approach and principles are described here:
 
For additional information about associated worldwide IBA programs, including those currently in the U.S., check the National Audubon Society's Important Bird Area program web site at:
 
 
FEDERAL “DUCK STAMP” DEBUT
 
Last month, the 2022-2023 Federal Migratory Bird Hunting and Conservation Stamp – commonly known as the “Duck Stamp” – went on sale. The stamp – costing $25 a year - plays an essential role in bird and habitat conservation. Since 1934, sales of the stamp have raised over $1.1 billion to secure and protect over six million acres of wetland and grassland habitats in the National Wildlife Refuge System, all managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
 
Holding the current Stamp will also give you free access to all National Wildlife Refuges that charge for entry over the coming year. Four other good reasons to buy the stamp can be found here:
 
A Redhead pair, painted by Jim Hautman, is on the new stamp, as we announced in the E-bulletin in October concerning the Duck Stamp Art Contest:
 
You can find Hautman’s artwork on the stamp here, along with details on how to buy the stamp: :
 
 
ONE STRANGE RAPTOR ADOPTION
 
Last month, webcam coverage of a Bald Eagle nest on Gabriola Island, British Columbia, revealed an adult Bald Eagle dropping a young – and very alive - Red-tailed Hawk into its nest. The hawk was likely to be ripped apart and fed to the lone eaglet in the nest.
 
"This bird likely came from a Red-tailed Hawk nest that was preyed upon by the adult Bald Eagles," ornithologist David Bird, a former professor of wildlife biology at Montreal's McGill University, told a radio audience on the show, As It Happens. "And the next thing you know, the little hawk bounces up and starts begging for food." Bird added, "That's what saved its life."
 
The pair of adult Bald Eagles adopted this baby Red-tailed Hawk and began raising it alongside their own eaglet. At the very start, the two young raptors kept to themselves, virtually on opposite sides of the eagle nest, and the female adult eagle didn't pay much attention to the smaller hawk. But by nightfall of that first day, the adult eagle began feeding and fussing over both young birds about equally.
 
This experience is rare, but not unprecedented. In 2017, another pair of nesting Bald Eagles, British Columbia, at the Shoal Harbour Migratory Bird Sanctuary (SHMBS) north of Victoria, received notice when they raised a Red-tailed Hawk as their own. And this sort of situation has also been recorded in at least Michigan, Washington State, and Ohio, but not with such media attention and a constant webcam.
 
The current story – and a six-and-a-half-minute audio interview – can be found here from the CBC radio-show, As it Happens:
 
You can also watch a short – under one minute – sequential video on the strange nest-situation as it developed:
 
During the last week of June, both semi-fledged youngsters – the eagle and the hawk – were recorded at the nest, coming, going, feeding, and often heard offscreen in the background. For a while, raptor fans may still be able to view the scene via the on-site webcam:
 
 
LAST WORD
 
Finally, 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:

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You can access all the past E-bulletins on the National Wildlife Refuge Association (NWRA) website: