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Marsh bird research on Imperial NWR and the Lower Colorado River:

Marsh bird research on Imperial NWR and the Lower Colorado River: adaptive management in practice. Christopher P. Nadeau, University of Arizona. Courtney J. Conway, USGS AZ Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit. 1. Restoring managed marsh units to benefit California black rails.

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Marsh bird research on Imperial NWR and the Lower Colorado River:

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  1. Marsh bird research on Imperial NWR and the Lower Colorado River: adaptive management in practice Christopher P. Nadeau, University of Arizona Courtney J. Conway, USGS AZ Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit

  2. 1. Restoring managed marsh units to benefit California black rails 2. Managing rail habitat with fire 3. Estimating the detection probability of Yuma clapper rails A glimpse at our studies 4. Determining the patch size requirements of Yuma clapper rails

  3. Restoring managed marsh units for California black rails Determine the habitat requirements of California black rails (and other marsh birds). Provide detailed recommendations on the hydrologic and vegetative requirements of black rails to inform management and restoration.

  4. Study Sites on Imperial NWR 18 16

  5. Water and Vegetation Monitoring

  6. Learning from the BLRA detections in field 16 6 total BLRA detections 0 detections on 66% of our surveys

  7. Where Have All the Black Rails Gone???

  8. What do we know about Black Rail habitat???

  9. Building Spatial Models to Determine Optimal Water Depth Water Depth <-2 inches OR >4 inches 2 – 4 inches -2 – 2 inches

  10. Building Spatial Models to Determine Optimal Water Depth Fine-stem Bulrush Stem Density low moderate high

  11. Building Spatial Models to Determine Optimal Water Depth water depth stem density Habitat Suitability low = moderate high

  12. 4 inches Field 16: 20 Apr 09 BLRA Detections

  13. 2 inches Field 16: 24 Apr 09 BLRA Detections

  14. 0.1 inches Field 16: 6 Jul 09 BLRA Detections

  15. Field 16: Optimal Water Depth Optimal Staff Gauge Depth = 2 – 5 in

  16. Field 18: Optimal Water Depth Optimal Staff Gauge Depth = 4 – 7 in

  17. Upcoming Work Work with Imperial NWR to maintain optimal water depths Modify models as vegetation changes in Field 18 and to model water depth variation Build more statistically based models as BLRA detections increase in field 16

  18. * * * * * * LCR and Gila River 900 Survey Points Salton Sea NWR

  19. Managing Rails With Prescribed Fire

  20. clapper rail black rail Virginia rail sora least bittern CLRA numbers increased post fire All other species not affected by fire Detection probability did not differ between pre- and post-burn surveys

  21. Estimating the Detection Probability of Yuma Clapper Rails tracked 14 clapper rails: 3 at Imperial NWR 11 at Salton Sea NWR conducted 84 detection trials detected focal bird on only 27% (23) of the trials

  22. Determining the Patch Size Requirements of Yuma Clapper Rails Mapping emergent marsh patches throughout the LCR basin What is the minimum patch size a CLRA will use?

  23. Marsh Bird Training Workshop 16 – 18 March 2010 Yuma, AZ to register email cnadeau@email.arizona.edu

  24. Field 18: a restoration comes to life Jun 2008 Sep 2009

  25. fine-stemmed bulrush (e.g. Olney threesquare) high stem density to provide overhead cover What do we know about Black Rail habitat???

  26. 5 inches 2 inches

  27. Field 18 Water Fluctuations and Black Rail Detections

  28. Field 18 Vegetation Composition

  29. Field 16 Vegetation Composition

  30. 7 inches

  31. Field 16 Water Fluctuations and Black Rail Detections

  32. Field 16 Water Fluctuations and Black Rail Detections

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