Colonial-nesting Seabirds in the Chesapeake Bay Region: Where Have We Been and Where Are We Going?

Distribution and abundance of nesting common and Caspian terns on the North American Great Lakes, 1976 to 1999

“…On the Great Lakes, Herring Gull abundance increased from the late 1970s to the late 1980s and then declined to the late 1990s (Morris et al 2003). Common Tern numbers have generally increased since the 1970s (Nisbet 2002), but with recent declines in the Canadian portion of the Great Lakes (Morris et al 2012) and the mid-Atlantic coast (Brinker et al 2007). Herring Gulls and Common Terns are also common breeders across the boreal forest where survey coverage is limiting (Stelfox and Brewster 1979;Pierotti and Good 1994;Nisbet 2002;Wilson 2013), and it is not clear how their abundance or distribution has changed across this portion of their range.…”

“…While consistent monitoring is maintained in some parts of North America, such as the Great Lakes (Weseloh et al 1995(Weseloh et al , 2002Morris et al 2010Morris et al , 2011 and the Atlantic coast (Boyne et al 2006;Brinker et al 2007; Thomas et al 2011), other regions have been neglected, leaving data gaps that limit our knowledge of regional trends and hinder conservation assessments at national and continental scales. One area where updated monitoring information is critically needed is southern Manitoba, Canada.…”

Action plan for seabirds in Western-Nordic areas

“…This has been considered a problem in parts of both North America and Europe (e.g. Brinker et al 2007), but to my knowledge no studies exist from the current study area.…”

Historical and Current Status of Laughing Gulls Breeding in New York State

“…This gull was a common summer resident and breeder during the early 1800s (Giraud 1844, Griscom 1923. Populations of Laughing Gulls, similar to other colonial seabirds, were decimated by commercial egging and plume-hunting for the millinery trade in the mid-to late 1800s (Nisbet 1971, Buckley et al 1978, Brinker et al 2007, and the species was extirpated as a breeding bird from New York State by 1900. The last known breeding records during that period were South Oyster Bay in 1884, Amityville in 1887, Cedar Island in 1888, and a lone pair in Orient in 1900 (Eaton 1910, Griscom 1923, Bull 1964, Latham 1975.…”

“…Loss of coastal wetland habitats impacts a variety of colonial nesting waterbirds, including Laughing Gulls (Erwin et al 2006, Brinker et al 2007). Degradation of salt marsh habitat along Long Island could negatively impact the existing nesting colony in Jamaica Bay, and reduce the number and quality of other potential nesting locations.…”