Status of the Interior Population of Least Tern

Kirsch, Eileen M.; Sidle, John G.

doi:10.2307/3802632

Cited by 17 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 14 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…This database will be designed to improve long-term data storage for future ILT survey data, and will also be designed to archive historic survey data (Lott 2006 For the Missouri River (all river and reservoir survey segments), historic data were acquired from the threatened and endangered species data management system (DMS) at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha District. Count totals for many of these survey segments have been reported previously in Schwalbach (1988), Dirks (1990), Kruse (1993), Mayer (1993), Rabenberg et al (1993), Kirsch and Sidle (1999), Pavelka and Kruse (1999), USFWS (2003), USFWS (2005a), and probably elsewhere. However, the Omaha DMS has consolidated previous historic survey data into well-defined, geographically meaningful survey segments that have been described in the most recent amendment to the Missouri River Biological Opinion (USFWS 2003); correcting errors in several previous data presentations (Greg Pavelka, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha District, personal communication).…”

Section: Historic Data Summaries: Data Sourcesmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…Collaborative efforts are ongoing to discuss and resolve discrepancies among historic data within the Platte River system (Renae Held, Tern and Plover Partnership, personal communication). Hopefully, these efforts will reconcile the many different versions of historic data for the Platte River system that have been presented in Sidle et al (1991), Dinan et al (1993), Sidle and Kirsch (1993), Kirsch (1996), Kirsch and Sidle (1999), Kirsch (2000), Boyce et al (2002) The small percentage of birds breeding on riverine sandbars of the "Lower" Platte River in 2005 is anomalous. Typically, about 58 percent of ILT nest on river sandbars on the "Lower" Platte, whereas only 53 of 381 birds (14 percent) were nesting on the river in 2005 (Appendix C).…”

Section: Historic Datamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Three publications have presented tables summarizing annual counts for a large number of locations in an attempt to describe range-wide distribution and abundance of ILT (Kirsch and Sidle 1999, USFWS 2003, USFWS 2005a. When the author compared annual count totals in these three documents, several inconsistencies were found.…”

Section: Historic Data Summaries: Data Sourcesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In addition to issues of variable survey coverage, issues of longterm data storage and divergent versions of historic data must be resolved before data from the Platte River system data can be used in analyses of regional population trends. Although the Platte River and Kansas River are technically tributaries to the Missouri River, they are treated sepa-rately here because they are somewhat geographically isolated from populations of ILT nesting on the "Upper" Missouri River and because ILT counts from these rivers are often considered independently from the Missouri (Kirsch and Sidle 1999, Kirsch 2000, USFWS 2003. However, band recoveries have indicated exchange of breeding birds among all three of these river systems (Boyd and Sexson 2004) and population trends from the Platte and Kansas River systems may need to be interpreted within the context of population trends on the "Upper" Missouri.…”

Section: Current Monitoring Efforts and Future Considerationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, survey coverage has increased steadily since ILT were listed (Kirsch and Sidle 1999) and a large number of local or regional monitoring programs have been developed (Guilfoyle et al 2004). Still, several important population segments receive little survey attention (Guilfoyle et al 2004, USFWS 2005a.…”

Section: Background and Problem Statementmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 4 more Smart Citations

Distribution and Abundance of the Interior Population of the Least Tern (Sternula Antillarum), 2005; A Review of the First Complete Range-Wide Survey in the Context of Historic and Ongoing Monitoring Efforts

Lott¹

2006

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Abstract:The interior population of the Least Tern (Sternula antillarum) was added to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) list of threatened and endangered species in 1985 because of suspected low numbers and concerns about breeding season habitat loss or degradation on large interior rivers. Range-wide survey data were incomplete when Interior Least Terns (ILT) were originally listed. Although many ILT counts have been conducted over the past 20 years, regular survey coverage is still incomplete across the large breeding range of ILT, limiting the ability to assess the conservation status or trends for this population. During the last two weeks of June and the first week of July 2005, over 140 participants contributed to the first complete range-wide survey for ILT (see acknowledgments). The primary objectives of this survey were 1) to provide a minimum count of the number of adult ILT occurring in North America during the breeding season, 2) to document the range-wide distribution of nesting colonies, and 3) to describe the types of habitats that are being used for nesting. Survey crews covered ~4,700 river miles, 22 reservoirs, 62 sand pits, 12 industrial sites, 2 rooftop colonies, and over 16,000 acres of salt flats, counting a grand total of 17,591 ILT in association with 489 different colonies. Just over 62 percent of all adult ILT were counted on the "Lower" Mississippi River (10,960 birds on 770+ river miles). Four additional river systems accounted for 33.3 percent of the remaining ILT, with 11.6 percent on the Arkansas River system (including the Canadian and Cimarron Rivers and the Salt Fork of the Arkansas River), 10.4 percent on the Red River system, 6.9 percent on the Missouri River system, and 4.4 percent on the Platte River system. Lesser numbers of terns were counted on the Ohio River system (1.0 percent), the Trinity River system in Texas (1.0 percent), the Rio Grande/Pecos River system in New Mexico and Texas (0.8 percent), the Wabash River System (0.6 percent), two reservoirs in East Texas (0.3 percent), and the Kansas River system (0.3 percent). A majority of adult terns were counted on rivers (89.9 percent), with much smaller numbers at sand pits (3.6 percent), reservoirs (2.5 percent), salt flats (2.3 percent), industrial sites (1.4 percent), and rooftops (0.3 percent). This report discusses the results of the 2005 survey at three different spatial scales: 1) the entire breeding range for ILT and adjacent breeding populations on the Gulf Coast; 2) regional analyses by major river systems; and 3) individual survey segments (some of which have been combined into geographic segments comprised of more than 1 similar survey segment). Results of the 2005 survey are also compared with historic survey data from 1986 through 2004. The value of historic data for local, regional, and range-wide analyses of population trends is evaluated in the context of this first complete picture of the breeding distribution of ILT. Recommendations are made to 1) increase annual survey coverage for ILT to in...

show abstract

Section: Historic Data Summaries: Data Sourcesmentioning

confidence: 98%

Section: Historic Datamentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Historic Data Summaries: Data Sourcesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Current Monitoring Efforts and Future Considerationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Background and Problem Statementmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Distribution and Abundance of the Interior Population of the Least Tern (Sternula Antillarum), 2005; A Review of the First Complete Range-Wide Survey in the Context of Historic and Ongoing Monitoring Efforts

Lott¹

2006

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Reproductive ecology of interior least tern and piping plover in relation to Platte River hydrology and sandbar dynamics

Alexander

Jorgensen

Brown

2018

Ecology and Evolution

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

In a recent study, Farnsworth et al. (2017) used distributions of nest initiation dates drawn mostly from human‐created, off‐channel habitats and a model of emergent sandbar habitat to evaluate the hypothesis that least terns (Sternula antillarum) and piping plovers (Charadrius melodus) are physiologically adapted to initiate nests concurrent with the cessation of spring river flow rises on two sections of the Platte River, Nebraska. The study by Farnsworth et al. (2017) has several shortcomings which bring into question the authors’ principal assertion that interior least tern and piping plovers are not adapted to occupying and nesting on river sandbars on the Platte River system. We identify these shortcomings and provide information, which, we suggest, would change their conclusions if incorporated. Linked Article: https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.4097

show abstract

Interior Least Tern (Sternula antillarum) breeding distribution and ecology: implications for population‐level studies and the evaluation of alternative management strategies on large, regulated rivers

Lott¹,

Wiley²,

Fischer

et al. 2013

Ecology and Evolution

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Interior Least Terns (Sternula antillarum) (ILT) are colonial, fish-eating birds that breed within active channels of large sand bed rivers of the Great Plains and in the Lower Mississippi Valley. Multipurpose dams, irrigation structures, and engineered navigation systems have been present on these rivers for many decades. Despite severe alteration of channels and flow regimes, regulation era floods have remained effective at maintaining bare sandbar nesting habitat on many river segments and ILT populations have been stable or expanding since they were listed as endangered in 1985. We used ILT breeding colony locations from 2002 to 2012 and dispersal information to identify 16 populations and 48 subpopulations. More than 90% of ILT and >83% of river km with suitable nesting habitat occur within the two largest populations. However, replicate populations remain throughout the entire historical, geophysical, and ecological range of ILT. Rapid colonization of anthropogenic habitats in areas that were not historically occupied suggests metapopulation dynamics. The highest likelihood of demographic connectivity among ILT populations occurs across the Southern Plains and the Lower Mississippi River, which may be demographically connected with Least Tern populations on the Gulf Coast. Paired ecological and bird population models are needed to test whether previously articulated threats limit ILT population growth and to determine if management intervention is necessary and where. Given current knowledge, the largest sources of model uncertainty will be: (1) uncertainty in relationships between high flow events and subsequent sandbar characteristics and (2) uncertainty regarding the frequency of dispersal among population subunits. We recommend research strategies to reduce these uncertainties.

show abstract

Status of the Interior Population of Least Tern

Cited by 17 publications

References 14 publications

Distribution and Abundance of the Interior Population of the Least Tern (Sternula Antillarum), 2005; A Review of the First Complete Range-Wide Survey in the Context of Historic and Ongoing Monitoring Efforts

Distribution and Abundance of the Interior Population of the Least Tern (Sternula Antillarum), 2005; A Review of the First Complete Range-Wide Survey in the Context of Historic and Ongoing Monitoring Efforts

Reproductive ecology of interior least tern and piping plover in relation to Platte River hydrology and sandbar dynamics

Interior Least Tern (Sternula antillarum) breeding distribution and ecology: implications for population‐level studies and the evaluation of alternative management strategies on large, regulated rivers

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About