APRIL 2015
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In this issue
Events & reminders ………. 2
Events & reminders
•
Important dates:
 April 15 – 21: 2nd count window of the Breeding Bird
Protocol.
•
FSA partnership meetings:
 April 2 (1-3:30 pm): Southeast Florida Partnership @
South Florida Wildlife Center (3200 SW 4 Avenue, Fort
Lauderdale). Contact: [email protected].
 April 3 (10 am - noon): Florida Keys Partnership @ the
Marathon Government Center (1st floor conference
room). Contact: [email protected].
•
Upcoming events:
March 31 – April 2: Florida Chapter of The Wildlife Society
Spring Conference @ Jacksonville.
April 6 (9 am): Wildlife Alert’s 3rd Annual “FORE! the
Wildlife” Golf Tournament @ Capital City Country Club.
See website for info.
April 18 (10 am – 3 pm): Enchanted Forest Sanctuary
Earth Day festival @ 444 Columbia Blvd., Titusville. See
website for info.
April 18: Wakulla Wildlife Festival @ Wakulla Springs
State Park. Info: http://www.wakullawildlifefestival.com/.
April 22 – 26: Florida’s Birding and Photo Fest @ St.
Augustine/Ponte Vedra Beach area. For info, see website.
April 24 – 26: Chipola Feather Fest @ Marianna. See
website for info.
April 25 (9am – 1pm): National Park Service and Talbot
Islands State Park are planning a Shorebird Event on
International Migratory Bird Day @ Jacksonville. More
info here.
FSA news ……………….…….. 3
• Bird stewards needed
• Teaming up for safer beaches
• April is for plovers
FSD updates ………………….. 6
• FL Shorebird Database now
open!
Ebb tidings …..……………….. 7
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The Wrack Line is the official
e-newsletter of the Florida
Shorebird Alliance (FSA). In
addition to providing news and
updates, the Wrack Line is a
vehicle for partners across the
state to share experiences,
information, and ideas.
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Do you have news to share?
Write us: [email protected]
Content editor: Naomi Avissar
Cover design: Chris Burney
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Visit our Field Notes at www.FLShorebirdAlliance.org for new
announcements, updates, and opportunities to get involved…
FSA News
Help protect beach-nesting
birds… become a Bird
Steward!
Bird stewards needed
The birds have started nesting and bird steward programs
around the state are recruiting.
Volunteer bird stewards are needed, especially on weekends, to
protect nesting shorebirds and seabirds from disturbance and
educate the public about beach etiquette.
Please consider dedicating some of your time this summer to
this worthwhile cause. Check out the link or map below to see if
there is a bird steward program near you:
http://flshorebirdalliance.org/our-work/bird-stewards.aspx
If there is no existing steward program near you, consider
forming a small steward program of your own. Read the Bird
Steward Manual for more information on how to get started:
http://flshorebirdalliance.org/media/5939/bird_steward_manu
al-final_2012.pdf.
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FSA News
We have partnered with sea
turtle monitors to promote
better beach driving and
make beaches safer for
wildlife.
Teaming up for safer beaches
The Florida Shorebird Alliance (FSA) has been working closely
with Florida Fish & Wildlife Conservation Commission’s marine
turtle leadership to improve awareness of beach-nesting birds.
One of the ways we devised to boost awareness is to improve
coordination between shorebird and sea turtle surveyors. We
have provided all turtle monitors who drive their route with the
contact information of the local shorebird surveyor in their area
so that they can inform one another of nest locations and hatch
dates. This effort was initiated last year, so we just sent out the
updated contacts to everyone involved.
We have also created a
new brochure for turtle
surveyors and others who
routinely patrol the beach
using a vehicle (e.g., law
enforcement, lifeguards).
The brochure provides
basic information on
coastal wildlife, including
date ranges for turtle and
shorebird
nesting
in
Florida. It also offers
practical tips for beach
drivers to be able to do
their jobs with minimal
impacts to wildlife.
Check it out on the FSA
website, and feel free to
print and distribute as you
see fit!
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We are grateful for the
opportunity to work with
our counterparts in the
sea turtle community to
benefit all coastal wildlife!
FSA News
If you have any questions on
counting plovers using the
Breeding Bird Protocol,
please contact:
[email protected]
April is for plovers
Before the Breeding Bird Protocol was released in 2011, the
annual Florida Snowy Plover Survey used to take place during
the month of April. Dedicated observers surveyed Snowy
plovers and Wilson’s plovers across the state to estimate
relative abundance and distribution of plovers in Florida.
In keeping with this tradition, please be on the lookout for
Snowy and Wilson’s plovers during your route survey this
month (within the April 15-21 window count). Remember that
finding these shorebirds’ nests can be very difficult, and so we
encourage you to look for adults that are exhibiting pre-nesting
or potential nesting behavior. If you see a plover, stop for a
minute, and try to determine if it is simply resting or foraging, or
if it might have a nest nearby. Only report birds that are nesting
or pre-nesting (not incidental observations).
Remember that, even if you do not see sure signs of active
nesting such as incubation or broken-wing displays, you can still
report pre/potential nesting birds if you see courtship or
territorial displays, copulation, or birds digging nest scrapes.
And most importantly, don’t forget to record your route survey
in the Florida Shorebird Database even if you did not observe
any birds. That way, your effort is counted and the data will
show that the area was not overlooked!
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FSD updates
The FSD is now accepting
2015 breeding data. See the
FSD website for the protocol,
data sheets, training videos,
and other important
resources.
FL Shorebird Database now open!
The Florida Shorebird Database (FSD) is open and ready for your
2015 monitoring data! If you have breeding bird data from this
season, you can now enter it at www.FLShorebirdDatabase.org.
Please survey your routes and check your rooftops during the five
remaining count windows at a minimum (weekly monitoring is
preferred in areas with active nests). If you’d like to help but don’t
have a route or rooftop assignment yet, please contact your local
partnership coordinator.
Returning volunteers: Please log in using your username and
password from last year. If you forgot your password, please reset
it. Do NOT create a new account. Any routes or rooftops you
surveyed in previous years will automatically appear in your
profile.
If you would like to see recordings of our recent training webinars,
please click on a link below:
 Webinar for route surveyors (people who survey routes
regularly): http://fwc.adobeconnect.com/p2lzagnwswd/
 Webinar for site monitors (people who check rooftops or
individual sites such as stewarded colonies, etc.):
http://fwc.adobeconnect.com/p3423kimomb/
The “RESOURCES” tab on the FSD website has other training
videos, the protocol, datasheets, and list of count windows. We
are also available to assist you with any questions you might have.
Just email us at [email protected].
Thanks, and have a great season!
– Naomi Avissar, Janell Brush, Nancy Douglass,
Whitney Haskell, Alex Kropp, Kristin Rogers, and
Jerry Zhu (the FSD Team)
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Love it? Love it knot?
Share your thoughts and photos with us – email
[email protected] or join our Facebook group!
Ebb tidings
End notes from the editor:
There’s a lot going on this month,
between partnership meetings,
volunteer steward trainings, and
breeding bird surveys.
To stay current on all the latest
news, announcements, and
volunteer opportunities, be sure
to check out the FSA website
(www.FLShorebirdAlliance.org) –
especially the FIELD NOTES tab.
Thanks and happy birding!
– Naomi
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 Piping Plover searching for prey (photo by Pat Leary).
 Snowy Plover nesting @ Siesta Key (photo by Ed Francis).
www.FLShorebirdAlliance.org
www.FLShorebirdAlliance.org
The Florida Shorebird Alliance (FSA) is a statewide partnership of entities, non-government
organizations, and individuals committed to advancing shorebird and seabird conservation in Florida.
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FSA partners coordinate their independent work and collaborate to help identify and address
important research, management, education, outreach, and public policy needs.