OCR Text |
Show • Exemplify a specific wetland type characteristic of its region • Have special value as habitat for rare, vulnerable, endangered or endemic species or because of the quality and peculiarities of its flora and fauna • Support 20,000 waterfowl or substantial numbers from particular groups of waterfowl, shorebirds or wader indicative of wetland values, productivity or diversity. ( Ramsar, 1999b) Several years ago a nomination process was initiated to designate the lake as a Ramsar site. This was taken before RDCC and the process was tabled. The nomination was made by the National Audubon Society and perhaps others. GSL qualifies for this designation. However the convention also places general obligations on contracting parties relating to the conservation of wetlands and special obligations pertaining to those wetlands which are designated as Ramsar sites ( Ramsar, 1999a). The planning team is concerned that this designation may not be consistent the multiple- use management framework for sovereign lands. The consequences of this designation and associated obligations could limit the states ability to respond to changing demand for public trust resources. Other Ramsar sites in the U. S. have a clear wildlife and habitat protection management focus. The state has broader management responsibilities, direction and objectives for the lake as a public trust resource. A similar designation has been given to the lake recognizing its value to shorebirds. The WHSRN recognition carries no regulations or stipulations, simply a special recognition of the significant values. The WHSRN was formed in 1985 to address serious concerns for shorebird population decline throughout North and South America. This group of government and private agencies is committed to shorebird conservation. The criterion for designation is that the area must support more than 20,000 shorebirds or five percent of a flyway population. This international cooperative program is helping to protect key shorebird sites throughout the hemisphere and has designated the greater GSL as one of 19 WHSRN sites ( Wetlands International, 1998). The designation highlights GSL's importance as a migration corridor line for hundreds of thousands shorebirds. GSL is a significant refueling ( feeding) station for shorebirds and, linked with other critical migration sites, forms a chain of such sites from northern breeding grounds in the Canadian Arctic to wintering places on remote coasts and wetlands of South America. One reason cited for designation as a Hemispheric Reserve is that the 500,000 Wilson's phalaropes known to occur here represent the world's largest known concentration of the species. Wilson's phalaropes fly over 70 hours during their migration. These shorebirds nearly double in weight while feeding at GSL, storing the fat needed for fuel for their long flight. Over 75 percent of the western population of Tundra swans and 25 percent of the continental Pintail population utilize the GSL area. The annual production of breeding waterfowl from the marshes adjacent to the lake is estimated to exceed 750,000 birds. The largest nesting population of California gulls in the world is located on 67 |