Bonderman Field Station at Rio Mesa 2019 Bird Banding Report

The primary purpose of our project is to understand the ecology and migratory patterns of the bird community at the Bonderman Field Station at Rio Mesa using mist-netting and bird banding.

Bonderman Field Station at Rio Mesa 2019 Bird Banding Report Cover Photos, clockwise from top left: Sagebrush Sparrow, Red-naped Sapsucker, and American Kestrel. All captured and banded during 2019 at the Rio Mesa banding station. Şekercioğlu Lab University of Utah Department of Biology 257 South 1400 East Salt Lake City, UT 84112 801-587-5661 Station Overview Statistics Species Observed Species Caught Species Banded Overall Captures Birds Banded Banding Days Station Lifetime Totals 187 127 119 15,817 12,501 917 Our Mission The primary purpose of our project is to understand the ecology and migratory patterns of the bird community at the Bonderman Field Station at Rio Mesa using mist-netting and bird banding. We capture and band birds to gain valuable insights into population size, community structure, the timing of migration, and how avian groups are responding to anthropogenic threats. We are also dedicated to outreach and education. Birds are an exceptional flagship group to help instill interest in conservation and the environment1 and every year we welcome hundreds of visitors to our station where people from all walks of life can receive hands-on education about nature, ecology, ornithology and conservation. Bonderman Field Station at Rio Mesa Rio Mesa represents an ideal location to conduct ornithological research. Riparian zones, like Rio Mesa's Dolores River, comprise a disproportionately important habitat in the arid Intermountain West. Birds, in particular, depend heavily on this delicate environment, and riparian zones serve as critical migratory corridors for birds moving through an otherwise harsh area2. Riparian zones are also under severe threat from climate change3. With the growing threat of global change we, more than ever, need a detailed understanding of the ecology of riparian habitats and the organisms that depend on them. Our Research Our station follows standard protocol developed by the Monitoring Avian Productivity and Survivorship program (MAPS)4. We operate sixteen 12 x 2.5 meter mist-nets that are opened 30 minutes before sunrise and remain open for six hours. Nets are open 10 out of every 12 days from April-June and August-November. Nets are checked every 30 minutes and any birds are extracted and taken back to the banding office for processing. Each bird is fitted with a metal leg band issued by the United States Geological Survey (USGS). This allows us to track the capture history for every individual bird and perform robust mark-recapture analyses to estimate changes in demographic rates5. We also take a suite of morphological and demographic measurements from each bird including sex, age, fat content, breeding state, molt stage, wing length, and body mass. These data allow us to describe the bird community at Rio Mesa as well as monitor the health of individuals as they undergo their yearly migration. 2019 This fall was our 17th banding season, representing 8 ½ years of banding data from Rio Mesa. These data make our station one of the longest-running bird banding operations in Utah and one of only two passerine (songbird) stations currently operating in the state (the other station being our bird banding station in Red Butte Canyon, near Salt Lake City). Though the station has been operating for close to a decade, we continue to detect new species for the area. This year we banded three new species: Yellow-headed Blackbird, American Kestrel and Inca Dove. The latter is particularly interesting as, within Utah, it is a species largely confined to the St George area. Its presence in Grand County could indicate a northward shift in their distribution. Statistics Species Caught Species Banded Total Captures Birds Banded Banding Days 2019 Totals 72 68 1,480 1,290 108 Participants In the spring, our banding team consisted of veteran lead bander Mike Ford (who has banded for us in Turkey, Ethiopia and Rio Mesa over many years) and volunteers Sean Carter and Tessa Parker. In the fall, our banding team consisted of lead bander Alicia Bachman and volunteers Chris Buff and Emily Ford. Our volunteers come to Rio Mesa from across the country with varying degrees of experience working with birds. Our station is dedicated to providing educational opportunities to volunteers of all skill levels and by the end, they are highly competent banders. Aside from the regular banding teams, our station also hosted many individual or group visitors including: − High school students from the Salt Lake Center for Science and Math Education − Multiple classes from the University of Utah − Natural education workshops for Utah educators − Local school groups − Several University of Utah graduate students − Many local citizens interested in getting hands-on experience bird-banding While many groups were not counted completely, we estimate that over 600 people have been exposed to avian conservation and ecology research at our station. Future Directions The next few years promise to be an exciting time for our ornithological research at Rio Mesa. With additional years of data, our ability to accurately monitor the changes in bird populations and community composition will improve greatly and we will soon be able to estimate migratory arrival and departure dates. These data are especially important now given the accelerating pace of climate change and the ramifications for riparian ecosystems9. We now have a prospective graduate student and an undergraduate working on the data from Rio Mesa. The former is analyzing how age and sex affect the arrival dates of migrants while the latter is investigating how rainfall affects capture rates. We hope that we will be able to take on a new graduate student in 2020 who can focus on the data gathered at Rio Mesa as part of their thesis. Our work at Rio Mesa will continue to be the only location in Utah producing this kind of valuable data and will be integral in developing conservation regulations in the near future. We also plan to continue our outreach program, bringing several groups to the station. These efforts will help more people understand the necessity of conservation biology, ecology and ornithology research and the importance of ensuring healthy ecosystems. Literature Cited 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. Şekercioĝlu, Ç. H. Promoting community-based bird monitoring in the tropics: Conservation, research, environmental education, capacity-building, and local incomes. Biol. Conserv. 151, 69-73 (2012). Parrish, J. R., Norvell, R. E., Roberts, D., White, H. & Howe, F. P. Population Monitoring of Neotropical Migratory Birds in Riparian Habitats of Utah. (2007). Seavy, N. E. et al. Why climate change makes riparian restoration more important than ever: Recommendations for practice and research. Ecol. Restor. 27, 330-338 (2009). Desante, D. F. et al. MAPS Manual 2016 Protocol. (2016). Ralph, C. J., Geupel, G. R., Pyle, P., Martin, T. E. & DeSante, D. F. Handbook of Field Methods for Monitoring Landbirds. Director 144, 1-41 (1993). Sodhi, N. S., Butler, R., Laurance, W. F. & Gibson, L. Conservation successes at micro-, mesoand macroscales. Trends Ecol. Evol. 26, 585-594 (2011). Newmark, W. D. A 16-year study of forest disturbance and understory bird community structure and composition in Tanzania. Conserv. Biol. 20, 122-134 (2006). Sauer, J. R. et al. The North American Breeding Bird Survey, Results and Analysis 1966-2013. Version 01.30.2015. (2014). Niman, R. J., Decamps, H. & Pollock, M. The Role of Riparian Corridors in Maintaining Regional Biodiversity. Ecol. Appl. 3, 209-212 (1993). Appendix: Capture rates for all species caught at Rio Mesa from 2011 to 2019. Species with no capture records have only been observed Species Name Totals Number Banded Number Recaught Number Unbanded Waterfowl Canada Goose Mallard Blue-winged Teal Cinnamon Teal Northern Shoveler Green-winged Teal Common Merganser Duck spp. Grouse, Quails, and Allies Chukar Wild Turkey 4 Grebes Pied-billed Grebe Herons, Ibis, and Allies Great Blue Heron Great Egret Snowy Egret White-faced Ibis Vultures, Hawks, and Allies Turkey Vulture Osprey Golden Eagle Northern Harrier Sharp-shinned Hawk Cooper's Hawk Northern Goshawk Bald Eagle Swainson's Hawk Red-tailed Hawk Rough-legged Hawk 7 1 Rails, Gallinules, and Allies Sora 1 Sandhill Crane Shorebirds Killdeer Wilson's Snipe Spotted Sandpiper 1 Pigeons and Doves Rock Pigeon Band-tailed Pigeon Eurasian-collared Dove White-winged Dove Inca Dove 1 Mourning Dove 20 Owls Western Screech-Owl Great Horned Owl 2 Northern Saw-whet Owl 2 6 Nightjars Common Nightawk Common Poorwill 2 Swifts Vaux's Swift White-throated Swift 4 4 Hummingbirds Costa's Hummingbird Black-chinned Hummingbird Broad-tailed Hummingbird Calliope Hummingbird Rufous Hummingbird 1 187 28 10 63 Hummingbird spp. 6 Kingfishers Belted Kingfisher Woodpeckers Williamson's Sapsucker Yellow-bellied Sapsucker Red-naped Sapsucker Downy Woodpecker Hairy Woodpecker Lewis's Woodpecker Red-shafted Flicker 3 2 41 3 2 1 25 3 2 Falcons and Caracaras American Kestrel Merlin Peregrine Falcon 1 Prairie Falcon Flycatchers and Allies Olive-sided Flycatcher Western Wood-pewee Willow Flycatcher Western Flycatcher Pacific-slope Flycatcher Cordilleran Flycatcher Yellow-bellied Flycatcher Hammond's Flycatcher Dusky Flycatcher Gray Flycatcher Black Phoebe Say's Phoebe Ash-throated Flycatcher Eastern Kingbird Cassin's Kingbird Western Kingbird 3 114 212 5 2 4 1 22 223 59 2 11 68 3 12 4 12 2 2 29 6 1 1 2 12 3 Flycatcher spp. Shrikes Loggerhead Shrike 8 Northern Shrike Vireos Bell's Vireo Plumbeous Vireo Cassin's Vireo Warbling Vireo Gray Vireo Red-eyed Vireo 19 14 259 35 1 1 3 23 9 Vireo spp. Crows and Jays Pinyon Jay Woodhouse's Scrub-jay Black-billed Magpie American Crow Common Raven 27 1 1 Larks Horned Lark Martins and Swallows Northern Rough-winged Swallow Tree Swallow Violet-green Swallow Bank Swallow Barn Swallow Cliff Swallow 18 1 2 Swallow spp. Chickadees and Allies Black-capped Chickadee Mountain Chickadee Juniper Titmouse 29 14 7 9 2 1 Bushtit 231 64 17 Nuthatches and Creepers Brown Creeper Red-breasted Nuthatch 3 1 75 11 9 18 13 White-breasted Nuthatch Wrens Bewick's Wren Rock Wren Canyon Wren House Wren Winter Wren 208 20 12 81 1 Marsh Wren 40 Gnatcatchers and Kinglets Blue-gray Gnatcatcher Golden-crowned Kinglet 679 2 140 19 Ruby-crowned Kinglet 548 90 30 12 22 233 2 3 57 1 3 American Robin 37 19 2 Mockingbirds and Thrashers Gray Catbird 45 3 Thrushes Mountain Bluebird Western Bluebird Townsend's Solitaire Swainson's Thrush Hermit Thrush 1 1 2 2 Northern Mockingbird Brown Thrasher 9 1 1 Sage Thrasher 41 14 1 37 2 11 70 43 3 1 1 Starlings and Mynas European Starling Wagtails and Pipits American Pipit Waxwings and Dippers Cedar Waxwing 2 American Dipper Wood Warblers Northern Waterthrush Orange-crowned Warbler Nashville Warbler Virginia's Warbler Lucy's Warbler MacGillivray's Warbler Common Yellowthroat American Redstart Northern Parula Magnolia Warbler Yellow Warbler Black-throated Blue Warbler Palm Warbler Yellow-rumped Warbler Yellow-rumped Warbler (Audubon's) Yellow-rumped Warbler (Myrtle) Yellow-rumped Warbler (MxA) Black-throated Gray Warbler Townsend's Warbler Wilson's Warbler Yellow-breasted Chat 28 299 34 97 60 431 173 2 2 1 611 1 1 21 496 23 7 13 1092 625 1 105 1 29 6 86 465 Warbler spp. Sparrows Green-tailed Towhee Spotted Towhee Vesper Sparrow American Tree Sparrow Chipping Sparrow Clay-colored Sparrow 1 6 2 2 1 5 16 15 1 96 345 25 2 76 12 38 159 22 6 20 2 Brewer's Sparrow Lark Sparrow Lark Bunting Black-throated Sparrow Sagebrush Sparrow Savannah Sparrow Song Sparrow Lincoln's Sparrow Grasshopper Sparrow Fox Sparrow Dark-eyed Junco Dark-eyed Junco (Gray-headed) Dark-eyed Junco (Oregon) Dark-eyed Junco (Pink-sided) Dark-eyed Junco (Slate-colored) White-throated Sparrow White-crowned Sparrow (Mountain) White-crowned Sparrow (Gambel's) Golden-crowned Sparrow House Sparrow Sparrow spp. 561 28 44 55 2 658 393 6 4 13 8 325 81 8 21 254 542 1 100 3 14 2 205 71 121 33 4 5 16 227 3 15 12 2 1 10 4 1 5 34 2 Cardinals Summer Tanager Western Tanager Rose-breasted Grosbeak Black-headed Grosbeak Blue Grosbeak Lazuli Bunting Indigo Bunting Painted Bunting 1 1 91 69 130 6 4 12 27 1 2 2 1 Orioles and Blackbirds Red-winged Blackbird Western Meadowlark Yellow-headed Blackbird Brewer's Blackbird Common Grackle Brown-headed Cowbird Hooded Oriole Scott's Oriole Bullock's Oriole 1 3 1 29 2 5 1 72 15 1 Finches and Allies Cassin's Finch House Finch Pine Siskin Lesser Goldfinch American Goldfinch Evening Grosbeak 3 202 56 61 13 26 1 1 1 11 1