Society for the Conservation and Study of Caribbean Birds


Caribbean Waterbirds Conservation Plan: 2003-2008

Prepared by:

SCSCB Waterbirds Task Force

For comments and queries about this plan please contact:
Ann Haynes Sutton Ph.D.
Marshall’s Pen
P.O. Box 58
Mandeville
Jamaica

Tel: (876) 877-7335
Fax: (876) 978 2697
Second Draft
July 2003
Funded by National Fish and Wildlife Fund with support from USFWS International Program and other donors
Date: 16 July 2003

1

CONTENTS

Abbreviations Used In The Text

Acknowledgements

Message From The President Of Scscb

1.Introduction

2.Vision And Goals

3.Species Conservation

4.Habitat Conservation

5.Priorities And Directions For The Future

6.Caribbean Waterbirds Action Plan – Summary Of Next Steps

Literature Cited

Appendices

ABBREVIATIONS USED IN THE TEXT

ERPEco-regional Planning

IBAImportant Bird Areas

NFWFNational Fish and Wildlife Foundation

TNCThe Nature Conservancy

SCSCBSociety for the Conservation and Study of Caribbean Birds

USFWSUnited States Fish and Wildlife Service

acknowledgements[1]

message from the president OF scscb[2]

1.introduction

1.1.Society for the Conservation and Study of Caribbean Birds

The Society for the Conservation and Study of Caribbean Birds (SCSCB) was incorporated as a non-profit organization in the United States in 2002. The organization was formed in 1988, as the Society for the Study of Caribbean Ornithology, later renamed the Society for Caribbean Ornithology, before its final name change to SCSCB. Its mission is to promote the scientific study and conservation of Caribbean birds and their habitats, to provide a link among ornithologists and those elsewhere, to provide a written forum for researchers in the region through the publication of El Pitirre, and to provide data and technical assistance to governments and conservation groups in the Caribbean.

1.2.The Caribbean Waterbirds Conservation Plan (CWCP)

The SCSCB’s interest in waterbirds planning stems from its commitment to facilitating the development and implantation of coordinated, effective regional, national, and local conservation programmes, especially of aquatic birds. The waterbirds planning initiative was conceived as a process that would allow the SCSCB to coordinate its efforts with international initiatives such as the Waterbird Conservation for the Americas, Partners in Flight, BirdLife International’s Important Bird Area (IBA) programme and The Nature Conservancy’s Eco-regional Planning (ERP) initiative amongst others. The CWCP is intended to increase awareness of the needs for waterbird conservation in the region, with its main output to be a major project or series of projects. The audience for the plan will include international and regional agencies, government agencies, funding agencies, international, national and local NGOs, scientists and conservationists.

1.3.The CWCP planning process

The SCSCB’s interest began with the formation of a Seabird Working Group at the meeting in Aruba in 1997. The interest was broadened to developing a plan for conservation of waterbirds at its meeting in the Dominican Republic in 1999. This led to the formation of a Waterbirds Taskforce and preliminary discussions at the next meeting of the SCSCB in Cuba in 2001. Following that questionnaires about national waterbird populations and conservation strategies were sent to all territories, based on the responses a draft plan was produced and circulated for review at a workshop at the SCSCB’s meeting in New Orleans in 2002. To be completed….

[Since then work has focused on further data gathering and preparation of a second draft. This process was impeded because funds promised by National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, that were expected in 2002, have not yet been made available. The next step will be further review of the plan at the SCSCB meeting in Tobago, at which time further decisions will be made about the process of finalizing and implementing the plan.]

1.4.Geographic scope of CWCP

This plan covers the entire wider Caribbean basin, stretching from Bermuda, through the Bahamas, the Greater and Lesser Antilles, the offshore islands of northern South America that lie in the Caribbean basin and the waters surrounding them (Add Figure 1). This corresponds to the area from which the membership of the SCSCB is drawn.

1.5.Geo-political scope of CWCP

The area covered by the plan includes a wide variety of political systems, ranging from politically independent nations to commonwealths and colonies. Included are the nations and overseas territories of Anguilla (UK), Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Bermuda (UK), British Virgin Islands (UK), Cayman Islands (UK), Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, French Antilles (Martinique; Guadeloupe and Marie-Galante, Les Saintes, La Desirade; St Martin; St. Barthelemy - FR), Grenada and the Grenadines, Haiti, Jamaica, Montserrat (UK), Navassa(USA), Netherlands Antilles (Saint Maarten, Saint Eustatius, Saba, Aruba, Bonaire, Curacao - NT), Puerto Rico (USA), St. Kitts and Nevis, St. Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, Turks and Caicos (UK), US Virgin Islands (USA), and the coastal islands of Colombia and Venezuela. Honduras?

The broad scope of jurisdictions, languages, cultures and socio-economic conditions presents special challenges for the development and implementation of regional conservation strategies.

1.6.Species included in CWCP

The term “waterbirds” used in this plan covers all aquatic birds in the region (see Appendix 1), including:

  • Seabirds – gulls, terns, petrels, shearwaters and skimmers.
  • Wading birds – herons, egrets, night-herons, spoonbills, ibises and flamingos.
  • Marshbirds - grebes, rails, coots, moorhens, cranes, limpkin, bitterns.
  • Shorebirds – sandpipers, plovers, turnstones, etc..
  • Waterfowl – ducks and geese.

This definition of waterbirds is broader than used elsewhere, for example, for purposes of the Ramsar Convention (excludes pelagic seabird species) or the North American Waterbird Conservation Plan (does not address shorebirds or waterfowl).

1.7.Importance of planning for waterbird conservation in the Caribbean

Waterbirds can serve as important flagships for conservation of wetlands and associated marine and coastal habitats. They are also important indicators of coastal habitat quality and can provide early warning of changes in productivity and pollution. They also have great potential for ecotourism and some of the most popular eco-tourism attractions in the region including the Nariva Swamp in Trinidad, Point-a-Pierre Wildfowl Trust in Trinidad, and the frigatebird colony in Barbuda are based around waterbirds. Nevertheless these species have received little attention in national and international programmes. Their ecology, dynamics and patterns of habitat use of the migratory and resident populations of waterbirds of the region is little studied and not well understood but there is no doubt that many species and their habitats are threatened.

Threats to the ecological integrity and therefore to aquatic bird conservation are many. Among the most important are habitat loss and alteration (from coastal development –industry, housing, tourism and fish farming), hunting, and disturbance at nesting colonies including egg and chick harvest and introduced predators, as well as pollution from domestic sewage, agricultural run-off , oil extraction, and aquaculture. These threats are compounded by poor law enforcement, and the limited coverage and management of protected areas.

The restricted ranges and threatened status of the regional endemic species and the international patterns of movement of the migratory species both require coordinated international action to ensure effective conservation.

Benefits of developing a waterbirds conservation plan include:[3]:

  • To help the SCSCB to build effective partnerships that can lobby for increased protection for waterbirds and their habitats.
  • To increase recognition of Caribbean waterbirds as an important transboundary resource.
  • To synthesise existing information and efforts for island and marine conservation and thus stimulate research, publication and application of results.

1.8.Special issues related to planning for waterbird conservation in the Caribbean

While the ecological requirements of the species suggest that coordinated regional action is necessary to ensure effective conservation programmes, the structures and tools to implement conservation do not exist. Most countries lack even the most basic information for conservation planning, the staff, funds and political will to develop and implement plans once developed. A few are better resourced, and this suggests opportunities for regional assistance and cooperation. The diversity of language, legal systems and political systems represent further challenges for an integrated programme. Many other programmes, such as BirdLife International’s IBA programme, TNC’s ERP project and others, are facing these challenges and will be linked to in this plan, thus greatly increasing the chances of success of the plan.

2.vision and goals

The vision of the CWCP is that:

The abundance, diversity and distribution of populations of waterbirds of the Caribbean and their habitats will be conserved and sustainably managed in the long term at the regional, national and local scales.

The goal is that:

Conservation status of important aquatic birds and their habitats in the Caribbean be enhanced through a coordinated program of site and species action and involvement of increasingly aware local, national and international stakeholders and decision-makers, based on sound science.

Thus it will be necessary:

  • To identify, protect, and restore (if possible) a network of the most important sites for species and groups of species.
  • To ensure that decisions about waterbird management are made on the best available scientific information.
  • To develop mechanisms to collect, analyze and make widely available information on the conservation of waterbirds is to all whose actions affect waterbird populations, including decision makers, land managers, scientists and the general public.
  • To increase awareness of the importance of waterbirds and their habitats.
  • To ensure that conservation efforts for aquatic birds are coordinated throughout the Caribbean and with continental and global efforts, guided by common principles and result in integrated and mutually supportive conservation actions
  • To develop effective partnerships to carry on the planning process, to seek funding and to implement projects and programmes.

3.species conservation

3.1.Overview of general issues and threats to waterbird species in the region

  • Data on the status and distribution of waterbirds in the region is incomplete, most surveys are out of date and many major colonies have never been surveyed.
  • There are not standard methodologies in use for monitoring and colony assessment.
  • The regional assessment of status, and protocols for national assessments of status, are incomplete or non-existent.
  • The extent to which populations interact and are interdependent at the regional or metapopulation level is unknown.
  • Coverage of major colonies in protected areas is incomplete.
  • Pollution, habitat destruction, disturbance, illegal and unsustainable hunting and sea level rise are affecting waterbirds and their habitats but the scale and importance of these threats is unknown.
  • Introduced mammalian predators are a threat to ground nesting waterbirds throughout the region.
  • The level of awareness of the importance of waterbirds and their habitats is generally low.

3.2.Issues and Threats by Species Group

3.2.1.Seabirds

Seabirds include gulls, terns, petrels, shearwaters and skimmers. Fifty-five species are found in the region. The majority are pan-tropical but three species – Black-capped Petrel, Bermuda Petrel and the probably extinct Jamaica Petrel – are endemic to the region and are considered to be threatened at the global level. One other species, Audubon’s Shearwater, is considered to be threatened in the Americas. The status of the threatened species is incompletely known.

Most species of seabird nest in large colonies in inaccessible places such as small islands or cliffs, often offshore of larger islands. Depending on species, they nest on beaches, on rocks, in bushes and trees, and in burrows. Some, especially petrels, nest in forested highlands on larger islands. Nesting sites, which are often on, in or near the ground, are susceptible to predation by introduced mammals, habitat destruction and disturbance. Seabirds and eggs are still exploited in several islands. The options for sustainable harvest and other sustainable uses (e.g. eco-tourism) have not been assessed.

Seabirds generally feed on fish and squid in coastal and oceanic waters. Some species range over hundreds of miles to feed, and very little is known of the patterns of distribution of seabirds at sea. The effects of pollution, especially oil and plastic debris, on Caribbean seabirds have not been assessed, nor has the relationship between seabirds and fisheries.

Several Caribbean seabirds have been the subject of successful recovery programmes including the management of the Bermuda Petrel in Bermuda, Red-billed Tropicbirds in Saba and Antigua and Barbuda and Sooty Terns and Brown Noddies in Jamaica.

The SCSCB has developed an incomplete seabird database. Only Puerto Rico and the USVI have comprehensive seabird monitoring programmes. To encourage seabird surveys, the SCSCB has run two training workshops for seabird biologists in Puerto Rico. However, this has not resulted in the expected increase in seabird surveys, because the trainees lack the funds for implementation. Some seabird conservation issues will be addressed in the SCSCB’s NFWF project to be implemented in 2003-4.

3.2.2.Wading birds

Wading birds (waders) are generally large, long-legged birds with long bills. They include herons, egrets, ibises, spoonbills, storks, and flamingos. Twenty-seven species of wading birds have been documented in the region; most species are resident, but their populations are augmented by migrants during the winter. None are considered to be threatened.

Most wading birds roost and breed in large mixed species colonies. They feed mainly on small invertebrates while wading in water, inland in marshes and lakes, along the coast, in shallow water and in some cases on land (such as the Cattle Egret and Yellow-crowned Night-Heron).

Little is known of wading bird status and conservation needs, particularly in relation to migration patterns and stopover sites. Loss of wetland habitat is probably the most important threat but species are hunted on some islands.

3.2.3.Marshbirds

Marshbirds include a variety of species that depend on ponds, pools, marshes and other similar habitats. They include the grebes, rails, coots, moorhens, cranes, jacanas, limpkin, bitterns and similar species, totalling about 26 species in the region. Local endemic species include Caribbean Coot, Zapata Rail and the probably extinct Jamaican race of the Uniform Crake. The Zapata Rail is considered to be endangered at the global level, and a status survey of this species is urgently needed.

Marshbirds are often hard to see and difficult to census and are therefore even less well known than other waterbirds. However, their freshwater habitats may be some of the most threatened wetlands in the region.

3.2.4.Shorebirds

Shorebirds, of which 43 species occur in the Caribbean, are generally small (smaller than wading birds), flocking species that feed along the strand and in shallow water, generally wading or walking. They include plovers, stilts, sandpipers, and phalaropes.

Most are long-distance migrants, coming from the arctic. A few species nest in the Caribbean. They are generally not colonial in nesting, but may concentrate in areas of appropriate nesting habitat. They often feed in large mixed flocks, taking advantage of patchy but abundant distributions of their invertebrate food.

Numbers of shorebirds in the region are not well known; participation in the International Shorebird Survey is low. The SCSCB with the French ran a training course for biologists in shorebird survey techniques in but has not been able to find funds for the regional surveys that were expected to be the next step. The Puerto Rican Ornithological Society has developed an excellent model for voluntary shorebird surveys.

The Caribbean is not perceived as a major stop-over or over-wintering location for shorebirds and therefore it is hard to access funds. The importance of the region, specially for non-breeding subadults is probably underestimated.

3.2.5.Waterfowl

Waterfowl include ducks and geese. Thirty-four species have been recorded from the Caribbean, of which Blue-winged Teal is by far the most abundant. There are two regional endemic species - White-cheeked Pintail and West Indian Whistling Duck and two other nesting species. The remainder are winter migrants. Unsustainable and illegal duck hunting threatens populations on several islands.

Ducks Unlimited (DU) is implementing a continental programme of aerial surveys of migratory ducks on the wintering grounds. This programme is currently being implemented in Cuba, Jamaica, Dominican Republic and Haiti. The DU surveys could yield more information on other waterbirds and their habitats, if new software is made available and used.