By Sarah Manning, Coastal Conservation Coordinator 0430: An early wakeup - anything for the birds! 0530: After a quick breakfast, shower, coffee (necessity), and packing snacks and hydration, it’s time to head out to the field. The goal today: band as many Royal Tern chicks as humanly possible! 0615: Arrive in Brunswick at the Sidney Lanier boat ramp. In the distance, the sky is bright with lightning moving offshore. 0630: Field briefing by Georgia Department of Natural Resources Biologist, Tim Keyes. We are waiting for the weather to clear. We load three boats full of gear: tables, chairs, tents, fencing, coolers, and banding equipment. 0645: We have boarded the boats and are on our way to Bird Island - a dredge spoil island in the middle of the Brunswick Harbor, meticulously crafted for the birds by the Georgia DNR in 2008. The island has a unique quality - it’s isolated. The typical threats to ground-nesting birds are lessened by this isolation. Mammalian predators have a hard time crossing the river, and the island is closed to recreational use (for the birds’ safety). The island was built high enough to provide reprieve from storms and tidal overwash, creating an oasis of open, sandy habitat perfect for nesting seabirds. It has now grown to be the largest seabird colony in Georgia - and one of the most successful, too. American Oystercatchers, Black Skimmers, Brown Pelicans, Gull-billed Terns, Royal Terns, and Sandwich Terns nest on Bird Island. 0700: We have arrived. The raucous sound is almost overwhelming as the adults take flight. We’ve landed on the southwest corner of the island to avoid disturbing any active nesting taking place. 0715: Gear is being unloaded. Tents are assembled, tables, chairs, and banding gear distributed. Five teams complete with an experienced bander and their assistants are assembled to complete the daunting task of the day: band just over 660 Royal Tern chicks. There is no shortage of chicks, rather, a shortage of time! Banding is to be completed before the temperature rises enough to stress the young birds. Time is of the essence today, and the safety of the birds is the highest priority. 0745: Royal Terns hatch from one-egg clutches as semi-precocial young (covered in down and able to move from the nest site). From then on, Royal Terns (and other crested terns) form crèches, or gathering of young birds aged two days and up until fledging. The parents return to their chick during the day to provide it with food, able to recognize them in groups of thousands of chicks. A team breaks off to corral the chicks. It is a seemingly simple task, as the chicks cannot yet fly to escape, instead, they move as a large unit. Patience is a virtue: moving too quickly could cause smaller chicks to be overwhelmed by the crowd. 0800: The first small group of chicks is being separated from the larger whole. Soft-sided dog crates are used to transport the chicks to the teams of banders. Each bird that is large enough will be outfitted with two bands: On their left leg, a metal band, also known as a federal band, complete with a 9-digit code that is near impossible to read without recapturing the bird. On the right leg, a colored, field-readable band (a hard plastic band with a three-digit alphanumeric code) is placed. Field-readable bands are able to be read and reported by anyone who resights the bird - you just need binoculars, a spotting scope, or a camera with zoom, without the need of capturing the bird again. This is a non-invasive way to track the birds’ whereabouts, timing of migration, dispersal to wintering grounds, and much more. 1000: We continue to band, passing the halfway point! The clouds have dissipated and the temperature is starting to rise. We band faster, as if we are an assembly line in a factory. The work comes easier now, with experience. Each group must band an average of 148 chicks if we are to complete our goal. 1130: Success! All color bands have been placed and chicks have reunited with their parents in the crèche, sporting new jewelry. Gear is broken down and packed back onto the boats. All involved are speckled with bodily fluids: sweat, bird poop, and regurgitated juices are just part of the uniform today - all in a day’s work for bird biologists! Get Involved: Report Bands
See a Royal or Sandwich Tern with a field-readable band? Report it to reportband.gov. The color of the field-readable band differs based on who banded the bird: Red for Georgia DNR, White for Virginia Tech, and Black for North Carolina. Many Royal Terns will not have field-readable bands but will have a metal, federal band. You can report those if you can read them, too! You’ll receive a certificate for reporting which details where and when the bird was banded. Other species can be reported through ReportBand.Gov as well - see our previous article about shorebirds here.
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by Sarah Manning, Coastal Conservation Coordinator Autonomous Recording Units, also known as Acoustic Recording Units or ARUs, are an emerging technology that is beginning to help us understand more cryptic or difficult-to-detect avian species: ARUs have successfully been used to detect Black Rails and Northern Spotted Owls. ARUs can be programmed to record at selected times of day, over many weeks or months. This replaces the need for many hours in the field and provides more flexibility to collect data. While they are not yet able to replace a skilled field biologist or ornithologist, they are a great supplement and can provide valuable answers to various research questions. Birds Georgia is utilizing ARUs to detect nightjars in Georgia. The Chuck-will’s-widow, Eastern Whip-poor-will, and Common Nighthawk are three species of nightjars found in Georgia. Nightjars are aerial insectivores and tend to be most active at dawn and at dusk, and on bright, moonlit nights. While Chuck-will’s-widows and Common Nighthawks range throughout the entire state, Eastern Whip-poor-wills’ breeding range excludes the coastal plain. Chuck-will's-widow numbers declined by about 1.6%, per year for a cumulative decline of approximately 58% between 1966 and 2019, according to the North American Breeding Bird Survey. Birds Georgia hopes to help fill in some of the data gaps for this species and create more suitable habitat to help these birds, and, as such, we have selected the Chuck-will’s-widow as our 2023 to 2025 Species of Concern. Birds Georgia is directing additional resources and expertise to the Chuck-will’s-widow – restoring native habitat, assisting with species-specific research, and engaging the public to help us better understand statewide population numbers and migratory behavior. To do this, we are promoting the Nightjar Survey Network, formed by the The Center for Conservation Biology and coordinated by the Maine Natural History Observatory (MNHO) as part of the emerging Global Nightjar Knowledge Network. In addition to the Nightjar Survey Network, we are coordinating with the Georgia Department of Natural Resources (Wildlife Resources Division, Nongame Conservation Section) to coordinate survey routes and ensure statistical and scientific rigor. Volunteers are asked to survey one time per year, during late spring or early summer. Routes are nine miles with 10 stops, spaced one mile apart. Observers listen for Chuck-will’s-widows, Eastern Whip-poor-will’s, and Common Nighthawks over a six-minute period. Data is recorded and shared with the Nightjar Survey Network, GA DNR, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. In 2024, we are on track to complete more than 13 routes – the most since the program began in 2007. Our partner, Dr. Clark Rushing and graduate students at the University of Georgia Warnell School of Forestry are studying dispersal and migration of Chuck-will’s-widows along the coast by utilizing GPS tags. We are building off Dr. Rushing’s work by deploying these 15 Autonomous Recording Units (ARU’s) on private and preserved lands with differing management strategies with the goal of detecting which practices may yield better habitat for these nightjars. Private lands, greater than 10 acres in size, are encouraged to apply for our Habitat Stewardship Program. It is designed to enable property stewards to make improvements to their land for the benefit of native wildlife while also connecting them to educational resources, technical assistance programs, cost-sharing and revenue-generating programs, engagement and research opportunities.. Additionally, eBird and iNaturalist users are encouraged to report any incidental sightings of Chuck-will’s-widows, Eastern Whip-poor-wills, and Common Nighthawks. Complete reports and reports with photos, audio, or detailed comments are extremely helpful to learning more about this secretive summer singer. Birds Georgia has selected 10 sites for the placement of 15 AudioMoth units to assist us in learning more about the life histories of these birds (see figure 2). The sites chosen range from the barrier islands to the piedmont – reflecting the unique land uses and habitats in Georgia. Chuck-will’s-widows and Eastern Whip-poor-wills are known to occur within deciduous, pine (Pinus spp.), oak-hickory (Quercus-Carya spp.), and mixed forests. They also inhabit live oak (Q. virginiana) groves, forest edges, and riparian areas. Openings, including forest gaps, pastures, and scrub, appear to be an important habitat component for foraging, but comparative use of habitat types has not yet been studied in these species. Common Nighthawks favor more open habitat, including dunes, grasslands, fields, and can often be found in suburban areas near bright lights. From agricultural and pastoral fields to heavily-managed timber stands, our units were placed in areas with specified management criteria. We are interested in learning more about what land uses are compatible with these species, their habitat preferences, and what we may do to conserve these charismatic caprimulgidae (nightjars).
For example, this Common Nighthawk nest (see Figure 4 below) was found 22 days following a prescribed burn. Common Nighthawks appear to respond favorably to prescribed fire, utilizing the newly barren ground to lay their eggs. Conversely, Chuck-will’s-widows have been found nesting in areas that burned 3 to 5 years prior, but not more recently. Units were deployed this spring and will continue recording throughout the summer and into early fall. Stay tuned for our pilot results - coming winter 2024. This work has been generously funded by the Georgia Ornithological Society Lydia Thompson grant. By Roseanne Guerra, Education Program Coordinator
This spring, the Birds Georgia education team noticed a spike in classroom program requests from Gwinnett County Public Schools. It turns out, Gwinnett County has adopted the EL (formerly Expeditionary Learning) Language Arts Curriculum entitled “Growing as Researchers: Birds’ Amazing Bodies.” As part of this curriculum, all Gwinnett County Public School first graders must complete a six- to eight-week module on BIRDS! The education team, Melanie, Melissa and Roseanne, taught inside the classroom and outside – leading programs on bird adaptations, beaks, and feathers. The most meaningful times for me were teaching about common schoolyard birds and their songs, and then taking the students out on school grounds with loaner binoculars find some of the birds we talked about in the classroom. I was also honored to be invited back to participate with students and their parents in their “Celebration of Learning.” It was so exciting to see how far they had come. A number of the Gwinnett County schools that requested programs were Title 1 schools, and thanks to the generosity of our members and donors, Birds Georgia was able to offer scholarships to these schools so that ALL first graders could participate. Birds are for everyone! Even for the newly-immigrated students who don’t speak much English yet, binoculars are still fun, and the beauty of birds is universal. Now that word is out, I’m sure we will be even busier next spring. Bring it on! To request a Birds Georgia School Program, visit our website. More details about the EL Education module can be found here. By Steve Phenicie
“When you go back to Atlanta, why don’t you take some of those Boat-tailed Grackles with you?” That was the comment made a few years ago by a coastal resident to a group of metro area birders. These often noisy birds — which can leave messy droppings, damage crops and have a call sometimes described as harsh — won’t win any Miss or Mr. Congeniality awards from human beings. Other birds aren’t enamored with them either because of their aggressive behavior, which can include gobbling up eggs and nestlings. As their name suggests, the most prominent feature of the males, their tail, is kind of like Dolly Parton’s wigs – big and showy. This bird is smaller than a Fish Crow but larger than a Common Grackle, with males glossy black all over. Females — which almost look like a different species — are dark brown above and russet below, with a subtle face pattern made up of a pale eyebrow, dark cheek, and pale “mustache” stripe. You won’t find them anywhere near Atlanta — only along marshes, beaches, flooded fields, and mudflats near the Atlantic and Gulf coasts from Connecticut to Texas except in Florida, where they pretty much inhabit the entire state. Their diet includes aquatic insects, snails, crayfish, crabs, mussels, shrimp, tadpoles, frogs, small fish, grasshoppers, and caterpillars. For variety, they add parking-lot french fries, bread, rice, dog food, commercial bird seed, and fruit crops. The boat-tailed nests in colonies, usually near water: in cattails, sawgrass, or bulrushes, in bushes or saplings at edge of a marsh, or in taller trees. The nest is generally less than 12 feet above ground or water but can be much higher. Nesting and raising the young is mostly a female affair. She builds a large, bulky cup of twigs, grass, weeds, bulrushes, Spanish moss, or other materials, often with mud added to base and lined with fine grass. There she usually lays two to four pale greenish blue eggs and incubates them for 13 to 15 days. Feeding the young is entirely her responsibility, too, and they leave the nest about 12 to 15 days after hatching. Some cool facts about the Boat-tailed Grackle:
by Dottie Head, Director of Communications
Birds Georgia was recently awarded a $25,000 grant from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s Land Trust Bird Conservation Initiative Program for a project titled, Grassroots Grasslands: A Community Restoration Effort to Re-establish Native Plants for Pollinators and Birds in Evans, Georgia. As part of the grant work, Birds Georgia will partner with the Central Savannah River Land Trust, among other local partners, to restore 11 acres of fallow pastures to native grassland habitat for pollinators and birds within a recently donated preserve, engaging the local community through volunteer workdays and educational opportunities. “Birds Georgia was thrilled to learn of this grant to restore grassland habitat at Laverlea Preserve,” says Jared Teutsch, Executive Director of Birds Georgia. “We are keenly interested in the response of bird species to this work, including Grasshopper Sparrow, American Kestrel, and other species of concern identified by the Georgia State Wildlife Action Plan.” In recent decades, many birds that rely on open and early-successional habitats have seen a decline in population due to habitat loss, pesticide use, and a variety of other factors. Grassland birds in particular have seen a decrease in population by about 53% since 1970 according to a 2019 study (https://www.3billionbirds.org/findings) conducted by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, National Audubon Society, and other partners. Additional declining species that utilize grassland habitat include Eastern Meadowlark, Northern Harrier, Field Sparrow, Vesper Sparrow, Savannah Sparrow, and Common Nighthawk. By restoring native grasslands and reducing the presence of non-native and invasive plant species, Birds Georgia will create suitable habitat for these grassland-dependent bird species. Per the wishes of the donor, the goal is for Laverlea Preserve to become an ecological and education site for the community. The preserve comprises upland and mesic forests, bottomland hardwood forests, wetlands and streams, grasslands, and pastures. There are already plans in place to thin the dense mixed hardwood/pine stands that surround the pastures, which will promote more open groundcover and encourage native plants. The preserve also contains over 6,200 feet of the Euchee Creek and adjacent riparian forest buffer that will become a part of a public greenway trail being established by the county. Laverlea is ecologically important and is a remarkably large tract of land in the rapidly-urbanizing town of Evans (near Augusta, Georgia), where the average parcel size is less than one acre. “Work is expected to begin in early July, and the first step will be cataloging birds, plants, and butterfly species that are present on the preserve so that we can see how these species respond to the treatment,” says Heather Levy, Birds Georgia’s stewardship coordinator who will oversee the restoration project for Birds Georgia. “The next steps will be to conduct a controlled-burn to cull invasive grasses and remove built up thatch so that native plants and wildflowers can thrive. Finally, we will plant a seed mix for warm-season, native grasses across the 11-acre restoration site to encourage the establishment of native grasses and to control weedy plants. In the following years, we will plant native wildflowers, shrubs, and other plants. The long-term goal is to create a habitat where native grasses and wildflowers can flourish and provide support to grassland bird species and butterfly species.” In addition, Birds Georgia and the Central Savannah River Land Trust will host volunteer work days and public bird walks on the site with the goal of fostering a diverse group of environmental stewards to assist with the project and to empower and educate individuals about habitat restoration. The grant is for a one-year period, but Birds Georgia and the Central Savannah River Land Trust intend to use the funds to initiate long-term ecological education at the site. The one-year grant cycle will serve as a kick start to develop a management plan, treat invasive species, and establish the first round of native plantings. Following year one, the partners plan to monitor native plant growth, add additional native grasses and wildflowers, and seek additional funding for large-scale restoration and maintenance of the Laverlea Preserve. About Birds Georgia: Birds Georgia is building places where birds and people thrive. We create bird-friendly communities through conservation, education, and community engagement. Founded in 1926 as the Atlanta Bird Club, the organization became a chapter of National Audubon in 1973, and continues as an independent chapter of National Audubon Society. Learn more at https://www.birdsgeorgia.org/. About Central Savannah River Land Trust: We are the Central Savannah River Land Trust: a nationally-accredited, local non-profit, passionate about the future of these special places throughout our community. Since 2001, the Land Trust has protected over 10,000 acres of land throughout Georgia and South Carolina. Places like the Augusta Canal Trail, where families can enjoy an afternoon on the river, and scenic views of the Savannah River like the ones from the I-20 bridge, and several Columbia County neighborhoods are just some of our more well-known success stories. Learn more at https://csrlt.org/ . At the 2024 Georgia Bird Fest Summit held in Athens on Saturday, April 20, Birds Georgia introduced and presented three new awards: The Legacy Award, the Trailblazer Award, and the Organization Award. ![]() Legacy Award Recipient: Joy Carter The Legacy Award is awarded to a member who has been volunteering consistently for Birds Georgia over the years and who has made a lasting impression on both the staff and the community. The 2024 Legacy Award was presented to Joy Carter. Known for her helpfulness and dedication towards community, Joy has not only served Birds Georgia but other bird-related organization and is a vocal proponent of birds conservation. Joy is a past chair of the Birds Georgia Board of Directors and oversaw a remarkable period of growth for what was then Atlanta Audubon Society. She also heads up the InTown CBC, volunteers with Wild Nest Bird Rehab, and has been recognized for her work advocating for urban parks and conservation. Joy's work has left a lasting impact, and she is described as an authentic and dedicated community advocate who always finds ways to move forward. ![]() Trailblazer Award: Ella Seifert and Alex Stach The Trailblazer Award is presented to a new volunteer who has recently joined the organization and has dove headfirst into volunteering and participating in Birds Georgia event. This year’s Trailblazer Award was presented to our two teen field trip leaders, Ella Seifert and Allex Stach. Ella graduated from our Master Birder program in 2022 as the youngest graduate ever. Alex was on the winning team of the Youth Birding Competition in 2024. They both completed the Georgia Urban Ecologist program and then took the initiative to go through field trip leader training and become Teen Field Trip Leaders. They have been leading trips since fall of 2023 and have built a great community amongst the youth birders. ![]() Organization Award: Georgia Native Plant Society The Organization Award is presented to a partnering or local organization that consistently helps support our mission of building places where birds and people thrive through their collaboration with Birds Georgia or their own efforts in the local community. This year’s awardee is the Georgia Native Plant Society, which works hand in hand for over a decade to ensure that native plants are spread throughout the state to support pollinators and bird populations alike with native plant sales, habitat restoration and public education about native plants. The mission of Georgia Native Plant Society is to promote the stewardship and conservation of Georgia's native plants and their habitats. The organization has 8 chapters throughout Georgia engaging local communities in educational programs, native plant rescues, restoration, propagation, and advocacy. Our former Executive Director, Nikki Belmonte, now serves as Executive Director of GNPS, and we are building new programs and partnership opportunities between the two organizations. Photos R to L: A section of the campus that was treated for bird collisions. Amanda Janusz, Kaitlyn Tran, and Shivani Potdar have been leading the efforts at Georgia Tech. Photos courtesy Shivani Potdar. The student-run Bird Safe Campus Project at Georgia Tech (GT) aims to reduce bird collisions through two main methods: installing bird-safe film on campus buildings and turning off lights at night that disorient migrating birds. Over the past three years, the team consisting of Kaitlyn Tran (IE ‘23), Shivani Potdar (ChBE ‘25), and Amanda Janusz (CS ‘25), has raised awareness about this issue across the Georgia Tech community.
“The Georgia Tech campus serves as a valuable oasis for Atlanta wildlife. To date, more than 130 species of birds have been recorded via our eBird hotspot. These birds are a large part of what gives our campus character, and it’s devastating to see the lethal damage that our buildings inflict on our most beloved species, from tiny jewel-like Ruby-throated Hummingbirds to our majestic Red-tailed Hawks. It forms a pit in your stomach to see a bird on the ground just because no one thought to install bird-safe glass, or to turn off lights," says Amanda Janusz. Through educational tabling, collaboration with campus sustainability groups and Birds Georgia, and meetings with GT administration, the team encouraged students, faculty, and staff to report any dead or injured bird sightings to nationally-recognized data collection website dbird.org. Since the start of the project, more than 400 data points have been recorded so far on the GT campus alone. In 2022, the team succeeded in installing motion sensor lights in select campus buildings to prevent nighttime migration collisions. Most recently, in April 2024, the team completed a partnership with Georgia Tech campus facilities to retrofit a collision hotspot with bird-safe film. The group installed Feather Friendly film, which was provided at a discount as part of the Feather Friendly Project Recognition Program. A fully transparent pedestrian walkway connecting two classroom buildings was one of the campus’ major problem areas for the local bird population. The students raised 100% of the funds for the project through grants. This recent retrofit is the first instance of bird-safe film on Georgia Tech’s campus. “We want this to serve as a model for the future of GT’s campus. I hope this can help educate the community about bird collisions, and how it should be a consideration when it comes to designing ecologically-friendly buildings,” says Kaitlyn Tran. Shivani Potdar agreed, saying “Using the walkway installation as an example, we hope to now expand bird-safe film to other collision hotspots on campus. In the future, we hope to eventually have bird-safe film as a requirement in Georgia Tech’s building design guidelines.” Adam Betuel, Birds Georgia's director of conservation, has been working with these students for several years in an advisory capacity to help guide their efforts. "It has been a great experience working with these Georgia Tech students to make the campus safer for migrating birds. In recent years, Georgia Tech has made great strides to green and bring nature to campus, and this work will hopefully continue to aid in this progress. In the future, we plan to continue working with these and others students, as well as faculty and staff, to make this urban campus more bird friendly." Birds Georgia volunteers and Georgia Tech students have been monitoring the campus for collisions over the past nine years, detecting hundreds of birds. Successes like this film installation, as well as the bird-friendly Kendeda Building for Innovative Sustainable Design, are steps toward a bird-safe campus. by Sarah Manning, Coastal Conservation Coordinator Over the course of a month, the bluebirds in my backyard went from hatched and helpless, to fully feathered and fledged! The best part? I got to experience it all through NestWatch. NestWatch is a monitoring program designed to track status and trends in the reproductive biology of birds, including when nesting occurs, number of eggs laid, how many eggs hatch, and how many hatchlings survive. If you have a nest (or box) in your backyard, consider joining the effort. Participating in NestWatch is easy and just about anyone can do it. Simply follow the directions on the website to become a certified NestWatcher, find a bird nest using their helpful tips, visit the nest every three to four days and record what you see, and then share the information on the NestWatch website. This spring, I monitored my backyard bluebird box through NestWatch. Following Cornell’s guides, I visited the box every three to four days, monitoring its progression throughout the incubating and brooding stages. I reported my visits through their site and contributed to a program that, in 2023, recorded 36,035 nest attempts by 294 species in the U.S. and Canada. From my office, I watched the adults (all day long) dutifully pick insects out of my yard and carry them to the nest, leaving soon after with the young’s waste in tow. Being able to get a glimpse into the life cycle of these birds and knowing I can contribute to this project has made me feel even more connected to the birds in my backyard. It is also a great reminder that growing native plants contributes significantly to the reproductive success of your local birds since insects are the bulk of many baby birds’ diet. For example, Chickadees require 6,000 to 9,000 caterpillars to rear one clutch of young! NestWatch data is intended to be used to study the current condition of breeding bird populations and how they may be changing over time as a result of climate change, habitat degradation and loss, expansion of urban areas, and the introduction of non-native plants and animals. Thanks to NestWatch data, we know that many songbirds are now nesting earlier in spring because of warmer temperatures brought about by climate change. Your observations will be added to those of thousands of other NestWatchers in a continually growing database used by researchers to understand and study birds. And while you are contributing extremely valuable information to science, you will learn firsthand about birds and create a lifelong bond with the natural world. Questions on how to participate? Contact Coastal Conservation Coordinator, Sarah Manning via email. ![]() On day 12, it’s looking a bit crowded here! The young bluebirds are nearly ready to fledge - NestWatch recommends against checking after day 12 so young are not forced to fledge before they are ready. I watched from a distance and on day 16, the young left the nest on their own. Photo by Sarah Manning. (L to R): Sparrow Field at Cochran Shoals CRNRA, by Gabe Andrle. Cochran Shoals CRNRA, by Adam Betuel. LeConte's Sparrow, by Adam Betuel. by Dottie Head, Director of Communications
Birds Georgia was recently awarded a Bill Terrell Avian Conservation Grant from the Georgia Ornithological Society (GOS) for a habitat restoration project that will restore riparian meadows and wildlife corridors along the Chattahoochee River. The restoration project will focus on restoring early successional habitat at the Cochran Shoals Unit of the Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area (CRNRA). “We’re excited to receive this generous grant from GOS to restore bird-friendly habitat at Cochran Shoals CRNRA,” says Adam Betuel, director of conservation for Birds Georgia. “The Cochran Shoals Unit is a popular birding spot because it includes a mix of microhabitats, including riparian meadow, riparian woodland, and beaver-maintained wetland, making it possible to see a wide array of birds throughout the year, but particularly during spring and fall migratory periods.” Part of the project will focus on restoring the “sparrow field,” a roughly seven-acre portion of the area that is known to host an array of sparrows, including notable species such as Grasshopper Sparrow, Henslow’s Sparrow, Clay-colored Sparrow, and LeConte’s Sparrow, among the more regular suite of species like Song Sparrows and Chipping Sparrows. Henslow’s and Grasshopper Sparrow are both listed as High Priority Species on Georgia’s State Wildlife Action Plan. “As part of the grant-funded work, Birds Georgia will not only restore some of the sparrow field, but also improve its ecological value by removing non-native species and introducing a greater diversity of native plants that would help beneficial pollinating insects including species like the endangered monarch butterfly,” says Adam Betuel, director of conservation for Birds Georgia. In recent decades, many birds that rely on open and early-successional habitats have seen a decline in population due to habitat loss, pesticide use, and a variety of other factors. Grassland birds in particular have seen a decrease in population by about 53% since 1970 according to a 2019 study (https://www.3billionbirds.org/findings) conducted by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, National Audubon Society, and other partners. In collaboration with the National Parks Service at CRNRA and the Chattahoochee National Park Conservancy, Birds Georgia will improve and restore a minimum of 16.5 acres of bird-friendly habitat at the Cochran Shoals Unit of CRNRA, including the “sparrow field.” The remaining acreage will be treated for invasive plant species and opened up where possible to support early successional habitat acting as a buffer to protect the meadow space from problematic plant species. Birds Georgia’s Habitat Team and volunteers will remove non-native invasive plant species and knock back undesirable woody species, install new native vegetation, and promote the spread of currently existing native vegetation. In the future, Birds Georgia will be seeking grant funding to create a wildlife corridor connecting the historic “sparrow field” to a site that is being opened up and restored into more grassland habitat for the introduction of a federally endangered plant species. This will be done in partnership with the National Park Service, Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Georgia Power, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and other organizations. “The work that Birds Georgia will be doing at Cochran Shoals CRNRA is part of the greater Chattahoochee RiverLands effort,” says Betuel. “In partnership with the Trust for Public Land and other partners, Birds Georgia is working to improve the ecological health of the Chattahoochee River basin to restore bird-friendly habitat that will benefit birds and people, too.” Birds that will benefit from this improved habitat include Indigo Bunting, Yellow Warbler, Yellow-breasted Chat, and overwintering sparrows, as well as other resident and migratory birds who utilize riparian meadow and woodland habitat. “In addition to the on-the-ground conservation work, Birds Georgia will engage, activate, and educate the public to understand Chattahoochee watershed concerns through community conservation work days, community science initiatives, and seasonal field trips,” says Betuel. “The Cochran Shoals Unit is one of the most birded locations in metro Atlanta (as evidenced by the more than 200 bird species and more than 4,500 check lists submitted via eBird at this location) and is an ideal candidate for additional education and engagement.” About Birds Georgia: Birds Georgia is building places where birds and people thrive. We create bird-friendly communities through conservation, education, and community engagement. Founded in 1926 as the Atlanta Bird Club, the organization became a chapter of National Audubon in 1973, and continues as an independent chapter of National Audubon Society. About Georgia Ornithological Society: The Georgia Ornithological Society's (GOS) mission is to encourage the scientific study of birds by gathering and disseminating information on Georgia bird life. GOS actively promotes bird conservation by encouraging the preservation of habitats that are vital to the survival of resident and migratory birds. The GOS also gives scholarships, produces scientific publications, and provides fellowship among those interested in nature. Learn more at https://www.gos.org/home. Left photo shows Fall Stopover Hotspots for Bird Migration in relation to proposed Twin Pines Mine (in yellow); Right photo shows Spring Stopover Hotspots. Via Electronic Mail
Director Jeff Cown Georgia Department of Natural Resources Environmental Protection Division 2 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive SE Suite 1456, East Tower Atlanta, GA 30334 [email protected] Re: Comments Opposing Draft Permits for Twin Pines Mine Dear Director Cown: On behalf of Birds Georgia members across the state, we are writing today to ask you to protect the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge and the St. Marys River by denying Twin Pines Minerals’ (TPM) application to strip mine for heavy mineral sands at the doorstep of the Okefenokee Swamp. Birds Georgia’s mission is to build places where birds and people thrive. We fulfill our mission through education, conservation, and community engagement. With more than 2,500 members and more than 5,000 National Audubon Society members from across the state, Birds Georgia represents a broad constituency united by a desire to protect birds and other wildlife. Our constituents include Georgia residents, frequent visitors, and concerned citizens who understand both the significance and beauty of the Okefenokee Swamp for birds and other wildlife. At 438,000 acres, the Okefenokee Swamp is one of the most wild, pristine, and ecologically intact places in America, sheltering more than one thousand animal and plant species within its vast labyrinth of cypress forests, pine islands, and blackwater channels. In addition to providing refuge to wildlife, the Okefenokee offers an escape to hundreds of thousands of people who fish, hunt, paddle, birdwatch, and camp in its wilderness each year. As the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service put it, “The Okefenokee is like no other place on earth.” Twin Pine’s proposed strip mine endangers this world-class resource. Not only is the proposed mine dangerous in its own right, it would effectively open Trail Ridge to mining for decades to come, jeopardizing the long-term viability of the swamp. Georgia EPD, as the state agency charged with protecting and restoring Georgia’s environment, has both a statutory and moral obligation to say no. The stakes are too high, and the risks are too great. Twin Pines' proposal to mine deep into Trail Ridge adjacent to the national wildlife refuge will likely have lasting and irreversible impacts, eliminating roughly 300 acres of valuable wetlands, excavating up to 50 feet deep, withdrawing millions of gallons of groundwater, releasing air and light pollutants into the International Dark Sky Park, and discharging wastewater into the St. Marys River basin. Twin Pines has offered NO defensible assurances that; 1) their mining operations will protect the Okefenokee Swamp from permanent damage; 2) that they will protect threatened and endangered species, including Red-cockaded Woodpeckers, Wood Storks, gopher tortoises, and many other species that nest and raise young in the Okefenokee Swamp; and 3) that they will safeguard the long-term interest of the birdwatchers, kayakers, hikers, and other nature enthusiasts who visit the Okefenokee Swamp each year. The Okefenokee Swamp is a diverse ecosystem that provides critical habitat for more than 200 species of resident and migratory bird populations, as well as many other plant and animal species. Below, please find a list of the specific species that Birds Georgia is concerned will be negatively impacted by the Twin Pines Mine.
Hydrology Concerns: Birds Georgia does not believe that Twin Pines has adequately proven that the proposed mine will not harm the water levels in the Okefenokee Swamp and surrounding Trail Ridge. The proposed mining project would dig pits up to 50 feet deep into Trail Ridge, a feature integral to maintaining surface water and groundwater hydrology in the Okefenokee, St. Marys River, and surrounding areas. More than 85 scientists, including UGA hydrologist Rhett Jackson, have concluded that the mine poses a significant risk to the swamp. Even a small reduction in the amount of water in the swamp could have far reaching impacts for the wading birds and other species that live there. As indicated above, many bird species are extremely vulnerable to reduction in water levels beneath nesting trees and many more rely on the Okefenokee for feeding and shelter. Twin Pines proposed is expected to (1) lower water levels in the Okefenokee Swamp and the St. Marys River by removing more than one million gallons of groundwater per day; (2) destroy the distinct geological layers of Trail Ridge, making it difficult to reestablish wetlands and potentially reducing long-term flows to the swamp; (3) increase wildfire risk in the vicinity of the swamp by exposing peat and by increasing the duration and severity of drought in the Okefenokee Swamp and St. Marys River; (4) contaminate ground and surface water in the vicinity of the mine by liberating heavy metals, radionuclides, and other contaminants that are currently stored in Trail Ridge soils; (5) degrade habitat and harm wildlife, including endangered sturgeon and migratory birds., Question: What steps will Georgia EPD take to ensure that the water level in the swamp is not negatively impacted by the Twin Pines Mine? Stopover Habitat for Migratory Birds: Along with other partners and researchers, Birds Georgia has been working with the Cornell Lab of Ornithology and Colorado State University to use radar and satellite imagery to develop BirdCast, a bird migration forecasting tool. In addition to providing multi-day forecasts of bird migration patterns over the continental U.S., BirdCast also provides real-time data on the population density and direction of migratory birds flying over the country. An analysis of BirdCast data from 2000 to 2020 revealed that the Okefenokee Swamp and surrounding environment is a critically important stopover area for vast and diverse populations of migratory birds, both during spring and fall migrations. Particularly notable, portions of Trail Ridge which include and surround the proposed mining site are hotspots for spring migration stopovers. These areas provide migratory birds with needed shelter and key food sources as they travel to and from breeding and wintering grounds. The Okefenokee Swamp could be the first landfall for many of these Neotropical migrants that just crossed the Gulf of Mexico or arrived from the Caribbean Islands. The proposed mine would disrupt these critical stopover areas in a variety of ways, by destroying vegetation and soil structure, removing groundwater, generating light and noise, exacerbating wildfires, and releasing toxic contaminants. All of these disruptions are likely to negatively impact migratory birds and their habitat in and around the mining site, as well as the broader Okefenokee ecosystem. This is especially worrisome as our long-distance migrants are the species, in general, experiencing the steepest declines and encountering the higher amount of threats. Lighting Concerns: Birds Georgia remains concerned about excess nighttime lighting associated with the Twin Pines Mine. The Okefenokee Swamp is well known for its dark nighttime skies, and nearby Stephen C. Foster State Park is designated as a Dark Sky Park. Migrating birds are extremely sensitive to nighttime lighting which can act as a magnet pulling them off course and into brightly lit areas where they face threats ranging from building collisions to predation. Question: How will the Georgia Environmental Protection Division ensure that birds are not negatively impacted by nighttime lighting from the Twin Pines Mine? Birding and Outdoor Recreation: In addition to the many bird and animal species that rely on this diverse ecosystem, the Okefenokee Swamp is a popular tourist destination. Each year, more than 650,000 people visit the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge to watch birds, camp, canoe, kayak, hike, and enjoy this unique natural area, generating roughly $88 million in economic impact in Charlton, Clinch, and Ware counties. In fact, the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) provides more economic benefit to Georgia and Florida than any other NWR. Question: How will the Georgia Environmental Protection Division ensure that Twin Pines does not cause irreparable harm to this ecosystem and negatively impact recreational opportunities and tourism-related economic benefits from Okefenokee Swamp-related tourism? Overwhelming Opposition to Mine: Finally, no permit application in Georgia history has drawn as much opposition as this one. Since Twin Pines proposed mining Trail Ridge in 2018, public opposition has been overwhelming and unwavering, with more than 200,000 individual comments at the state and federal level as of April 1, 2024. Birds Georgia submitted comments during the March 5 Public Meeting and listened to the 3+ hours of testimony. Not a single person spoke in favor of the mine. In addition, people from across Georgia have written letters and called their legislators in unprecedented numbers, and at least nineteen local governments have passed resolutions calling for the protection of the Okefenokee Swamp. It is clear that Georgians DO NOT WANT the Twin Pines Mine near the Okefenokee Swamp. In closing, Birds Georgia feels strongly that the Okefenokee Swamp is a unique ecosystem that should be protected from activities that could disrupt bird life. We continue to encourage the Georgia EPD to deny these permits for surface mining along the Okefenokee Trail Ridge. Thank you for your consideration. Sincerely, Jared Teutsch Executive Director |
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