1. Testing avian umbrella species to inform the conservation of intertidal areas in Acadia National Park, Maine/Probando especies sombrilla de aves para informar conservacion de areas intermareales en Acadia National Park, Maine
- Author
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Muscat, Abigail A., Wheeler, Bik, Johnston, Elliot M., Parrott, Joshua, and Olsen, Brian J.
- Subjects
Intertidal zonation -- Protection and preservation -- Research -- Analysis ,Scolopacidae -- Research -- Analysis -- Protection and preservation ,Coastal ecosystems -- Protection and preservation -- Research -- Analysis ,Extinction (Biology) -- Analysis -- Protection and preservation -- Research ,Wildlife conservation -- Research -- Protection and preservation -- Analysis ,National parks and reserves -- Protection and preservation -- Analysis -- Research ,Sandpipers -- Research -- Analysis -- Protection and preservation ,Ducks -- Analysis -- Protection and preservation -- Research ,Biological sciences - Abstract
Avian species are in rapid decline worldwide, with 1 in 8 species facing extinction, and in North America shorebird species are declining at a higher proportion than other groups. The nearshore ecosystem in Maine (USA) supports several bird species that rely on intertidal and subtidal zones, including high densities of migratory shorebirds and wintering waterfowl. Additionally, Acadia National Park (ANP) includes some of the country's highest densities of declining populations of Purple Sandpipers (Calidris maritima) and state threatened Harlequin Ducks (Histrionicus histrionicus). We investigated whether the distribution of candidate umbrella species overlapped with the distribution of 5 waterfowl taxa (Common Eiders [Somateria mollissima], Long-tailed Ducks [Clangula hyemalis], Black Scoters [Melanitta americana], Bucephala spp., and Mallards [Anas platyrhynchos]), thereby examining whether conservation actions (e.g., conservation closures) taken to preserve these 2 species of high conservation concern might also benefit the larger taxonomic groups to which they belong, a concept known as umbrella species conservation. To answer this question, bird abundance surveys were conducted within ANP during 2021 and 2022, and detection and occupancy were compared among the focal groups using a hypothesis-driven model. The occupancy distributions of our 5 waterfowl taxa revealed that sites with the highest occupancy estimates for Common Eiders, Long-tailed Ducks, and Black Scoters included sites occupied by Purple Sandpipers and Harlequin Ducks. Bucephala spp. and Mallard occupancy, however, only weakly overlapped with our candidate umbrella detections, occurring in sites with the lowest and mid-range occupancy estimates. Thus, any positive effect of conservation closures based on these 2 species of concern might impact some, but not all, species we surveyed. Including more survey locations occupied by Purple Sandpipers and Harlequin Ducks would be necessary to see if this pattern is generalizable across the region. Our low sample size for umbrella species detections, however, also highlights the limited utility of using rare species as umbrellas. Received 12 August 2023. Accepted 2 March 2024. Key words: coastal ecosystem, Harlequin Duck, Purple Sandpiper, rockweed harvesting, single-species occupancy. (Spanish)-Las especies de aves estan en un declive rapido en todo el mundo, con 1 de cada 8 especies en riesgo de extincion y en Norteamerica las especies de aves costeras estan declinando a una mayor proporcion que otros grupos. El ecosistema litoral en Maine (EEUU) sostiene a varias especies de aves que dependen de zonas intermareal y submareales, incluyendo altas densidades de aves playeras migratorias y aves acuaticas invernales. Adicionalmente, Acadia National Park (ANP) incluye unas de las densidades mas altas del pais de las poblaciones en declive de correlimo Calidris maritima y de pato Histrionicus histrionicus, amenazados a nivel estatal. Estudiamos si la distribucion de especies sombrilla candidatas sobrelapaba con la distribucion de 5 taxa de aves acuaticas (eider Somateria mollissima, pato Clangula hyemalis, pato negro Melanitta americana, Bucephala spp. y pato Anas platyrhynchos), por tanto examinando si las acciones de conservacion (como cierres de conservacion) tomadas para preservar esas 2 especies en peligro critico tambien podrian beneficiar a los grupos taxonomicos mas amplios a los que pertenecen, un concepto conocido como conservacion de especies sombrilla. Para responder a esta pregunta, se realizaron reconocimientos de abundancia de aves en ANP durante el 2021 y el 2022, y se comparo la deteccion y la ocupacion entre grupos focales usando un modelo guiado por hipotesis. La distribucion de ocupacion de nuestras 5 taxa de aves acuaticas mostraron que los sitios con los mayores estimados de ocupacion para eider S. mollissima, pato C. hyemalis y pato negro Melanitta americana incluian sitios ocupados por correlimo C. maritima y pato H. histrionicus. Sin embargo, la ocupacion de Bucephala spp. y de pato A. platyrhynchos solo tuvo un debil sobrelapamiento con la deteccion de nuestras candidatas a especies sombrilla, en sitios con estimados de ocupacion de rango medio y bajo. Entonces, cualquier conclusion positiva del efecto de conservacion basada en estas 2 especies de interes puede tener algun impacto sobre algunas, pero no todas, las especies del reconocimiento. Seria necesario incluir mas localidades de reconocimiento ocupadas por correlimo Calidris maritima y pato H. histrionicus para ver si este patron es generalizable en toda la region. Nuestro bajo numero de reconocimientos para la deteccion de especies sombrilla, sin embargo, tambien recalca el uso limitado de usar especies raras como especies sombrilla. Palabras clave: correlimo Calidris maritima, cosecha de algas, ecosistemas costeros, ocupacion de una sola especie, pato Histrionicus histrionicus., During the Maine winter, the coastal areas of Acadia National Park (ANP) include some of the continental United States' highest densities of both Purple Sandpipers (Calidris maritima) and Harlequin Ducks [...]
- Published
- 2024