Saltmarsh Sparrow in the New York Times Saltmarsh Sparrows nest in high marsh grasses just above the mean high tide line. They have naturally adapted to occasional flooding events; eggs can survive short periods of inundation and young birds often climb to safety in the grass above the nest. However, more than a foot of [...]
At the 2014 Northeast & Southeast Partners in Flight meeting in Virginia Beach, a group of partners from the Atlantic and Gulf coast began to develop a conservation business plan (CBP) for tidal marsh birds. Led by the researchers involved in the Saltmarsh Habitat Avian Research Program (SHARP), a draft plan was partially completed, which [...]
Last summer, for the third year, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, in partnership with the Student Conservation Association (SCA), offered 59 fellowship opportunities nationwide, to students enrolled or accepted in undergraduate or graduate degree programs, for its Directorate Resource Assistant Fellows Program (DFP). The DFP is an 11-week summer fellowship designed to provide students [...]
In FY17, grants awarded to the ACJV contributed to the ACJV’s new focus on conservation of coastal marshes and three flagship species: American Black Duck, Black Rail, and Saltmarsh Sparrow. In FY17, 10 Standard North American Wetlands Conservation Act (NAWCA) grants, 11 NAWCA Small grants, 11 National Coastal Wetland Conservation grants, and 2 Great Lakes [...]
While flying above the Atlantic Ocean, one of the members of the joint Atlantis-International Space Station crews took this photo of the Delmarva Peninsula from the orbiting complex on July 16, 2011. NASA This August ACJV staff and partners secured a $75k grant from the Chesapeake Bay Trust (CBT) to increase and accelerate [...]
Two projects in New York were awarded grants in Fiscal Year 2017, under the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) Joint Venture Habitat Restoration and Protection Program. Ducks Unlimited was awarded $193,934 for their “Loop Road Wetland Restoration” project which will restore 140 acres of emergent wetland (125 acres) and buffering grasslands (15 acres) in New [...]
The North American Bird Conservation Initiative (NABCI) developed a Human Dimensions information to explain the what, why, and how behind the human dimensions (HD) of bird conservation. It features a definition of HD, reasons for why HD information is crucial to conserving birds, and examples of bird conservation questions that HD can answer. The document [...]
The ACJV Management Board has made a strong commitment toward moving the needle on conservation for coastal marsh birds and their habitat. To demonstrate this commitment, they have developed and approved the first ever ACJV funding instrument to support high-priority ACJV projects. This instrument allows JV staff to bring projects before the Board for funding [...]
Focused Conservation: A Note from ACJV Coordinator, Aimee Weldon As a Joint Venture, our goal is to move the needle on bird conservation through the work of our partnership. The ACJV is large – spanning the 17 states and territories from Maine to Puerto Rico – and the list of birds and habitats in need [...]
The Black Rail (BLRA) is a highly secretive marsh bird believed by researchers to be one of the most endangered birds along the Atlantic Coast. The species once occupied coastal areas from Texas to Massachusetts but has experienced steep annual declines across their breeding range since the 1990s. Conservative estimates of Black Rail populations [...]