Natural Communities Coalition

MONITORING COORDINATING - THE ANNUAL MONITORING OF SPECIES AND NATURAL COMMUNITIES OF THE RESERVE IS THE WAY NCC MEASURES THE SUCCESS OF LAND MANAGEMENT ACTIONS AND IMPACTS OF PUBLIC RECREATION, AND HOW IT TRACKS THE ECOLOGICAL HEALTH OF THE SPECIES FOR WHICH NROC WAS ESTABLISHED. IN ADDITION TO ONGOING ECOLOGICAL MONITORING EFFORTS, NCC ASSEMBLED ITS PARTNERS AND OTHER SCIENTIFIC EXPERTS TO DRAFT A COMPREHENSIVE ECOLOGICAL HEALTH ASSESSMENT OF NROC.

COWBIRD TRAPPING - NCC CONTINUED ITS ANNUAL OBLIGATION TO TRAP BROWNHEADED COWBIRDS TO MANAGE THEIR IMPACTS ON PROTECTED BIRD SPECIES. COWBIRDS ARE BROOD PARASITES. FEMALE COWBIRDS LAY THEIR EGGS IN THE NEST OF OTHER NATIVE BIRDS. THE NESTOWNING SPECIES THEN UNKNOWINGLY RAISE THE COWBIRD CHICK TO MATURITY OFTEN TO THE DETRIMENT OF ITS OWN CLUTCH. IN AREAS WHERE THE COWBIRD POPULATIONS ARE HIGH, TRAPS ARE USED TO LOWER THEIR NUMBERS AND INCREASE REPRODUCTIVE AND FLEDGLING SUCCESS OF BIRD SPECIES PARASITIZED BY COWBIRDS. A TOTAL OF NEARLY TWO DOZEN COWBIRD TRAPS WERE DEPLOYED FOR A TOTAL OF MORE THAN 2,400 TRAPDAYS IN AREAS OF THE RESERVE WHERE COWBIRD IMPACTS ON PROTECTED SONGBIRDS ARE POTENTIALLY HIGH.