Transcript 2011-08-02_Bank_Swallows_on_the_Sacramento_River(Silviera)

Bank Swallow (Riparia riparia riparia) Conservation,
Population and Habitat Trends
Middle Sacramento River
Joe Silveira
US Fish & Wildlife Service
Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge Complex
Adam Henderson
California Department of Water Resource
Northern District
Gregg Golet
The Nature Conservancy
Sacramento River Project, Chico
Nat Seavy
PRBO Conservation Science
SF Bay Research Center, Petaluma
Presentation Outline
• Bank Swallow, Breeding Colonies & the Sacramento River
• Population & Habitat Trends – Middle Sacramento River
• Bank Swallow Habitat, Restoration and Management
• California Department of Fish & Game / Sacramento River NWR
Conservation Plans
• Bank Swallow Technical Advisory Committee – Bank Swallow
Conservation Strategy Middle Sacramento River
Bank swallow (Riparia riparia riparia)
• Smallest (& cutest) Swallow
• Migratory – Neotropical
• Colonial Nesting
• CA Threatened Species
• RHJV Focal Species
• TNC Ecological Flows Study
Terrestrial Indicator Species
Over 70 % of the California BANS Population Breeds on the Sacramento River
& it’s largest tributary, the Feather River
Reach 1
Redding to Red Bluff
_____________
Reach 2
Red Bluff to Chico Landing
_____________
Reach 3
Chico Landing to Colusa
______________
Reach 4
Colusa to Verona
Nesting burrows made in eroding banks
Burrow Dimensions: 2 in. H x 3 in. W x 2 to 6 ft. deep
Sacramento River
Reach 2 & 3
Sinuosity;
over-bank flooding,
erosion & deposition;
lateral channel migration,
floodplain re-working;
on-channel meander loops,
off-channel oxbow lakes,
floodplain sloughs
Patterns of Riparian & Floodplain Vegetation
Cottonwood Forest
Valley Oak Forest
Willow Scrub
THE BANK SWALLOW ON THE
SACRAMENTO RIVER
CDFG Bank Swallow Research Program, 1986 – 2007
Ronald W. Schlorff & Barrett A. Garrison
Survey, Habitat Assessment & Monitoring
– Survey: Sacramento River (1986); Statewide (1987)
• Burrow counts, Reproductive Studies,
Habitat Assessment, Banding, Colony Research
– Monitoring: Sacramento River, 1988 – 2007
• Burrow Counts, Habitat Assessment
Allan Brooks
Louis Agassiz Fuertes
Bank Swallow Population Trend
1986 – 1998
14,000
Recovery Plan &
PVA
12,000
10,000
8,000
6,000
4,000
Listed as Threatened
Year
.
1998
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.
1992
.
.
.
1989
.
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.
1986
.
0
.
2,000
Bank Armoring (Rip-rap) Identified as a Major Cause of Habitat Loss
Annual BANS Colony Population Survey – Sacramento River & Tribs
Survey Crew
Bank Swallow Colony
1, 2, 3, 4, ……….
1,093, 1,094, 1,095, 1,096……….
Annual Bank Swallow Survey:
Sacramento River
Red Bluff (RM 243) to Colusa (RM 143)
Annual Bank Swallow Survey:
Sacramento River, Red Bluff (RM 243) to Colusa (RM 143)
YEAR
2011
2010
2009
2008
2007
2005
2004
2003
2002
2001
2000
1999
Total Burrows
11,710
10,662
16,259
17,660
17,640
13,990
17,040
18,260
16,160
19,170
18,130
16,590
Percent Change
from Previous
Year
9.8
-34.4
-7.9
0.1
26.1
-17.9
-6.7
13.0
-15.7
5.7
9.3
Three-Year
Percent Change
Mean of Total
from Previous
Burrows
three-Year Mean
12,877
-13.3
14,860
-13.5
17,186
4.6
16,430
1.3
16,223
-1.3
16,430
-4.2
17,153
-4.0
17,863
0.2
17,820
-0.8
17,963
Trend for fewer, larger colonies
14,000
12,000
10,000
8,000
6,000
4,000
2,000
0
2008
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
.
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.
.
1986
2007 – 8 Colonies contained 49% of the BANS Population
Dawn Garcia
Dr. Coleen Hatfield
CSu CHICO
QA/QC & Analysis of 10 Years of BANS Population Data
relative to Over – Bank Vegetation, Erosion, Sinuosity & Flows
BANKS OF THE SACRAMENTO
1995, 2002, 2007
Adam Henderson (Reach 2 – 2007)
A product of the Environmental Services Section
Northern District, Division of Planning and Local Assistance
Department of Water Resources
Typical agency medium-size quarried rock…..
….which can support vegetation (but is this habitat?)
Large Woody Debris & Salmonid Habitat
Privately applied rubble – permitted or not
….and other categories as needed, such as 1956-ish rusty Desoto
Erosional
Depositional
Stable
Meters of
riprap
Year
High Quality Bank Swallow Habitat –
River Mile 233.5 Left – BANS 2007 Survey = 1,191 Burrows
Low Quality BANS Habitat
Low Gradient, Low Profile Banks
(Over Gravel & Sand)
Predation & Habitat Quality
Snakes access burrows
from over-hanging
branches & exposed roots
Mammals from low banks
No matter the habitat quality,
it will change………
Medium
Very High
Low
BANS Habitat is Ephemeral..
being lost & created as the
channel meanders
Recent alluvium has not yet developed pedogenic “acquired” soil horizons– they are
“inherited” through the various associated dynamic energies at the time of deposition,
and on top of this, channel migration / floodplain reworking further mixes and creates
new (inherited) horizons–
resulting in unpredictable, azonal stratigraphic soil texture horizons
across the recent (100-year) floodplain
Columbia & Gianella Soils with & without gravel lenses
Floodplain Mapping
Sacramento River NWR – Deadman’s Reach Unit Orchards & Vicinity
Floodplain Mapping
Sacramento River NWR – Rio Vista Unit Restoration & Vicinity
Soil Pits – silt loam
Sacramento River NWR – La Barranca Unit
Soil Pits – silt, sand, gravel
Sacramento River NWR – La Barranca Unit
Soil Pits – clay & sand
Sacramento River NWR – La Barranca Unit
Privately “installed” rubble prior to USFWS acquisition
potential for removal and habitat restoration
Flynn Unit Levee – Shasta View Farms, RM 232.8 Right
Floodplain Restoration – Flynn Unit
Summer/Fall 2001
Levee removal completed Fall 2001
Sacramento River floods, bank
fills & collapses (Winter 2001- 02)
BANS Survey June 2002
Flynn Unit = 2,770 nesting pairs
Soil Sampling of Bank Swallow Colonies
Sacramento River
Aug-Sept, 2009 – 2010
Dean W. Burkett
USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service
Joe Silveira
USDI-Fish and Wildlife Service
Koll Buer
California Resources Agency-Department of Water Resources
Stops 1 and 2, Soils, Rm, 1997 & 2004 channel,
Colonies, 100yr flood
Sampling Strategy
Soils sampled in use and
non-use areas to
determine preferred
texture
Use
Non-Use
Use
Summary of Data
Yellow = Use area (burrows)
Soil Textures: Sand, Loamy sand,
sandy loam, loam
Clay range: 1-15 %
Blue = Non-use area
Soil Textures: Sandy
loam, Loam, Silt loam
Clay range: 10-20 %
Floodplain Restoration – Pine Creek Unit
2010: 450 acres of riparian grassland restoration
Sacramento River Wildlife Area
Jacinto Unit
River Mile 182 R
Winter 2006
Winter 2007
The Bank Swallow Working Group
CSu CHICO
UC Davis
Mission Statement
The Bank Swallow Technical Advisory Committee (BANS-TAC)
promotes collaborative long-term conservation and recovery of the
Bank Swallow along the Sacramento River, its tributaries, and other
areas throughout California by coordinating and supporting monitoring
and research, habitat restoration and management, and outreach and
education.
Goal 1: Promote the Protection and Restoration of Bank Swallow
Populations and Habitat
Goal 2: Facilitate Collaborative Long-term Bank Swallow Data
Collection and Management
Goal 3: Improve and Maintain Communication and
Management for Bank Swallow Conservation
California Department of Fish & Game
Bank Swallow Conservation Programs
Annual Population Survey (Current/Annual)
• Sacramento River – Reach 2 & Reach 3 (USFWS – Sacramento River NWR coop)
• Resurvey Reach 1, Reach 4, & Feather River
(DWR – Red Bluff & Oroville Offices coop)
Bank Swallow Colony Dynamics (2010)
• Nesting phenology
• Multiple surveys to account for colony initiations, failures & overall success
• Evaluate Occupancy Rate
State-listed Threatened Status
• Potential “upgrade” to Endangered Species Status if recent trends decline
Bank Swallow Recovery Plan
• Under Revision
Population Viability Analysis
• Revise and consider the effects of bank revetment
Sacramento River National Wildlife Refuge
Planned Refuge Management Programs
Strategies for BANS Related Objectives
Riparian Vegetation & Habitat Strategies
• Restore
riparian and floodplain vegetation: grasslands
Floodplain & River Processes Strategies
• Modify privately constructed levees on Refuge and restore floodplain topography
• Coordinate with Federal, State, District, County, local groups, for best management
practices re: flood management projects via technical investigations and advisory
Threatened & Endangered Species Strategies
•Conduct Annual BANS Population Monitoring
•Support Cooperative BANS Research at the Refuge
Migratory Landbird Strategies
• Coordinate with PRBO, RHJV, CVHJV, and others to periodically monitor
riparian focal species at restored and native areas
Bank Swallow Habitat for the Future
South Sacramento
“protected” by levees
Sacramento River
floodplain connected to
the main channel
Sacramento River: Flood Safety & Ecosystem Restoration