My Google Earth mapping of nests and more

Breeding bird species at risk on Skookumchuck Prairie KBA (orange outline)

 Here is a map of documented nest trees, breeding territories, and nests of Lewis' Woodpecker (Threatened, SARA) (Blue, BC), Long-billed Curlew (Special Concern, SARA (Blue, BC), and American Kestrel on Skookumchuck Prairie KBA.  There are more nests than this - we just haven't found them.

The orange in the middle - between the Lewis' Woodpecker pins (green trees) and Long-billed Curlew pins (red and yellow pins) - is the crown land being requested for solar farms.  See previous post.

 

Pine heading back

Curlews returning?

Yay!  First movement of the return of the Skookumchuck Prairie IBA Long-billed Curlews returning from their wintering grounds in California.

Pine was the first of the satellite-tagged curlews to head south last year.  SHE left Skookumchuck 21st of June 2017 and headed to Enterprise, Oregon for a bit.  Then, after another couple of days stop near Arok, Oregon, she headed over Nevada for California, arriving closer to where she wanted to be for the winter, which was near Cimarron, Calif., on 27 June 2017.

She's been hanging pretty close to either side of Hanford since then.  Now, she's heading back!  Where will she go?  Will she return here or go somewhere else!

Who will be next?  Mojo was the next to leave Skookumchuck last July. Then Solar. Then Argyle.  Will they reverse their chronology?

There is still a foot of snow on the fields close to my home.  In the Kootenay River valley bottom the snow is a bit thinner, but not by much!

Curlew Update 4 July 2017

Mojo the Long-billed Curlew 

set out from Skookumchuck Prairie IBA at 9:30 pm on the first of July, 2017 following two females, Mildred and Pine, who left the area on the 21st of June.  All three birds flew straight toward Enterprise in northeast Oregon.  Mildred and Pine stopped at Enterprise for a bit before continuing on to California, but Mojo went past, turned southwest along the Malheur River, a tributary of the Snake River, and managed to find some agricultural fields out in the middle of nowhere, for goodness sake.  His last co-ordinates placed him south of Juntara, Oregon.

Mojo flew past the fields where Mildred and Pine took a breather

Mojo found some fields, Granite Creek Road, Juntara, Oregon

Equina

What fate has befallen Equina?  Her transmitter has not been transmitting since 29 June and today I found a very small pile of curlew feathers beside the highway near her last known co-ordinates between Moan and Ford Roads.

Solar Land Grants Map April 2017

A couple of the requests for Crown land 'for the purpose of investigating the feasibility of solar power generation' - aka cover over, fence in, remove from wild nature - were REJECTED, and one was WITHDRAWN. So here is the updated map of these lands in the East Kootenay.

The renewable energy companies still have the use of land equal to about half of what will be flooded by the Site C dam from Skookumchuck to Elko.

I draw your attention to the north end of the map, in particular.  Here is Skookumchuck Prairie Important Bird and Biodiversity Area, important to ungulates, American Badger, Lewis' Woodpecker and Long-billed Curlew.  Almost ALL of the area which underwent restoration work earlier this decade is now available for 'investigating' putting up solar arrays.  See earlier posts.

Lewis' Woodpecker nesting in solar granted lands

Quick Post

UPDATE: went out the other evening and got two more confirmed LEWO nests. We have been driving right by them! Sneaky birds.

= 23 Lewis' Woodpecker nests with young or probable; in an area approx 3 km sq; found in approx 16 hours of surveying.  Extrapolate that to suitable habitat JUST on the Prairie (not the whole IBA) and I figure there could be 90 pairs nesting.

Enhancement and restoration work done a few years ago on the Skookumchuck Prairie Important Bird and Biodiversity Area has been very beneficial to Lewis' Woodpecker.

Unfortunately, this apparently barren and open land in an area purported to be the sunniest region in Canada has also caught the attention of renewable energy companies wishing to build solar arrays.  I hope the grass-roots movement toward small-scale solar power generation takes hold and leaves the grasslands' grass roots to pull carbon deep into the soil. Let the critters keep their home.

I have been able to survey the IBA for Lewis' Woodpecker where there are passable roads.

Here is a map showing:
     the solar land grant in pink
     found (10 confirmed) or probable LEWO nests
     one American Kestrel nest
     telemetry of Long-billed Curlews (see previous post)

Oopsy, I didn't know for sure if you were in there, little buddy!

Long-billed Curlew Happenings on the IBA

(placeholder post until I get some time to write something)

In June, seven Long-billed Curlews nesting on Skookumchuck Prairie Important Bird and Biodiversity Area were tucked out with satellite transmitters on backpacks.

Follow their brood-rearing and migrations here: Telemetry Map (courtesy of Bird Studies Canada)

Also see their and our friends and relatives tagged in the states: Telemetry Map US (courtesy of Intermountain Bird Observatory, Boise State University)

Me releasing "Mildred" aka AA. BSC photo

Antenna and leg flag visible. BSC photo

Commenting Works!

Yay! The latest two applications for use of Crown Land to investigate the feasibility of developing solar electricity generating facilities (ie. blanketing the place with solar arrays), have NOT BEEN APPROVED!

Comments, which became increasingly numerous as each new application came in, must have had a huge effect!  Keep up the good work! Now, if we could just get the other seven approvals rescinded until the BC Government developes policies and guidelines specific to solar installation, that would be terrific!  Or, if we could AT THE VERY LEAST get the two grants on the Skookumchuck Prairie IBA rescinded, that would be good, too.  It's an IMPORTANT BIRD AND BIODIVERSITY AREA, people! What's up with THAT!

I found FOUR Lewis' Woodpecker nests there in two hours last year, and that was just along a short stretch of back road, not the whole area granted to the solar company.

The IBA is not the only concern, though.  Do we want vast swaths of solar arrays covering ecologically valuable land? Or have we learned yet, that the seemingly unlimited resources that SOME of our ancestors saw in when they colonized, are not really so unlimited?  Can we go for the decentralized model of solar power production that would hopefully minimize ecological damage and may actually reduce our ecological footprint?

Skookumchuck IBA Lewis's Woodpeckers

Quick post: 26 Jun 2016

Well, that was fun yesterday - finding five Lewis's Woodpecker nests!  Well, actually, we found four and got impatient on the fifth - not waiting for the adult to show us which hole exactly.  Oh well.

Here is what their alarm calls sound like:  Do not approach nest sites yourself unless accompanied by an authorized and experienced biologist or surveyor such as myself. If you hear this type of call, back away immediately. Prolonged or frequent periods of agitation can have severe consequences on nest success.  Predators such as Common Ravens may be alerted by your presence. This video is for educational purposes.

After a bit, I realized I could point my phone at the birds rather than the ground.  I panned from one adult, then the nest, then the other adult.

And here are some pics of the nests and habitat:

Short snag

partially alive tree

small grove obviously marked and left standing around snag during enhancement

foreground of what was left after enhancement

closer view of one of the nest holes

The one that 'got away' - adult LEWO flying above right - we did not pinpoint this nest hole

Some habitat shots:

what is this flower?

very green right now since it has been raining a lot - but there aren't any mud puddles - the earth has soaked it all in

These pics are from Skookumchuck Prairie Important Bird Area, British Columbia, Canada.  The IBA is designated for Long-billed Curlew and Lewis's Woodpecker.

Also, yesterday, we found two LBCU chicks diligently attended by two adults.

Skookumchuck Prairie IBA

I'm studying up in preparation for being the new 'caretaker' for the Skookumchuck  Prairie Important Bird Area. (Not the Skokie chuck  that my auto correct keeps insisting on calling it. What is a Skokie chuck, anyway  - hope it's nothing rude).

Here it is on the IBA website (not I VA stupid auto-correct)

There are a few Long-billed there in the breeding season. And some Lewis' Woodpecker. Should be fun! Since the Breeding bird atlas ended, I have been a little directionless, so this will be good. Hopefully gas prices will go down.

Pics to follow in the spring! Cheers!