Field notes #1 Pilot Survey

Summary of test survey: 

Because this is a new study, we will be conducting a few test surveys. The purpose of the pilot survey was to evaluate the planned sampling design and to test out the camera, effectiveness of data sheet design and evaluate chosen survey sites. This is the information the team collected on our first test survey.

Date: 12/15/15

Survey start: 2:37pm        Survey End: 5:30pm

Official low Tide: 4:48pm

Conditions: sunny; 10% cloud cover; 84°

Water monitoring: pH 7.84         salinity 1.021 PPT

Bird Counts
	Count	Behavior observed	Disturbance
Great Egret	7	F,R	0
Great Blue Heron	7	F,R	0
Little blue Heron	1	R	0
White Ibis	1	FO	0
Unidentifiable	2		0
*F=foraging	R= roosting/resting	FO = fly over

NOTES: 

1. Water monitoring equipment: We could not calibrate the official monitoring equipment in time for pH testing; so we used fish tank monitoring strips as a test run. pH levels may not be accurate. Calibration will be completed before the official Study start date of Jan 8, 2016. These measurements are not vital to the study, however offer an added layer of investigation to water quality issues and food sources. 

2. Survey times: we found the sample design of two hours on either side of high tide (using methods from the British Trust for Ornithology Waterbird Survey 2013-14 study) was not effective for this location. The low tide was not very low and very little of the mud flats were exposed until the official low tide times. Even then, only small portions were exposed.

We will be examining low tide/sunrise/sunset schedules to decide which is most effective for this location.

 

Team Members: Diane Arrieta; Leah Plocharczyk, Grant Kramer

New wading bird study

Seabird Study: Utilization of Estuarine and intertidal habitats at the John D. MacArthur State Park

Principal investigator: Diane Arrieta, MSc. 

Research Assistant: Leah Plocharczyk, MA

State permit #11171515

Internships available for Wilkes Honors students (approved by the honors college)

Spring semester internship is already full

This long term study plans to investigate the use of Estuarine and Intertidal Habitats by wading birds at low tide within park boundaries of the John D. MacArthur State Park, located in Riviera Beach, FL [Palm Beach County, FL]. The scheme aims to monitor, assess and regularly update information on the relative importance of inter-tidal feeding areas within park boundaries to document abundance and distribution patterns for the following species.

Species:

Table 1. Birds of the order Ciconiiformes in Florida (Sizemore, et. al., 2012)

Common Name	Species Name	Family	Status
Great Egret	Ardea alba	Ardeidae	Native
Snowy Egret	Egretta thula	Ardeidae	Native
Reddish Egret	Egretta rufescens	Ardeidae	Native
Cattle Egret	Bubulcus ibis	Ardeidae	Native*
Great Blue Heron	Ardea herodias	Ardeidae	Native
Tricolored Heron	Egretta tricolor	Ardeidae	Native
Little Blue Heron	Egretta caerulea	Ardeidae	Native
Black-crowned Night-Heron	Nycticorax nycticorax	Ardeidae	Native
Yellow-crowned Night-Heron	Nyctanassa violacea	Ardeidae	Native
Green Heron	Butorides virescens	Ardeidae	Native
American Bittern	Botaurus lentiginosus	Ardeidae	Native
Least Bittern	Ixobrychus exilis	Ardeidae	Native
Wood Stork	Mycteria americana	Ciconiidae	Native
Roseate Spoonbill	Platalea ajaja	Threskiornithidae	Native
White Ibis	Eudocimus albus	Threskiornithidae	Native
Glossy Ibis	Plegadis falcinellus	Threskiornithidae	Native
Sacred Ibis	Threskiornis aethiopicus	Threskiornithidae	Non-native
Scarlet Ibis	Eudocimus ruber	Threskiornithidae	Non-native
*Arrived in Florida VIA natural range expansion.

The objectives of our monitoring include:

1. Assess baseline seabird foraging rates at our four sites

2. Assess seabird roost utilization at sites

3. Assess distribution fluctuations between seasons and environmental conditions

4. Assess baseline levels of human-caused disturbance; especially in Lake Worth Cove 

Reference: 

Grant C. Sizemore, Martin B. Main, and Elise V. Pearlstine, 2015. Florida's Wading Birds: IFAS Extention. PUblication #WEC267 Available: https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/uw309 

Good News for Frogs

New Galapagos Giant Tortoise Species (Chelonoidis; Testudines: Testudinidae) named.

A new article published on Plos ONe describes the events that led to naming a new species of Giant Tortoise on the island of Santa Cruz. Currently, the taxonomy of giant Galapagos tortoises (Chelonoidis spp.) is currently based on morphological characters and island of origin. Several studies over the past decade recorded multiple independent evolutionary lineages, prompting the need for taxonomic revision. The article goes on to report that “two evolutionarily and spatially distinct lineages on the western and eastern sectors of the island, known as the Reserva and Cerro Fatal populations, respectively” (Poulakakis, et. al, 2015).

Fig 1. Geographic distribution of the two known lineages of giant tortoises on Santa Cruz Island: Chelonoidis porteri (Reserva) and Chelonoidis sp. nov. (Cerro Fatal) (indicated in dark gray).

Light gray area connecting the distribution areas of the two species indicates agricultural land. Modified from Russello et al. [11].

doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0138779.g001

To read the full journal article and learn more about this new species click here.

Reference:

Poulakakis N, Edwards DL, Chiari Y, Garrick RC, Russello MA, Benavides E, et al. (2015) Description of a New Galapagos Giant Tortoise Species (Chelonoidis; Testudines: Testudinidae) from Cerro Fatal on Santa Cruz Island. PLoS ONE 10(10): e0138779. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0138779

Meet the Scientist Lecture Series Hosted by Taras Oceanographic Foundation

Free science lectures held at The Jupiter Community High School (500 N, Military Trail, Jupiter, FL) Lectures are at 7:00 pm in the auditorium for the dates below:

DATE                     SPEAKERS    

                      

10/13/15              Rebekah Corlew              

    Max Planck Florida Institute for Neuroscience

   THEME : Thinking Like A Scientist

11/18/15             Tom Fitz                              

   Tom Fitz Production

   THEME : The Art of Wildlife Filmmaking

12/09/15             Joseph Marcellino, Danilo Gardi and Bob Gerber

                           IMEGA International

   THEME : Towards A Sustainable Future: Alternative Fuel Systems

01/13/16             Linda Emerson  Beach Guardians Atlantic Coast

   THEME : Mindful Beachcombing: Becoming Part of the Solution to                              Marine Plastic Pollution

02/10/16            Prof. Jon Moore, Ph.D. 

  Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College, Florida Atlantic University

  THEME : Oh God, It's Hideous! Deep-Sea Animals in the North Atlantic.

03/09/16           Tom Poulson, Ph.D.       

  Professor Emeritus, University of Illinois at Chicago

  THEME : Science as a Powerful Way of Learning While Having Fun

04/13/16            Barbara J Brunnick, Ph.D. & Benoit Duverneuil

  Palm Beach Dolphin Project & Coastal Dolphin Conservation

  THEME : Dolphin Research and Conservation – Using Drones to Expand a Long-  Term Study

https://taras.org/?q=meet-scientist-lecture-series