Species Recovery Projects

SUMMARY OF DOI SCIENCE NEEDS RELATED TO SPECIES RECOVERY PROJECTS

[view table in full]

Conservation Strategy for the Florida Panther in South Florida

Project Purpose and Major DOI Interest
The Florida panther once ranged from eastern Texas and the lower Mississippi River Valley eastward through the Southeastern Coastal Plain. This wide-ranging predator now survives only in South Florida. The current population of approximately 85 panthers occupies an estimated 2 to 3 million acres, or 5% of its historic range. Established threats include geographic isolation, habitat loss and fragmentation, small population size, and road mortality. Trends in human population and development in South Florida indicate that loss of panthers and degradation of panther habitat will continue. South Florida does not contain enough space or habitat to recover the panther, but conservation of its one remaining population is crucial to panther survival and rangewide recovery.

The purpose of this project is to help ensure survival and achieve a component of the recovery objective of the Florida panther, as described in the MSRP. According to the MSRP, the range-wide recovery objective for the panther is to achieve three viable, self-sustaining populations within the species' historic range. More specific recovery objectives for the panther are being developed as part of the third revision of the Florida Panther Recovery Plan.

[larger image]

In addition to identifying lands essential for the continued conservation of panthers in South Florida, the strategy also identifies a landscape linkage to provide for population expansion north of the Caloosahatchee River to aid in the recovery of the species. Augmentation of the existing population south of the Caloosahatchee River may be possible by providing the opportunity for panthers to expand their occupied breeding range into suitable areas north of the river in south-central Florida. Several young radio-collared male panthers have crossed the Caloosahatchee River and moved across central peninsular Florida as far north as the Disney Wilderness Preserve, southwest of Orlando. However, no females have been documented north of the Caloosahatchee River since the 1970s.

Panther conservation planning in the 1990s focused on protecting large blocks of forested habitat. Scientists and managers now recognize that panther conservation must consider the full range of land use and land covers, and the linkages among them, within the landscape used by panthers. Preventing and minimizing land use intensification within the landscape used by panthers is important and will require the development of active conservation partnerships with private landowners and a variety of public land managers. Panther conservation planning needs to be integrated with planning for private development and public works projects, including transportation projects funded by the Federal Highway Administration. Smart planning and coordination are essential to maintaining the large spatial extent, landscape configuration, and mosaic of land use / land cover types critical to panther survival in South Florida.

Of the 77 radio-collared panther mortalities that occurred from 1981 through June 2003, 42% were due to intraspecific aggression (males killing other panthers), 23% to unknown causes, 21% to vehicles, 6% to other causes, 5% to infection, and 3% to disease.

What Is Needed
Tracking data and analysis. Although much is known about the panther population in South Florida, important gaps exist. These gaps include information about 24-hour-a-day panther movements and habitat use, subadult dispersal, less intrusive monitoring methods, the consequences of ongoing genetic restoration efforts, and future methods to ensure the genetic health of the population.

The relative values of agricultural and range lands (and other nonforested components of the landscape) as panther habitat are not well understood. Because conversions among various agricultural land uses in South Florida are certain to occur, the relative value of different forms of agriculture in providing prey and cover, and the effects of land conversion on habitat configuration, need further investigation. Reanalysis of existing data on panther movements and habitat use will help guide panther conservation efforts within and outside South Florida and determine if and how landscape planning and conservation efforts may need to be adjusted. Use of Global Position System (GPS) technology to track collared panthers 24 hours a day will provide a better picture of how panthers move across landscapes at all times and life-history stages. Furthermore, tracking of panthers that use private lands will document how panthers respond to continuing changes in the South Florida landscape.

Landscape use data are especially needed for breeding female panthers and dispersing subadults. Female panther kittens do not disperse as far from their natal areas as do males. Radio-telemetry data will help determine the habitat requirements needed for young females to disperse and for adult females to successfully rear kittens. Research on techniques to reestablish native plant communities preferred by panthers and their prey is also needed. Conservation planning should continue to include the identification of additional lands that are high priorities for panther conservation and seek their protection through all appropriate means.

GPS tracking of the subadult males dispersing north of the Caloosahatchee River will help identify habitat linkages that will be needed if female panthers are to disperse or can be translocated north of the river to expand the panther's breeding range.

Evaluation of potential habitat. An evaluation of the quantity and quality of panther habitat north of the Caloosahatchee River will determine its ability to support a new breeding segment of the existing population. Relationships with and support from landowners in these areas will be an essential precursor to conducting any translocation project. Working with landowners to make the landscape more compatible for the panther is important for survival and recovery of the species.

Public Acceptance of Panther Reintroduction. Although public attitudes have improved since the early days of panther persecution, approximately a third of the public still considers panthers to be a nuisance to livestock and to be equally dangerous to man. However, both a statewide survey in Florida (Duda and Young 1995) and a survey in the counties around the north Florida study area for a Florida panther reintroduction feasibility study (Cramer 1995) found that support for panther preservation and reintroduction increased with increasing level of education and income and decreased with increasing age. Likewise, the amount of concern with regard to human safety, safety of pets and livestock, landowner rights, and effects on deer populations decreased with increasing level of education and income and increased with increasing age. Also, those residents living closest to the reintroduction site were more likely to oppose reintroduction efforts. A strong negative attitude developed among those residing near the established mountain lion population during the reintroduction feasibility study. These attitudes coalesced into organized and vocal opposition.

Whether it be panther population expansion north of the Caloosahatchee River or reintroduction into other areas of suitable habitat within the historic range, people who live around the reintroduction site must be supportive of the idea of panther reintroduction. Public attitudes will probably be the major factor affecting success of re-establishment efforts, and these attitudes need to be examined prior to any trial releases. Surveys need to be conducted in the vicinity of potential panther expansion or reintroduction sites to determine public attitudes toward re-establishing panthers and strategies developed to work on cultivating public acceptance of the program.

Information needed to mitigate the adverse effects of development. Panther conservation planning needs to be integrated and coordinated with planning for development and public works projects being carried out by the numerous governmental jurisdictions in South Florida. These coordinated efforts should specifically focus on infrastructure needed to support additional development including transportation projects funded by the Federal Highway Administration and the Florida Department of Transportation. Research on ways to reduce road-related panther mortality is needed. Information on panther movements should be analyzed in relation to transportation and land development plans to identify areas of likely conflict and develop preventive measures.

Research and monitoring to detect responses to habitat changes. Research and monitoring will assess how panther behavior and movement are affected by implementation of the conservation strategy and other ecosystem restoration projects, particularly those included in the CERP.

Information needed to analyze the potential effects of CERP projects on panthers includes (1) understanding of water depth effects on panther and panther prey species activity; (2) determination of water depths that exclude panthers or panther prey from areas; (3) monitoring of changes in panther movements across Shark River Slough associated with rising water levels; (4) monitoring of panther responses to ecological community changes; and (5) monitoring possible effects of changing mercury levels and other contaminants following hydrologic restoration.

Information needed to assess the success of the panther conservation strategy will include panther responses to landscape improvements, analyses of how development affects panther behavior, and monitoring on private and public lands. Monitoring to assess the response of panthers to the conservation strategy and other ecosystem restoration efforts should be conducted annually to ensure appropriate and timely actions by the agencies entrusted to conserve the panther and their partners, who will play a critical role in preserving the habitat critical to panther survival.

Recovery of Cape Sable Seaside Sparrow

Project Purpose and Major DOI Interest
Historic populations of the Cape Sable seaside sparrow have been severely impacted by losses of habitat associated primarily with water management and habitat conversion to other land uses.

[larger image]

Understanding how management may affect a wide variety of species dependent on a mosaic of ecological communities found only in the Everglades region will be critical to the recovery of the Cape Sable seaside sparrow and help ensure that actions to recover this species do not jeopardize the recovery of other ecological communities or species.

During the Modified Water Deliveries Project, a jeopardy biological opinion was issued because of impacts from increased hydroperiods on nesting by a subpopulation of the Cape Sable seaside sparrow that has been identified as extremely important for recovery. Resolution of this impact required holding water upstream of sparrow habitat under certain hydrologic conditions, with possible effects on upstream nesting and foraging habitat of the Everglade snail kite.

What Is Known
Historically Cape Sable, in what became Everglades National Park, was the only known breeding range for the Cape Sable seaside sparrow. The freshwater vegetative communities occupied by the sparrows as late as the 1930s have since shifted to mangroves, bare mud flats, and salt-tolerant plants, with the result that Cape Sable seaside sparrows no longer use this area. Hurricanes in 1935 and 1960, sea level rise, and reduced freshwater flows due to upstream water management are all likely factors contributing to the vegetation shift on Cape Sable.

The Cape Sable seaside sparrow is nonmigratory. Breeding males demonstrate high site-fidelity, and many will defend the same territory for two to three years. During the nonbreeding season, the sparrows appear to congregate and fly short distances within their range. Cape Sable seaside sparrows have never been observed outside of nesting habitat areas during the wet season. The results of a radio-telemetry study conducted during the 1997-98 wet season indicated that the Cape Sable seaside sparrows were generally sedentary or moved short distances (less than about & mile), although they sometimes moved longer distances (about 3 to 4 miles) within marl prairie habitat areas.

The Cape Sable seaside sparrows have very specific habitat preferences. The current nesting habitat of Cape Sable seaside sparrows appears to be short-hydroperiod, mixed marl prairie communities that often include muhly grass and other moderately dense, clumped grasses, with open spaces at the base permitting ground movements. Sparrows tend to avoid tall, dense, sawgrass-dominated communities, coastal spike-rush marshes, extensive cattail monocultures, long-hydroperiod wetlands with tall, dense vegetative cover, and sites supporting woody vegetation. Cape Sable seaside sparrows also avoid sites with permanent water cover. Cape Sable seaside sparrows currently occur only within the six remaining patches of habitat within Everglades National Park and adjacent public lands.

[larger image]

Emerging information. During the past few years, the population of the CSSS west of Shark River Slough has continued to decline, despite efforts to provide hydrologic conditions that would allow for population maintenance or growth. More intensive surveys of the population have indicated that the number of sparrows in that area may be as low as 10 individuals, and evidence of breeding is lacking. During 2004, scientists documented two movements of sparrows among widely separated populations that had previously been assumed to be isolated, suggesting that while limited, the sparrow's dispersal capability may be greater than previously thought.

Reprogrammed funds allocated in 2004 for sparrow research are addressing most of the primary information needs. Efforts to increase survey effort within small sparrow populations have suggested that these populations may be even smaller than previously thought, and the dynamics of these populations may differ from those within the larger populations.

What Is Needed
Study and long-term monitoring of habitat response to hydrologic change and fire. The effective management of Cape Sable seaside sparrows will require a thorough understanding of the appropriate hydrologic regimes and fire management necessary to support the short-hydroperiod marl prairie communities upon which they depend. Long-term experimental studies of the response of marl prairie communities to flooding and fire events will generate data to support adaptive management of the restoration projects.

A long-term monitoring program will track vegetation response to changes in hydrologic and fire regimes. Periodic review of water management effects on habitat utilized by the Cape Sable seaside sparrow will support recommendations about adaptive management to prevent degradation of existing habitat.

Study and monitoring of Cape Sable seaside sparrow responses to changing habitat conditions. Information about vegetation community response though time and the time required for the Cape Sable seaside sparrow to move from changing existing habitat to new suitable habitat will help ensure that this species is adequately protected during ecosystem restoration.

Detailed population assessment. In response to the new information suggesting that population dynamics in small sparrow populations differ from those in larger populations, additional focus on the small populations and the factors regulating these populations is needed. The sparrow has the theoretical potential to increase in population size rapidly under favorable conditions, but large increases have not been documented in the small populations. Evaluation of our ability to accurately document population size in these areas and measure changes that would signal either increase or decline are needed to allow identification of the environmental and habitat characteristics that result in population changes.

Assessment of the importance of genetic exchange among subpopulations. An assessment of the evidence of genetic exchange between subpopulations of the Cape Sable seaside sparrow will further understanding of how subpopulation structure affects long-term viability of this species. Understanding the rate of movements among the populations also has critical implications for evaluating the likelihood of recolonization of habitat that may be restored.

West Indian Manatee: Accessibility to and Mortality and Entrapment Risk in the Central and Southern Florida Canal System and Structures

Project Purpose and Major DOI Interest

[larger image]

The purpose of this project is to protect West Indian manatees from the risk posed by the existing and proposed C&SF Project canals and water control structures and alteration of hydrologic flow patterns. At this time, an estimated 117 new structures are proposed for CERP implementation.

This effort is essential to the wellbeing of the species. Between 1974 and 2002, 140 federally listed West Indian manatees died in the C&SF Project canal system and associated structures. The two major areas of structure-related manatee mortality in the C&SF Project are the South Dade Conveyance System in Miami-Dade County (49% of the mortality) and Lake Okeechobee, including the St. Lucie Canal and the Caloosahatchee River (47 % of the mortality).

Although West Indian manatees are expected to benefit from long-term improvements in estuarine conditions and increased seagrass abundance and distribution associated with CERP projects, they could also be adversely affected by CERP projects through construction of new canals/levees and impoundments; changes in locations of water control structures; changes in the volumes and locations of freshwater inflows into estuaries; thermal effects; and water quality issues.

The FWS has identified 30 CERP project components in manatee-accessible waters:

Without adequate mitigation, structural alterations to the C&SF Project canal system will result in situations in which manatees are reasonably certain to experience adverse effects.

The FWS is coordinating with the USACE and SFWMD to develop a CERP Manatee Conservation Plan. This effort is intended to provide guidance needed to minimize impacts on manatees related to the implementation of CERP projects. The plan will examine ways to block manatee access to high risk areas, identify various structure and culvert designs that avoid or minimize adverse effects on manatees, provide guidance to minimize adverse temperature effects on manatees, identify important manatee aggregation sites, which should be protected, and describe other aspects of manatee ecology for consideration during CERP planning and implementation. The plan will ensure that assessments of risks to manatees conducted for different CERP projects and CERP consultations by the FWS will be as consistent as possible.

What Is Known
Little is known about the number and distribution of West Indian manatees in the C&SF Project canal system, including Lake Okeechobee. During their movement, West Indian manatees encounter many types of flood control structures that can result in their death or injury. These structures include drop gates, screw gates, trash rakes, pump structures, hurricane gates, and culverts. Manatees become entrapped after swimming through open structures that then remain closed for long periods of time, resulting in starvation or cold stress. Entrapment in canal systems may cut off manatees from access to a more suitable habitat, limit access to essential foraging resources, isolate manatees from others, and expose manatees to higher concentrations of toxins. Manatees have also died in culverts because of their inability to turn around or lack of air space.

What Is Needed
Database of accessible areas, travel routes, and entrapment risks. Information is lacking on where West Indian manatees enter the C&SF Project canal system, their movements within the system, and what areas pose an entrapment risk to the species. Mortality and rescue data provide an outline of probable areas where manatees frequent; however, these data do not provide possible travel corridors or an evaluation of the relative safety of these areas.

The FWS is working with the USACE to fund the first year of a three-year West Indian Manatee Movement and Distribution Study to better understand manatee accessibility to the C&SF Project system and their movements within the system. The project will intensively investigate and inventory all existing structures and major canals in Southeast Florida to determine accessibility to manatees. Manatee distribution and movements through the system will be documented using satellite telemetry and aerial surveys. This information will be used to develop a database of accessible areas, travel routes, and entrapment risks related to all existing major structures and canal systems. By determining possible travel routes and risk, manatees can be excluded from areas where they might become entrapped.

Tools for managers. The accessibility and risk information, along with the satellite telemetry and aerial survey data, will be compiled into GIS coverages from which user-friendly maps will be produced to help managers and field personnel address areas of concern regarding West Indian manatee use in the C&SF Project canal system. This information will allow managers to make informed decisions to equip structures with appropriate manatee protection devices, to make areas determined to be an entrapment risk inaccessible to manatees, or to take other appropriate actions allowing projects to continue without manatee protection precautions.

Monitoring and analysis of West Indian manatee response to habitat changes. The database and GIS coverages of the West Indian manatee will also provide a baseline for comparing changes in manatee foraging behavior, distribution, movement, reproduction, and aggregation sites in response to habitat changes associated with CERP implementation. This information will support recommendations for adaptive management to ensure that manatees are adequately protected during ecosystem restoration.