Publication Type:
Conference PaperSource:
A Century of Avifaunal Change in Western North America; proceedings of an international symposium at the Centennial Meeting of the Cooper Ornithological Society; 1993 April 17, Cooper Ornithological Society, Volume Studies in Avian Biology No. 15, Sacramento, CA, p.147-160 (1994)Call Number:
U94PAG01IDUSKeywords:
Calidris mauri, Long-billed Curlew, Numenius americanus, SWAP, western sandpiperAbstract:
Only anecdotal information is available to assess whether populations of the 47 shorebird species that breed or winter west of the Rocky Mountains changed in size or distribution during the past century. Unregulated hunting from 1870 to 1927 reduced populations of several species, at least temporarily, and was a factor in bringing the Eskimo Curlew (Numenius borealis) close to extinction. Large-scale transformation of native grasslands and wetlands for agriculture and other purposes resulted in population declines and nesting range contractions of several temperate-zone breeders. In general, upland species were affected more than wetland species, breeding ranges contracted westward, and alteration of breeding habitat was the factor most responsible for range contractions and population declines. A ranking system assessing shorebird susceptibility to habitat alteration also predicted temperate breeders to be among the most vulnerable species to environmental change. The few estimates for current population sizes of western North American shorebirds range from fewer than 50 Eskimo Curlews to a few million Western Sandpipers (Calidris mauri), the most abundant species. Concentrations of at least 1,000 shorebirds occur on migration at over 120 western North American sites and of 100,000 to 1,000,000 shorebirds at 18 sites. Whether populations are limited by conditions on breeding, wintering, or migration ranges is unknown for most species. Expansion of ongoing programs coupled with economical new census efforts could be useful for monitoring the majority of western North American shorebirds during the next century.
Notes:
ELECTRONIC FILE - Zoology: Birds
SWAP (2/19/2016) citation:
Page GW, Gill RE Jr. 1994. Shorebirds in western North America: late 1800s to late 1900s. In: Jehl JR, Johnson NK, editors. A Century of Avifaunal Change in Western North America: proceedings of an international symposium at the Centennial Meeting of the Cooper Ornithological Society; 1993 April 17; Sacramento, CA. [place unknown]: Cooper Ornithological Society. p. 147–160. [accessed 2015 Jun 1]; Studies in Avian Biology No. 15. https://sora.unm.edu/sites/default/files/journals/sab/sab_015.pdf