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Subject: Harbor Herons Nesting Surveys "volunteers"
Time: 9:56:00 PM EDT
Author: prosbird
Hello everyone,
This is Andy Bernick here (forwarding from Liz Craig's account). It's once again time for NYC Audubon's Harbor Herons Project nesting surveys, and we are looking for volunteers who are comfortable in identifying colonial waterbird species (i.e., wading birds, cormorants, and gulls) known to breed in NY/NJ Harbor.
This year, I will be leading the nesting surveys in conjunction with Elizabeth (Liz) Craig of NYC Audubon. Liz is a talented researcher who has been working on nesting Double-crested Cormorants and their impacts on vegetation and invertebrate diversity in NY/NJ Harbor. Liz will be starting her Ph.D. at Cornell this fall, and will hopefully be leading the Harbor Herons Project nesting surveys in future seasons.
We need a small number of volunteers for the following surveys, departing from locations noted in parentheses:
19 May: Goose Island (Co-op City, Bronx)
20 May: Swinburne Island (Great Kills, Staten Island)
21 May: Hoffman Island (Great Kills, Staten Island)
22 May: South Brother Island (TBA, Bronx)
23 May: Arthur Kill/Kill Van Kull colonies (Linden, NJ)
27 May: Huckleberry Island (TBA, Bronx/Westchester Co.)
Survey trips generally begin at 7-8 AM, and may take through 3-4 PM (including boat travel). We are looking for volunteers who are experienced in wading bird identification and data recording, and tolerant of tough working conditions (including hot and cold weather, rough boat rides, poison ivy, ticks, thorns, and the like).
Wading bird species known to nest on the islands we visit include Black-crowned Night-Heron, Great Egret, Snowy Egret, Glossy Ibis, Yellow-crowned Night-Heron, Little Blue Heron, Tricolored Heron, Cattle Egret, and Green Heron. We also keep a sharp eye out for rare species and vagrants, such as Little Egret, White-faced Ibis, and Western Reef Heron. We also survey nesting activity of gulls (both Herring and Great Black-backed) and Double-crested Cormorants.
If you are interested, please send your name, contact info, your level of experience with wading bird identification (and any past nesting surveys you have been involved with), and your preferred dates to Liz Craig (ecraig@nycaudubon.org, 212-691-7483).
As this is an interim survey year (with only a few colonies surveyed), we have room for only a few volunteers. However, we will try to accommodate everyone who wants to participate.
Sincerely,
Andrew J. Bernick, Ph.D.
AKRF, Inc.
&
NYC Audubon HarborHerons Project – Nesting Survey Leader
--
Elizabeth Craig
Research Associate, New York City Audubon
71 West 23rd Street, Suite 1523, New York, NY 10010
Phone: (212) 691-7483
Fax: (212) 924-3870
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