Removing the bald eagle from the national Endangered Species Act in 2009 was a dramatic accomplishment, but there’s been a less-heralded win with another bird population.
Brown pelicans visit the Washington coast from Southern California and Baja California, typically from April through November. They disperse from their southern nesting areas in search of food.
The Columbia River estuary is home to the largest night roost for brown pelicans in the region. Thousands gather in communal roosts on sandy islands. It’s here that they can dry out waterlogged feathers and hang out together.
There were fewer than 100 a year during the 1979-1986 surveys, at least in part because of pollutant-related reproductive failures in their southern range. In 2009, 16,000 were counted in the river estuary and off the southern Washington coast, according to the state Department of Fish and Wildlife.
The low numbers earned the pelicans endangered status under the U.S. Endangered Species Act in 1970. They were taken off the list in 2009. They have been on Washington’s endangered list since 1980. Now the DFW may recommend that the pelicans be removed from that list.
Counts continue to fluctuate; numbers have been declining since 2009. In September 2013, the USFWS counted 7,018, the lowest count since 2001.
Pelicans feed primarily on small fish, including sardines. Significantly fewer pelicans may be related to the declining sardine population, which is a response to cyclic ocean conditions, according to researchers. The big increase in pelican numbers from 1987-2009 may also have been influenced by the same conditions that led to increased fish abundance, plus higher reproduction rates.
DFW is taking public input on a status review of the brown pelican that recommends removing the bird from the state endangered species list. The document is available online at http://wdfw.wa.gov/publications/01693; public comments will be accepted through May 15.
If delisted from Washington’s endangered species list, brown pelicans would still receive protection given to all non-game birds in the state.
Submit comments via email to TandEpubliccom@dfw.wa.gov or by mail to Penny Becker, Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, 600 Capitol Way N., Olympia, WA 98501-1091.
Yipping and howling: The coyote population will be increasing in April and early May; coyotes born eight or nine months ago will be leaving home. Many of the coyotes live in suburban and urban settings; some live near you.
A coyote is a canine species, just like your dog. They see dogs as competitors and as a danger to their pups. Keep that in mind if coyotes live nearby, especially in the spring and summer when pups are being reared or young coyotes are moving into new territory, warns the state Department of Fish and Wildlife.
Coyotes are omnivores, so they’ll eat meat, which could include your cat (or feral cats that you are feeding) or a small dog as well as food from the garbage can or bird seed on the ground.
What do you think? Interested in grizzly bears? You’re invited to an open house focused on the restoration of grizzly bears in the North Cascades ecosystem. This is the first time that the public has been involved in the Environmental Impact Statement process. The National Park Service and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service employees will provide information and accept questions and opinions.
The closest meetings are 5-7:30 p.m. March 10 at Seattle Pacific University, Bertona Classroom 1, 103 W. Bertona; and 5-7:30 p.m. March 11 at the Bellingham Central Library Lecture Room, 210 Central Ave.
Incoming: An Earth Economics study (eartheconomics.org) reports that outdoor recreation generates $21.6 billion a year in spending on trips and equipment in Washington state; $104 billion is spent on sightseeing and nature activities, including $7 billion on wildlife watching and photography. Remember that the next time that you make fun of a birdwatcher.
Columnist Sharon Wootton can be reached at 360-468-3964 or www.songandword.com.
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