2018 Illinois Spring Bird Count Report

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Monitoring of Owls and Nightjars, MOON, in Illinois - 2014 Report

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Monitoring of Owls and Nightjars, MOON, in Illinois - 2008 Report

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Fat, Weather, and Date Affect Migratory Songbirds\u27 Departure Decisions, Routes, and Time It Takes to Cross the Gulf of Mexico

Approximately two thirds of migratory songbirds in eastern North America negotiate the Gulf of Mexico (GOM), where inclement weather coupled with no refueling or resting opportunities can be lethal. However, decisions made when navigating such features and their consequences remain largely unknown due to technological limitations of tracking small animals over large areas. We used automated radio telemetry to track three songbird species (Red-eyed Vireo, Swainson\u27s Thrush, Wood Thrush) from coastal Alabama to the northern Yucatan Peninsula (YP) during fall migration. Detecting songbirds after crossing ∼1,000 km of open water allowed us to examine intrinsic (age, wing length, fat) and extrinsic (weather, date) variables shaping departure decisions, arrival at the YP, and crossing times. Large fat reserves and low humidity, indicative of beneficial synoptic weather patterns, favored southward departure across the Gulf. Individuals detected in the YP departed with large fat reserves and later in the fall with profitable winds, and flight durations (mean = 22.4 h) were positively related to wind profit. Age was not related to departure behavior, arrival, or travel time. However, vireos negotiated the GOM differently than thrushes, including different departure decisions, lower probability of detection in the YP, and longer crossing times. Defense of winter territories by thrushes but not vireos and species-specific foraging habits may explain the divergent migratory behaviors. Fat reserves appear extremely important to departure decisions and arrival in the YP. As habitat along the GOM is degraded, birds may be limited in their ability to acquire fat to cross the Gulf

Assessing Progress on the 1997 Integrated Management Plan for the Illinois River Watershed

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Tracking Species Recovery Status to Improve Endangered Species Act Decisions

The U.S. Endangered Species Act (ESA) protects over 2,000 species, but no concise, standardized metrics exist for assessing changes in species recovery status. Tracking these changes is crucial to understanding species status, adjusting conservation strategies, and assessing the performance of the ESA. We helped develop and test novel metrics that track changes in recovery status using six components. ESA 5-year status reviews provided all of the information used to apply the recovery metrics. When we analyzed the reviews, we observed several key challenges to species recovery. First, the reviews lack a standardized format and clear documentation. Second, despite having been listed for decades, many species still lack basic information about their biology and threats. Third, many species have continued to decline after listing. Fourth, many species currently have no path to recovery. Applying the recovery metrics allowed us to gain these and other insights about ESA implementation. We urge the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to adopt the metrics as part of future status reviews in order to inform public discourse on improving conservation policy and to systematically track the recovery progress of all ESA species