south puget sound and nisqually reach aquatic reserve ... · south puget sound and nisqually reach...

SouthPugetSoundandNisquallyReachAquaticReserve

PigeonGuillemotBreedingSurveys

2016-2018MonitoringReport

Preparedfor:

NisquallyReachAquaticReserveCitizenStewardshipCommittee

Preparedby:

TerenceLee

&

JeniphrGrant

NisquallyReachNatureCenter

April2018

1

SouthPugetSoundandNisquallyReachAquaticReservePigeonGuillemotBreedingSurveys2016-2018MonitoringReport

PublicationInformationThismonitoringreportdescribestheresearchandmonitoringstudyofpigeonguillemotbreedingsurveysconductedinthesummersof2016-2018inSouthPugetSound,includingtheNisquallyReachAquaticReserve.ThisprojecthasbeenfundedwhollyorinpartbyNationalEstuaryProgram(NEP)oftheUnitedStatesEnvironmentalProtectionAgency(EPA)underassistanceagreement#PC-00J90701throughtheWashingtonStateDepartmentofFish&Wildlife(WDFW).ThecontentsofthisreportdonotnecessarilyreflecttheviewsandpoliciesoftheEnvironmentalProtectionAgency,nordoesmentionoftradenamesorcommercialproductsconstituteendorsementorrecommendationforuse.Copiesofthisreportwillbeavailableat:WashingtonStateDepartmentofNaturalResources(WDNR)AquaticReserveswebsitehttps://www.dnr.wa.gov/managed-lands/aquatic-reserves,aswellastheNisquallyReachAquaticReserve(NRAR)webpagefoundathttps://www.aquaticreserves.org/,andontheNisquallyReachNatureCenter(NRNC)websitewww.nisquallyestuary.org.AuthorandContactInformationTerenceLeeScienceDirectorNisquallyReachNatureCenter4949D’MilluhrDrNEOlympia,WA98516terencelee@nisquallyestuary.orgJeniphrGrantVolunteerNisquallyReachNatureCenter4949D’MilluhrDrNEOlympia,WA98516Reviewedby:DanielHullExecutiveDirectorNisquallyReachNatureCenternrnc@nisquallyestuary.org

2


AcknowledgementsTheprotocolsandproceduresarederivedfromtheworkoftheWhidbeyIslandPigeonGuillemotResearchGroup(currentlyknownastheGuillemotResearchGroup).Wethankthemfortheirguidanceandcollaboration.Inparticular,wethankFrancesWoodandGovindaRoslingfortheirassistance.WealsothankourpartnerScottPearsonattheWashingtonStateDepartmentofFishandWildlifeforcontinualguidanceonrefiningprotocolandprocedures.WethankDr.SarahConverseofUniversityofWashington/WashingtonFish&WildlifeCooperativeResearchUnitforheradviceonrefiningthedatasheettomakeitmorestatisticallyrobust.Surveys,dataentry,qualitycontrol,andreportwritingweremadepossiblebyanamazinggroupofinternsandvolunteers.Internswereinvolvedinallaspectsoftheprojectincluding:logisticalplanning,volunteertraining,surveys,volunteercoordination,datamanagement,andreportwriting.Thefollowinginternshavehelpedimmensely:SpencerJohnson,AlisonFlury,KarlaKelly,RachelHardin,AdamGreen,RobinBazan,AlexDurney,WilliamWiskes,KeithAdams,JustinBrown,EmilyWilke,andEmilyCain.EditorialassistancewasprovidedbyvolunteersJeniphrGrant,AnneMills,andDanielHull,ExecutiveDirector,NisquallyReachNatureCenter.VolunteerAnneMills,whofoundedthisproject,continuedtoprovideinstrumentalassistancewithvolunteerrecruitment,training,andcoordinationaswellasconductingsurveys,performingqualitycontrol,analyzingdata,andreportediting.Administrationconsistedofreportwritingandediting.AdditionalfinancialsupportviaagrantfromtheRoseFoundationhasbeencriticalforsupportingthecitizenscienceprogramsoftheNisquallyReachNatureCenter.Surveyswereconductedwithtrainedcitizensciencevolunteers.Themostdedicatedvolunteers,whosurveyedasiteforthemajorityoftheseasonfortwoorthreeyears,arelistedinbold.Thesecondcategoryincludesvolunteerswhosurveyedforoneyear,substitutes,support,andotherpart-timepersonnel.Thethirdcategoryisforthosewhoparticipatedonalimitedbasisasindicatedinitalics.Wewouldliketorecognizetheeffortsofthefollowingindividualswhoaidedusbetween2016and2018: Volunteers: ColleenAllender StuAtwood SharonBergquist-Moody JustinBrown BriennaBrownawell ErikaBowers MicheleBurton PeggyButler SusanCampbell CindyCoble LeslieCushman LeslieDemich CindyEaton EvaFitz

JawadFrangieh WoodyFranzen HernanGonzalez RaeganGoff JoyGold GailGriswold JaneGroppenberger DianeHaslund JackHavens LianneHeckmanKristinaHill DelenaHolcer KatitzaHolthaus RileyHoyle-Dodson JuliHoza SueHuseby

AnnIngham BobIngham NikkiJohnson WendyJohnson ElinorJordan AngelaKaurin ShellyKaurin SallyKirouac LisaKnorowski LauraKoerber LauraKraig AnnLamb RockyLamb BenLamirand MattLamirand ZackLamirand

3


BillLangford CarolLangford JeffreyLee WendyLippmann MelodyMayer JudyMcGinty JeanneMcGoldrick DawnMcHugh ConnorMcNutt MerryMcNutt MikeMelton NoraMena PaulMena MikelineMeurs HalMichael PatMichael AnneMills BonnieMills BobbieMoody PaulMoody MatthewMorassutti SusanMorgan JudyMurphy BiancaOlds JudyOlsen CarolPaschal DeborahPetersen

KathyProsser RudyProsser JudyPust MikeRaitt EdithRice MariaRuth SueSalo TraceyScalici SaimaScott TobySeiler LeslieSikora LarrySiminski MelodySiminski PamelaSiminski SuzanneSimons RossSkinner UrsulaSmircich BradSmith CathySmith GarySquires BertStevens CathyTarabulski JoziTolle SusieVanderburg VickiVoss LoisWard LesleyWillardson

JimWitteInterns: KeithAdams RobinBazan JustinBrown EmilyCain AlexDurney AlisonFlury AdamGreen RachelHardin SpencerJohnson KarlaKelly EmilyWilke WilliamWiskes Administration: JeniphrGrant MatthewHaney AnneMills

4


TableofContentsPublicationInformation 1

AuthorandContactInformation 1

Acknowledgements 2

TableofContents 4

Figures,Tables,Photos,andAppendices 5

Figures 5

Tables 5

Photos 5

Appendices 5

Abstract 6

Introduction 6

PigeonGuillemotDescription 6

ProjectBackground 7

ReserveBackground 8

GoalsandObjectives 10

Methods 10

BasisandProtocols 10

SurveysandProcedures 11

Sites 12

Recordkeeping 13

ReportingIndividualAbundanceData 14

CitizenScienceTraining 14

Results 15

Sites 15

IndicationofMaximumAbundance 17

Burrows 19

PreyDelivery 21

Discussion 24

RecommendationsandImprovements 26

References 28

AppendixA:DataSheet 30

AppendixB:DataCollectionProtocolsUsed 32

AppendixC:QualityAssuranceProjectPlan(QAPP) 35

5


Figures,Tables,Photos,andAppendicesFigures

Figure1:NisquallyReachAquaticReserveandsurroundingareasmap(WDNR,2011).

Figure2:Typicalsurveysite;exposedsedimentarybluffwithmoderatesizedholespreferredbyPIGU

(NRAR,n.d.).

Figure3:Mapof2016-2018SouthSoundPigeonGuillemotsurveylocations(Lee,2019).

Figure4:SumofindicationofmaximumabundanceofPigeonGuillemots.

Figure5:3-Yearsummaryofreportablepreydeliveriesbyweek,allpreycombined.

Figure6:Adjusted3-Yearsummaryofpreydeliveriesbyweek,allpreycombined.

Figure7.Reportable3-Yeartotalpreydeliveredtoburrows.

Figure8.Adjusted3-Yeartotalpreydeliveredtoburrows.

Tables

Table1:NumberofVolunteersTrainedbyYearandLocation.

Table2:NumberofVisitsPerReportableSiteasSurveyed2016-2018andTotalNumberofSurveyed

Sites.

Table3:ReportableIndicationofMaximum(HighCount)bySiteasSurveyed2016-2018.

Table4:ReportableOccupiedandChickBurrowsbySiteasSurveyed2016-2018.

Table5:RateofFishDeliverytoHatchlingsperHouratReportableSitesSurveyed2016-2018.

Table6:AdjustedRateofFishDeliverytoHatchlingsperHouratallSitesSurveyed2016-2018.

Photos

Cover-Rosling,G.,(n.d.)PigeonGuillemotonrock.

Figure3-NRAR,(n.d.)Typicalsurveysite;exposedsedimentarybluffwithmoderatesizedholes

preferredbyPIGU.

Appendices

AppendixA:DataSheets

AppendixB:DataCollectionProtocolsUsed

AppendixC:QualityAssuranceProjectPlan(QAPP)

6


SouthPugetSoundandNisquallyReachAquaticReservePigeonGuillemotBreedingSurveys

2016-2018MonitoringReportAbstractTheNisquallyReachAquaticReserveCitizenStewardsconductedPigeonGuillemotsurveysbeginningin2013through2018inSouthPugetSound,todocumentnumberofadultsobserved,burrowoccupancy,chickfeeding,disturbances,andseasonalchangesatamaximumof41sitesperyear.EachweekfromJunethroughSeptemberforanhouratatime,thehighestnumberofPigeonGuillemotswerecountedateachsitealongwithburrowvisits,fishdeliveries,anddisturbances.ThepurposeofthemonitoringistocollectbaselinedataforSouthPugetSoundaspartofalargerregionalefforttodetecttrendsandchangesinPigeonGuillemotpopulations.IntroductionPigeonGuillemotDescriptionThePigeonGuillemot(PIGU)(Cepphuscolumba)isasmalldivingseabirdthatbreedswidelyinPugetSound.TheyareintheAlcidaefamilyofseabirds,andrelatedtopuffins,auks,andmurres,amongothers.PIGUarestockydarkmonomorphicseabirdswithroundedwings,straightbills,andbrightredfeetandmouthlining(SeattleAudubonSociety,n.d.).Duringthebreedingseason,adultbirdsdevelopadistinctivedarkbrownplumagewithblackiridescenceandawhitewingpatchwithablackwedge;however,theyappearamottledgreyandblackwithwhiteunderpartsintheirnon-breedingphaseandasjuveniles(SeattleAudubonSociety,n.d.).Theyusuallyarebetween3-5yearsoldbeforebreeding(SeattleAudubonSociety,n.d.)andwillliveabout4.5yearsaftertheonsetofbreeding(Nelson,1991).Theyareburrow-nesters,andutilizehighbluffsalongshorelinesofrockyshoresandmainlandcliffsclosetoshallowwater.Eggsareincubatedbybothsexes,andusuallyhatchafter26to32days(NationalAudubonSociety,n.d.).Chicksfledgebetween34to42daysafterhatching(Vermeer,Morgan,J.R.,&Smith.,1993).AstudyofPIGUbreedingcoloniesandpopulationsindicatedastrongpartialitytowardssand/claybluffsasnestinghabitat(Evenson,etal.,2003).Theirpreferrednestingsitesaretheirownnatalcavitiesorburrowswithin200mofnatalsites(Nelson,1991),exhibitingastrongsitefidelitywithinthespecies.Theydifferfromotheralcidsbyusuallylayingtwoeggsinanest(SeattleAudubonSociety,n.d.).PIGUdivefortheirbenthicprey,usuallybetween10to30mdeep(Ewins,1993),and,fromourdata,usuallyselectgunnelorsculpinwithintheSouthSound,althoughotherpreyspeciesaretaken(Bishop,Rosling,Kind,&Wood,2016).PIGUareoneofthekeymarinebirdindicatorsinPugetSound;thevitalityoftheirpopulationcanserveasameasureofenvironmentalhealth,biodiversity,habitatcondition,andclimatechange(PearsonandHamel,2013).Thisbecomesevenmoreevidentbecausetheyare“especiallysensitivetothequalityofthemarineenvironment”(Pyle,2001)andareconsidereda“climatethreatened”speciesbytheNationalAudubonSociety(n.d.,2014).ThespeciesissosensitivethatBixler(2010)assertsthattheyare“currentlytheonlyavianspeciesthatislistedas‘notrecovering’ontheExxonValdezOilSpillTrusteeCouncil’sInjuredResourcesList,”20yearslater.ThehealthofthePIGUpopulationreflectsthehealthoftheSalishSeamarineecosystem,andcaninfluenceenvironmentalpolicychanges,whenbackedbysolidresearchanddata(Pyle,2001).ThePugetSoundPartnership,PugetSoundEnvironmentalMonitoring

7


Program,MarineBirdsWorkgroupselectedthePIGUasavitalsignspeciesbecausethesebirdsarePugetSound-dependentthroughouttheyear.PIGUsarecommoninthewatersoftheNRARduringthesummerbreedingseasonandforageinnear-shorewaters.PastandcurrentstudieshavealsoidentifiedthepresenceofPIGUsthroughouttheSoundinthefall,winterandspringseasons(Nysewander,etal,2005;PugetSoundSeabirdSurvey,2018).PopulationsinSouthPugetSoundwerefoundbyPearson(2016)toberelativelystableoveraperiodofabout16years,butsmalleronaveragecomparedtopopulationsonWhidbeyIslandwherethesebirdshavebeenstudiedforalongerperiodoftime.Breedingandnon-breedingPIGUsmingleasagrouponthewater,onthebeach,andonthebluffsneartheburrows,andshowstrongsocialinteractionsincludingvocalizing,synchronizedflying,billing,andmating(USFishandWildlifeService(USFWS),2006).Bothmaleandfemalebirdsincubateeggsandcareforchicks(Drent,1965).ChickstypicallyhatchinlateJuneandfledgeinAugust,between29-37daysafterhatching(Thoresen&Booth,1958;USFWS,2006).ProjectBackgroundIn2006,AnneMills,asProgramCoordinatorforSouthSoundGREEN,awatershededucationprogram,arrangedforFrancisWood,founderofWhidbeyIslandGuillemotResearchGroup,togiveapresentationaboutPigeonGuillemots(PIGU)tolocalwatershededucatorsinSouthSoundforaworkshoponMarineBirds.Inspiredbythetalk,Anneresolvedtobecomeinvolvedinresearchingthesebirdsandthusaddedittoherretirementbucketlist.AcountofPIGUaroundAndersonIslandhadbeendocumentedbyLindsayK.RaabandGovindaRoslingin2010aspartofestablishingtheNisquallyDeltaImportantBirdArea(IBA).TheNisquallyReachAquaticReservewasestablishedin2011andincludedthetheIBAandcoloniesalongtheNisquallyReach.ResearchandnetworkingsuggestedmultiplecolonieswerenearorintheotherSouthSoundinlets.WhenAnneretiredin2012,shevisitedWhidbeyIslandtoviewPIGUbreedinghabitat,participatedintheirtraining,metvolunteers,andheardresultsoftheirsurveywork.TheSouthSoundPIGUBreedingSurveywasinitiatedin2013,serendipitously,whenAnnefoundasponsorinDanielHull,ExecutiveDirectorofNisquallyReachNatureCenter(NRNC).Shewasseekinganorganizationforsupportinordertobegintheresearch,andhewasactivelyseekinganappropriatecitizenscienceprojecttobeconductedwithintheNisquallyReachAquaticReserve.SubstantialandongoingsupporthasbeenprovidedbyWhidbeyIslandGuillemotResearchGroup,includingcomingtoOlympiatopresentandassistwithvolunteertraining,sharingofsurveymaterials,suchassurveyprotocolanddatasheets,answeringquestions,andcoordinatingregionalconsistency.ThefirstyearofthePIGUBreedingSurveyinSouthSoundwascoordinatedbyAnne,withadditionalsupportfromtheNisquallyReachAquaticReserveCitizenStewardshipCommitteeandWashingtonEnvironmentalCouncil.TerenceLeebegantomanageNRNC’scitizenscienceprojects,includingthisstudy,in2014asthesciencetechnicianfortheCenter.Currently,NRNCiscompilinganextendeddatasetonthebreedingecologyofPIGUcoloniesthroughoutSouthPugetSound,toinformbestpracticesinecologicalconservationbyestablishingbaselinedataforhistoricalpopulationchangesandtrends(thoughanindexofmaximumabundance)overmultipleyears.Conductingthisstudy,inadvanceofevidentdeclinesofthePIGU,isarareexerciseinpopulationecologystudies,andtheabilitytoaffectsuchstudiesinalong-termmonitoringeffortisdifficulttosustainformoststudygroups(Bonebrake,Christensen,Boggs,&Erlich,2010).

8


TherecordofSouthSounddatamaypromotefuturestudieswithintheregion,beusedforcomparisons,orassiststudiesinothersimilarhabitatsthroughdata-sharing.Mostofthedatacollectionoccursduringthesummerbreedingseason,butwintermonitoringofresidentbirdsisalsoconducted(howeveritisnotreportedherein).Acquireddatamaybeusedfornaturalresourcedamageprevention,mitigation,andassessment;naturalresourcemanagement;andprotectionofcriticalhabitatsandprotectedspecies.ReserveBackgroundTheNRARispartoftheWashingtonStateDepartmentofNaturalResources(WDNR)AquaticReservesProgram.Anaquaticreservecanbedesignatedforanyofthefollowingpurposes,singlyorincombination:educational,environmental,orscientific.Educationalreservesareaccessibleareasofaquaticlandstypicalofselectedhabitattypeswhicharesuitableforeducationalprojects.Environmentalreservesareareasofenvironmentalimportance,sitesestablishedforthecontinuanceofenvironmentalbaselinemonitoring,and/orareasofhistorical,geologicalorbiologicalinterestrequiringspecialprotectivemanagement.Scientificreservesaresitessetasideforscientificresearchprojectsand/orareasofunusuallyrichplantandanimalcommunitiessuitableforcontinuingscientificobservation(WDNR,2011).NRARwasdesignatedasaneducational,environmental,andscientificreserve.TheNRARencompassesapproximately6,000hectares(14,826acres)ofstate-ownedandDNR-managedtidelandsandbedlands.Theownershipofadjacentlandsisdiverse:TolmieStatePark,theBillyFrankJr.NisquallyNationalWildlifeRefuge(formerlyknownasNisquallyNationalWildlifeRefuge),localparkdistricts,andprivate,tribal,WDFW,military,city,andcountylands.Therearenearly63km(39miles)ofshorelineadjacenttothereserve,themajoritybeingprivatelyowned.TheNRARareaisshowningreenonFigure1.

9


Figure1.NisquallyReachAquaticReserveandsurroundingareasmap(WDNR,2011).

10


GoalsandObjectivesThegoalsofthepigeonguillemotbreedingsurveysinSouthPugetSound,neartheNRAR,areto:

1) Provideabaselinefordetectingchangesandtrendsinlocalpigeonguillemotpopulations.2) Createamulti-yeardatasetcontaining:

● ThenumberofPigeonGuillemotbreedingsitesthroughoutSouthPugetSound.● ColonyandSouthSoundpopulationestimates.● Thenumberofactiveburrowsateachsite.● Preytypedeliveredtochicks.● Nestingdisturbancesandcolonyreactiontothesame.

3) ContinuevitalmonitoringeffortsbyeducatingandtrainingvolunteerstomonitorPigeonGuillemotbreedingsites.

Inordertoaccomplishthegoalsabove,thefollowingobjectivesarenecessarytobeaccomplished:

● Trainandretainateamofatleast30volunteerstoidentifyandmonitoractivebreedingburrowsofPIGUandbeavailableeachyearforthesurveys.

● RecordweeklyobservationsofPIGUbehaviorduringthebreedingseasononthedatasheet(AppendixA)at30ormoreSouthSoundsites.

● Providedataandfindingstoappropriatelocalandstateagenciesandthepublic,viawebsiteandotheroutreach,suchaspresentationstocommunitygroups.

MethodsBasisandProtocolsThePigeonGuillemotstudy,conductedbytheNisquallyReachNatureCenter,hasproducedadatasetofsixdiscreteelementsofthebreedingecologyofthesebirdsatcoloniesthroughoutSouthPugetSound(seegoal2,above),withtheintentofestablishingbaselinedataforfuturestudiesandtoestimateeffectsfrombothnaturalandanthropogenicdisturbances,shouldtheyarise.ThesurveyprotocolsusedforthisprojectaredetailedinAppendixBaswellastheQualityAssuranceProjectPlan(QAPP)(AppendixC).Monitoringsurveysconductedbyvolunteers,interns,andstaffgeneratedthedatausedinthisreport.ThesurveytechniquewasbasedonthemethodestablishedbytheGuillemotResearchGroup,formerlyWhidbeyIslandPigeonGuillemotResearchGroup.IntheSouthSound,ourmethodsdeviatefromtheGuillemotResearchGroupintwoways.First,webeginoursurveyvisitstotheselectedcolonysitesaboutoneweekearlierthanisdoneonWhidbeyIsland.Second,oursurveysbeginonanydaynolaterthan7:45am,ratherthan8:45amasonWhidbeyIsland.Bothofthesedeviationsfromthebaseandestablishedmethodsareduetoourdiscoveriesthatfeedingactivitywasalreadyoccurringuponarrivalofthevolunteersinthefirststudyweek,andthatourbirdsareactiveearlierinthedayandhavealreadylefttheburrowsifwestartlater.Notwishingtomisscollectinggooddatapointsforthebaseline,weoptedtomakethechangesdescribed.

11


Threetypesofdatawerecollected:

1. Populationdata-CountsofPIGUaretakenatthebeginningofthesurvey,atthemiddle,andattheend.Throughoutthesurveyhour,atallyofthehighestnumberofbirdsobservedatagivenpointintimeisrecorded.Thismayormaynotcoincidewithoneofthethreecounts.Emphasisisplacedoncountingonlybirdsthatareassociatingwiththesitebeingmonitored.

2. Burrowdata-Timeswhenbirdsenterorleaveburrowswithpreyarerecordedasarefishdeliveries,andenteringwithoutpreyisrecordedasanopreyvisit.Fishareidentifiedtogeneraltypes(gunnel,sculpin,other)withtimesforeachtyperecordedseparately.Alltimesofvariousburrowactivitiesarerecordedbyburrownumber.

3. Disturbancedata-Eventsthatcancauseunnaturalchangesinbehaviorarecategorizedbytypeandduration.Startandendtimesforeacheventarerecordedasapplicable.

SurveysandProceduresMonitoringsurveyswereconductedbetweenthefirstweekofJunethroughthefirstweekofSeptemberin2016,2017,and2018,tocapturedatapointswithinbreedingcoloniesatamaximumof41sitesperyear.Thiseffortwaspossibleasaresultofthemorethan600hoursperyearbyatotalof61volunteers.Thesehoursincludebothtransportationandon-sitetime.Asitesurveyteamconsistsofatleastoneperson,butideallytwoormore,arrivingatthedesignatedsitenolaterthan7:45amtoconductunadjustedpointcensusofPIGUatthesite(Bibby,Jones,&Marsden,1998;Gregory,Gibbons,&Donald,2004)andrecordvariousdataelementsforonehour.Anobserver/surveyteamwillgototheirdesignatedsiteonceaweek,foratleasttenweeksfromthestartdate.Eachsiteisclosedaftertenweeks,iftherehavebeenatleasttwoconsecutiveweekswithoutburrowactivity(thedeliveryofpreytotheburrow).Ifthetwoweekshavenotbeenmetattheten-weektimeframe,thesurveyscontinueuntiltherearetwoconsecutiveweekswithoutburrowactivity.Sitesmaybeclosedearlierthan10weeksiftherehasbeennoburrowactivity,withthepermissionoftheScienceDirector.Mostsurveysitesareaccessibleviabeachaccessbyfoot,butallofthesitesonKetronIslandareonlyaccessiblebyboat(KetronFerry,KetronNE,andKetronSW).Visualobservationsofbirdsandburrowactivityaretypicallyaugmentedbytheuseofbinoculars.InordertominimizedisturbanceandinfluenceonthePIGUs,volunteerstypicallysitofftothesideofthesite,positionedinsuchamannerthatitispossibletosimultaneouslymonitoralltheburrowsandactivityonthewater.SincePIGUaremoreapttobeattheirburrowsonmorningswithahightide(Vermeer,Morgan,K.H.,&Smith,1993),thiscancauseaccessdifficultyduringespeciallyhightideswhileobservingtheBeachcrest,ButterballCove,LylePoint,SandyPoint,Totten,andZanglecolonies;andadjustmentsofsurveydatesisallowabletomitigatetheseeffects.Withineachsite,burrowswerenumbered,andburrowactivitywasattributedtothespecificburrowsastheyoccurred.PIGUenteringburrowswithoutfoodwasconsideredasanattempttochooseasiteforlayingorincubation,andtheburrowwasdesignated“occupied.”Whenfishwerebroughttotheburrowitwasdesignatedasa“chickburrow.”Preywereidentifiedaseithergunnel(Pholidae)orsculpin(Cottidae).Anyunidentifiedfish,orthosefromotherfamilieswerereportedas“otherprey”delivered.

12


Figure2.Typicalsurveysite;exposedsedimentarybluffwithmoderatesizedholespreferredbyPIGU(NRAR,n.d.).SitesA“site”isthelocationfromwhichobservationsaremadeofthePIGU“colony”inthatlocation.Eachcolonyisadiscretesample,andthesurveyteamsconductacensusforthatsampleduringeachvisit(Gregory,etal.,2004).Acolonycanhavemultiplesitesdesignatedusingaletteringsystem(A,B,C),baseduponthetimeofburrowactivitydiscovery.Therefore,thecolonyisnamedforthesite,andsitevisitsareofthatcolony.Namesaretypicallyassociatedwithgeographiclandmarksmarkedonmapssuchaspoints,coves,bays,orincaseswherethereisn’taprominentland/waterfeature,roadnamesorneighborhoodnamesareused.Siteselectionwasdeterminedusingreportsandobservation.Initialeffortswerebasedonanecdotal,wordofmouthreportsof‘historical’breedingcolonies,whichwerevisitedbeginninginfallof2012tolocateandassessthehabitat.Validationofsitesforusecontinuesannually,andincludesobservingnewlyreportedpotentialsites.Siteswerechosenbyvisitinglikelybreedingareas.IfPIGUwereobservedintheimmediatevicinityofburrows,visitingburrows,ordeliveringfish,thelocationwasselectedforsurvey.Colonyaccesswas,andstillcontinuestobe,asignificantdriverofsurveyinclusionsincemostsitesarelocatedonprivatebeaches.

13


SitesaretypicallycharacterizedbyhighbankswithexposedfacespockmarkedwithburrowsofvaryingsizesasseeninFigure2.Thesmallestburrowsareusedbyswallows,whilekingfishersusesmalltomediumburrows,withPIGUsusingmediumtolargeburrows.

Figure3.Mapof2016-2018SouthSoundPigeonGuillemotsurveylocations(Lee,2019).Numberedsitesareconsideredreportable,andletteredsiteswereincompletelysurveyed.ParentheticalnumbersonTable2correlatesreportablesitenumbersonmapwithsitename.Siteswithmultiplenumbersareduetomapscale.Siteswereaddedorremovedfrommonitoringeachyear.Thenumberofunmonitoredsiteswas27in2016,14in2017,and16in2018.Theseunmonitoredsitesaresubtractedfromthetotalnumberofsiteswehavesurveyed(n=53)overthetotaldurationofthestudy.Asanexample,ifanewsitewasaddedin2018,itiscountedasanunmonitoredsitefor2016and2017,eventhoughitdidnotexistasasiteatthosetimes.Figure3representsthegeographicextentofourstudyarea,andlabelsthevastmajorityofsurveyedsites.Labellingexceptionsareforthosecombinedsiteswhichareincloseproximitytooneanotherandidentifiedonlyasthecombinedsitelocation.TheinsetindicatesthethreesitesonthenorthernendofHarstineIsland(b,d,andf),andthesiteonHopeIsland(e).RecordkeepingSurveyobservationsarerecordedonastandardizeddatasheet(AppendixA)pertheprotocolestablishedatWhidbeyIsland(AppendixB),andenteredintothewww.pigeonguillemotdata.orgdatabase,thatisoperatedbytheWhidbeyIslandgroup.ThesheetisrequestedtobeturnedintotheNRNCwithinoneweekofthesurveydatebythesitevolunteers.

Notshownatthisscale, see2ReportablesiteCombinedsitewithallsites

reportableCombinedsitewithout allsites

reportable,butcombined isreportable

Othersite/other combined site

*

HarstineIsland

SeeInsetMapEnlargement

14


Thesurveydatasheetrequestsbasicinformationaboutthesurveysite,suchasthenameofthesite,dateofsurvey,andtimeofsurveystart,tideinformationatthestartofthesurvey.Italsohasspaceforinformationabouttheobserversatthesitethatday;capturingtheteamleadnameandemail,namesofotherobservers,andthetotalvolunteertimeforthatsurvey.EachdatasheetismailedoremailedtotheNRNCforfilingandqualityassuranceandcontrolmeasures.Theactualdataentriescapturedonthesheetinclude:

• thesurvey’shighestPIGUabundancecount,withcountsatthebeginning/middle/endoftheallottedtime;

• burrownumberidentificationandnotesonusebytimestampofoccurrence(describedeitherasa“nopreydelivery,”orbyindicatingthetypeofpreydelivered);

• disturbancesexperiencedduringthesurvey,thetimeofoccurrence,typeanddurationofPIGUresponse;and

• additionalnotesabouttheburrowsorthecolony/site.Qualityassuranceandqualitycontrol(QA/QC)measuresstatedintheQAPP(AppendixC)areimplementedinallprojectsteps,includingensuringeachsheetiscomplete,thatthedataisenteredintothedatabase,andthesheetsareproperlyfiledwithintheNRNC.OneofthemostdifficultQA/QCtasksistoensureeachsurveyhastherespectivedatasheetonfileasabackuptotheonlinerecord,andthatlackhascausedsomepotentialdatatobeexcluded.ReportingIndividualAbundanceDataIncolonieswithmultiplesites,thebirdsarewellabletotraveltothoseothersitesnearby.Wherebirdscomingleandcouldpotentiallybedoublecounted,onlythehighestcountofPIGUatanyoneofthesiteswasdesignatedasthehighcountforthecombinedcolony(Gregory,etal.,2004,pp.41,44)(seebelowlist).Thiswouldonlybeshowniftherewasdataforthosesites.Thehighcountsofbirdsdidnotattempttodifferentiatebetweenbreedingpairsandnon-breedingbirdsinthismonomorphicspecies.Belowisalistofsitesforwhichtheindividualabundancedatawouldbereportedonlyunderthecombinedsitename:Andy’sMarineParkSouth+Andy’sMarineParkWest-->Andy’sMarineParkCombinedButterballCoveSouthA+ButterballNorth-->ButterballCoveCombinedEdgewaterA+B+C+D-->EdgewaterCombinedKetronSE+KetronSW-->KetronCombined(KetronFerryRemainsseparate)MillBightA+B-->MillBightCombined(MillBightCremainsseparate)Totten@ElizanATower+ANorth+ASouth+B-->Totten@ElizanCombinedTotten@Legacy+C-->Totten@LegacyCombinedWalnutRdA+B+C-->WalnutRdCombinedYoung’sCoveA+AWest+B-->Young’sCoveABCombinedYoung’sCoveC+D+F-->Young’sCoveCDFCombined(Young’sCoveEremainsseparate)ZangleCoveA+B+C-->ZangleCoveCombinedCitizenScienceTrainingSinceinceptionofthisproject,theNisquallyReachNatureCenterprovidedtrainingforvolunteersinatri-countyarea:inThurstonCountyattheNRNC,inPierceCountyonAndersonIsland,andinMasonCountyonHarstineIsland.Table1providesinformationonthenumberofvolunteerstrainedbysitebyyear,andindicatesiftheywerenewthatyearorareturningvolunteer.Atotalof31citizenscientists

15


weretrainedin2016,47in2017,and24in2018.Returningvolunteersareencouragedtoattendthetraining,buttheirattendanceisnotrequired.Trainingprovidesaccesstodiversepopulationoflearnersatdifferentskilllevelsthroughuseofmultiplemethods,andincludes:backgroundinformationaboutPIGU,breedinghabitat,preyidentification,datacollection,anddataentry.Classroomsessionslastedanaverageoffourhours.Fieldorientationsareincludedaspartofthetrainingtodemonstratesitelocations,associatedburrows,andbestpracticesforsiteuseduringobservations/surveys.Table1.NumberofVolunteersTrainedbyYearandLocation.NumberofVolunteersTrainedbyYearandLocation.TrainingSite 2016 2017 2018 New Returning New Returning New Returning NRNC 9 8 24 15 9 10AndersonIsland 5 3 7 1 0 2 HarstineIsland 2 4 - - 2 1

TotalbyYear 31 47 24 Note:Table1onlyrecordsvolunteersattendingtheformaltrainingsessions,itdoesnotprovidetotalnumbersofvolunteers.ResultsSitesSiteswithsurveysthatmettheQAPPguidanceoftenweeks,withtwoconsecutiveweeksofnoburrowactivitytocloseouttheseason,wereconsidered‘reportable’sites(aslistedinTable2,andthroughoutthisdocument).DespitehavingninesurveysBigFishTrapwasincludedinthislist,becausethesitewasclosedwithintheQAPPguidelinesforlowactivity.Therewere15reportablesitesin2016,17in2017,and22in2018.Othersitessurveyed(15sitesin2016,24sitesin2017,and15sitesin2018)throughoutthethreeyearsdidnotmeetthecriteriaofproviding10weeksofdata.However,theseothersiteshadgoodobservationsofbirdnumbers,preydeliverybytypeandnumber,andburrowusage,andareincludedasadditionaldatainthe‘adjusted’figuresthatareusedthroughoutthereportinordertopresentamorecompletepictureoftotalPIGUactivityintheSouthSound.Ofthe53totalpotentialsites,notallsitesweresurveyedeachyear,norweretheycompletelysurveyedeachyear.In2016,31separatesitesweresurveyed.Ofthesesites,20werecompletedbutfourwerenotinaccordancewithQAPPguidelinesandarenotconsideredinthe‘reportable’category(seeTable2forreportablesitesbyyear).Additionally,four2016siteswereincompletelysurveyedduetositeinactivity,threebecauseofvolunteerissues,twowereprematurelyclosed,andoneduetolatestart.Tensiteswereaddedin2017foratotalof41whichweresurveyed.Twenty-onewerecompleted,howeverfoursiteswereagainnotinaccordancewiththeQAPPandarenotreportable.NinesiteswereclosedduetolackofPIGUactivity,fivesiteswereincompletelysurveyedduetovolunteerissues,threewereprematurelyclosed,andtwohadlatestarts(anadditionaleffectofthevolunteerissuesforthesites).In2018therewere37sitessurveyed.Twenty-fiveofthesewerecompleted,22arereportableandthreewerenotreportable.SixsiteswereclosedduetolackofPIGUactivity,fourexperiencedvolunteerissues,twowerestartedlate,andonewasprematurelyclosed.SincetheKetronsitesmustbe

16


accessedbyboat,thelackofboatcaptainsseverelyhampersourmonitoringabilityinthoselocations.Table2,below,showsthenumberofvisitstoeachofthereportablesitesoverthreeyears,andthenumberofothersitessurveyedbyyear,withasummationofthetotalsitessurveyedperyear.Table2.NumberofVisitsPerReportableSite.NumberofVisitsPerReportableSiteasSurveyed2016-2018andTotalNumberofSurveyedSites(dataextractedfromannualreportsathttp://www.pigeonguillemotdata.org)._____________________________________________________________________________________ SiteName NumberofVisits 2016 2017 2018 (1)Andy’sMarineParkSouth 14 (1)Andy’sMarineParkWest 10(2)BeachcrestWest 12(3)BigFishTrap 9 11 10(4)BriscoePoint 10(5)BurfootPark 11 11 16(6)ButterballCoveSouthA 14 12 12(6)ButterballNorth 16 10(7)ColePoint 10(8)EdgewaterA 11(8)EdgewaterB 12(8)EdgewaterC 10(8)EdgewaterD 10(9)Flapjack 11(10)Hearthfire 11 10(11)HigginsCove 10(12)LylePoint 12 11(13)MillBightA 12 13 11(13)MillBightB 13 12 12(14)MillBightC 11(15)SandyPoint 14(16)Totten@ElizanANorth 10(17)Totten@ElizanC 10(17)Totten@Legacy 10(18)WalnutRoadA 10 10(18)WalnutRoadB 12 11(18)WalnutRoadC 10 11(19)Young’sCoveA 11 11 13(20)Young’sCoveC 11 11 12(20)Young’sCoveD 10 10 12(21)Young’sCoveE 15

17


(22)ZangleCoveA 15(23)Zittel’sMarina 11

TotalReportableSites 16 17 22TotalOtherSites 15 24 15 TotalSitesSurveyed 31 41 37

Note:ParentheticalnumbersbeforethesitenamecorrespondtolocationsindicatedonFigure2;notallsitesarereportableandareconsidered“othersites,”indicatedbylettersonFigure2.These“othersites”include:a.BeachcrestEast;b.FernCreek;c.GullHarbor;d.HarstinePointeLagoon;e.HopeIslandNE;f.JarrellCoveStatePark;g.KetronFerry;h.KetronCombined;andi.PriestPointPark.IndicationofMaximumAbundanceTheabundanceofPIGUwascalculatedbyaddingthehighestcountofPIGUseenthroughouttheyear’sweeklysurveysateachreportedsite(Table3),followingthemethodologyfromWhidbeyIsland(Bishop,etal.,2016).AsonWhidbeyIsland(Bishop,et.al.,2016),thenumbersofbirdscountedandtheresultingindicationsofmaximumabundancedonotincludebirdswhowerenotseenforthereasonsofremainingwithinburrows,orabsentfromthecolonyfortheentiresurveytime,nordotheyattempttoexcludebirdswhomayhavetraveledfromanothercolonytothesitebeingsurveyed.Themethodssection,above,indicateswhichcolonieshavemultiplesitesandwhicharelistedas“combined”(inTable3)forthepurposesofcountingthenumberofPIGU;thehighcountisdeemedtobethesinglehighestvaluefromanyofthesiteswithinthecolony.Table3,below,providesPIGUhighcountsperreportablesite.OthersitehighcountswereaddedtothereportablesitestoprovideanaggregateannualtotalasanindicatorofPIGUindividualabundanceintheSouthSound,asshownatthebottomofTable3.Table3.ReportableIndicationsofMaximumAbundance.ReportableIndicationofMaximumAbundance(HighCount)bySiteasSurveyed2016-2018(dataextractedfromannualreportsathttp://www.pigeonguillemotdata.org). SiteName HighCountofPIGU 2016 2017 2018 Andy’sMarineParkCombined 20 BeachcrestWest 19BigFishTrap 12 6 16BriscoePoint 18BurfootPark 13 14 10ButterballCoveCombined 20 29 33ColePoint 19EdgewaterCombined 26Flapjack 15

18


Hearthfire 8 3HigginsCove 20LylePoint 28 27MillBightCombined 15 26 24MillBightC 7SandyPoint 22Totten@ElizanCombined 5Totten@Legacy 6WalnutRoadCombined 32 41Young’sCoveABCombined 11 9 10Young’sCoveCDFCombined 10 10 9Young’sCoveE 6ZangleCoveCombined 6Zittel’sMarina 6TotalReportableSiteHighCount 172 182 257TotalOtherSitesHighCount 144 209 69 TotalAdjustedAnnualHighCount 299 374 313 (IndicationofPIGUMaximumAbundanceinSouthPugetSound)

Note:Onlythehighestvalueforofallsub-siteswaslistedastheentryforacombinedsiteandincludedintothetotals.TheinclusionofthevaluesforothersitesintotheAdjustedHighCountisnotstraightadditionofthereportableandothersitestotals,asseveraloftheothersitesweresub-sitesreportedunderacombinedsite.Aone-wayANOVAwasrunforthethreeyears’datafromreportablesitesandindicatedtherewasnostatisticallysignificantdifferencebetweenorwithinthemeasuresofmaximumabundancereported[F(2,35)=1.07,p=0.353963],norbetweenorwithintheadjustedmaximumabundancefigures[F(3,70)=0.29,p=0.749158].TheseresultslendcredencetothehypothesisthatthenumbersarerepresentativeoftheabundanceofPIGUoverthestudyperiodandarea.TheadjustedaverageyearlyindexofmaximumabundancefortheSouthSoundwas329individuals.ThesitewithlargestabundancewastheWalnutRoadCombinedcolony,withahighcountof41PIGUin2018,andthesmallestwastheHearthfirecolonywith3PIGUalsoin2018.Anaverageabundancepersite(usingeachdailyhighcount)wasnotcalculatedsincehighcountswereconsideredthepeakfortheseason.Asadditionaldataiscollected,itwillbepossibletocompareabundancedatafromyeartoyearateachspecificsite.

19


Figure4.SumofindicationofmaximumabundanceofPigeonGuillemots.AnnualandaverageindicationsofmaximumabundanceofPigeonGuillemotsatreportablecoloniesduringJunetoSeptember,2016through2018inSouthPugetSound(2016:nsites=16;2017:nsites=17;2018:nsites=22)ascomparedtoadjustedcolonydata(2016:nsites=31;2017:nsites=41;2018:nsites=37)inthesecondcolumnofeachyear.BurrowsNumberofoccupiedburrows(identifiedbyvisitsintoburrowswithoutpreydelivery)werecomparedtothenumberburrowswithpreydeliveryvisits,identifiedas‘chickburrows.’Occupiedburrows,forreportablesites,numbered27in2016,25in2017,and44in2018.Chickburrowswere25in2016,29in2017,and36in2018.Theadjustedoccupiedburrowswere48,61,and52,and39,49,and40forchickburrows,ineachyearrespectively,beginningat2016.IndividualresultsbyreportablesitearepresentedinTable4.Aone-wayANOVAwasrunforthethreeyears’dataandindicatedtherewasnostatisticallysignificantdifferencebetweenorwithintheamountofoccupiedversuschickburrowsreported[F(2,52)=0.73,p=0.487].Table4.ReportableOccupiedandChickBurrowsbysite.ReportableOccupiedandChickBurrowsbySiteasSurveyed2016-2018(dataextractedfromannualreportsathttp://www.pigeonguillemotdata.org). SiteName BurrowType 2016 2017 2018 Occupied Chick OccupiedChick Occupied Chick Andy’sMarineParkSouth * * 3 3 * *Andy’sMarineParkWest * * 1 1 * *

20


BeachcrestWest Note Note Note Note 0 2BigFishTrap 1 0 0 0 1 1BriscoePoint Note Note Note Note 8 3BurfootPark 4 3 5 4 5 4ButterballCoveSouthA 6 3 4 4 4 4ButterballNorth * * 1 2 0 0ColePoint 3 3 * * * *EdgewaterA * * * * 0 1EdgewaterB * * * * 2 3EdgewaterC * * * * 1 0EdgewaterD * * * * 1 1Flapjack Note Note Note Note 3 3Hearthfire * * 0 0 0 0HigginsCove 2 2 Note Note Note NoteLylePoint 3 4 Note Note 5 2MillBightA 1 1 0 1 1 2MillBightB 2 2 2 2 2 2MillBightC 0 0 Note Note Note NoteSandyPoint * * 3 3 * *Totten@ElizanANorth 0 1 Note Note Note NoteTotten@ElizanC 0 1 Note Note * *Totten@Legacy 0 1 Note Note Note NoteWalnutRoadA Note Note 2 3 0 1WalnutRoadB Note Note 0 1 3 2WalnutRoadC Note Note 1 1 1 1Young’sCoveA 3 2 0 2 2 2Young’sCoveC 1 1 1 1 2 0Young’sCoveD 1 1 2 0 1 1Young’sCoveE Note Note Note Note 2 1ZangleCoveA Note Note 0 1 Note NoteZittel’sMarina 0 0 * * * *TotalReportableSites 27 25 25 29 44 36TotalOtherSites 21 14 36 20 8 4

AdjustedAnnualTotal 48 39 61 49 52 40

*Sitenotsurveyedduringtheyearindicated.Note.Sitenotreportablefortheyearindicated,burrowfiguresforthesesitesareincludedinthe“othersites”categoryfortheindicatedyear.Datagatheredatnon-reportablesitesisincludedinthe“totalothersites”calculationsofburrowusagebyyear,theresultsofwhicharelistedinTable4.Theinclusionofthisdatachangedthenumberof

21


burrowsinbothcategories,adding21,36,and8occupiedburrows,aswellas14,20,and4chickburrows,respectively.Therewasnostatisticallysignificantdifferencebetweenorwithinthereportableoccupiedburrowsbyyear[one-wayANOVAproducedF(2,50)=0.2,p=0.819383],orfortheadjustedoccupiedburrowsbyyear[one-wayANOVAproducedF(2,94)=1.11,p=0.333839].Thisisalsotrueofthereportablechickburrows[F(2,50)=0.41,p=0.665861]ascomparedtotheadjustedchickburrows[F(2,940)=2.1,p=0.128165].The3-yearmeansforeachburrowtypeare32.00forreportableoccupied,30foradjustedoccupied,53.57forreportablechick,and42.67adjustedchickburrows.Theannualtotalsofreportableactiveburrows(thosewitheithertypeofactivity:occupiedorchickburrowdesignations)were:2016–31,2017–32,and2018–55.ThisdiffersfromthetotalsinTable4,becausesomeburrowsmayhaveonlybeenreportedasachickburrow,andwerenotobservedasoccupiedburrows,andarebasedonthediscreteburrowidentificationnumbersassigned.Adjustedactiveburrowsnumbered:2016–56,2017–75,and2018–64.Overall,theoccupancypercentageofreportableoccupiedburrowswas89.29%andreportablechickburrowswas76.27%.Whenusingallavailabledata,thepercentageofadjustedoccupiedburrowswas76.27andadjustedchickburrowswas65.64%.PreyDeliveryThedateoffishdeliverytoburrowswasmonitoredandrecorded,andthedatawasusedtocalculatereportableandadjustedratesoffishdeliveryperhouracrossthethreeyears,andtodeterminethree-yearmeanratesofdelivery.Prey-typedeliveryrecordswereusedtodeterminethedeliveryproportionsbetweengunnel,sculpin,andotherprey.IneachyearthePIGUatthereportablecoloniesdeliveredover2fishperhourtotheirburrows,withameanvalueof2.53fishperhour(Table5).TherewasnostatisticallysignificantdifferencebetweenorwithintheamountofreportedpreydeliveredbyyearasshowninTable5[F(2,42)=1.37,p=0.265228].Thetwositeswiththehighestdeliveryratesin2016wereBurfootPark(2.33)andButterballCoveSouthA(2.78);in2017theywereButterballCoveSouthA(5.67)andMillBightB(8.67);andin2018theywereFlapjack(4.75)andButterballCoveSouthA(6.50).Thethelowestdeliveryratesin2016were1.00atfourseparatesites;in2017thelowestwasalso1.00atWalnutRoadB,followedbyAndy’sMarineParkWest(1.33);andin2018Young’sCoveAhadthelowestdeliveryrate(1.17)andBigFishTrap(1.33)justabove.Table5.RateofFishDeliverytoHatchlingsperHouratReportableSites.RateofFishDeliverytoHatchlingsperHouratReportableSitesSurveyed2016-2018(dataextractedfromannualreportsathttp://www.pigeonguillemotdata.org).

ReportableFishDeliveryRate 2016 2017 2018 3-YearMeanValues HourswithFishDelivery 49 62 69 60.00NumberFishDelivered 102 175 178 151.67Rate 2.08 2.82 2.58 2.53

22


Table6providestheadjustedrateofdeliveryforallfishovertheyearsofthisstudy.TheadditionaldatadidnotchangetheratesmuchfromthereportablefiguresinTable5.Theseresultswerenotstatisticallydifferentinaone-wayANOVA[F(2,63)=1.81,p=0.313977].Theadditionallyreportedothersitesvariedbetweentheyearswith8in2016,10in2017,and3in2018.Forthethree-yeartotal,thesesitesadded59hourswith136fishdelivered.Table6.AdjustedRateofFishDeliverytoHatchlingsperHour.AdjustedRateofFishDeliverytoHatchlingsperHouratallSitesSurveyed2016-2018(dataextractedfromannualreportsathttp://www.pigeonguillemotdata.org).

AdjustedFishDeliveryRate 2016 2017 2018 3-YearMeanValues HourswithFishDelivery 69 93 77 79.67NumberFishDelivered 145 249 197 197.00Rate 2.10 2.68 2.56 2.47

Thetotalpreydeliverieswerenotsignificantlydifferentbetweenandwithinthethreeyearsofthisreportinaone-wayANOVA(F(2,45)=1.16,p=0.322682).Theadditionoftheexcludedsitesincreaseddeliveriesofpreyspeciesbyalmost300,andisatFigure6.Theadjustedpreydeliverieswerenotsignificantlydifferentforthethreereportedyears(F(2,45)=1.06,p=0.354946).

Figure5.3-Yearsummaryofreportedpreydeliveriesbyweek,allpreycombined.Thepeakinthepreydeliverychartscoincidewiththetimingbetweenincubationandfledging,anddecreasesafterfledging.Thetotaltimeforincubationandfledgingisbetween60to74days(National

23


AudubonSociety,n.d.;Vermeer,Morgan,K.H.,&Smith,1993).SinceadultPIGUeatwhilstonthewater,allpreydeliveriestoburrowsareconsideredtobeforchickconsumption.

Figure6.Adjusted3-Yearsummaryofpreydeliveriesbyweek,allpreycombined.PIGUdeliveredatotalof328gunnels,95sculpins,and32otherprey(Figure7)overthethree-yearperiod,tochicksinreportedburrows,withoutstatisticaldifferencebetweentheyearsbyfishtypedelivered[gunnelone-wayANOVA(F(2,51)=0.7,p=0.501293),sculpinone-wayANOVA(F(2,52)=0.42,p=0.659256),andotherpreyone-wayANOVA(F(2,52)=0.13,p=0.878380)].Preychoice,basedonnumbersdeliveredtoburrowsareshowninFigures7and8.IntheSouthSound,PIGUarehighlyselectiveofgunnelsastheirpreferredspecies(71-72%),withsculpinstheirnextpreference(21-22%),andfinally,anyotherspeciesataconsistent7%,despiteadjustments.

Figure7.Reportable3-Yeartotalpreydeliveredtoburrows.PreydeliveredtoburrowsatreportablesitesduringJunetoSeptember,2016through2018inSouthPugetSound(2016:nsites=16;2017:nsites=17;2018:nsites=22).

24


Figure8.Adjusted3-Yeartotalpreydeliveredtoburrows.TotalpreydeliveredtoburrowsateachsurveyedcolonyduringJunetoSeptember,2016through2018inSouthPugetSound,withtheadditionofexcludedsitestothebaseofthereportedsitesinFigure5(2016:nsites=31;2017:nsites=41;2018:nsites=37).DiscussionTodate,wehavesixyearsofdata-threeofwhichareincludedinthisreport.However,asevidencedinTable2,notallsiteswereconsistentlysurveyedoverthattime.Variousfactorscanleadtolessthantheminimumnumberofsurveysconductedincluding:earlybreeding,PIGUinactivity,tideheights,and/orvolunteerissues.Islandlocaleshaveprovenchallengingtorecruitandretainvolunteers.Moreeffortwillberequiredtoresumemonitoringatanumberofsites.Multiplekeysiteshavebeenidentified(Andy’sMarinePark,Higgin’sCove,LylePoint,SandyPoint)andwillbeprioritizedincomingyears,aswellasthoseforwhichwehaveidentifiedadatashortfallinnothavingreportabledatawith10surveydates.Thesearedeemedkeysites,becausePIGUsarefrequentlyobservedusingthebreedinghabitatonanannualbasisbybirdersandbeachgoers.NRNCstaffhaveobservedbirdsattheselocationsduringtransitwhileconductingothersurveysorduringsitevisitsforreasonsotherthantoconductbreedingsurveys.Additionally,10-weekmonitoringforallsiteswouldcreateamorerobustdataset.Improvingtrainingbyemphasizingthehowcrucialitistohave10consecutiveweeksofsurveysinorderforthedatatobeanalyzedwouldprovidebasisforamorecompletedataset.ThenumberofPIGUobservedforsitessurveyedatleast10weeksforallthreeyearsgenerallydidnotvarymuch(Table4).ThisindicatesalevelofstabilityinindividualPIGUnumbers,butmoredataisneededtoverifywhetheritremainstrueornot.AccordingtotheUSFishandWildlifeService(2006),theworldpopulationofthisspeciesisestimated,and“useofunsystematiccensustechniquespermitsdetectionofonlydramaticchangesandlittletrendinformationisavailable.”ThissurveyattemptstorectifythatsituationwithintheNRNCsphereofinfluence.Documentingphysicalhabitatchangesatthebreedingsitescouldpossiblyexplainwhythenumberofbirdsobservedchangesfromyeartoyear,especiallyinlightoftheirpropensitytowardburrowfidelity(Evenson,etal.,2003).Ifthereisadecreaseinavailableburrows,thenumberofbirdswouldchangeunlesstheycouldadaptindifferentwayssuchasdifferentbreedingpairsutilizingburrowsatdifferenttimesduringtheseasonorpotentiallyfindingdifferenthabitatselsewhere.Gunnelsarethemostcommonpreyofchoiceacrossallyearsofthisstudy(Figures7and8).Theyarealmostalwaysobservedatleastthreetimesasoftenassculpins.Thisstabilityinpreycomposition

25


suggeststhatPigeonGuillemotpreyspecieshaveremainedatequallyhealthylevelsduringthisstudyperiod.Moredataisneededtodetectanylongtermchangesandtrends.Moreconsistentdatacollectionacrossallsiteswouldgiveamorecompletepictureofthepreycompositionthroughouttheregion.AquestionofthePIGUpreycompositioniswhythereissuchastrongpreferenceforgunneloversculpin.Theyarebothbenthicfishthatutilizesimilarhabitatsandareoftenfoundinthesameareas.AstudyofMandt’sBlackGuillemotsfoundintheArcticshowedthatreproductivesuccesswastiedtopreytype;dietshighincodresultedingreatersuccesswhiledietshighinsculpinresultedingreaterfailure(Waters,2017).Sculpinweredeterminedtorepresentapoordietchoiceduetothebonynatureofthefishanddifficultyindigestion.Retreatingseaiceasaresultofrapidclimatechangeledtodecreasedavailabilityofcod,whichforcedtheguillemotstoseeklessdesirableprey(Waters,2017).Althoughbothbirdsandpreyaredifferentspeciesinthecitedstudy,thesimilaritycouldexplainwhyPIGUsprefergunnelstosculpins.Litzow,Piatt,Prichard,andRoby(2001)conductedastudycomparingthelipidcontentofthelocalPIGUpreythatmayprovidefurtherinsightsintopreferencetowardsgunnels,evenintheSouthSound.TheincreasingpressureofclimatechangecouldpotentiallyhaveaneffectonpreyavailabilityinPugetSoundaswatersbecomewarmer,oronthebirds,themselves.PIGUarelistedbytheNationalAudubonSociety(2014)as“climatethreatened”ontheirwebsite.SomeoftheeffectswecananticipatearethatPIGUwillbeginexperiencingadditionalpopulationpressures,suchasfailedbreedingattemptsin“unusuallywarmwatertemperatures”(NationalAudubonSociety,n.d.).Additionally,theirpopulationnumbersmaydropintheSouthSound,astheymayberequiredtomovenorthtofindmorefavorableclimacticconditionsfortheirsurvival.PIGUarehighlysusceptibletoenvironmentalchanges,suchasoilspills(Bixler,2010;USFishandWildlifeService,2006)duetotheirsensitivitytothemarineenvironment,andtheyexperiencetheeffectslongerthanmanyotherspecies.OilorotherhazardousmaterialsspillsintotheenvironmentthatchangetheirfoodavailabilitywouldaffectPIGUsooner,andlongerthanotherspecies.Itisanticipatedthatthedatacollectedduringthisstudycouldbeappliedtonaturalresourcedamageassessmentintheeventofanoilspillorotheranthropogeniccatastrophe,mitigationofanyconsequencesofthosehazards,andusedforaquaticreservemanagement.TheadoptionofthisCitizenScienceprojectdevelopedwiththeintenttogatherandreportdataregardingaspecificindicatorbirdspecies,toestablishabaselineofdata.Thisbaselinemaybeusetoindicateimpactstothatpopulationviacontinuedobservationwithinthestudyarea,orusedforextrapolationtootherareas,inconjunctionwiththeirstudies.Baselinesareveryimportanttodeterminewhetherornotthereisanissuebeingobservedandagainstwhichonecanmeasurechangeefforts.Baselinesareusuallyanexpressionof“normal”asareferenceframewithanexpectationofsomethingthatisdesirable,andareusedtosetthestandardagainstwhichworktoimproveormaintainthebaselineisset(Bull,Gordon,Law,Suttle,&Milner-Gulland,2014).Intheecologicalmanagementcommunity,baselinesareanattempttodefinethetruenaturalstatusofanecosystem(Bull,etal.,2014;Gattietal,2015),andmaybeusedasagoaltoreturntoaftersomeeventthatdisruptsaspeciesorecosystem-theymaybeatargetforrestorationwork.Baselinesmayalsobeusedformaintenanceofanareaorspecies-monitoringhowincreasingpressuresareeffectingthetargetinordertonotdeviatefromaspecifiedmeasure.Alternatively,baselinesmayinformtheneedforinterventionsasunnecessary,orwhetherspecificmethodsusedareworkingtosolvetheissue.Despitetheneedforbaselinestoincludeinformationoveraperiodoftime,thereisnotaspecifictimerequirementfor

26


incorporationintosettingone,althoughatimelineof3-5yearsiscommonlyusedwithinecosystemstudies.Theconceptofshiftingbaselineswasintroducedintheliteratureinthemid-1990sbyPauly(1995),whoidentifiedthatthespanofacareerwasthebaselineusedbyindividualstoevaluatechangesinafishery.Theconceptofshiftingbaselineshasbecomewidelyusedinmanyfields,andisnowusedtodescribedastheincrementalshiftingweexperienceovertimeaschangesoccurandhowthataltersdecisionmakingtodeterminewhatthebaselineisforanareaorspecies.Longer-termstudiescaninformthatlossofinformationandprovidebetter“referencepointsforevaluating...losses...oridentifying...rehabilitation”requirements(Pauly,1995).Withthisinmind,thePIGUmonitoringatNCRCisintendedtocontinueindefinitely,toprovidethebestinformationpossibleintheeventofacatastrophiceventtowardthegoalofrecovery,hereorinotherareasofthePIGUrange.RecommendationsandImprovementsAnumberofrecommendationsweremadeovertheyearstoimprovespatialcoverage,training,datacollection,andqualitycontrol.Theimplementationofsomeoftheserecommendationsincreasedthenumberofsitesmonitored,providedbettertrainedvolunteers,improveddataquality,andmoreenhancedqualitycontrolmeasures.Thereremainsomerecommendationstobefullyimplementedorconsidered,andsomeclarificationstobemade.Recommendationsforfollowingyearswereincludedinreportsattheendofeachseasonusingresultsofinformalsurveyevaluationsanddebriefings.ThefollowingrecommendationsweremadeattheendofYEAR6(2018)andwillbeimplementedinYEAR7(2019):

• Refocussurveyeffortsonsiteswithpreviousdocumentedburrowactivitywherefishdeliverieswereobservedtoensurecompletecoverageofsaidsitesfortheentiretyofthesurveyseason

• Ensureallmonitoringsiteshaveteamsizesadequateforcompletecoverage• Makeastrongerefforttoensurethatsitesaresurveyedfortheamountoftimerequiredto

ensuredataintegrity• Makesureallsurveysareconductedaccordingtotheestablishedprotocolanddesignateteam

leadstoperformfieldlevelqualitycontrol• Continueexploringoptionsforlong-termdatastorageanddatavisualization• Exploreoptionsforadditionalextendedmorningsurveysand/ormid-dayorafternoonsurvey

datawhichmayyieldinformationaboutpatternsandfrequencyoffeeding• Conductpreseasonsurveysonamoreconsistentbasistoensurecompleteness• Hireinternsforfallandwinterterms.Thisshouldresultinearliercompilingandanalysisofdata

andreleaseofresults,provideearlierfeedbackandrewardtovolunteersfortheirefforts,andallowplanningforthefollowingseasontobeginearlier

• Postpastseasons’reportsonNRNCwebsiteand/orcreatea2-pagehighinterestsummaryforthepublic

• Pairnewvolunteersandthosewhorequestitwiththeinternoranexperiencedvolunteerwhowillprovideadditionalmentoring

• Facilitateamoreefficientprocessforsubmittingelectroniccopiesoffielddatasheetstoensurealldataisarchived

• Providedatabasetraining,probablyattwovenues• Changethenon-breedingdatabaseuserinterfacetoobtainmorecompleteanecdotal

observations• Developastandardfortheminimumnumberofsurveysinorderfordatatobeincludedin

statisticalanalysis

27


Ourplantocollect10ormoreyearsofdataisintendedtoestablishastrongdatasetofabundance,breedingsites,andpatternsofpreyselection.WehopethisdatacanbeanalyzedfortrendsandpatternsorredflagsthatmightindicateanytroubleforPIGUpopulations.Wecontinuallyaddnewbreedingsitesastheyarediscoveredandwhenvolunteerscanberecruitedtoconductsurveysatthesesites.Somesitesarediscontinuedwhensurveydataindicatesthesitesarenotcurrentlyactiveforatleastonefullseason.Recruitingnewvolunteersisanongoingeffort.Weplanconductadvancedresearchtolearnmoreaboutotherfacetsthatarenotcurrentlybeingaddressedorhaveonlyreceivedcursoryattention.Pre-seasonsurveysareoneofthoseactivitiesthatwouldprovideinsightintohowearlysomesitesbecomeactiveandwhenchicksatthosesitesarehatching.Conductingsurveysduringothertimesofdaymayyieldinformationonhowmuchburrowactivityoccursoutsideofnormalsurveytimes.Wearealsoinitiatingeffortstolearnmoreaboutthepopulationdynamicsbystartingapilotbandingproject.Thiswouldallowustolearnaboutmaletofemaleratios,populationagestructureforasinglebreedingcolony,andsitefidelity.Anotherareaofinterestinthepilotbandingeffortwouldbetolearnmoreaboutmigrationpatterns.Weintendtoexplorethefeasibilityofsuchaproject.WehavechosennottochangemajormethodsintheprotocolswithoutdiscussionswithotherareaPIGUsurveys,especiallyWhidbeyIslandGuillemotGroup,whohavebeentheleadonthesurveyformanyyears.Wehopetokeepthesurveymethodsconsistentregion-wide,soregionalanalysisismorefeasible.Ongoingannualsurveyswillallowcomparisonsfromyeartoyear.Indoingso,changesinpopulationabundanceanddistributionmaybedetected.Ifdetected,causescouldbepotentiallyevaluatedandinvestigated.Additionally,thesesurveyswillfillexistingdatagaps.Synchronicityofdatawillallowforadvanceddataanalysisbyregionalresearchers.ThesesurveysmayalsobeusedinanyNaturalResourceDamageAssessmentintheeventofanoilspillorotherenvironmentaldisaster.

28


ReferencesBibby,C.J.,Jones,M.andMarsden,S.,(1998).Expeditionfieldtechniques:Birdsurveys.London:

ExpeditionAdvisoryCentre.Bishop,E.,Rosling,G.,Kind,P.,&Wood,F.(2016).PigeonGuillemotsonWhidbeyIslandWashington:A

six-yearmonitoringstudy.NorthwesternNaturalist,97,237-245.Availableathttp://www.pigeonguillemot.org/breeding-survey-resources-and-data.html

Bixler,K.S.(2010).Whyaren’tPigeonGuillemotsinPrinceWilliamSound,AlaskarecoveringfromtheExxonValdezoilspill?(Master’sthesis).Retrievedfromhttps://ir.library.oregonstate.edu/downloads/dz010t437

Bonebrake,T.C.,Christensen,J.,Boggs,C.L.,&Erlich,P.R.(2010).Populationdeclineassessment,historicalbaseline,andconservation.ConservationLetters,3(6),371-378.doi:10.1111/j.175-263X.2010.00139.x

Bull,J.W.,Gordon,A.,Law,E.A.,Suttle,K.B.,andMilner-Gulland,E.J.(2014).Importanceofbaselinespecificationinevaluatingconservationinterventionsandachievingnonetlossofbiodiversity.ConservationBiology,28(3),799-809.doi:10.1111/cobi.12243

Drent,R.H.(1965).BreedingbiologyofthePigeonGuillemot,Cepphuscolumba.Ardea,53(3-4),99-160.Evenson,J.R.,Nysewander,D.R.,Mahaffy,M.,Murphie,B.L.,&Cyra,T.A.(2003).Status,abundance,

andcolonydistributionofbreedingPigeonGuillemots(Cepphuscolumba)fromtheinlandmarinewatersofWashingtonState,asdocumentedbyPSAMPefforts,2000-2002inProceedingsfromGeorgiaBasin/PugetSoundResearchConference.

Ewins,P.J.(1993).PigeonGuillemot(Cepphuscolumba),version2.0.InTheBirdsofNorthAmerica(A.F.Poole&F.B.Gill,Eds.).CornellLabofOrnithology,Ithaca,NY,USA.doi:10.2173/bna.49

Gatti,G.,Biabchi,C.N.,Parravicini,V.,Rovere,A.,Peirano,A.,Montefalcone,M.,...Morri,C.(2015).Ecologicalchange,slidingbaselinesandtheimportanceofhistoricaldata:Lessonsfromcombiningobservationalandquantitativedataonatemperatereefover70years.PLoSONE10(2):e0118581.doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0118581

Gregory,R.D.,Gibbons,D.W.,&Donald,P.F.(2004).Birdcensusandsurveytechniques.InW.J.Sutherland,I.Newton,&R.Green,BirdEcologyandConservation,pp.17-56.NewYork:OxfordUniversityPress.doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780198520863.003.0002

Lee,T.(2019).Mapof2016-2018SouthSoundPigeonGuillemotbreedingsurveycolonylocations.Litzow,M.A.,Piatt,J.F,Prichard,A.K.,&Roby,D.D.(2002).ResponseofPigeonGuillemotstovariable

abundanceofhigh-lipidandlow-lipidprey.Oecologia,132,286-295.doi:10.1007/s00442-002-0945-1.

NationalAudubonSociety.(n.d.).Audubonfieldguide:PigeonGuillemot.Retrievedfromhttps://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/pigeon-guillemot

NationalAudubonSociety.(2014).Climatethreatened:PigeonGuillemot.Availableathttp://climate.audubon.org/birds/piggui/pigeon-guillemot

Nelson,D.A.(1991).DemographyofthePigeonGuillemotonSoutheastFarallonIsland,California.TheCondor,93(3),765-768.doi:10.2307/1368213.

NisquallyReachAquaticReserve.(n.d.).Typicalsurveysite;exposedsedimentarybluffwithmoderatesizedholespreferredbyPIGU(photo).

NisquallyReachNatureCenter.(2016).Qualityassuranceprojectplan.Availableathttps://www.aquaticreserves.org/wp-content/uploads/2016-Pigeon-Guillemot_QAPP-NRNC-FINAL_0201UPDATE.pdf

Nysewander,D.R.,Evenson,J.R.,Murphie,B.L.,&Cyra,T.A.(2005).Reportofmarinebirdandmammalcomponent,PugetSoundambientmonitoringprogram,forJuly1992toDecember1999period

29


[Unpublishedreport].Olympia,WA:WashingtonStateDepartmentofFishandWildlife,WildlifeManagementProgram,181pp.Retrievedfromhttps://wdfw.wa.gov/publications/01135/

Pauly,D.(1995).Anecdotesandshiftingbaselinesyndromeoffisheries.TrendsinEcologyandEvolution,10(10),430.doi:10.1016/S0169-5347(00)89171-5

Pearson,S.F.,&Hamel,N.J.(2013).MarineandterrestrialbirdindicatorsforPugetSound.WashingtonDepartmentofFishandWildlifeandPugetSoundPartnership,Olympia,WA,55pp.Retrievedfromhttp://www.psp.wa.gov/vitalsigns/documents/Pearson%20and%20Hamel%20Bird%20Indicators%202013_Final.pdf

Pearson,S.F.(2016).Marinebirdpopulationabundance:Indicatorstatusandprogress.Retrievedfromhttp://www.psp.wa.gov/vitalsigns/in-marine-bird-population-abundance.php

PugetSoundSeabirdSurvey.(2018).MapofobservationsofPigeonGuillemotsinPugetSoundRetrievedfromhttp://seattleaudubon.org/seabirdsurvey/bird_detail.aspx?bird_id=222

Pyle,P.(2001).BeyondtheGoldenGate-Oceanography,geology,biology,andenvironmentalissuesintheGulfoftheFarallones:Seabirds(chapter)(USGeologicalSurveyCircular1198),pp.150-161.Retrievedfromhttps://pubs.usgs.gov/circ/c1198/chapters/150-161_Seabirds.pdf

Rosling,G.(n.d.).PigeonGuillemotonrock(sharedpersonalphoto).SeattleAudubonSociety.(n.d.).PigeonGuillemot.Retrievedfrom

http://www.birdweb.org/birdweb/bird/pigeon_guillemotThoresen,A.C.&Booth,E.S.(1958).BreedingactivitiesofthePigeonGuillemotCepphuscolumba

columba(Pallas).WallaWallaCollegePublications,DepartmentofBiologicalSciences,23,1-36.Vermeer,K.,Morgan,J.R.,&Smith,G.E.J.(1993).NestingbiologyandpredationofPigeonGuillemots

intheQueenCharlotteIslands,BritishColumbia.ColonialWaterbirds,16,119-127.Vermeer,K.,Morgan,K.H.,&Smith,G.E.J.(1993)."Colonyattendanceofpigeonguillemotsasrelated

totideheightandtimeofday".ColonialWaterbirds,16,1–8.USFishandWildlifeService(USFWS).2006.Alaskaseabirdinformationseries:PigeonGuillemots.

Retrievedfromhttps://www.fws.gov/alaska/mbsp/mbm/seabirds/pdf/pigu.pdfWashingtonDepartmentofNaturalResources(WDNR).2011.NisquallyReachAquaticReserve

ManagementPlan.Retrievedfromhttp://www.dnr.wa.gov/Publications/aqr_nisqually_reserve_finalplan_2011.pdf.

30


AppendixA:DataSheetBelowisthetwo-sideddatasheetusedinthisprojectforstandardizedrecordkeepingbetweenobservers:

31


AssociateddatasheetsremainonfileattheNRAR.

32


AppendixB:DataCollectionProtocolsUsed

33


34


35


AppendixC:QualityAssuranceProjectPlan(QAPP)Thequalityassuranceprojectplanwaswrittenin2016andhasbeenusedasthebasisformonitoringconductedfrom2016to2018.Thatplancanbefoundatthislink:https://www.aquaticreserves.org/wp-content/uploads/2016-Pigeon-Guillemot_QAPP-NRNC-FINAL_0201UPDATE.pdf

south puget sound and nisqually reach aquatic reserve ... · south puget sound and nisqually reach...

Documents