Integrated Waterbird Management & Monitoring Program
IWMM
Andy WilsonUSGS Patuxent, Laurel, Maryland
What is the IWMM Program?
The integration of management, data and decisions at the local,
regional and flyway scale.
Problem: difficulty of managing wetlands for a wide range of species, in changing landscapes
“What is the best way to manage this wetland?”
“What is this wetlands highest and greatest contribution to flyway conservation efforts?”
“How does the bird use and management of this wetland compare to other wetland units?”
“How should this wetland be managed to optimize stopover quality?”
Where did IWMM come from?
“How do I allocate funds among wetland units in an informed and transparent way?”
“Which wetlands are important to waterfowl …. shorebirds ….. wading birds?”
“If I allocate more funds and staff which areas will significantly increase this region’s contribution to flyway conservation efforts?”
“Where, when and in what numbers are migratory birds using stopover habitats?”
“Where in a flyway should we focus acquisition and restoration activities?” “Are there important
sites within this flyway that are not protected?”
Key Management Decisions
Flyway: when, where, how much habitat?
Regional: optimal allocation of
funds
Local: optimal management
strategies
Adaptive Management
SHC
Linking Management Decisions with Data
Improved Resource Contributions
Good Decisions Supported by defensible data
Clearly Documented Decisions Promote understanding of decision making process
Reduce controversy
IWMM Evolution Structured decision making workshops at NCTC
Need for integration across spatial scales
Steering Group formed in 2009
Protocol Development in 2010 Lots of partners
Model development 2010-2012
Pilot Season 2010/2011
Operational later in 2011 or 2012
Build organically Program success will depend on development of useful tools
Flyway
Identify Critical Waterbird Sites
State / Region
Determine Funding Distribution
• Evaluation of Site Contribution
Local Actions
Determine Optimal Wetland Management Scenario
Monitoring Data:
•Habitat Quality
•Bird Use
Management Decisions:
• Mgmt. Actions
• Costs
• Habitat Conditions
• Focal Species
• Conservation Priorities
• Habitat Deficiencies
• Bird Use:Cost Analysis
• Site Potential
• Land Acquisition Priorities
• Conservation Priorities
• Allocation of Staff & Funds
• Land Acquisition Priorities
• Conservation Priorities
Flyway Model
High: 100
Low: > 0
Distance to nearest open water
Components include GIS data layers and biological parameters (from literature)
5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
0
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
90 Path 1 = 1706 Birds
Path 2 = 530 Birds
Flyway Model
Bird
Use
(B)
Funds
αAH1
αAH2
∆1
∆2
Regional and local allocation: cost effectiveness
∆3
AH = Available Habitat
B = Contribution of Bird-Days
αAH3
2010/2011 Pilot Season
• Test basic Vegetation Survey and Bird Survey Protocols
• Highlight key constraints for effective data collection• Recommend modification for basic methods and
development of more detailed techniques where needed
• Use “real data” to test Structured Decision Making Models
• Designed to be simple – mass participation!
• Based on expert knowledge - >20 biologists consulted
Vegetation Surveys twice per season
Weekly Bird Surveys
Use “site condition” to make predictions…
• The model will allow us to predict change in BUDs due to changes in habitat (ultimately management)
• Scores all units on a comparable scale for each guild site 1 site 2 site 3
swans/geese 65 40 30
dabblers 72 89 50
divers 19 10 90
waders 27 70 22
shorebirds 58 60 8
e.g. site 3 is a diving duck site – flyway model might suggest it would contribute more as a dabbler site
Bird-use days/ha (dabblers) predicted to increase from 40/ha to 250/ha
∆ buds on a 10 ha site = 2,100∆ buds on a 200 ha site = 42,000
Moving forward
• Lots of challenges remain:– Protocols, large areas, inaccessible wetlands– Very complex and ambitious program, steep
learning curve, progress may not be linear!– Long-term funding– Scale
• Other taxa?• Four regional teams (NA, SA, UM, LM)• Online data system• Ensure we keep learning lessons!