scholarly journals Supportive wind conditions influence offshore movements of Atlantic Coast Piping Plovers during fall migration

The Condor ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 122 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Pamela H Loring ◽  
James D McLaren ◽  
Holly F Goyert ◽  
Peter W C Paton
Keyword(s):  
North Carolina ◽  
New England ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Atlantic Coast ◽  
Offshore Wind ◽  
Charadrius Melodus ◽  
Outer Continental Shelf ◽  
Southern New England ◽  
Piping Plovers ◽  
The U.S

Abstract In advance of large-scale development of offshore wind energy facilities throughout the U.S. Atlantic Outer Continental Shelf (OCS), information on the migratory ecology and routes of federally threatened Atlantic Coast Piping Plovers (Charadrius melodus melodus) is needed to conduct risk assessments pursuant to the Endangered Species Act. We tagged adult Piping Plovers (n = 150) with digitally coded VHF transmitters at 2 breeding areas within the southern New England region of the U.S. Atlantic coast from 2015 to 2017. We tracked their migratory departure flights using a regional automated telemetry network (n = 30 stations) extending across a portion of the U.S. Atlantic Bight region, a section of the U.S. Atlantic coast, and adjacent waters of the Atlantic Ocean extending from Cape Cod, Massachusetts, to Cape Hatteras, North Carolina. Most adults departed within a 10-day window from July 19 to July 29, migrated nocturnally, and over 75% of individuals departed within 3 hr of local sunset on evenings with supportive winds. Piping Plovers migrated offshore directly across the mid-Atlantic Bight, from breeding areas in southern New England to stopover sites spanning from New York to North Carolina, USA, over 800 km away. During offshore migratory flights, Piping Plovers flew at estimated mean speeds of 42 km hr−1 and altitudes of 288 m (range of model uncertainty: 36–1,031 m). This study provides new information on the timing, weather conditions, routes, and altitudes of Piping Plovers during fall migration. This information can be used in estimations of collision risk that could potentially result from the construction of offshore wind turbines under consideration across large areas of the U.S. Atlantic OCS.

scholarly journals Growth of two Atlantic Coast Piping Plover populations

The Condor ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 121 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Chelsea E Weithman ◽  
Samantha G Robinson ◽  
Kelsi L Hunt ◽  
Jon Altman ◽  
Henrietta A Bellman ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
New York ◽  
North Carolina ◽  
Reproductive Output ◽  
Atlantic Coast ◽  
Piping Plover ◽  
Charadrius Melodus ◽  
Chick Survival ◽  
Conservation History ◽  
Piping Plovers ◽  
The U.S

AbstractSpecies listed under the U.S. Endangered Species Act are required to meet stated recovery goals for delisting. These goals often are developed early in the species’ conservation history and may need to be updated or refined as new information becomes available. The Atlantic Coast Piping Plover (Charadrius melodus), which was listed more than 30 yr ago, has not met recovery goals through much of its range. Initial recovery goals included maintaining a reproductive output of 1.5 fledged chicks per pair for 5 yr. This goal was based on modelling that assumed equal survival rates for adults throughout the range, but recent studies suggest that demographic rates may vary with latitude. To investigate latitudinal variation, we developed demographic and population growth estimates for 2 breeding populations of Piping Plovers on the U.S. Atlantic Coast on Fire Island, New York (40.7°N), and on the Outer Banks of North Carolina (35.3°N) in 2013–2017. Breeding success (nest success and pre-fledge chick survival) varied annually but was lower in North Carolina than New York. Average adult true survival in New York (x̅ = 0.73, SE = 0.04) was similar to average survival in North Carolina (x̅ = 0.69, SE = 0.07). Annual post-fledging survival for both sites, however, was variable and often higher than had been previously reported for Atlantic Coast Piping Plovers (0.43–0.66 for New York; 0.31 and 1.0 for North Carolina). While the estimated reproductive output needed for a stationary population for both sites was similar (1.10 chicks per pair for New York, 95% CI: 0.83–1.41; 1.08 for North Carolina, 95% CI: 0.67–1.59), only the New York population achieved or exceeded these values during our study. Our findings suggest that understanding annual and latitudinal demographic variability would be helpful in refining recovery goals.

Anadromous Sturgeons: Habitats, Threats, and Management

2007 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Large Scale ◽  
Atlantic Coast ◽  
The United States ◽  
Management Plan ◽  
Commercial Fishing ◽  
Atlantic Sturgeon ◽  
Coastal Fisheries ◽  
Number Of Factors ◽  
Acipenser Oxyrinchus ◽  
The U.S

<em>Abstract.</em>—Large-scale commercial fisheries for Atlantic sturgeon <em>Acipenser oxyrinchus</em> in the late 1880s eventually led to substantial reductions in the population size. The coastwide Atlantic sturgeon population of the United States has not recovered to the levels seen prior to the 1900s. A number of factors have contributed to the slow recovery or continued decline of Atlantic sturgeon populations, including continued commercial fishing and the targeting of females for caviar, bycatch in other fisheries, and changes in habitat due to dam construction and water quality degradation. The Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC) developed the first coastwide management plan for Atlantic sturgeon in 1990. In response to the shortcomings of that plan, the ASMFC applied new standards and the authority granted to it by the U.S. Congress to adopt a coastwide moratorium on all harvesting in 1998. A federal status review conducted in 1998 concluded that the continued existence of Atlantic sturgeon was not threatened given the situation at the time. Since then, monitoring programs have indicated varying levels of relative abundance in several water bodies along the Atlantic coast. The U.S. government is responsible for undertaking a status review to document any changes since the last review and determining whether those findings warrant a threatened or endangered listing for the species. The government’s findings may have far-reaching effects on many other Atlantic coastal fisheries.

Case Studies From Implementation of the First Commercial Leasing Processes for Areas of the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) Under the U.S. Renewable Energy Regulations, 30 CFR 585

2014 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erin C. Trager
Keyword(s):  
Renewable Energy ◽  
Continental Shelf ◽  
Case Studies ◽  
Regulatory Process ◽  
Offshore Wind ◽  
Ocean Energy ◽  
Outer Continental Shelf ◽  
Environmentally Responsible ◽  
Ocean Wind ◽  
The U.S

President Barack Obama announced on April 22, 2009 that the U.S. Interior Department (USDOI) had completed the Final Renewable Energy Framework or rulemaking process (i.e., regulations) to govern management of the Renewable Energy Program for the U.S. Outer Continental Shelf (OCS). The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) within USDOI is responsible for overseeing the implementation of this framework. It establishes a program to grant leases, easements, and rights-of-way for orderly, safe, and environmentally responsible renewable energy development activities, such as the siting and construction of offshore wind generating facilities on the OCS, as well as other forms of renewable energy such as wave, current, and solar. To date, five commercial wind energy leases have been issued for areas on the U.S. OCS and several other areas are at various stages in the process leading to leasing. The leases issued for two states in particular — Delaware and Virginia — help serve as case studies for how the U.S. regulatory process for ocean wind leasing operates. This paper will discuss the process by which these leases were issued and next steps, which will illustrate the implementation and best practices of the U.S. regulatory process for offshore wind leasing.

Calculating the offshore wind power resource: Robust assessment methods applied to the U.S. Atlantic Coast

2012 ◽  
Vol 43 ◽  
pp. 224-233 ◽  
Author(s):  
Blaise Sheridan ◽  
Scott D. Baker ◽  
Nathaniel S. Pearre ◽  
Jeremy Firestone ◽  
Willett Kempton
Keyword(s):  
Wind Power ◽  
Atlantic Coast ◽  
Assessment Methods ◽  
Offshore Wind ◽  
Power Resource ◽  
Offshore Wind Power ◽  
The U.S

Habitat use and selection of black scoters in southern New England and siting of offshore wind energy facilities

2014 ◽  
Vol 78 (4) ◽  
pp. 645-656 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pamela H. Loring ◽  
Peter W.C. Paton ◽  
Jason E. Osenkowski ◽  
Scott G. Gilliland ◽  
Jean-Pierre L. Savard ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Use ◽  
Wind Energy ◽  
New England ◽  
Offshore Wind ◽  
Offshore Wind Energy ◽  
Southern New England ◽  
Selection Of

scholarly journals THE MARCH 1962 STORM ON THE ATLANTIC COAST OF THE UNITED STATES

2011 ◽  
Vol 1 (8) ◽  
pp. 32
Author(s):  
M.P. O'Brien ◽  
J.W. Johnson
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
New England ◽  
Storm Surge ◽  
Atlantic Coast ◽  
Large Diameter ◽  
The United States ◽  
Storm Damage ◽  
Southern New England ◽  
Cape Hatteras ◽  
Moving Storm

As far back as 1635, records show that the East Coast of the United States has repeatedly suffered from severe storm damage (McAleer , 1962). Most of these storms appear to have been of the hurricane type. Such storms generally form in the Atlantic to the east of the Bahama Islands and move eastward and then turn northward to sweep along the Atlantic Coast line (Fig. 1). Along the southern part of the Atlantic Coast the hurricanes move relatively slowly; damage results principally from flooding caused by direct wind action. North of Cape Hatteras the hurricanes move more rapidly (speeds of 40 to 50 miles per hour) and damage is largely due to sudden flooding from a rapidly moving storm surge (Simpson, 1962). The combination of storm surge, wind-driven water, and storm waves inundating large areas along the coast has on numerous occasions caused great damage and loss of life. The great Atlantic Coast storm of March 1962, however, differed in character from the usual hurricane. It proved to be the most disastrous winter coastal storm on record, causing damage from southern New England to Florida. This storm, of relatively large diameter and having gale force winds, remained nearly stationary off the Coast for almost 36 hours . The size and location of the storm, as further discussed below, was such that persistent strong northeasterly winds blowing over a relatively long fetch raised the spring tides (maximum range) to near-record levels. The tidal flooding which attended this storm was in many ways more disastrous than that which accompanies hurricanes (Cooperman and Rosendal, 1962). The storm surge in tropical cyclones generally recedes rapidly after one or two high tides, but the surge accompanying this storm occurred in many locations on four and five successive high tides .' The great destruction was caused by high waves and breakers superimposed on these high tides.

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