[TN-Bird] New Refuge in Dominican Republic
- From: Dev Joslin <devjoslin@xxxxxxxxxxx>
- To: Tennessee Bird listserve <tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Thu, 5 Nov 2009 12:31:02 -0600
Below is an announcement from the American Bird Conservancy about a
newly-formed refuge in the Dominican Republic.
There probably are only a few members of the Tennessee Ornitological Society
that realize that TOS has a sister organization in the Dominican Republic.
Approximately 10 years ago, eleven members of TOS (mostly from Knoxville and
Nashville) took a two-week birding trip to the DR. There we saw many of the
endangered and threatened species that this refuge is attempting to protect.
We also attended a meeting of the bird club of the Dominican Republic and
re-affirmed the special relationship with TOS.
As the article notes, the DR also has important wintering grounds for many
neotropical migrants that breed or pass through Tennesse.
So this is certainly good news. Perhaps it will provide motivation for TOS to
renew its "sisterhood" with the DR bird club.
New Refuge to Protect Migratory and Resident Birds in the Dominican Republic
Bay-breasted Cuckoo.
Photo: Lance Woolaver
(Washington, D.C., October 20, 2009) Leonel Fernández, President of the
Dominican Republic, has announced the creation of a new refuge ?Reserva
Biologica Loma Charco Azul? on the northwestern border of Sierra de Bahoruco
National Park, a global biodiversity hotspot. The decision extends protection
in the region by 111 square miles, providing essential habitat protection for
the globally threatened Bay-breasted Cuckoo and threatened resident and
migratory birds that depend on the Island of Hispaniola. American Bird
Conservancy and its partner Grupo Jaragua prepared the proposal for the
Secretaría de Estado de Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales to designate the
new protected area and conducted the biodiversity inventory work needed to
justify the new area.
?With 30 endemic bird species, Hispaniola ranks high in global importance for
bird conservation,? said Dr. George Wallace, American Bird Conservancy?s Vice
President of Oceans and Islands. ?With forests in Haiti virtually gone and an
accelerated rate of forest loss in the Dominican Republic, many of these
species face a bleak future?of the 30 species, 14 are ranked by IUCN as
globally threatened. That?s why expanding land protected in the vicinity of
Sierra de Bahoruco is so important and such a significant accomplishment.?
In addition, over 30 species of Neotropical migratory birds have been recorded
there; they form an important component of the biodiversity during the northern
winter, making up more than 50% of the bird life in some habitats, particularly
pine forests.
?Loma Charco Azul contains populations of several threatened endemic birds and
migratory species and, until now, was an unprotected portion of the Sierra de
Bahoruco Important Bird Area,? said Yvonne Arias, President of Grupo Jaragua,
which has partnered with American Bird Conservancy on the conservation of
threatened and migratory birds in the region.. ?Key among the endemics there
are the Bay-breasted Cuckoo, and a good population of the vulnerable
Hispaniolan Parrot. We applaud the action of President Fernández to designate
this important new protected area.
?Sierra de Bahoruco National Park, an Alliance for Global Extinction (AZE)
site, is the global stronghold for three endangered species?Bay-breasted
Cuckoo, La Selle Thrush, and Hispaniolan Crossbill?and five more that are
globally vulnerable?Hispaniolan Parrot, Hispaniolan Parakeet, Golden Swallow,
Chat Tanager, and White-winged Warbler. Other endangered species such a
Bicknell?s Thrush and the Black-capped Petrel are also present. Unfortunately,
the park and its environs are under severe threat because some of the dry
forest, especially important for the Bay-breasted Cuckoo, adjacent to the park
boundaries, has been cleared for an avocado/papaya plantation.
The Bay-breasted Cuckoo is declining around Loma Charco Azul, due to the
creeping expansion of this plantation which has destroyed habitat for 5-6 pairs
since 2002 according to research by Lance Woolaver, a Canadian graduate student
doing his thesis on the species. The new protected area will help to safeguard
one of the three most important known populations.
The work to create the new protected area was part of a part of a broader
effort to improve the management of Sierra de Bahoruco National Park supported
by the US Fish and Wildlife Service through the Neotropical Migratory Bird
Conservation Act grant program. Other aspects of the project included hiring
guards to protect the Park and to establish a monitoring program for migratory,
endemic and resident birds. Other important supporters of Grupo Jaragua?s
efforts to expand protection in the vicinity of Sierra de Baharuco National
park include BirdLife International and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur
Foundation.
#30#
American Bird Conservancy (ABC) conserves native wild birds and their habitats
throughout the Americas. ABC acts to safeguard the rarest bird species, restore
habitats, and reduce threats, while building capacity in the conservation
movement. ABC is the voice for birds, ensuring that they are adequately
protected; that sufficient funding is available for bird conservation; and that
land is protected and properly managed to maintain viable habitat. ABC is a
501(c)(3) membership organization that is consistently awarded a top, four-star
rating by the independent group, Charity Navigator.
Grupo Jaragua is a non-govermental, non-profit organization founded in 1987.
Its mission is to achieve the effective management of the Dominican Republic's
Biodiversity Resources through research and implementation of specific projects
to solve local conservation problems. Grupo Jaragua places especial attention
to regional development of Protected Areas through participatory processes at
the community level, in particular in Jaragua National Park and its surrounding
communities. To achieve its mission, Grupo Jaragua works in collaboration with
government and non government institutions, as well as grass-roots
organizations.
=================NOTES TO SUBSCRIBER=====================
The TN-Bird Net requires you to SIGN YOUR MESSAGE with
first and last name, CITY (TOWN) and state abbreviation.
You are also required to list the COUNTY in which the birds
you report were seen. The actual DATE OF OBSERVATION should
appear in the first paragraph.
_____________________________________________________________
To post to this mailing list, simply send email to:
tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
_____________________________________________________________
To unsubscribe, send email to:
tn-bird-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
with 'unsubscribe' in the Subject field.
______________________________________________________________
TN-Bird Net is owned by the Tennessee Ornithological Society
Neither the society(TOS) nor its moderator(s)
endorse the views or opinions expressed
by the members of this discussion group.
Moderator: Wallace Coffey, Bristol, TN
wallace@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
------------------------------
Assistant Moderator Andy Jones
Cleveland, OH
-------------------------------
Assistant Moderator Dave Worley
Rosedale, VA
__________________________________________________________
Visit the Tennessee Ornithological Society
web site at http://www.tnbirds.org
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
ARCHIVES
TN-Bird Net Archives at //www.freelists.org/archives/tn-bird/
MAP RESOURCES
Tenn.Counties Map at http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/states/tennessee3.gif
Aerial photos to complement google maps http://local.live.com
_____________________________________________________________
Other related posts:
- » [TN-Bird] New Refuge in Dominican Republic - Dev Joslin
