The Center for Conservation Biology was awarded a grant by the Northeast Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, Regional Conservation Needs program that allows us to continue working on the conservation of Black Rails in the Northeast. The grant will support CCB's efforts to develop a population assessment and action plan for declining Black Rails within the northeast region. It will also compliment other ongoing work by CCB and partners throughout the species' annual range (see http://ccb-wm.org/BlackRail). The eastern Black Rail is one of the most imperiled bird species along the Atlantic Coast and is a candidate for federal listing. Populations in the northeast have declined by an estimated 85% over the past 20 years and are reaching dangerous levels. Populations are threatened by nest predators, loss of wetlands, and sea-level rise among other concerns. Without immediate conservation intervention, Black Rails could become extirpated within several portions of their range during our lifetimes. CCB is interested in all recent and historic records for this species in the east. We have been building a geo-database of accounts to document population changes over time. Contact Mike Wilson for more information (mdwils@xxxxxx). Michael Wilson Center for Conservation Biology College of William and Mary & Virginia Commonwealth University P.O. Box 8795 Williamsburg, VA 23187-8795 phone: 757-221-1649 fax: 757-221-1650 email: mdwils@xxxxxx web: www.ccb-wm.org/BlackRail You are subscribed to VA-Richmond-General. To unsubscribe, send email to va-richmond-general-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx with 'unsubscribe' in the Subject field. To adjust other settings (vacation, digest, etc.) please visit, //www.freelists.org/list/va-richmond-general.