Partners in Flight



PARTNERS IN FLIGHTANNUAL REPORT 2018Compiled by the Partners in Flight Steering CommitteeContact:Bob Ford (Robert_P_Ford@)Catherine Rideout (Catherine_Rideout@)Since the publication of the 2016 Partners in Flight (PIF) Landbird Conservation Plan, the PIF Steering Committee and others have focused priority actions on the delivery of the objectives of that plan. In 2018, our overarching goal was to focus PIF energy on capacity building and strengthening our network for a Strategic Habitat Conservation approach towards habitat delivery while maintaining progress on PIF’s active outreach, education, and science base. To accomplish this goal, PIF’s framework for moving forward in 2018 included areas for emphasis: 1) Provide seamless integration of PIF objectives with Migratory Bird Joint Venture priorities, 2) Engage with private lands, industry, and conservation foundations more effectively, 3) Energize ongoing efforts around full annual cycle conservation, 4) Prioritize science needs and science team actions, and 5) Provide PIF tools for foresters and biologists working on federal public lands.This Annual Report provides a brief compilation of activities in each of these areas of emphasis and concludes with a section on strengthening PIF’s network in 2018. PIF priorities and progress is consistent with and works towards the objectives of the PIF’s 2014 Strategic Action document () and the six focal areas defined by the Steering Committee following the release of the 2016 plan (). PIF priorities and progress in 2018 is also consistent with numerous regional PIF plans housed at with US Migratory Bird Joint Ventures PIF completed a two-prong approach to integrate PIF population and habitat objectives with priorities of individual Joint Ventures (JVs) priorities and the JV network as a whole. First, we provided a spreadsheet of Watch List species that occur in each JV geography and asked that staff assign a ranking for accomplishments on those species and habitats within each of three categories: Planning, Implementation, and Evaluation. Each Joint Venture responded. The result provided a rapid assessment snapshot of areas across the United States where JV priorities link directly and indirectly to PIF priorities, as well as areas where Watch List species and PIF priorities are not addressed by the JV community. Across the country, all JVs were aware of work on PIF objectives within their geography although in some cases, JVs have not engaged directly with those efforts. The second prong of the exercise involved a phone conversation between the PIF National Coordinator and each JV coordinator and other staff as appropriate. Each conversation lasted 1 – 2 hours and focused on the Joint Venture matrix, which outlines the elements of Strategic Habitat Conservation and provides a framework for JVs to measure progress and identify future priorities. The purpose was to identify the ongoing efforts of each partnership related to these PIF objectives and to identify the obstacles and gaps preventing the partnership from addressing PIF objectives. The results identified PIF priorities deserving action in a few individual JV geographies in 2018. Examples include the Upper Mississippi River and Great Lakes (Kirtland’s Warbler and industry), Prairie Pothole, Rio Grande and Northern Great Plains JVs (grassland bird conservation), and Central Hardwoods JV (forest bird modeling shared with other JVs). An initial summary was completed and shared with the JV Coordinators and as the PIF Steering Committee and was presented at The Wildlife Society annual meeting. In 2019, PIF and JVs will plan a strategy for implementation of priority actions as well as work explore opportunities with Canadian Joint Ventures and Canadian Wildlife Service.Engage with Private lands, Industry, and Conservation Foundations more effectivelyPIF increased engagement with industry through increased coordinated and strategic activity of the Industry Working Group. We contacted several forest products industries on a variety of subjects, culminating in a Steering Committee meeting in Roscommon, Michigan (October 2018) where 8 industries and industry groups met with members of the Kirtland’s Warbler Conservation Team and PIF to develop shared opportunities and priorities for the possible delisting of Kirtland’s Warbler. PIF served as the neutral, science based facilitator and host of the meeting. PIF also increased outreach for conservation efforts in cooperation with the Federal Communications Commission to improve tower lighting so that towers do not attract and kill birds during migration. PIF engaged with other industries, such as General Motors, to explore ways in which PIF can provide tools and information to support industry so they can benefit bird populations. Building on this foundation, in 2019 our primary focus will be to further relationships with industries like General Motors, strengthen our relationship with the Wildlife Habitat Council, strengthen the PIF Industry Working Group, and continue to work with forest products industry to finding shared priorities and providing PIF conservation tools for their use. PIF explored opportunities for partnerships with conservation foundations, including the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation. Energize ongoing efforts around full annual cycle conservationPIF hosted its sixth international conference in Costa Rica (PIF VI) where over 400 people from at least eight countries convened to work on several aspects of the science needs for full annual cycle conservation, identify habitat delivery opportunities, and improve international cooperation for conservation planning. During breakout sessions, participants explored strategies and actions for different suites of species and geographies. The meeting agenda was comprised of sessions with existing working groups and a host of plenary speakers. Prioritize science needs and science team actionsThe PIF science team is an international, integrated team of professionals led by Canadian and US biologists. Among their most notable accomplishments of 2018, they completed the work on global scores for the Avian Conservation Assessment Database (ACAD) for all avian species from Canada to Panama. A Caribbean birds assessment is under discussion. The ACAD is a valuable tool in the US and Canada for conservation planning efforts by state and federal agencies, non-governmental organizations, and others. The ACAD helps to inform US Fish and Wildlife Service Birds of Conservation Concern list, lists of species used in the process to rank North American Wetland and Neotropical Migratory Bird Conservation act proposal rankings, and other conservation delivery opportunities. The science team also increased or initiated efforts with a Full Annual Cycle work group, a grasslands birds work group, and a group exploring new and creative ways to use eBird data for conservation planning. Provide PIF tools for foresters and biologists working on federal public landsPIF continues developing a webinar series targeting western bird conservation, silvicultural techniques on public lands, the use of indicator species in conservation planning, and potential use of PIF tools for conservation decision making on forest tracts. In 2018, PIF addressed several obstacles for implementing the series of webinars. PIF worked with US Forest Service (USFS) lawyers to clarify that PIF is not subject to the Federal Advisory Committee Act guidelines. PIF Steering Committee members met several times with USFS and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) mid-level management to “make it work” in their system of internal teams and leadership priorities, and held a meeting with senior leadership at US Forest Service (Assistant Chief) and the BLM (staff in the Directors Office). We will restart the effort in 2019. For USFWS, a small team representing PIF is modifying the TRACTs tool so refuges can improve their acquisition process and maximize benefits to landbirds. PIF is active on the USFWS “Forest Ecology Team”, which among other efforts has developed a National Conservation Training Center course on natural disturbance and mimicking that with active management in forests. Strengthening the PIF networkAmong PIF’s highest priorities is to continue strengthening the PIF network to provide a forum for decision support, conservation planning, science, and outreach and education for bird conservation at a variety of spatial and administrative scales. The PIF Western Working Group continues as a strong international leader for bird conservation issues in western North America. Priority issues included work on science based and hypothesis driven monitoring, strengthening trinational projects, developing healthy partnerships,, and focusing on single species work such as Pinyon Jay and others. PIF is launching a new Eastern Working Group, which combines (in part) PIF’s Boreal Working Group and the Midwest, Southeast, and Northeast Working Groups. PIF has developed a fact sheet and a Q & A sheet and briefings have occurred with state nongame bird tech sections at Flyway meetings, the PIF Steering Committee, federal agencies, and others to improve the working group mission and ensure support for these efforts. This group aims to increase the efficiency of bird conservation. For example, the probability of single species working together with the Eastern PIF group will minimize out-of-state travel for state biologist and provide a degree of integration and continuity among group actions. Both the Western and Eastern Working Groups have strong support and leadership from Canadians and the Canadian Wildlife Service. PIF continues as a key partner with Environment for the Americas for World Migratory Bird Day (WMBD), providing key input to the choice of themes, artwork, technical aspects of bird conservation related annual WMBD issues, and other support.PIF continues to participate actively with Flyway Councils, and has standing agenda time with each Flyway Nongame Bird Tech Sections. Topics with Nongame Bird Tech Sections have ranged from updates and strategies to deliver the 2016 PIF conservation plan to engagement with the US State of the Birds report, single-species working groups, and multi-state monitoring efforts. PIF’s Industry Working Group made notable progress in large part to Weyerhaeuser leadership and participation in the Kirtland’s Warbler meeting by several forest industries and industry groups. Discussions are underway to increase engagement with the Wildlife Habitat Council and to provide PIF bird conservation tools to industry and increase their participation in the PIF Industry Working Group.The Canadian Wildlife Service has been a long-standing and strong leader of the PIF network including aspects of science, habitat and policy delivery, outreach and education, and conservation planning. Canadian priorities are strategic targets in Science Team actions, full annual cycle leadership, and restructuring working groups to function more effectively to deliver the PIF plan objectives. Canadians with US partners led an effort to host PIF activities at the International Ornithological Congress meeting in Vancouver. PIF continues strong working relationships with individual and multi-state efforts of US state wildlife agencies. This value of this shared network (PIF and state wildlife agencies) is present in the Desert Thrasher Working Group, numerous JV science teams, flyway nongame tech sections, regional working groups, and single species working groups for Wood Thrush and others. PIF international engaged a wide array of partners during the PIF VI conference in Costa Rica and through development of the Avian Conservation Assessment Database for species south to Panama. PIF is an active participant on the US North American Bird Conservation Initiative Committee (NABCI). Among many tasks for and with the US NABCI Committee, PIF participated in the development of a priorities framework for the bird conservation community, the US State of the Birds report, and other work of the Committee.PIF continues as a visible and viable voice in professional conservation organizations and news outlets. PIF hosted symposia or had a visible presence at The Wildlife Society, American Ornithological Society, the International Ornithological Congress, the Wildlife Management Institute’s North American Wildlife and Natural Resources Conference, and the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agency conference among others. PIF was instrumental in developing an article for National Geographic’s web news on grassland bird conservation, PIF actions are included almost monthly in Cornell’s Living Bird magazine, and PIF objectives are presented in a number of local and regional meetings throughout the year. The PIF network includes the USFWS Migratory Bird grants programs, NAWCA and NMBCA. Criteria for a NAWCA grant include benefits to wetland associated PIF Watch List species and many funded proposals have extensive acreage in upland habitat conservation, including Longleaf Pine, boreal transition forests, eastern and western upland forests, grassland habitats, and riparian zones. The NMBCA funds many projects across the full annual cycle of PIF Watch List species, with a strategic approach through the IMPACT program to focus on greatest geographic and species needs.In summary, in 2018 PIF accomplished a diversity of tasks associated with implementing objectives outlined in the 2016 Landbird Conservation Plan. PIF made strides in continued progress on the science front via leadership of the science team and, in particular, emphasized ongoing progress on issues related to full annual life cycle bird conservation. While continued progress on current projects is critical, tools and information already developed by the initiative were promoted. Through meetings and workshops, PIF insured and will continue to insure that these products are available for use by state, federal, and private organizations with an interest in bird conservation. Additionally, the partnership was able to integrate its objectives with a variety of bird conservation entities and partnerships in a strategic and focused manner by increasing communication, evaluating overlapping priorities, and exploring potential collaboration for now and in the future. Collaboration will allow PIF to work with new partners in ways which avoid duplication, leverage funds and expertise, and build on efficient and effective delivery of bird conservation. ................
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