The San Francisco Bay makes for surprisingly great birding.
Although fascinated by all of these new bird species, I was particularly captivated by a flock of funny-looking waders with vivid red feet and white wing patches on their otherwise solid back bodies. They looked an awful lot like penguins, but were actually a species called pigeon guillemots.
Found just off the West Coast from Alaska to Southern California, these birds are actually members of the Alcidae family, which includes puffins, auklets, and murres. Their habit of spending time closer to the shore than their fellow alcids makes them an easily recognized and identified species. This is mostly due to their preference for feeding in shallow water; pigeon guillemots are capable of diving as deep as 45 meters, but typically find the most success in water 10-20 meters deep.
While pigeon guillemot populations are relatively stable off the California coast, the birds are making news in Alaska. It has been almost 24 years since the infamous Exxon Valdez oil spill in the Prince William Sound. In the aftermath of the spill in 1989, somewhere between 2,000 and 6,000 pigeon guillemots died of "acute oiling." Following the spill, Exxon Mobil and the state of Alaska formed a commission to ensure that all wildlife populations affected by the spill would be protected and restored. Two and a half decades later, the pigeon guillemots are the only bird species classified as "not recovering." Whether this is still due to the effects of the oil spill, or some other factor is unclear.
In an effort to restore pigeon guillemot populations to their pre-spill numbers of more than 1,000, the Exxon Valdez Commission has proposed trapping of local minks. For unknown reasons, the mink population exploded in the aftermath of the oil spill, which increased predation on the guillemots, among other local bird species. By removing some of the minks, the pigeon guillemots will hopefully be able to fully recover from their population deficit, while also benefitting many other bird species that are preyed on by the minks.
Is it ethical to remove one native species to assist the growth of another? The commission argues that, since the mink population was apparently affected by the oil spill, it is their responsibility to remove it, especially if it will help the pigeon guillemot numbers to increase again.
This story is a great illustration of the long-term effects of major environmental disasters such as oil spills. A quarter of a century after the spill, people are still investing millions of dollars and countless hours into restoring the ecosystem. Either way, pigeon guillemots make me laugh every time I see them. Their quirky appearance and behavior is part of the personality of the San Francisco Bay bird populations and I am glad to see restoration efforts elsewhere being taken seriously.
My new favorite bird - the pigeon guillemot.
Found just off the West Coast from Alaska to Southern California, these birds are actually members of the Alcidae family, which includes puffins, auklets, and murres. Their habit of spending time closer to the shore than their fellow alcids makes them an easily recognized and identified species. This is mostly due to their preference for feeding in shallow water; pigeon guillemots are capable of diving as deep as 45 meters, but typically find the most success in water 10-20 meters deep.
It's hard to deny the truly strange appearance of these birds. (www.whidbeyaudubon.org)
While pigeon guillemot populations are relatively stable off the California coast, the birds are making news in Alaska. It has been almost 24 years since the infamous Exxon Valdez oil spill in the Prince William Sound. In the aftermath of the spill in 1989, somewhere between 2,000 and 6,000 pigeon guillemots died of "acute oiling." Following the spill, Exxon Mobil and the state of Alaska formed a commission to ensure that all wildlife populations affected by the spill would be protected and restored. Two and a half decades later, the pigeon guillemots are the only bird species classified as "not recovering." Whether this is still due to the effects of the oil spill, or some other factor is unclear.
Cepphus columba (www.bird.cornell.edu)
In an effort to restore pigeon guillemot populations to their pre-spill numbers of more than 1,000, the Exxon Valdez Commission has proposed trapping of local minks. For unknown reasons, the mink population exploded in the aftermath of the oil spill, which increased predation on the guillemots, among other local bird species. By removing some of the minks, the pigeon guillemots will hopefully be able to fully recover from their population deficit, while also benefitting many other bird species that are preyed on by the minks.
American mink are natural predators of pigeon guillemots, among many other bird species. (www.arkive.org)
Is it ethical to remove one native species to assist the growth of another? The commission argues that, since the mink population was apparently affected by the oil spill, it is their responsibility to remove it, especially if it will help the pigeon guillemot numbers to increase again.
I can't wait to see many more of these unique birds while in California (www.prbo.org)
This story is a great illustration of the long-term effects of major environmental disasters such as oil spills. A quarter of a century after the spill, people are still investing millions of dollars and countless hours into restoring the ecosystem. Either way, pigeon guillemots make me laugh every time I see them. Their quirky appearance and behavior is part of the personality of the San Francisco Bay bird populations and I am glad to see restoration efforts elsewhere being taken seriously.
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