1. Bird Conservation Planning and Action in the Western Hemisphere
Partners in Flight
Bird Conservation Planning and Action in the Western Hemisphere

2. History and Evolution of PIF
Species Assessment Process
Major plans – latest Continental Plan Revision
IBCP

3. Critical Points in the Evolution of PIF
1966 symposium at Smithsonian
“Many bird watchers have noted an apparent shrinkage in numbers of a variety of more familiar species…” -- Vogt
Keast and Morton – Migrant Birds in the Neotropics
John Terborgh Where Have all the Birds Gone?
Symposium at Manomet Bird Observatory – Hagan and Johnston. Ecology and Conservation of Neotropical Migratory Landbirds

4. National Fish and Wildlife Foundation
May 1990
Founding MOA signed 1991
15 Federal Partners
16 NGOs
NGOs that didn’t exist in ‘91
ABC
BCoR
Gulf Coast BO
Great Basin BO
Intermountain BO
Klamath BO

5. What PIF PARTNERS have accomplished since 1990
States
Routine meetings at North American and AFWA annual conference – growth continues in bird committees
State Wildlife Grants Program – Now, promise of Blue Ribbon Panel?
Wildlife Action Plans/revisions

6. What PIF PARTNERS have accomplished since 1990
States
Funding of PIF Regional Coordinators for 7 years
Conservation plans written for physiographic areas and states across US

7. What PIF PARTNERS have accomplished since 1990
States

8. History and Evolution of PIF
Species Assessment Process
Major plans – latest Continental Plan Revision
IBCP

9. Strategic Conservation
Compile and Apply
Models
Describing
Population-Habitat
Relationships
Identify
Limiting
Factors
Select
Focal
Species
Formulate
Population
Objectives
Develop
Species
Habitat
Decision
Support
Tools
Assess
Current
State
of Focal
Species
Populations
Identify
Priority Species
Revise Models
Accordingly
Feedback Loop:
Target Research
at Key Assumptions
Feedback
Loop:
Assess
Net Progress
Toward
Population
Objectives
Feedback
Loop:
Assess
Program
Accomplish-
ments
Combine Species
Decision Support Tools
A step that PIF also took with the 2004 North American Landbird Conservation Plan was to propose population objectives for all species of concern. This enterprise also necessitated our proposing population estimates for all species of concern. Both exercises are loaded with assumptions. But, on the whole, we were pleased with many of the estimates, having been supported by independent estimates from elsewhere. But the real benefit of taking this step was to launch a vigorous discussion of the whole idea of population objectives. This has been the subject of three national workshops and an infinite number of s. We’ve not completely figured it out just yet.
Opportunity
Assessment
Formulate
Habitat
Objectives
Revise Models
Accordingly
Monitor Site-scale Effects
Of Management Actions
On Populations
Delivery of
Conservation Actions 9

10. Foundation – Species Assessment Process
Achieving Consensus at Large Scales
Threats to Breeding Habitat
Threats to Non-breeding Habitat
Area of Breeding Distribution
Area of Non-breeding Distribution
Population Size
Population Trend
I will only spend a moment on the species assessment process we have used in PIF. The details have been published in numerous locations. The objective is to score future vulnerability. Each species is scored from 1 to 5 on 6 biological factors. 4 factors are strictly objective and 2 involve the systematic quantification of professional opinion. What I want to emphasize is that this is a process of achieving consensus among partners at ever larger geographic scales. There is enormous value, not only in the final outcome of this process, but in the process itself. The level of communication and of information sharing in workshops and in subsequent interactions is very high, and the benefits are many.
Future vulnerability
Low – Score 1
High – Score 5
Total Score: 6-30

12. History and Evolution of PIF
Species Assessment Process
Major plans – latest Continental Plan Revision
IBCP

13. 2004
448 Species Assessed
US and Canada

14. Saving Our Shared Birds
2010
882 Species Assessed
US, Canada, and Mexico

15. New analyses including Mexican spp
New analyses including Mexican spp. Of vulnerability and degree to which shared across the 3 nations. Half the landbird species are shared by either 2 or all 3 countries, and over 90% of the individuals are shared (shared spp are very abundant) – all of this emphasizes the interconnectivity and need for partnerships. Emphasized threats and a call to action.

16. 44 Species at Greatest Risk of Extinction
Small global populations (PS=5), and
restricted range (BD/ND=5)

17. A Call to Tri-National Action
1. Protect and recover species at greatest risk
2. Conserve habitats and ecosystem functions
3. Reduce sources of direct mortality
4. Expand our knowledge base for conservation
5. Engage people in conservation action
6. Increase the power of partnerships

18. 2016 Landbird Conservation Plan
Partners in Flight
2016 Landbird Conservation Plan
This 2016 Plan Revision presents four new and updated tools for bird conservation:
Extinction Risk models;
Responsibility assignments scaled to Joint Ventures and BCRs;
Full life-cycle analysis of eBird data to ID areas of greatest importance to migrants in non-breeding season; and
Species assessment scores updated.
Four major new things.

19. 2016 LCP Revision: New Science Tools for Conservation
Urgency and “Half-Life” Metrics – the number of years before
another 50% drop in population
Pinyon Jay
84% of pop lost
Half-life = 19 years
Population Half Life – Data from the BBS indices of abundance summarized at the BCR-level were
used to fit a multivariate state-space model for each species, as described in Stanton et al (2016). This approach
allows for estimation of the trend and year-to-year population variability while removing some of the residual
variance belonging to the observation process. With the characterization of the population variability and the
most recent trend observed over the last decade, a forecast was then made that projects the population forward
to predict how many years in the future until a population size that is half of the current abundance is expected
to be observed – this value we define as the Population Half-life for each species. This prediction is based on the
assumption that the population trends observed over the past decade will continue. This approach also assumes
that the year-to-year population variability as observed over the past four decades is inherent to the species and
has not increased or decreased substantially with climate change or other changes on the landscape.
The number reported for a given species in a JV or Canadian Region table represents the Half-life value from the
BCR with the greatest % of population for that species within the JV or Region.
Chestnut-collared Longspur
85% of pop lost
Half-life = 21 years
Stanton et al. 2016

20. 2016 LCP Revision: JV priorities & continental objectives
IWJV
Urgency/Half-life Estimated number of years until an additional 50% of the regional population is lost (i.e., a species’ “half-life” within the JV or region) if current population trends continue into the future.
Area Importance: relative importance of the JV or Region to a species based on either % of Breeding Population or Non-breeding Area Importance. Red text indicated HIGH area importance.
Long-term Change – percentage change in regional population over the past 48 years ( )
Short-term Trend – Average annual % change in regional population over the past 10 years ( )

21. 2016 LCP Revision: JV priorities & continental objectives
Population Objectives at the national scale, for JVs to target.

22. PIF Implementation Species and Habitat Objectives
Integration into Joint Ventures – All bird
Monitoring Protocols – Manuals
Research Needs compilations
Influenced and/or produced hundreds of project proposals to NMBCA – millions disbursed and leveraged across Americas
Same for Southern Wings
Influencing objectives of state non-game programs through 4 Administrative flyways….

23. PIF Western Working Group
Historically, 1 of 4 regional working groups – the most functional/persistent
Meetings 2x/yr meetings since 1991
Bird O’s - NGOs – Feds – States – Intl:
Long-billed Curlew
Flammulated Owl
Black Swift
Yellow-billed Cuckoo
Shorebirds
Mig Bird Conservation Road Shows
Land-owner Guides – e.g. shrub-steppe, P Pine, Cavity nesters, Early-successional forests.

24. it’s unlikely that they could have anticipated that nongame birds would become so thoroughly institutionalized into the conservation culture, not only of the United States, but throughout the Western Hemisphere.

25. History and Evolution of PIF
Species Assessment Process
Major plans – latest Continental Plan Revision
IBCP

26. The Idaho Bird Conservation Partnership: A Coordination Point for Bird Conservation in Idaho

27. Progress since inaugural meeting at Idaho TWS in March 2011
Formation of Steering Committee
Consisting of “upper-level” representatives (or designees) from land management agencies, industry, and NGOs
Provide guidance to IBCP
Priority species, habitats, issues, and project ideas
Working Groups
Framework to build from …

28. Progress/history …. Agreement to:
meet 2x annually, once with TWS and once in fall
Seek funding for part-time (3 month) coordinator
Success since 2013
Great turnouts at open meetings!
people at each and much enthusiasm

29. Mission/Vision
Idaho Bird Conservation Partnership (IBCP) is designed to contribute to the management, science delivery, outreach, and conservation of birds and their habitats in Idaho. In particular:
The IBCP will provide leadership, inter-organizational communication, organizational support, science delivery, outreach, and management to this conservation effort.
The IBCP will strive to implement strategic management and conservation efforts that contribute to the achievement of high priority regional and continental bird objectives aligned with national and state bird conservation initiatives and Idaho’s State Wildlife Action Plan.

30. IBCP Working Groups Conservation Delivery Funding Acquisition
Information Management
Monitoring and Research
Outreach/Education and Citizen Science
Pressing Bird Conservation Issues
SWAP revision