Renewable energy production can kill birds, but little is known about how it affects avian populations. We assessed vulnerability of populations for 23 priority bird species killed at wind and solar facilities in California, USA.

The U.S. Geological Survey, Western Ecological Research Center (USGS-WERC) was requested by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) to create a database for marine birds of the California Current System (CCS) that would allow quantification and species ranking regarding vulnerability to offshore wind energy infrastructure (OWEI). This was needed so that resource managers could evaluate potential impacts associated with siting and construction of OWEI within the California Current System section of the Pacific Offshore Continental Shelf, including California, Oregon, and Washington. Along with its accompanying Open File Report (OFR), this comprehensive database can be used (and modified or updated) to quantify marine bird vulnerability to OWEIs in the CCS at the population level. For 81 marine bird species present in the CCS, we generated numeric scores to represent three vulnerability indices associated with potential OWEI: population vulnerability, collision vulnerability, and displacement vulnerability. The metrics used to produce these scores includes global population size, proportion of the population in the CCS, threat status, adult survival, breeding score, annual occurrence in the CCS, nocturnal and diurnal flight activity, macro-avoidance behavior, flight height, and habitat flexibility; values for these metrics can be updated and adjusted as new data become available. The scoring methodology was peer-reviewed to evaluate if the metrics identified and the values generated were appropriate for each species considered. The numeric vulnerability scores in this database can readily be applied to areas in the CCS with known species distributions and where offshore renewable energy development is being considered. We hope that this information can be used to assist meaningful planning decisions that will impact seabird conservation. These data support the following publication: Adams, J., Kelsey, E.C., Felis J.J., and Pereksta, D.M., 2016, Collision and displacement vulnerability among marine birds of the California Current System associated with offshore wind energy infrastructure: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2016-1154, 116 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20161154.

The U.S. Geological Survey, Western Ecological Research Center (USGS-WERC) was requested by the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) to create a database for marine birds of the California Current System (CCS) that would allow quantification and species ranking regarding vulnerability to offshore wind energy infrastructure (OWEI). This was needed so that resource managers could evaluate potential impacts associated with siting and construction of OWEI within the California Current System section of the Pacific Offshore Continental Shelf, including California, Oregon, and Washington. Along with its accompanying Open File Report (OFR), this comprehensive database can be used (and modified or updated) to quantify marine bird vulnerability to OWEIs in the CCS at the population level. For 81 marine bird species present in the CCS, we generated numeric scores to represent three vulnerability indices associated with potential OWEI: population vulnerability, collision vulnerability, and displacement vulnerability. The metrics used to produce these scores includes global population size, proportion of the population in the CCS, threat status, adult survival, breeding score, annual occurrence in the CCS, nocturnal and diurnal flight activity, macro-avoidance behavior, flight height, and habitat flexibility; values for these metrics can be updated and adjusted as new data become available. The scoring methodology was peer-reviewed to evaluate if the metrics identified and the values generated were appropriate for each species considered. The numeric vulnerability scores in this database can readily be applied to areas in the CCS with known species distributions and where offshore renewable energy development is being considered. We hope that this information can be used to assist meaningful planning decisions that will impact seabird conservation. These data support the following publication: Adams, J., Kelsey, E.C., Felis J.J., and Pereksta, D.M., 2016, Collision and displacement vulnerability among marine birds of the California Current System associated with offshore wind energy infrastructure: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2016-1154, 116 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20161154.

Six metrics were used to determine Population Vulnerability: global population size, annual occurrence in the California Current System (CCS), percent of the population present in the CCS, threat status, breeding score, and annual adult survival. Global Population size (POP)—to determine population size estimates for each species we gathered information tabulated by American Bird Conservancy, Birdlife International, and other primary sources. Proportion of Population in CCS (CCSpop)—for each species, we generated the population size within the CCS by averaging region-wide population estimates, or by combining state estimates for California, Oregon, and Washington for each species (if estimates were not available for a region or state, “NA” was recorded in place of a value) and then dividing the CCSpop value by the estimated global population size (POP) to yield the percentage of the population occurring in the CCS. Annual Occurrence in the CCS (AO)—for each species, we estimated the number of months per year within the CCS and binned this estimate into three categories: 1–4 months, 5–8 months, or 9–12 months. Threat Status (TS)—for each species, we used the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) species threat status (IUCN 2014) and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife national threat status lists (USFWS 2014) to determine TS values for each species. If available, we also evaluated threat status values from state and international agencies. Breeding Score (BR)—we determined the degree to which a species breeds and feeds its young in the CCS according to 3 categories: breeds in the CCS, may breed in the CCS, or does not breed in the CCS. Adult Survival (AS)—for each species, we referenced information to estimate adult annual survival, because adult survival among marine birds in general is the most important demographic factor that can affect population growth rate and therefore inform vulnerability. These data support the following publication: Adams, J., Kelsey, E.C., Felis J.J., and Pereksta, D.M., 2016, Collision and displacement vulnerability among marine birds of the California Current System associated with offshore wind energy infrastructure: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2016-1154, 116 p., https://doi.org/10.3133/ofr20161154. These data were revisied in June 2017 and the revision published in August 2017. Please be advised to use CCS_vulnerability_FINAL_VERSION_v9_PV.csv

Rasters representing median raven density estimates, calculated from approximately 28,000 raven point count surveys conducted between 2009 and 2019. Estimates were the result of a Bayesian hierarchical distance sampling model, using environmental covariates on detection and abundance.

Rasters representing median raven density estimates, calculated from approximately 28,000 raven point count surveys conducted between 2009 and 2019. Estimates were the result of a Bayesian hierarchical distance sampling model, using environmental covariates on detection and abundance.

Species distribution models often use climate data to assess contemporary and/or future ranges for animal or plant species. Land use and land cover (LULC) data are important predictor variables for determining species range, yet are rarely used when modeling future distributions. In this study, maximum entropy modeling was used to construct species distribution maps for 50 North American bird species to determine relative contributions of climate and LULC for contemporary (2001) and future (2075) time periods. Results indicate species-specific response to climate and LULC variables; however, both climate and LULC variables clearly are important for modeling both contemporary and potential future species ranges. This data release provides summary data for each of the 50 species. Four types of files are included in a ZIP file distributed for each species, including 1) GeoTIFF files that represent species distributions for 2001 and 2075 (including model runs with and without climate or land use), 2) PDF files summarizing MaxENT model runs for 2001, demonstrating sensitivity of the models to climate and land use, 3) lambda values for each model run that contain variables used in that run and constants that can be used to compute values for the fitted model, and 4) a JPG file depicting a summary map of modeled species range in 2001, and panel maps depicting changes in species probability as land use and/or climate change by 2075. A summary Excel spreadsheet summarizes and compares results across the 50 species.

Wildlife managers translocate greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus; sage-grouse) to augment small populations, but translocated sage-grouse often fail to reproduce post-release, sometimes hampering conservation objectives. We performed two distinct sage-grouse translocation projects in California and North Dakota from 2017-2020 and employed two translocation methods at both sites: an established method of translocating females prior to the nesting season (i.e., a pre-nesting translocation), and a novel method wherein females were translocated with chicks after successfully hatching a nest in the source population (i.e., a brood translocation). Using an integrated population model (IPM), we estimated recruitment by females translocated with each method. We also estimated the finite rate of change in abundance in recipient and source populations that underwent brood and pre-nesting translocations to evaluate each method using a cost-benefit metric.

Wildlife managers translocate greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus; sage-grouse) to augment small populations, but translocated sage-grouse often fail to reproduce post-release, sometimes hampering conservation objectives. We performed two distinct sage-grouse translocation projects in California and North Dakota from 2017-2020 and employed two translocation methods at both sites: an established method of translocating females prior to the nesting season (i.e., a pre-nesting translocation), and a novel method wherein females were translocated with chicks after successfully hatching a nest in the source population (i.e., a brood translocation). Using an integrated population model (IPM), we estimated recruitment by females translocated with each method. We also estimated the finite rate of change in abundance in recipient and source populations that underwent brood and pre-nesting translocations to evaluate each method using a cost-benefit metric.

The dataset includes three separate excel spreadsheets which provides waterbird (and predator) observations within individual survey units during the May 2019 breeding waterbird survey of south San Francisco Bay (2019WaterbirdSurveyFullData.xlsx), the total number of American avocets, black-necked stilts, and Forster's terns within each pond unit surveyed during the May 2019 survey (2019WaterbirdSurveyPondModel.xlsx), and the annual total number of nests for American avocets, black-necked stilts, and Forster's terns in south San Francisco between 2005 and 2019 (SouthBayWaterbirdNests2005-2019.xlsx).