Chris Merkord Posted April 19, 2012 Share Posted April 19, 2012 Funding for the following 28 projects was approved in March 2012. More than $3.78 million in funding was approved with project partners contributing $14 million in matching funds. This information is gathered from proposals as submitted and is accurate as of the date of approval. For further information about specific grant projects, please contact the grantee listed in individual project summaries. Source: USFWS NMBCA website. U.S. Projects COLORADO Project: Bader Ranch Conservation Easement. Location: Las Animas County, Colorado. Grantee: The Nature Conservancy. Contact: Missy Davis,missy_davis@tnc.org. Partners: Great Outdoors Colorado. Approved: March 2012. Grant: $200,000. Matching Funds: $803,000. NonMatching Funds: None. Ecoregion: NA0815. The Nature Conservancy of Colorado will use grant and matching funds to acquire conservation easements on high-priority grassland, piñon juniper forest and woodlands habitat for neotropical migratory birds on Colorado’s Central Shortgrass Prairie. The property to be protected harbors shortgrass prairie riparian habitat interspersed with large patches of piñon juniper woodlands, as well as rocky outcrops, all key habitats for declining grassland birds such as long-billed curlew, western meadowlark, Cassin’s sparrow, loggerhead shrike and lark sparrow. MULTIPLE U.S. STATES Project: Modeling Raptor Migration Corridors for Landscape Conservation: Addressing a Shifting Climate Paradigm. Location: Arizona, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Montana, Washington and Wyoming. Grantee: HawkWatch International. Contact: Dr. Markus Mika,mmika@hawkwatch.org. Partners: Idaho Bird Observatory; Montana Audubon. Approved: March 2012. Grant: $86,824. Matching Funds: $260,473. Ecoregion: NA0503, NA0508,NA0512, NA0515, NA0528,NA0530, and NA1313. For more than 25 years, HawkWatch International (HWI) has conducted fall season raptor migration monitoring at 11 sites across the western U.S. and the Gulf Coast. As energy development increases, government, industry, and conservation scientists seek to gather data on potential risk factors, including for raptors. HWI will use grant and matching funding to translate its data into functional predictive models and maps of raptor migration sites of the western U.S., to be used in assessments of landscape-scale development projects, to help avoid and minimize risk to sensitive species and to inform potential mitigation options. U.S. - International Projects CANADA, ALASKA Project: The Arctic Shorebird Demographics Network II. Location: Alaska; Northwest Territories, Nunavut and Manitoba, Canada. Grantee: Manomet Center for Conservation Sciences. Contact: Stephen Brown,sbrown@manomet.org. Partners: Kansas State University; University of Missouri; Wildlife Conservation Society; Manomet Inc.; Environment Canada; Trent University. Approved: March 2012. Grant: $124,861. Matching Funds: $374,732. Ecoregion: NA1103, NA1104,NA1107, NA1115, NA0616,NA1114. The goal of the Arctic Shorebird Demographics Network, now in its third of five planned years, is to determine what limits populations of nine high-priority species by developing demographic models that can guide conservation action. Network partners, spread across the entire breeding range of these species in the Alaskan and Canadian arctic, will measure demographic rates such as adult survival, productivity, and other parameters at ten field sites, seven of which will be partially supported by this grant. CANADA, MULTIPLE U.S. STATES Project: Enhancing the Value of Migration Monitoring - Year One. Location: Coastal North America from James Bay, the Great Lakes and southern Canada to northwestern Mexico Tundra of East Bay, Nunavut, Ulukhaktok and Sachs Harbour, Northwest Territories, Canada. Grantee: Great Basin Bird Observatory. Contact: Dr. Jonathan Bart,jon_bart@usgs.gov. Partners: Environment Canada; Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico (UNAM-MAZATLAN); Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey. Approved: March 2012. Grant: $158,000. Matching Funds: $475,210. Ecoregion: Multiple. The project will combine a novel approach for estimating population size from migration monitoring data with surveys of causes of declines and opportunities for recovery. Population size will be estimated from extensive surveys of migration areas and by using geolocators to determine migration pathways. By combining methods, partners hope to improve the value of migration monitoring for trend estimation and broaden the purview of these surveys so that they also help design better conservation strategies for declining species. Funded under the NMBCA pilot program Project: Targeted Grazing Management to Conserve the Sprague’s Pipit. Location: Montana and North Dakota; Saskatchewan, Canada. Grantee: Wildlife Conservation Society. Contact: Dr. Kevin Ellison,kellison@wcs.org. Partners: Wildlife Conservation Society; American Prairie Foundation; World Wildlife Fund; Nature Conservancy Canada. Approved: March 2012. Grant: $30,909. Matching Funds: $92,900. Ecoregion: NA0810, NA0811. The Sprague’s pipit breeds exclusively in the northern Great Plains and requires patches of relatively tall, native grass cover. Largely due to land conversion, less than 2 percent of the area in the U.S. and 5 percent of the Canadian breeding range of the Sprague’s pipit is suitable habitat. Project partners will create habitat for the Sprague’s pipit through modified grazing management with willing land managers; re-seeding cropland into native grasses; comparing the use of these lands by pipits to nearby “control” sites; and providing outreach to ranchers and agencies on conservation and management options to benefit the Sprague’s pipit. CANADA, MEXICO, UNITED STATES Project: Full Life-Cycle Conservation of the Long-billed Curlew. Location: California, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington and Wyoming; Alberta and British Columbia, Canada; Chihuahua, Mexico. Grantee: American Bird Conservancy. Contact: David Younkman,dyounkman@abcbirds.org. Partners: Pronatura Noreste; Pronatura Mexico; CONAFOR; American Bird Conservancy. Approved: March 2012. Grant: $200,000. Matching Funds: $610,700. Ecoregion: Multiple. This project involves tri-national partnership work to produce and apply best management practices for long-billed curlews on their breeding grounds, and to protect significant wintering habitat in Mexico, including 4,900 acres of wintering habitat. MEXICO, UNITED STATES Funded under the NMBCA pilot program Project: U.S.-Mexico Grassland Bird Conservation, Phase X. Location: Colorado; Chihuahua, Mexico. Grantee: Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory. Contact: Arvind Panjabi,Arvind.panjabi@rmbo.org. Partners: City of Fort Collins Natural Areas Program; American Bird Conservancy; Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Approved: March 2012. Grant: $200,000. Matching Funds: $650,861. Ecoregion: NA0815, NA1303. This project will continue work funded by the NMBCA since 2002 to conserve high-priority and declining grassland bird species of western North America. This phase focuses on implementing conservation actions to reduce and mitigate threats to Sprague’s pipits, mountain plovers and 26 other high-priority grassland bird species. Strategies include: outreachto engage grassland owners in habitat management and restoration in wintering habitat in Chihuahua; protecting shortgrass prairie in a portion of the 200,000-acre Mountains to Plains conservation area in northern Colorado; and management, monitoring, education and law enforcementto benefit mountain plover and other high-priority grassland bird species on 55,000 acres in this same conservation area in Colorado. Project: San Bernardino Neotropical Migratory Bird Habitat Restoration II. Location: Arizona; Sonora, Mexico. Grantee: Cuenca los Ojos Foundation. Contact: Valer Austin,vaustin@elcoronadoranch.net. Partners: Comision Nacional Forestal; Cuenca los Ojos Foundation; Biophilia Foundation; private individual. Approved: March 2012. Grant: $200,000. Matching Funds: $730,848. Ecoregion: NA0302, NA1303. This project will continue work funded by the NMBCA in 2008 to conserve high-priority and declining neotropical migratory bird species of western North America. Cuenca los Ojos and its partners will work on both sides of the border to restore upland grasslands to benefit neotropical migratory bird species, including Montezuma quail and bell’s vireo; restore a key tributary to the Rio San Bernardino for the benefit of the entire ecosystem and species of concern such as yellow-billed cuckoo and Cassin’s kingbird; cultivate a native grass seed bank to secure the sustainability of future grassland restoration; conduct monitoring of grassland- and riparian-related bird species, including eight species of sparrows; and conduct outreach with local landowners and educational institutions to promote similar conservation and restoration work on their lands. International Projects ARGENTINA, BRAZIL, PARAGUAY, URUGUAY Project: Towards Sustainability of Neotropical Grassland Migrant Conservation II. Location: Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay and southern Brazil. Grantee: BirdLife International. Contact: Rob Clay,rob.clay@birdlife.org. Partners: Aves Argentinas; Aves Uruguay; BirdLife International; Guyra Paraguay; SAVE Brasil. Approved: March 2012. Grant: $199,100. Matching Funds: $599,800. Ecoregion: NT0710; NT0803;NT0806; NT0909. The temperate grasslands of southern South America originally encompassed an area of over a million square kilometers, comprising one of the richest grazing areas in the world, but also one of the most important grassland biomes for biodiversity conservation. This project will build on three earlier NMBCA-funded projects. Expected outcomes include: maintenance of natural grasslands as a result of Alliance bird-friendly beef certification; novel incentives for producers to conserve natural grasslands; an increase in the number of producers adopting best practices and informed about the Alliance; outreach and awareness to generate support for market-based and other incentives for grasslands conservation; and national organizations with increased capacity to meet the demand from producers for support for the adoption of best management practices. ARGENTINA, BRAZIL, URUGUAY Funded under the NMBCA pilot program Project: Migratory Connectivity of Buff-breasted Sandpipers. Location: Rocha Department, Uruguay; Rio Grande do Sul State, Brazil; and Buenos Aires Province, Argentina Grantee: Mount Allison University. Contact: Stephen Yezerinac,yezerinac@gmail.com. Partners: Province of Buenos Aires; ICMBio; private individual; Aves Uruguay; Universidad de la Republica Uruguay; Manomet; Mount Allison University. Approved: March 2012. Grant: $54,004. Matching Funds: $166,008. Ecoregion: NT0803. Buff-breasted sandpipers have a small and apparently declining population, and face threats both during migration and while wintering. The conservation plan for the species lists the top range-wide priority as ascertaining migration patterns and concentration areas, and linking breeding and nonbreeding locations. Project partners will equip buff-breasted sandpipers with geolocators to collect light-intensity information as the birds travel during their annual cycle. The geolocations will provide valuable information and lead to more focused and effective conservation actions. BELIZE, COSTA RICA, GUATEMALA, HONDURAS, NICARAGUA, PANAMA, EL SALVADOR Project: Strengthening the Partners in Flight Mesoamerican Working Group. Location: Nicaragua, Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, Costa Rica and Panama. Grantee: Fundacion Cocibolca. Contact: José M. Zolotoff-Pallais,zolotoff@ibw.com.ni. Partners: American Bird Conservancy; PIF-MESO México; PIF MESO Belize; PIF MESO Guatemala; PIF MESO El Salvador; PIF MESO Honduras; PIF MESO. Approved: March 2012. Grant: $11,580. Matching Funds: $34,772. Ecoregion: Multiple. For the past eleven years, Partners in Flight USA has supported coordination of the Partners in Flight Mesoamerican Working Group (PIF MESO). This project will continue support of the PIF MESO coordinating office, particularly publication of La Tangara, to update its subscriber database, and to update the La Tangara web page, which is now widely used by ornithologists throughout the region. BOLIVIA Funded under the NMBCA pilot program Project: Protecting Critical Stopover Habitat for Buff-breasted Sandpiper in Bolivia II. Location: Department of Beni. Grantee: Asociación Armonía. Contact: Bennett Hennessey,abhennessey@armonia-bo.org. Partners: Bird Endowment; Loro Parque Fundacion; World Land Trust. Approved: March 2012. Grant: $100,000. Matching Funds: $300,000. Ecoregion: NT0702. The Barba Azul Nature Reserve is a critical stopover area in Bolivia for the buff-breasted sandpiper after it crosses the Amazonian rainforest. With this project, partners will protect and manage savanna habitat; restore habitat and conduct law enforcement within the Barba Azul Nature Reserve savanna and river-edge foraging habitat; and manage habitat through a patch burn plan that will create buff-breasted sandpiper habitat. Partners will also research and monitor sandpiper populations, movements and habitat use in the Beni Savanna, and use community outreach and education to help increase and improve the quality of foraging habitat on private cattle ranches. BRAZIL, FRENCH GUIANA, SURINAME, VENEZUELA Project: Assessing Population Status, Structure and Conservation Needs for Semipalmated Sandpiper III. Location: Coastal areas of Brazil, French Guiana, Suriname, Venezuela. Grantee: New Jersey Audubon Society. Contact: Dr. David S. Mizrahi.,david.mizrahi@njaudubon.org. Partners: New Jersey Audubon Society; Canadian Wildlife Service; Friends of STINASU; Disney Worldwide Conservation Fund; New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife; DuPont Clear into the Future; National Fish and Wildlife Foundation; Universidade Federal de Pernambuco; Universidade Federal de Sergipe; private individual. Approved: March 2012. Grant: $199,952. Matching Funds: $743,085. Ecoregion: This project's primary objectives include assessing the abundance and distribution of the semi-palmated sandpiper along South America’s northern coast during southbound migration and boreal winter, and determining spatial relationships among important wintering, migration staging and breeding areas, and characterize population structure and demographic properties of the species’ wintering in northern South America. Other objectives are to identify, investigate, and if possible, address factors that may adversely affect population viability; and collaborate with South American biologists and resource managers to develop and implement research, monitoring and conservation plans for the species. The project work will build on successful project phases previously funded through the NMBCA since 2008. CANADA Funded under the NMBCA pilot program Project: Conservation Action for Bicknell’s Thrush on Its Canadian Breeding Grounds. Location: Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, Canada. Grantee: Bird Studies Canada. Contact: George Finney,gfinney@birdscanada.org. Partners: Environment Canada; University of New Brunswick. Approved: March 2012. Grant: $65,000. Matching Funds: $195,000. Ecoregion: Atlantic Maritime. Approximately 38 percent of the global population of Bicknell’s thrush breeds in eastern Canada. While data suggest that the southern breeding population is relatively stable, trend data from the northern and peripheral parts of the species’ range show substantial declines. This project will help improve conservation for the Bicknell’s thrush in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick by addressing habitat destruction, degradation and loss on the breeding grounds. Objectives are to partner with timber companies and management agencies to continue to develop and implement best management practices, including maintaining target amounts of breeding habitat in industrial forest; and maintain current distribution by conducting targeted outreach to secure long-term protection for habitat in areas under threat of wind development. Project: Conservation Actions for Golden-winged Warblers in Canada. Location: Southern Ontario and southern Manitoba. Grantee: Bird Studies Canada. Contact: George Finney,gfinney@birdscanada.org. Partners: Environment Canada / Canadian Wildlife Service; Queens University; Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources. Approved: March 2012. Grant: $40,670. Matching Funds: $122,012. Ecoregion: NA0406, NA0407,NA0414, NA0608. Partners will address threats to golden-winged warbler recovery by collecting data across the majority of the species’ Canadian breeding range, focusing on areas identified by the Golden-winged Warbler Working Group. Partners will help identify critical habitat; document the current distribution of golden-winged and blue-winged warblers; collect detailed data on fecundity and habitat selection; and document genetic structure at selected sites. Results will be disseminated to recovery teams and working groups and will be used to direct conservation efforts. COLOMBIA, ECUADOR, PERU Project: Reforestation of Critical Wintering Habitat for Neotropical Migrants III. Location: Eight sites across Colombia, Ecuador and Peru. Grantee: American Bird Conservancy. Contact: Sara Lara,slara@abcbirds.org. Partners: Fundación ProAves; Asociación Ecosistemas Andinos. Approved: March 2012. Grant: $200,000. Matching Funds: $612,431. Ecoregion: NT0115; NT0121;NT0136; NT0153,.NT0223. Partners will work cooperatively to acquire, protect, and reforest or restore significant wintering habitat in Colombia, Ecuador, and Peru for more than 20 neotropical migratory bird species, including olive-sided and willow flycatchers, and bay-breasted, cerulean and golden-winged warblers, and more than 35 globally threatened bird species. COSTA RICA Project: Protecting and Restoring Migratory Bird Habitat in the Osa Peninsula. Location: Osa Peninsula, Puntarenas. Grantee: Osa Conservation. Contact: Manuel Ramirez,manuelramirez@osaconservation.org. Partners: Natural Resources Defense Council; Natural Resources Foundation of Wisconsin; American Bird Conservancy. Approved: March 2012. Grant: $76,450. Matching Funds: $247,875. Ecoregion: NT0130. This project will protect wintering habitat for migratory birds on properties managed by Osa Conservation; restore degraded and deforested habitat; and create conservation agreements with neighboring landowners to protect habitat important for wintering migratory birds. Neotropical migratory species of concern that will be positively impacted by this project include swallow‐tailed kite, mangrove cuckoo, olive‐sided and willow flycatchers, wood thrush, and golden‐winged warbler. ECUADOR Project: Conserving Priority IBAs for Aquatic Migratory Birds in Ecuasal Salt Lagoons – Península de Sta. Elena, Ecuador, Phase III. Location: Santa Elena Province. Grantee: Aves y Conservación. Contact: David Díaz,aves_dirección@avesconservacion.org. Partners: Ecuasal Empresa; Ministerio del Ambiente de un estado o provincial; UPSE/Estudiantes; Canadian Wildlife Service; private individual; Red Hemisférica de Reservas de Aves Playeras; Wetlands International . Approved: March 2012. Grant: $118,670. Matching Funds: $401,944. Ecoregion: NT1413. This project is aimed at improving the conservation of two IBAs in the Santa Elena Peninsula, the artificial salt lakes and their buffer zones. These sites were designated as the first Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserves in Ecuador in 2007, and are recognized as sites of regional importance to 23 species shorebirds in their migratory path to wintering grounds. The main focus of this third project phase is to give continuity to the three lines of action: bird monitoring and investigation, community outreach and education, and management. Project: Conservation of Cerulean Warbler in Eastern Ecuador. Location: Napo Province. Grantee: Jocotoco Foundation. Contact: Zoltan Waliczky,zwaliczky@fjocotoco.org. Partners: Jocotoco Foundation; World Land Trust. Approved: March 2012. Grant: $80,109. Matching Funds: $272,256. Ecoregion: NT0121. The subtropical and foothill humid forests of eastern Ecuador are a highly threatened vital wintering area for the cerulean warbler and other priority migrants. This project will strengthen the protection and management of one of the key wintering sites for the species, the Jocotoco Foundation’s Narupa Reserve in eastern Ecuador, covering nearly 600 hectares of primary and secondary forest. Public outreach and ecotourism will be used to increase public support for the conservation of migratory species and their habitats. GUATEMALA Project: Conservation of Stopover and Wintering Habitat at Sierra Caral. Location: Department of Izabal. Grantee: Foundation for Ecodevelopment and Conservation. Contact: Marco Cerezo,m.cerezo@fundaeco.org.gt. Partners: American Bird Conservancy; Conservation International; FUNDAECO; Global Wildlife Conservation; International Conservation Fund of Canada; World Land Trust. Approved: March 2012. Grant: $149,446. Matching Funds: $1,055,860. Ecoregion: NT0111. With funds through the NMBCA and a broad international partnership, FUNDAECO will purchase two adjacent parcels of forest in the Sierra Caral mountains in the Caribbean region of Guatemala. These lands will become the core of a larger protected area at Sierra Caral, a critical wintering and stopover area for at least 33 species of neotropical migrants. Funds will also be directed to train, equip, and support personnel to prevent unsustainable activities, and to provide outreach and education to local communities. Bird monitoring efforts will be expanded to assist management objectives. GUATEMALA, HONDURAS, MEXICO Project: Conservation of Mesoamerican Pine-Oak Forests through a Regional Integrated Forest Management Model. Location: Chiapas, México; Altiplano Central and Verapaces, Guatemala; Olancho, Honduras. Grantee: Pronatura Sur, A.C. Contact: Claudia Macías Caballero,cmacias@pronatura-sur.org. Partners: Fundación Defensores de la Naturaleza; The Nature Conservancy. Approved: March 2012. Grant: $200,000. Matching Funds: $860,377. Ecoregion: NT0303. Across the entire Mesoamerican region, pine-oak forests have been progressively destroyed and degraded over the past decades, putting at risk the conservation of the golden-cheeked warbler. A central issue identified by the Alliance for the Conservation of Mesoamerican Pine-Oak Forests is the implementation of sustainable forest management practices at the regional scale. To achieve this objective, this project will develop, implement and evaluate an innovative integrative model of sustainable forest management in Chiapas, Guatemala and Honduras. This model will integrate logging, reforestation, fire management, firewood collection and charcoal production, as well as monitoring of biodiversity indicators. HAITI Funded under the NMBCA pilot program Project: Conserving and Restoring Broadleaf Forest in Bèrak Valley, Aux Cornichons Important Bird Area, Haiti. Location: Southeast Haiti. Grantee: Vermont Center for Ecostudies. Contact: Chris Rimmer,crimmer@vtecostudies.org. Partners: Foundation Seguin and Vermont Center for Ecostudies. Approved: March 2012. Grant: $124,060. Matching Funds: $377,702. Ecoregion: NT0127. Building on nearly two years of pilot experience in the broadleaf forest remnants in eastern Haiti’s Bèrak Valley, this project will provide incentives to protect reforested and intact forest areas from clearing, grazing and agriculture. It will also create incentives and teach local farmers to grow high-quality nursery stock using native tree species, which local landholders will use to reforest their own parcels. This project aims to restore and increase critical broadleaf forest habitat that supports Bicknell’s thrush and other neotropical migrant birds, as well as the rich endemic biodiversity of La Visite National Park. MEXICO Project: Habitat Protection and Enhancement for Migratory Birds in the Sierra Madre Oriental. Location: Sierra Madre Oriental. Grantee: Pronatura México A.C. (Capítulo Veracruz) Contact: Aníbal Farabundo Ramírez Soto,aramirez@pronaturaveracruz.org. Partners: Naturserve; Coordinadora de Organizaciones Cafetaleras de Huatusco A.C.; Consejo Regional del Café de Coatepec A.C.; Universidad Veracruzana; Rusticas Productions; Telebachillerato de Veracruz-SEV. Approved: March 2012. Grant: $199,958. Matching Funds: $937,113. Ecoregion: NT0146, NT0154,NT0176, NT0177, NT0235, NT0308,NT0310. The project aims to protect and enhance critical habitat for 10 focal species with native tree species. Partners will evaluate and monitor habitat for 10 species: olive-sided flycatcher, willow flycatcher, golden-winged warbler, hermit warbler, cerulean warbler, Kentucky warbler, worm-eating warbler, Canada warbler, wood thrush and painted bunting. Partners will also protect and manage critical habitat, portions of which will be certified as Private Conservation Areas; enhance migratory bird habitat by planting key tree species on degraded lands and shade-grown coffee plantations; and conduct environmental education by disseminating videos and printed materials about migratory bird habitat and conservation and forest restoration. Project: Janos, Binational Migratory Corridor II. Location: Chihuahua. Grantee: Pronatura Noreste A.C. Contact: Mauricio De la Maza-Benignos,mmaza@pronaturane.org. Partners: SAGARPA; INIFAP. Approved: March 2012. Grant: $198,770. Matching Funds: $669,300. Ecoregion: NA1303. Project partners aim to improve critical grassland habitat in the Janos-Ascención-Casas Grandes region for species such as long-billed curlew and mountain plover that winter in this region. Partners will secure legal land protection for grassland bird habitat; restore wintering habitat; continue to define best practices and areas for effective conservation in the region through research and monitoring; and integrate best management practices. This two-year project will have conservation benefits for other migratory and resident grassland bird that share these habitats. Project: Restoration and conservation of matorral and selva in Sierra de Tamaulipas. Location: Tamaulipas state, Mexico. Grantee: Pronatura Noreste A.C. Contact: Mauricio De la Maza-Benignos,mmaza@pronaturane.org. Partners: Secretaría de Medio Ambiente y Recursos Naturales; Jaguar Conservancy; Gobierno del Estado de Tamaulipas; Universidad Autónoma de Tamaulipas. Approved: March 2012. Grant: $199,925. Matching Funds: $982,073. Ecoregion: NT0303, NT1311. Partners aim to conserve and restore the last remaining blocks of Tamaulipan deciduous forests that connect Sierra de Tamaulipas with the Reserva de la Biosfera El Cielo in the Sierra Madre Oriental, benefiting more than 200 bird species, through the establishment of long-term conservation agreements with private land owners; development and implementation of conservation management plans for the establishment of Sustainable Wildlife Use and Management Units; restoration of degraded neotropical bird wintering habitat; promotion of sustainable land use through workshops and training; and development of species inventories and long-term monitoring plans. Funded under the NMBCA pilot program Project: Conservation Strategy for Grasslands of the Chihuahuan Desert II. Location: Chihuahuan Desert. Grantee: Pronatura México A.C. Contact: Dr. Miguel Ángel Cruz Nieto, mcruz@pronatura-noroeste.org. Partners: Pronatura Noreste, A.C.; National Commission of Natural Protected Areas; Universidad Autónoma de Nuevo León; Chihuahua University; INIFAB-Chihuahua; INIFAB-Aguascalientes. Approved: March 2012. Grant: $200,000. Matching Funds: $930,200. Ecoregion: NT1303. During this project’s first phase, partners advanced the implementation of the Conservation Strategy for Grasslands of the Chihuahuan Desert. During the second phase, the project is refining its scope and has as a medium-term goal to increase mountain plover populations for El Tokio and Janos. Work will continue on two objectives: strengthen the Regional Alliance for the Conservation of the Chihuahuan Desert as a collaboration process and facilitate community participation by creating tools and policies to reduce threats at a landscape scale; and protect habitat in the Janos region through ecological easement contracts, and improving the habitat by building ground and water conservation works and fences to control cattle. PARAGUAY Project: Harmonizing Rice Cultivation with Migratory Bird Conservation in Paraguay. Location: Southern Paraguay. Grantee: Guyra Paraguay. Contact: Alberto Yanosky,yanosky@guyra.org.py. Partners: Agriplus S.A.; Asociación de Productores de Arroz de la Cuenta Baja del Rio Tebicuary; Eladia S.A. Approved: March 2012. Grant: $60,000. Matching Funds: $180,000. Ecoregion: NT0708, NT0908. Rice fields act as temporary wetlands and have been documented to provide important habitat, especially for feeding, for waterbirds such as buff-breasted sandpiper, lesser yellowlegs, solitary sandpiper, American golden plover and bobolink. Through a previous NMBCA-funded project, Guyra Paraguay began documenting the importance of the rice fields in southern Paraguay for conservation of neotropical migrants. Through the current project, partners will expand knowledge of the importance of rice fields in southern Paraguay for conservation of neotropical migrants; promote and test the adoption of best management practices that benefit both migratory birds and rice production; restore wetland habitats for neotropical migrants; and continue to raise awareness among producers of the importance of rice fields for the conservation of migratory birds. PERU Project: Building Peru’s National Bird Banding Program II. Location: Peru. Grantee: Centro de Ornitologia y Biodiversidad (CORBIDI). Contact: Eveling Tavera Fernandez, etavera@corbidi.org. Partners: Asociación Fauna Forever; Environment Canada; Optics for the Tropics; SERNANP – Servicio Nacional de Peruvian; Areas Naturales Protegidas; Pro Naturaleza; University of Alaska Fairbanks. Approved: Marach 2012. Grant: $103,200. Matching Funds: $310,297. Ecoregion: Multiple. Goals of this project are to manage and continue developing Peru’s first national bird banding program, including administering bands and banding projects, and operating the central banding data repository and online banding database; collaborating to support banding activities in Peru; and continuing to support to newly created banding stations in Arequipa, Lima and Piura regions. Partners will also implement a new shorebird banding project in Paracas National Reserve, and continue building local banding capacity through bander training and national and international partnerships. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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