Avian Temporal Trends and Habitat Relations Within the South Atlantic Coastal Zone

Despite the significance of the Hobcaw Barony in a region historically known as a waterfowl hunting paradise, the long history of the Belle W. Baruch Institute of Coastal Ecology and Forest Science on Hobcaw Barony and the establishment of the James C. Kennedy Waterfowl and Wetlands Conservation Center at the Baruch Institute in 2014, no comprehensive study of waterbirds has occurred on site. Thus, basic information, such as the number of species present, relative abundance, migration chronology, and habitat use and selection, is lacking. This research aims to form a baseline of waterbird and wetland data on the Hobcaw Barony and DeBordieu Colony with hopes that it is the beginning of a long-term dataset. My specific objectives are to 1) document winter and spring temporal trends and spring migration chronology of waterbirds, 2) determine which wetland type(s) are positively affecting waterbirds in terms of species presence and abundance, and 3) determine what environmental factor(s) are driving this favorable attraction for waterbirds. I accomplished these goals in 2022 and 2023 by conducting point-count surveys, secretive marshbird surveys, macroinvertebrate surveys, and collecting additional wetland-level data in 156 wetlands. My results on migration chronologies and habitat usage are invaluable to wetland managers as they can inform them when and how to manipulate their wetlands to attract more waterbird populations. Therefore, I provide management protocol suggestions based on the results (i.e., water manipulation technology) with the hope that these data will be informative for years to come.