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Mahone Bay Roseate Tern Recovery Project
A single site in Mahone Bay once supported one-third of the Endangered Canadian Roseate Tern population. This colony was abandoned in the mid-1990s and Roseate Terns have attempted to nest at several sites since.
The main goal of the RTRP is to establish a secure nesting site for Roseate Terns on an island in Mahone Bay. This will be accomplished through habitat enhancement, predator deterrence, social attractants, and public awareness. The main threats to Roseate Terns include depredation by gulls, habitat loss due to development, and disturbance by recreational boaters.
The Roseate Tern is classified as an endangered species in Canada by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC). The Roseate Tern is a migratory seabird making a round-trip each year from its wintering grounds in South America to breed on the islands off the East Coast of Canada and the U.S. Roseate Terns nest within colonies of Common Terns and Arctic Terns which offer protection that they cannot derive from smaller colonies of their own species.
Heather Olivella, Roseate Tern Recovery Project Coordinator, adding water to the touch tank at the BCAF display booth at the Mahone Bay Wooden Boat Festival. |
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This project, which was initiated in April 2003, addresses the third objective of the Canadian Recovery Strategy for the Roseate Tern: “restoring a broader distribution of the Roseate Tern by establishing at least one more managed colony”. Mahone Bay represents a halfway point between Country Island and the Brothers Islands, the other managed tern colonies in Nova Scotia.
Year 1 of the project was a feasibility study to determine an appropriate site in Mahone Bay to initiate this stewardship program. The RTRP team’s research consisted of: determining the ownership status of the Mahone Bay islands; determining the degree to which islands are subject to human disturbance; and assessing islands in terms of size and accessibility to researchers/stewards. In partnership with the Canadian Roseate Tern Recovery Team it was decided that Quaker Island was the ideal island for the project. Beginning in the spring of 2004, a field camp has been established on the island from mid-April to August. Stewardship options include: gull management, social attractants (e.g. nesting boxes, decoys, sound system playing tern calls), habitat enhancement, and public education.
Year 2 (April 2004- March 2005)
A field camp, aptly named “Camp Rosie”, was established on Quaker Island on April 28, 2004. Camp consisted of 2 sleeping tents, 1 supply tent, 1 compostable toilet surrounded by a “lean-to”, and 1 baby barn (8'x8') for food supplies, electronic equipment, and cooking.
During the initial days of the project, one of the main tasks of field staff was gull management. It was imperative to deter gulls from nesting on the island prior to the arrival of the terns. Predator control techniques included the use of pyrotechnics, constant human presence, and destruction of gull nests and eggs. Because of the techniques employed by project staff, the colony was successfully displaced and no other gull nests were found after May 11, 2004. However, a handful of gulls continued to loaf around the edge of the island. The use of pyrotechnics ended on May 11, so that the terns would not be deterred from nesting on the island. A sound system playing tern colony sounds 24-hours a day was activated on May 4, and nesting shelters were constructed and placed on the point as well.
Field Technician, Gareth Akerman, standing in front of the baby barn.
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One of the decoys placed on the western point of the island.
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Nesting box
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Terns (Common and Arctic) were first observed circling and landing on Quaker Island on May 12, 2004, and began exhibiting “nesting behaviour” shortly thereafter. By early July, there were approximately 25 active nests (Common Terns) on the island. Although Roseate Terns did not nest, 2 pairs were observed circling and landing on the island during the summer.
Field staff regularly monitored population size, distribution, movement, and productivity of terns nesting on Quaker Island. Staff also conducted extensive “predator watches”, which documented predator intrusions into the colony, the length of time of the intrusion, and whether or not the intrusions were successful. A blind was set up overlooking the western point of the island. Daily bird observations were made from the blind (up to 6 hours per day) from May11. Daily monitoring also included information on weather, daily bird lists, and general observations of conditions on the island.
The purpose of collecting data on other species was to monitor the effect of predator control on other species nesting on the island. Once the clutches were laid, tern monitoring included the collection of data regarding productivity, diet, and chick growth. In addition to monitoring Quaker Island, project staff also surveyed other tern colonies in Mahone Bay including Westhaver’s, Crow, Spectacle, and Mash Islands. All of the data that was collected during the spring/summer 2004 is located in the 2004 Quaker Island Data Binder at the BCAF office.
RTRP project staff and Canadian Wildlife Service (CWS) staff were extremely pleased with the number of pairs nesting on Quaker Island. However, due to a severe thunderstorm on July 19, the nests were flooded. The adults abandoned the colony on July 20. Sadly, all chicks perished. Although, no chicks fledged from Quaker Island, the project should still be considered a success. Considering the fact that this was the first year of establishing a secure stewardship site and that all of the terns nesting on the island were first time breeders lacking experience, the number of nesting pairs exceeded expectations.
Similar restoration projects that have taken place in the Gulf of Maine have never had as many as 25 nests in the first year. BCAF plans to continue their restoration efforts on Quaker Island next summer with the full support of the island’s owner, Christopher Ondaatje.
Year 3 (April 2005- March 2006)
Two full-time field assistants arrived on Quaker Island on April 26, 2005. Similar to the previous field season, one of the first tasks of field staff was gull management. In comparison to 2004, there were significantly less gulls on the island (15 nests destroyed in 2005 vs. 92 in 2004). Because of the techniques employed by project staff, the colony was successfully displaced and no other gull nests were found after June 3. However, a handful of gulls continued to loaf around the edge of the island.
The terns nested on the western point of Quaker Island.
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Tern social attractants were used again in an effort to attract terns to the island. Common and Arctic terns were first observed circling and landing on Quaker Island on May 10, 2005 and began exhibiting “nesting behaviour” shortly thereafter. Severe weather impacted the terns and delayed nesting by approximately 10 days. Predator watches were conducted approximately 150 m from the colony using a spotting scope. In an effort to minimize disturbance, project staff did not enter the colony until they were confident that some of the terns had laid eggs. On June 9, staff counted 23 nests (Common and Arctic) on the island. Although Roseate Terns did not nest, 2 pairs were observed circling and landing on the island on a number of occasions.
On June 10, project staff observed a mink in the colony during a routine ‘Predator Watch’. Upon doing a ground check of the colony, it was discovered that the mink had predated all of the eggs. The next day, June 11, the adult terns abandoned the colony. On June 12, a trapper came to the island and set traps to catch the mink. The mink was later trapped. BCAF maintained a field crew on the island on a part-time basis until early July in hopes that the terns would re-nest. However, the terns did not re-nest on Quaker Island.
Project staff surveyed other tern colonies in Mahone Bay on a weekly basis including Westhaver’s, Mason’s, Lynch, and Saddle Island. Productivity plots were set up on all of the previously mentioned islands. Predator watches were also conducted on a regular basis. Unfortunately none of the tern colonies in Mahone Bay were successful in fledging tern chicks during the 2005 nesting season. Human disturbance is suspected to be the cause of at least 2 of the abandonments. Supporting evidence included: reports of dogs running through the colonies unleashed, dog bones, footprints, inukshuks (sculptures made out of rocks), and garbage.
Year 4 (April 2006- March 2007)
Field staff arrived on the island on April 25. Project staff removed 14 partial gull nests. Because of the techniques employed by project staff no further gull nests were found after mid-May. Tern social attractants (i.e. sound system, decoys, and nesting shelters) were used in an effort to attract terns to the island.
Island use by terns was encouraging. Terns (Common and Arctic) were first observed circling and landing on Quaker Island on May 17, 2005 and began exhibiting mating and feeding behaviour shortly thereafter. Although terns were observed on and around Quaker Island, they did not nest on the island.
Blind overlooking tern colony.
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Predator watches were conducted approximately 150 m from the colony using a spotting scope. On May 10, field staff observed a mink near the lighthouse on Quaker Island. On May 11, a trapper came to the island and set traps to catch the mink. The mink was later trapped.
BCAF maintained a field crew on the island until July 20 in hopes that the terns would nest on Quaker Island. Unfortunately, no terns nested on Quaker Island in 2006. It is likely that predation events on the colony during the previous two field seasons have made the terns leery of nesting on Quaker. This behaviour will likely subside as BCAF continues efforts to make the site safe, secure, and appealing, and as the colony’s confidence in the nesting site returns.
Project staff surveyed other islands in Mahone Bay that had historically supported tern colonies including Westhaver’s, Mason’s, Mash, Lynch, Spectacle, Crow, Long, Grassy, Pearl and Saddle Island. Westhaver’s, Saddle, and Pearl Islands were the only islands which had tern colonies during the 2006 field season. Unfortunately the terns on Westhaver’s and Saddle Islands abandoned the colony before any eggs could hatch. This is likely largely the result of two major issues faced by the terns: frequent inclement weather, and significant human disturbance. It is not known if the colony on Pearl Island successfully fledged any chicks as the island is difficult to access via boat. Notable signs of human presence in colonies in the Bay in 2006 included development in one of the nesting areas, dogs and picnickers.
BCAF considered the 2006 field season positive despite the fact that no terns nested on the island. The fact that terns were attracted to the island to feed and mate is encouraging. Also, the number of gulls nesting on the island has decreased every year since the project was initiated. The island’s owner, Christopher Ondaatje, is also firmly committed to the continuance of the project, and BCAF is determined to persist with recovery efforts for the Roseate Tern in Mahone Bay.
Quaker Island Bird List
American Crow
American goldfinch
American Oyster Catcher
Arctic Tern
Bald Eagle
Barn Swallow
Black Ducks
Black-bellied plover
Cliff Swallow
Common Eider
Common Loon
Common Tern
Doubled Crested Cormorant
Evening Grosbeak
Great Black-Backed Gull
Great Blue Heron
Great Cormorant
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Herring Gull
Mallard Duck
Northern Flicker
Northern Harrier
Osprey
Palm Warbler
Red-winged blackbird
Rock Doves
Roseate Tern
Savannah Sparrow
Snow Goose
Song Sparrow
Spotted Sandpiper
Tree Swallow
Willett
Willow Flycatcher
Yellow Warbler
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Aerial photo of Quaker Island.
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Education and Community Involvement
Public support and awareness objectives included fostering a more educated and aware general public and recreational boating community, and maintaining the number of stewards in the area looking out for the survival of the Roseate Tern in Mahone Bay.
Individual consultations were made to numerous people throughout the summer 2006 at local festivals, to visitors to Quaker Island, to recreational boaters at the government wharf in Chester, etc. The Coordinator contacted the Progress Enterprise, a local newspaper, which ran 2 stories about the RTRP throughout the summer.
Tern colony sign.
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An updated project brochure and newsletter was developed and distributed to local residents via local festivals (including the Mahone Bay Wooden Boat Festival and the Bridgewater Children’s Fair), one-on-one meetings and at local businesses. Signage was placed at the government wharf in Chester and other boat launches in the area. The signs stated that Quaker Island was the site of a tern colony and requested that the public stay at least 100 m away from nesting birds. It also stated that these birds may abandon their young if disturbed during the nesting period. Signs were also placed on Quaker Island.
BCAF’s network of island monitors was maintained at 35 individuals during the summer of 2006. This network of volunteers provides information regarding island use, development, island flora and fauna, etc. This program, known as Island Watchers, is a great way to involve the community in the project and increase the sense of stewardship of the islands amongst the monitors. The Project Coordinator received information on a regular basis from the monitors, including the location of terns in the Bay. Two of the island monitors sit on the RTRP Advisory Committee.
A Roseate Tern Information Placemat was designed and distributed to local restaurants in Lunenburg, Mahone Bay and Chester. The placemats were very popular and all 5000 copies were distributed. The Project Coordinator targeted restaurants in the local area that are most frequented by tourists.
Public presentations on the RTRP were made at the Nova Scotia Bird Society, the conference “Atlantic Canadian Species at Risk; Linking Science and Communities in Recovery”, Atlantic Tern Working Group Meeting, and the South Shore Naturalists.
“Island Watch” Volunteer Monitoring Program
As part of the Roseate Tern Recovery Project, BCAF is overseeing “Island Watch”, a monitoring program comprised of volunteers that observe and record information relating to the Mahone Bay islands. Monitors include island owners, outdoor enthusiasts, birders, and recreational boaters. There are currently over 30 monitors. If you are interested in becoming an island monitor, please contact Wendy Rodenhizer, Project Coordinator at (902) 624-9888. All monitors are invited to attend a bird identification training workshop.
Beach Clean-Up Crew, September 22, 2003: 23 volunteers, 18 km of shoreline cleaned, 550 lbs. of garbage removed!
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Project Advisory Committee
Source: Destination Nova Scotia
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Andrew Boyne
Species-at-Risk Biologist
Canadian Wildlife Service
Environment Canada
Dartmouth, NS
Nancy Covington
Concerned Citizen
Michael Ernst
Sail Mahone Bay
Mahone Bay, NS
John Mills
Wildlife Biologist
NS Department of Natural Resources
Bridgewater, NS
Reg Newell
Stewardship Coordinator
NS Department of Natural Resources
Kentville, NS
Bob Weld
Concerned Citizen
Acknowledgements and Partners
Many individuals and organizations have been involved in this project and helped make it a success. First and foremost BCAF would like to thank the many landowners who participated in the project. BCAF is also grateful to the following individuals who devoted their time and expertise to this project including:
Andrew Boyne – Canadian Wildlife Service
Michael Ernst – Sail Mahone Bay
John Mills – Nova Scotia Department of Natural Resources
BCAF would also like to thank the following departments and organizations who have provided funding to this project:
Atlantic Coastal Action Program
Bluenose Coastal Action Foundation
Canadian Wildlife Service
Environment Canada
Habitat Stewardship Program
Mahone Islands Conservation Association
Nova Scotia Department of Environment and Labour
Last Modified: Sat, Jun 16, 2007
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