2007 Annual Monitoring Report (pdf 16MB) - Bolsa Chica Lowlands ...

Bolsa Chica Lowlands Restoration Monitoring2007 Annual ReportCalifornia killifish, and a single arrow/shadow goby. A total of 1,396 fish were captured in the MPM,93% of which were topsmelt. Biomass figures at Stations 1 and 2 were more similar than comparisonsof abundance between the two stations and were generally driven by the size and number of topsmeltcaptured. The MPM had the lowest biomass due to the small size of the topsmelt captured there.The limited number of species, low biomass, and few individuals captured is similar to conditionsdocumented in the October 1997 survey during the first year post-opening of Batiquitos Lagoon,reflecting the early stages of site development. In addition, the October 2007 FTB sampling and theOctober 1997 sampling at Batiquitos Lagoon found a paucity of mature fish, with both systemsdominated instead by first year juvenile fish. This observation would tend to suggest that in bothcases, early colonization of the new coastal embayments was by larval and juvenile recruitment andless by adult immigration.It is recommended that fisheries monitoring be extended into Year 3 to document the colonization ofthe FTB and development of the fish community.BENTHIC COMMUNITYThe Monitoring Plan does not call for benthic monitoring to be initiated until Year 2 of the monitoringprogram, in January and July. The first monitoring was conducted January 2008 so data will bepresented in the second annual report.The Monitoring Plan calls only for 2 sampling events in the first four years of the FTB opening. It isrecommended that benthic monitoring be extended into Year 3 in order to better document andunderstand the development of benthic resources available for avian and fish communities.AVIAN COMMUNITYAvian surveys began in October 2007 to mark the start of Year 2 of the monitoring program and willcontinue every other month for a 2-year period. October surveys counted a total of 7,256 individualbirds representing 90 species, while December surveys included a total of 9,333 individual birdsrepresenting 92 species. Many migrating birds were observed in October, with many wintering birdsobserved in December. Each bird species observed was assigned to one of 9 ecological guilds. Themost abundant bird guild for both surveys was shorebirds with 4,406 individuals (61% of all birdsobserved) in October and 5,431 individuals (58% of all birds) in December. The second most abundantguild over both surveys was dabbling ducks/geese with 757 individuals (10% of all birds) in October and1,663 individuals (18% of all birds observed) in December. The large increase in individuals during theDecember surveys can be attributed to the arrival of wintering ducks as well as some migrant geese. Thethird most abundant guild over both surveys was upland birds with 915 individuals (13% of all birds) inOctober and 789 individuals (9% of all birds) in December. Diving duck/grebes/cormorants were thefourth most abundant guild with 371 individuals (5% of all birds) in October and 785 individuals (8% of allbirds) in December 2007.Inundated salt panne was the most utilized habitat type (35% of all birds) during the October 2007survey. This is primarily due to shorebird usage, accounting for 68% of all shorebirds during theOctober survey. This changed in the December survey with an increased use of mudflats (33% of allbirds) and open water (29%) above inundated salt panne (13%). The increased use of open water wasrelated to the arrival of diving and dabbling ducks by December. When standardized by the availableMerkel & Associates, Inc. 3