Marbled Godwit Tracking Now Online

From the beach to your computer screen: You can follow the travels of rare marbled godwits as they fly across the country, bound for destinations known – at least for now – only to them.

As part of a continent-wide project, small transmitters were attached to godwits when they were banded on Little St. Simons Island in December. Biologists hope that data from the transmitters will help them determine where the godwits migrate and nest, and what their movements are throughout winter, along with other general location data.

The marbled godwit is a large migratory shorebird that nests in the grasslands of the Plains states and central Canada, as well as in Alaska and, in small numbers, eastern Canada. Godwits winter on the West, Gulf and East coast, including in Georgia. The birds stay here until late April or early May, with a few juveniles remaining throughout the summer. The marbled godwit is as a high-priority species in the State Wildlife Action Plan, a comprehensive strategy that guides Georgia Wildlife Resources and state Department of Natural Resources efforts to conserve biological diversity.

Marbled godwits are in decline, at least in part due to habitat loss, and listed by the U.S. Shorebird Conservation Plan as a high-priority species. Understanding the connections between winter habitats, nesting areas and migration stops for the various populations is vital to managing habitat for the species. It’s also the focus of a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service project encompassing North America.

The Wildlife Resources Division has been banding marbled godwits since 2001. But researchers began the godwit transmitter project in Georgia last fall, thanks to a grant from The Environmental Resources Network, or TERN, the nonprofit advocacy group for Wildlife Resources’ Nongame Conservation Section.

The travels of the satellite-packing godwits can be followed at www.seaturtle.org (click “Satellite Tracking,” then “Biogeography of Marbled Godwit in North America” on the left-hand side of the page).

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Keep Feeders up in Winter for Visiting Hummingbirds

Keep your hummingbird feeders filled and available this winter. That’s the recommendation of Georgia Wildlife Resources Division biologists, who know that some hummers spend winter in the state and benefit from the nourishment feeders offer.

Eleven hummingbird species have been recorded in Georgia. But while the only one that nests here – the ruby-throated hummingbird – migrates south and leaves the U.S. by mid-October, species from the western U.S. and Central America sometimes show up as early as August and stay until about April. These newcomers include rufous hummingbirds, which have the longest migration route of any hummer, and the calliope hummingbird, the smallest bird in the nation.

Many Georgians once took their feeders down in fall for fear the free food would keep hummingbirds from migrating. But the birds migrate in response to day length, not food supply. Keeping feeders up does not hinder migration.

Instead, some fortunate homeowners with full feeders have enjoyed playing host to rare visiting hummingbirds in winter.

“People enjoy doing it. (And) we get good information” involving the birds, said Jim Ozier, a program manager with the Wildlife Resources Division’s Nongame Conservation Section.

The rufous is the most commonly seen wintering hummer in the Southeast. This species flits from breeding ranges that extend from the Pacific Northwest as far north as southern Alaska to its primary wintering grounds in south-central Mexico. However, a few rufous hummingbirds take a different path and are spotted throughout Georgia and the rest of the Southeast during winter.

The calliope hummer is another snowbird, colorful but tiny at about a 10th of an ounce. A calliope was first recorded in the Peach State during the winter of 1998-1999.

According to the Georgia Hummers Web site (www.gahummer.org), the 2007-2008 season sported another first sighting, a green-breasted mango that wintered in Dublin. This species is normally found in Central and South America. Only three have been documented in the U.S. outside of Texas. The Dublin visitor remained for several weeks, attracting birders from all over the country.

Western hummingbird species can be difficult to identify. But Georgians can contact Wildlife Resources’ Nongame Conservation Section in Forsyth, (478) 994-1438, about hummer sightings. These reports document the incidence of wintering hummers and help biologists determine the birds’ habitat needs.

Georgians can help conserve hummingbirds through buying wildlife license plates featuring a ruby-throated hummer or a bald eagle. The license plate sales, in addition to donations to the Give Wildlife a Chance state income tax checkoff, are vital to the Nongame Conservation Section, which receives no state funds to help conserve rare plants, natural habitats and wildlife not legally hunted, fished for or trapped in Georgia. Details at www.georgiawildlife.com.

Georgia hummers at a glance:

· Allen’s
· Anna’s
· Black-chinned
· Broad-billed
· Broad-tailed
· Calliope
· Green-breasted mango
· Magnificent
· Ruby-throated
· Rufous
· Green violet-eared hummingbird*

*This species is listed as provisional, meaning a photograph is needed to add it to the state’s official list.

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