OFCO Blog Post

28
May

Supporting the Marbled Murrelet

by Kevin Schmelzlen, Campaign Coordinator, Murrelet Survival Project

Murrelet Supporters:

As we approach the heart of Marbled Murrelet nesting season, the murrelet is more in need of your support than ever. The Washington State Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is just months away from unveiling its alternatives (options) for the Marbled Murrelet’s Long-Term Conservation Strategy.  If all goes well, each alternative will protect enough of the murrelet’s mature and old-growth forest nesting habitat to contribute to the survival and recovery of the species. As we have seen from the Department over the last 18 years (when this process began), however, we can not expect all to go well when it comes to DNR’s decisions, at least not without substantial pressure from the public. For this reason, it is crucial that we get a good turnout at the June Board of Natural Resources meeting to let DNR know that the public demands alternatives that prioritize the survival and recovery of the Marbled Murrelet.  

Please attend the Board of Natural Resources meeting on June 2 at 9 a.m. in the Natural Resources Building (1111 Washington St. SE) in Olympia and make a public comment in support of this threatened seabird. Some helpful talking points are shown below.

The transition into summertime also means more community events and, therefore, more opportunities for our campaign to spread the word about the plight of the Marbled Murrelet and what individual citizens can do to make a difference. If you are aware of any big environment or conservation-focused festivals or events coming up this summer, please let our campaign know at kevin@murreletsurvival.org or (360) 742-4808.  

We would also appreciate your attendance and help at these events if you are able to volunteer your time.

Thank you for your support!

Talking Points:

●      While I recognize the importance of minimizing and mitigating for the incidental take of Marbled Murrelets, a significant contribution to maintaining and protecting murrelet populations on state trust lands will require that forest management also enhance population stability, distribution, and resilience.

●      I strongly support the use of methods developed by the expert Marbled Murrelet Science Team, especially a robust evaluation of the change in the quantity and quality of potential nesting habitat and Marbled Murrelet population responses.

●      Marbled Murrelet habitat comprises the old-growth forests of tomorrow. The mature forests that support Marbled Murrelets also support owls, fisher, salmon, bats, salamanders, and countless other species. The Marbled Murrelet long-term conservation strategy provides an opportunity to regain our legacy of mature and old-growth forests on state lands by allowing forests that are not currently in this old-growth stage to become so.

●      I believe that, given the delay of nearly a dozen years in implementing a long-term conservation strategy, the baseline for analyzing take and mitigation of Marbled Murrelet habitat should be set from 1997, the beginning of the Habitat Conservation Plan for the Marbled Murrelet, not from 2016. 

●      The state of Washington has an obligation under the federal Endangered Species Act to ensure the survival and recovery of the Marbled Murrelet. The Long-Term Conservation Strategy needs to make this obligation its top priority. 

●      Although Marbled Murrelets can nest up to 55 miles inland, there is a significant dropoff in the likelihood of nesting and in the successful rearing of chicks as murrelets get farther from the sea.  It is crucial that the preservation and development of high-quality nesting habitat is prioritized in areas closest to the water.

●      Given the downward trajectory of the Marbled Murrelet population in Washington state, it is critically important to immediately halt the loss of high-quality Marbled Murrelet habitat and future suitable habitat. Without a serious commitment to the stabilization and recovery of the murrelet population in the immediate future, any amount of mitigation planned for the future may be insufficient to contribute to the recovery of the Marbled Murrelet in Washington.

●       Recovery of marbled murrelet should be based upon a scientifically rigorous policy. We would like to see the Board ensure that the analytical framework and new population-based model take the best available science into consideration. In order to be sure this occurs, we suggest that both models receive regular input and peer review from respected marbled murrelet biologists, examples being representatives of the Pacific Seabird Group, the Science Team, and other respected, reputable, and objective marbled murrelet biologists. A significant contribution to the recovery of murrelets on state trust lands will likely require a LTCS Alternative that does more than merely avoid jeopardy. Scientific review by impartial marbled murrelet biologists will help ensure that this occurs.

●       I would like to thank DNR for its creation and advocacy of programs that are designed to fund the trust beneficiaries while contributing to the survival of endangered species, such as the Trust Land Transfer and State Forest Replacement Programs.  Common-ground solutions like these two programs serve as a guide for other programs that may be developed in the future to benefit both local communities and endangered species like the marbled murrelet. 

●       Any questions or uncertainty about the future of the marbled murrelet in Washington State that remain following Dr. Peery’s analysis must serve as a warning to DNR to be especially sensitive to the current trajectory of our state’s murrelet population.  The Department has an obligation under its Habitat Conservation Plan to contribute to the survival and recovery of the species and any doubt about a Long-Term Conservation Strategy Alternative’s ability to do this should preclude that option from being discussed further as a possible Alternative. 

●       DNR should extend the buffers around occupied marbled murrelet habitat to at least 150 meters while we await the Long-Term Conservation Strategy.  With the murrelet population in steep decline, partially because of the Department’s lack of a Long-Term Conservation Strategy, the expansion of these buffers will give the marbled murrelet some much-needed added protection from corvid predation and other effects of nearby logging. 

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