Endangered Birds of the Southern Appalachian Region

Katherine N. Larkins

As the human population of our country increases, development takes its toll on wildlife by decreasing natural habitats and increasing pollution. With the loss in natural habitats, wildlife diversity throughout the world is on the decline. In 1973, government passed the Endangered Species Act to recover "listed species to levels where protection under the Act is no longer necessary"(U.S. Fish And Wildlife Service). The Endangered Species Act today includes several birds that once inhabited the Southern Appalachian Region of the United States. Several bills now exist in addition to the Endangered Species Act to protect bird populations across the world; these bills do things such as prohibit the import and export of wild birds (Migratory Bird Treaty Act), and establish conservation funds (Wild Bird Conservation Act)

One bird that came under protection in the United States in the 1940's and is now an endangered species is the Bald eagle. Bald eagles build large nests out of sticks and other forms of vegetation in tall trees or on ledges; they may use these nests for 35 years or more (Ehrlich, Dobkin, Wheye 25). The Bald eagle is a bird of prey, generally living near water and depending on fish as a main dietary supplement. It is also a bird that prefers to live in relative isolation rather than in large groups. The Bald eagle has high standards for living in that it "[requires] an unpolluted, uncontaminated environment-something that no longer exists over most of [its] former range. . . "(Eagar, Hatcher A-10). The decline in Bald eagle population in our country is due to this high standard of living since very few uncontaminated environments exist today. The Eagle Protection Act came into effect in 1940, and it outlawed the "import, export, tak[ing], sell[ing], purchas[ing], or barter[ing]. . . [of] bald eagle. . . parts, products, nests, or eggs."

Another endangered bird of the Southern Appalachian Region is Bachman's Warbler. Bachman's Warbler is the "rarest North American songbird"(Peterson 242). It generally eats spiders and insects, for which it forages slowly in foliage (Ehrlich, Dobkin, Wheye 32). This warbler's habitat includes swamps with high tree and undergrowth densities as well as damp underbrush in heavy forests. It builds nests close to the ground out of various plant materials, and due to loss of habitat to agriculture, many think that this bird may already be extinct (Eagar, Hatcher A-13-14). The most recent confirmed sighting of Bachman's Warbler was in 1962 (Ehrlich, Dobkin, Wheye 32-33), and since they do think it is extinct, "recovery plan preparation is deferred for [the species] until individuals are found in the wild"(U.S. Fish And Wildlife Service).

A third endangered bird of the Appalachian Region is the Red-cockaded Woodpecker. The Red-cockaded Woodpecker feeds mainly on insects but also on fruits and berries. It forages by drilling holes in "trunks and branches, especially of large, living pines"(Ehrlich, Dobkin, Wheye 29). These woodpeckers build their nests by digging cavities in mature pine trees, and they generally will use these nests several years in a row (Eagar, Hatcher A-12) since it can take over a year to dig the cavities in the first place. When their natural habitat undergoes logging, or when undergrowth reaches a high enough level that predators can easily access the nest, these woodpeckers will move elsewhere (Ehrlich, Dobkin, Wheye 29). With the decline in natural habitat, the few surviving Red-cockaded Woodpecker populations abide in isolation throughout the South (Eagar, Hatcher A-12). Steps are in attempt to preserve the habitat of the Red-cockaded Woodpecker, but these steps require cooperation from many different groups, especially logging companies (Ehrlich, Dobkin, Wheye 30).

The American Peregrine Falcon lives all over the world, including the Southern Appalachian Region (Peterson 162) and was listed as endangered in 1970 after a severe decline in population between the 1940's and the 1960's. The sudden drop in this falcon species was a result of the use of chemical pesticides, such as DDT, in agriculture. The chemicals in these pesticides cause a thinning of eggshells, making them more susceptible to predators (Ehrlich, Dobkin, Wheye 27). The American Peregrine Falcon inhabits "open country near water; along large lakes and rivers. . . [especially those] with overhanging bluffs, cliffs and high rocky outcropping in the eastern mountains." It is a bird of prey, feeding on other birds of various sizes (Eagar, Hatcher A-5-6). The governmental effort to preserve this sub-species consists largely of captive breeding programs; these programs have led to the release of approximately 3,000 of these birds since the 1970's (Ehrlich, Dobkin, Wheye 27).

One endangered bird that is not necessarily a constant inhabitant of the Southern Appalachian Region but that will stop over in the region on migratory routes in the spring and fall is the Sandhill Crane. These cranes stop to feed in "grasslands, pastures, and grainfields" within the region (Eagar, Hatcher A-8). Sandhill Cranes nest in damp, open places on "dead sticks, moss, reeds, and grass amid [several types of trees]. Nesting territories, of 90 to 500 acres, are defended, and tend to be used year after year." They feed mainly on aquatic organisms and grains that remain in the fields in winter, and they use their long bill for probing in the water for food (Ehrlich, Dobkin, Wheye 42). Hunting of this beautiful species is one large cause in the decline of the Sandhill Crane (Eagar, Hatcher A-8), as is decrease in natural habitat. The harvesting of timber, and the drainage of wetlands for development are two things that have taken away many of the migratory and winter feeding grounds for these cranes. The recovery plan for the Sandhill Crane includes increasing the available habitat areas and controlling the birds' predators, as well as captive breeding programs (Ehrlich, Dobkin, Wheye 42).

As nations around the world progress industrially, and as the population of man grows, animal populations decline for various reasons. Luckily enough, the decline in animal diversity has not gone unnoticed, and governments have since passed laws to aid in the prevention of extinction. Through various recovery programs and conservation techniques initiated by many laws, several endangered species today are making a comeback in the wild. As we work to develop a suitable balance at which man and wildlife can survive together, we can witness the new growth in populations of animals that were once on the verge of extinction, and we can once again appreciate their existence in nature.

Works Cited

Eagar, Daniel C., and Robert M. Hatcher, ed. Tennessee's Rare Wildlife. Volume I: The Vertebrates. The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency and the Heritage Program of the Tennessee Department of Conservation, 1980.

Ehrlich, Paul R., David S. Dobkin, and Darryl Wheye. Birds in Jeopardy: The Imperiled and Extinct Birds of the United States and Canada. Stanford, California: Stanford University Press, 1992.

Peterson, Roger Tory. A Field Guide to the Birds East of the Rockies. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 1980.

Protection Law Summaries: Eagle Protection Act, Endangered Species Act, and Migratory Bird Treaty Act. http://ash.lab.r1.fws.gov:80/cargo/protect.html

U.S. Fish And Wildlife Serivce Division Of Endangered Species. http://www.fws.gov/~r9endspp/faqrecov.html#TOP