The San Francisco Bay Bird Observatory (SFBBO) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to the conservation of birds and their habitats through science and outreach.
A yearly snapshot of Project milestones and assessment of progress toward meeting restoration, public access and flood management goals
In south San Francisco Bay, former salt ponds now managed as wildlife habitat support large populations of breeding waterbirds. In 2006, the South Bay Salt Pond Restoration Project began the process of converting 50% to 90% of these managed pond habitats into tidal marsh.
Gull populations can severely limit the productivity of waterbirds. Relocating gull colonies may reduce their effects on nearby breeding waterbirds, but there are few examples of this management strategy.
The California Gull (Larus californicus) population in the South San Francisco Bay has increased from fewer to 200 breeding Gulls in 1982, to a peak of 52,172 in 2012. Specific to this study there were 46,030 breeding Gulls in 2010 and 37,716 breeding Gulls in 2011.
Our objectives are to determine the impact of gulls on breeding snowy plovers and Forster’s terns.; Color-mark California gulls at A6 to determine potential nesting distributions after restoration of A6.; Continue our California gull colony surveys to document current population size.
We examined the distribution and abundance of California Gulls throughout the South Bay salt ponds and associated landfills and determined their impact on the reproductive success of American Avocets and Black-necked Stilts.