Monitoring Nesting Waterbirds for the South Bay Salt Pond Restoration Project—2024 Breeding Season
Open-File Report 2026–1064
Ecosystems Mission Area—Land Management Research Program and Species Management Research Program
Forster’s tern
Habitat Use by Breeding Waterbirds in Relation to Tidal Marsh Restoration in the San Francisco Bay Estuary
Abstract
The South Bay Salt Pond Restoration Project aims to restore many former salt production ponds, now managed for wildlife and water quality, to tidal marsh.
Monitoring Nesting Waterbirds for the South Bay Salt Pond Restoration Project: 2022 Breeding Season
San Francisco Bay supports thousands of breeding waterbirds annually and historically has hosted large populations of American avocets (Recurvirostra americana), black-necked stilts (Himantopus mexicanus), and Forster’s terns (Sterna forsteri).
Breeding Waterbird Populations Have Declined in South San Francisco Bay: An Assessment Over Two Decades
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.
Forster’s Tern Chick Survival in Response to a Managed Relocation of Predatory California Gulls
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.
Impact of Salt Pond Restoration on California Gull Displacement and Predation on Breeding Waterbirds - Annual Report 2010
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.