Abstract
The Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta is an important region for bird conservation in California, particularly as part of a large, productive estuary on the Pacific Flyway. The Delta currently provides habitat to an abundant, diverse community of birds, but it is likely only a small fraction of what the Delta’s bird community once was. Meeting the goal of restoring a healthy Delta ecosystem is legislatively required to include providing habitat for birds among the conservation goals and strategies in the Delta Plan, yet birds and their habitat needs are often not addressed in science syntheses, conservation planning, and large-scale restoration initiatives in the Delta. In this essay, the authors provide an avian perspective on the Delta, synthesizing recent scientific work to describe factors that contribute to the Delta’s current importance for birds, and the conservation needs of the diverse array of bird species that call the Delta home.
Highlights
California’s Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta is well known as an important aquatic ecosystem, with biodiversity conservation effortsVOLUME 18, ISSUE 4, ARTICLE 2 primarily focused on fish
Despite the legislative directive and these co-benefits, birds are not often addressed in science syntheses or conservation planning in the Delta, and largescale restoration initiatives have primarily focused on addressing the effects of water supply and flood control infrastructure on threatened and endangered fish species (e.g., California Natural Resources Agency c2020; Healey et al 2016a, 2016b; Moyle et al 2012)
The Central Valley Joint Venture (CVJV) selected a suite of 10 representative focal species for use in defining conservation objectives, including Sandhill Crane and California Black Rail; a substantial proportion of the California population for each can be found in the Delta and vicinity (Table 1; San Francisco Estuary Partnership 2015; Shuford and Hertel 2017)
Summary
California’s Sacramento–San Joaquin Delta is well known as an important aquatic ecosystem, with biodiversity conservation effortsVOLUME 18, ISSUE 4, ARTICLE 2 primarily focused on fish. The CVJV selected three duck and three shorebird focal species that nest in the Central Valley for use in defining population objectives and monitoring response to conservation efforts: Cinnamon Teal, Gadwall, Mallard, Black-necked Stilt, American Avocet, and Killdeer.
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