Hi MD Birding:
I'm always interested in the status of the Red-cockaded Woodpecker
colony at Piney Grove Preserve in Virginia since it is less than 90
miles from the closest point of Maryland in southeastern Somerset
County. See the cross-posted message, below, from VA-Birds.
The last accepted Maryland Red-cockaded Woodpecker record was of a
pair from May 1974 photographed at Patuxent Wildlife Research Center
in Laurel, MD by Brooke Meanley and Matt Perry. There have also been
four subsequent southern Maryland MD reports; two from the late 1970s
and two from the 1980s. (These four reports were either not reviewed
or were not accepted, but that doesn't mean that some or all of the
reports were not valid.)
At the bottom of this message, I've pasted a jpg copy of the historic
range map (I'm not sure who to credit; USFWS, I think) ...
FYI ... here's a link to the Piney Grove Preserve web page ...
http://www.nature.org/ourinitiatives/regions/northamerica/unitedstates/virginia/placesweprotect/piney-grove-preserve.xml
Phil
From: "Wilson, Michael D" <mdwils...>
To: "<va-bird...>" <va-bird...>
Date: Thu, 5 Jul 2012 21:52:05 +0000
Subject: [Va-bird] Red-cockaded Woodpecker 2012 breeding
Virginia now supports the largest number of red-cockaded woodpecker
(RCW) breeding pairs since the 1980s. Center for Conservation Biology
biologists documented 10 breeding pairs on The Nature Conservancy's
Piney Grove Preserve during the breeding season of 2012. This is a
modern-day high and represents a five-fold increase from the low of 2
breeding pairs in the spring of 2000. Breeders produced 26 young
narrowly surpassing the recent record of 25 in 2011. Along with 45
total adults, the population has reached its highest level in more
than 20 years. After 11 years of intensive population and habitat
management the Virginia RCW population is showing a dramatic response.
However, the long road of recovery for RCWs in our region has not
ended. The overall national recovery plan for RCWs is divided into
several regional units. Each of these units must reach their
individual population goals before delisting of the species from the
Threatened and Endangered status. Virginia and northeast North
Carolina combine to form and Essential Support population in the
Mid-Atlantic that has an ultimate goal of 100 breeding pairs.
Significant properties in this sub-region include the Piney Grove
Preserve in Virginia, and in North Carolina include the Alligator
River NWR, Dare County Bombing Range, Palmetto-Peartree Preserve, and
Poscosin Lakes NWR. Together, these properties currently support < 50
pairs. However, in Virginia there is continued hope for recovery with
the addition of 4,500 acres of forest known as the Big Woods that
will be managed by the state for Red-cockaded Woodpeckers and other wildlife.
We will continue to monitor the Piney Grove population to determine
the fate of the 2012 young and maintain regular updates on
Red-cockaded Woodpecker status. Funds for monitoring RCWs in Virginia
are provided by the Center for Conservation Biology, the Nature
Conservancy, the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries,
and the United States Fish and Wildlife Service.
[]
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Phil Davis, Secretary
MD/DC Records Committee
2549 Vale Court
Davidsonville, Maryland 21035 USA
301-261-0184
mailto:<PDavis...>
MD/DCRC Web site: http://www.MDBirds.org/mddcrc/rcindex.html
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