Harvest management, Monitoring, Research

Overview

Every year since 1981, the U.S., Canada, and Mexico work together to count Pacific black brant (Branta bernicla nigricans) along their Pacific Coast wintering areas in Baja, Mexico, California, Oregon, Washington, British Columbia, and Alaska. This survey, known as the Pacific Flyway Brant Survey, happens every year between January-February and involves coordinated teams counting birds from airplanes and from the ground. In Alaska, the USFWS Migratory Bird Program conducts the survey aerially, counting brant within the lagoons and bays of Izembek National Wildlife Refuge/State Game Refuge complex and the nearshore waters of Sanak Islands.

The main goal of our survey is to track how many Black Brant spend their winters in Alaska each year. Our count numbers are combined with counts from the rest of their wintering range, and together the information is used to establish harvest limits for the species. In addition to providing data for Black Brant harvest limits, our survey also helps detect distributional shifts in the winter brant population – documenting the impacts of climate change climate change
Climate change includes both global warming driven by human-induced emissions of greenhouse gases and the resulting large-scale shifts in weather patterns. Though there have been previous periods of climatic change, since the mid-20th century humans have had an unprecedented impact on Earth's climate system and caused change on a global scale.

Learn more about climate change
(as the population shifts north to increasingly ice-free areas). During this survey we also document the distribution and abundance of other waterbird species, like Emperor Geese and Steller’s Eiders, as well as other waterbird and mammal species encountered during the survey.

Importance of this Work

Collaboration and cooperation with other governments, agencies, and NGOs is essential to the conservation of the Pacific Black Brant, a harvested migratory bird species. Izembek Lagoon is of international importance to this species. The lagoon holds the largest single stand of eelgrass in the world and the largest bed of seagrass along the Pacific Coast of North America. Up to 40% of the total Pacific Black Brant population overwinters in Alaska because of the plentiful eelgrass, their main food source. The Pacific Black Brant population is connected and dependent on healthy eelgrass communities, as are a diversity of species, like Pacific herring, sea otters, harbor seals, to name a few. Rising sea levels, warmer water temperatures, increased storm activity, and ocean acidification are all ways climate change can impact the health of Izembek’s eel grass communities. These effects could result in less eelgrass beds, something that has already been documented in their Northern Mexico wintering range. These climate change effects could ultimately lead to population declines for the Pacific Black Brant. Additionally, birds in search of food may shift their migration patterns, something we can track and document directly with this survey.

Actions We All Can Take

Adhering to harvest limits and hunting regulations. Stewardship of our harvested species takes all of us. Making sure you follow the annual harvest limits set by biologists is critical to make sure hunting isn’t negatively impacting a species’ population. By setting and following sustainable harvest, we can ensure that hunting is not an additional stressor to Pacific Black Brant’s population. Harvest limits are a controlled way to prevent overexploitation of a species and ensure hunting remains a balanced activity alongside other efforts addressing threats Pacific Black Brant face.

Learn More

https://www.fws.gov/story/pacific-black-brant-migration-and-what-they-can-teach-us

https://www.fws.gov/project/eelgrass-abundance-and-productivity-monitoring

https://www.fws.gov/project/adaptive-harvest-management

https://www.fws.gov/story/how-hunting-seasons-and-limits-are-set-waterfowl

Facilities

Black and white bird with long neck and yellow bill on the water
Alaska is home to more than 470 species of birds. Most are migratory birds for which the Fish and Wildlife Service is responsible under international treaties and the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. While some of the birds stay in Alaska year-round, most migrate to Canada, Central America, South America...
A sunset over Izembek Lagoon with a cloudy sky reflecting over the water
Alaska's Izembek National Wildlife Refuge lies between the highly productive waters of the Bering Sea and the Gulf of Alaska. The heart of the refuge is Izembek Lagoon, a coastal ecosystem that's home to one of the world's largest eelgrass (Zostera marina) beds. Hundreds of thousands of waterfowl,...

Contact

Programs

A large bird with brown feathers, white head, and yellow beak flies against a pale blue sky
The Migratory Bird Program works with partners to protect, restore and conserve bird populations and their habitats for the benefit of future generations by: ensuring long-term ecological sustainability of all migratory bird populations, increasing socioeconomic benefits derived from birds,...

Species