4.4 Terrestrial Communities
Oystercatchers, terns, skimmers, and sea turtles are additional examples of species that are vulnerable to loss of beach habitats for nesting or foraging. Diamondback Terrapins and sea turtles nest on sand dunes, bay, and sound beach areas, and artifcial spoil islands and shoreline structures built in these areas to reduce erosion can impede them from coming on shore to nest (Wnek et al. 2013) . Trash and waste materials deposited along the shoreline creates another access hazard for hatchlings leaving nests and can become an ingestion or entanglement hazard for foraging animals (Nevins et al . 2014) . Sediment composition in nesting areas afects micro-environmental conditions such as temperature, carbon dioxide and oxygen levels, and moisture content, which in turn afects water exchange, metabolism, and development of embryos in the nest chamber (Wnek et al. 2013) . Sex determination of turtle embryos is dependent on temperature of the nest during incubation and biophysical conditions such as soil temperature and moisture afect survi- vorship, length of incubation period, energy stores, and sex ratios of hatchlings (Roosenburg 1990; Jeyasuria and Place 1997; Wnek et al. 2013) . Embryos that did not survive in nests constructed in dredge soils were dessicated, most likely due to high saline content or the presence of organic and inorganic contaminants (Brooks et al. 1991; Miller and Dinkelacker 2008; Wnek et al . 2013) . 4.4.16.6 Recommendations In general, conservation and restoration of natural composition and function, and conser- vation of surrounding natural areas are the best way to improve the ability of these com- munities to adapt to climate change. Protection of a large and diverse pool of examples is the best way to ensure that many survive the future stresses. Surveys. Distributional and status surveys need to focus on species believed to be declin- ing or mainly dependent on at-risk or sensitive natural communities. • Conduct distributional and status surveys for pelagic and shore birds, small mammals, and reptiles that may utilize this habitat. Monitoring. Long-term monitoring is critical to assessing species and ecosystem health over time and gauging the resilience of organisms to a changing climate. Tese eforts will inform future decisions on how to manage species and their habitats. Studies should include identifcation of population trends, as well as assessment of impacts from con- servation or development activities. Long-term monitoring sites need to be identifed and monitoring protocols developed for all priority species. Monitoring plans should be coor- dinated with other existing monitoring programs where feasible. Tese monitoring eforts will inform future decisions on how to manage aquatic species.
477
2015 NC Wildlife Action Plan
Made with FlippingBook - professional solution for displaying marketing and sales documents online