1 Table of contents 82

Wildlife Diversity Annual Report 2025

Program Updates - 2025		4
BIRDS		9
Migratory Shorebirds Return to North Carolina’s Shores!		9
The Jersey Shore Flocks to NC - Banded Piping Plover Spotted in Carteret County		10
American Oystercatcher Banding		11
Locals and Visitors Intermingling at Shackleford Banks		12
New Colony Discovered During Annual Wood Stork Monitoring Survey 		13
Wood Stork Trapping and Tagging to Study Their Movement Ecology		14
Detecting the Elusive Black Rail Using Remote Technologies		15
What We Are Learning About the Elusive Black Rail From a Dry Year		16
Wayne’s Warbler Breeding Confirmed in Brunswick and Camden Counties		17
Final Breeding Season for the NC Bird Atlas Begins		18
The Secret Lives of Breeding Birds		19
Autonomous Recording Units … Working All Night Long …		20
North Carolina Bird Atlas Completes Final Breeding Season		21
A Core Banks Atlasing Adventure		22
Preparing for Bird Nesting Season 2025, the First Season Post-Helene		23
Post-Helene Bird Monitoring		24
Wood Thrush Nanotagging		25
Motus Installations and Maintenance with the American Bird Conservancy		26
Using Motus Stations to Document Full Annual Cycles of Songbirds 		27
REPTILES		29
Are You GatorWise? New Outreach Program Promotes Coexistence with Alligators		29
Looking Back at Five Years of Alligator Spotlight Surveys		30
Working to Understand and Address Hook and Line Interactions with Sea Turtles in NC		31
Keeping Tabs on Sea Turtle Habitat		32
Earlier Nesting Peak Observed in 2025 Sea Turtle Nesting Season		33
Extended Non-nesting Period For a Loggerhead Sea Turtle		34
Searching for Herps in All the Right Places – Sandhills Ecoregion		35
Post-Helene Bog Restoration Work		36
Monitoring Bog Turtle Populations Post-Hurricane Helene in Western North Carolina		37
Working to Restore Bogs in Western North Carolina		38
Restoring Bog Habitat to Support Recovery of the Southern Lineage of Bog Turtles		39
AMPHIBIANS		40
Another Dry Winter in the Sandhills		40
Coastal Herp Staff Stay Busy with Collaboration and Cold Weather Surveys		41
Winter Amphibians		42
Monitoring Day and Night		43
Impacts to the Eastern Hellbender and Mudpuppy from Hurricane Helene and Debris Removal		44
Detections of Eastern Hellbenders Post Hurricane Helene		46
Surveys for the Eastern Hellbender in the Nolichucky Sub-basin During the First Breeding Season Post-Hurricane Helene		48
Emerging Gopher Frog News		49
Surveys for Gray Treefrogs and Wetland Habitat Enhancement Through Prescribed Fire		50
Studying Timber Harvest Effects on Green Salamanders and Their Micro-climate		51
NCPARC		53
MAMMALS		56
Woodrats in Western North Carolina		56
Post-Hurricane Helene Bat Surveys Begin		57
Post-Hurricane Helene Bat Surveys Show Reduced Gray Bat Counts		58
Counts of Gray Bats Down Following Hurricane Helene		59
2025 Post-Tropical Storm Helene Gray Bat Efforts Conclude		60
FISHES		61
Robust Redhorse Sampling and Propagation		61
Monitoring the Movement and Habitat Use of Stocked Carolina Madtoms in Sandy Creek		62
Hurricane Helene Monitoring and Woody Debris Technical Guidance in the Foothills Region of the Aquatic Wildlife Diversity Program		63
Fish Populations in the Nolichucky River Basin Showing Signs of Resilience in First Year Since Hurricane Helene		64
Aquatic Species Surveys to Inform Habitat Suitability For Rare Aquatic Species		65
Lake Waccamaw Fish and Mussel Monitoring Surveys		66
Cape Fear Shiner Broodstock Collection		66
Rare Coastal Fishes Surveys		67
MOLLUSKS		68
Development of Genetic Tools to Aid in the Restoration of Two Federally Endangered Mussel Species, the Tar River Spinymussel and Yellow Lance		68
New Hope Creek Mussel Relocation		69
Updating the Distribution of Brook Floater Following Hurricane Helene		70
HABITAT MANAGEMENT		71
Wildlife Passage 		71
Green Growth Toolbox		71
NC Wildlife Action Plan 		72
Partners for Green Growth		73
Resilience Strategy		73
Conservation Partnerships		73
Technical Assistance		74
Partners for Green Growth		74
Cooperative Land Conservation		75
Conservation Partnerships		76
Barrier Removal and Assessment		77
Western NCDOT: Bats		78
Aquatic Passage		78
Aquatic Organism Passage/Culvert Assessment Project 		79

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