Chapter 4 Habitats
Monitoring of aquatic taxa is critical to assessing species and ecosystem health and gauging the resilience of organisms to a changing climate. These monitoring efforts will inform future decisions on how to manage aquatic species. In addition to monitoring, there are several research questions that need to be answered about certain species or taxa of aquatic organisms. 4.2.11.6.1 Surveys Surveys are systematic and scientific methods of collecting information about the distribution, abundance, and ecology of wildlife or their habitats in a specific area at a specific time. A habitat survey is a method of gathering information about the ecology of a site. The results of a habitat survey provide basic ecological information that can be used for biodiversity conservation, planning and/or management, including targeting of more detailed botanical or zoological investigations (Smith et al. 2011) . Repeated surveys using the same methods can provide information about conditions and changes to species assemblages and habitat composition over time. Priorities for conducting distributional and status surveys need to focus on species believed to be declining or mainly dependent on at-risk or sensitive communities.
Priority Conservation Action, Examples of Focal Species or Focal Habitats
• Conduct surveys to determine distribution and status of crayfish SGCN and priority species with a focus on burrowing crayfish. Devil Crayfish Digger Crayfish Pamlico Crayfish • Conduct surveys to determine status and distribution of freshwater fish that are swamp system specialists. Banded Sunfish Ironcolor Shiner Swampfish • Baseline surveys are needed to document distribution and status for all aquatic snail SGCN and other priority species.
• Determine the components of foraging bat communities along rivers.
• Establish species-specific surveys to improve our knowledge of the status and distribution of the Least Bittern, American Bittern, Yellow Rail, and Black Rail at all times of the year (Conway et al. 2004).
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2025 NC Wildlife Action Plan
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