1 Table of contents 79

Wildlife Diversity Annual Report 2024

Program Updates - 2024		4
BIRDS		8
Eastern Black Rail Surveys Begin in Spring 2024		8
Year 4 of 5 for the NC Bird Atlas!		9
Motus Noise Tests by the American Bird Conservancy		10
NC Bird Atlas Update		11
Spring Bioacoustics–Flying Squirrels, Owls, and Warblers!		12
Creative New Signs Protect Nesting Areas		14
Restoring Waterbird Habitat		15
NC Bird Atlas 2024 Third Quarter Update		17
Where is Wayne’s World? Continued Efforts to Detect the Wayne’s Black-throated Green Warbler in North Carolina’s Coastal Region		18
You Are What You Eat – New Collaborative Project to Assess Tern and Skimmer Diets		19
Hurricane Recovery in the Roan Highlands		20
Growing Red-cockaded Woodpeckers, One Cluster at a Time		21
Resighting Bird Bands Provides Valuable Data on Black Skimmers 		22
REPTILES		23
Response to Sea Turtle Cold-stun Events Along the North Carolina Coast in Winter 2024		23
Investigating Head-start Bog Turtle Movements and Habitat Use		24
Identifying Sea Turtle Crawls on NC Beaches		25
WANTED: Softshell Turtle Sightings		26
Using Predator-Exclusion Cages to Monitor and Protect Bog Turtle Eggs		27
Alligator Marking and Data Collection in NC		28
Field Days with Foresters, Rattlesnakes, and Hellbenders		29
A Light Bulb Moment – Successful Solutions to Impacts of Artificial Coastal Lighting on Sea Turtles		30
Monitoring Species of Greatest Conservation Need		31
Initial Assessments of Hurricane Helene on Bog Turtle Habitat and Wetlands in Western NC		32
Cold Winter Temperatures Lead to Major Cold-Stunning Season		33
AMPHIBIANS		34
Sandhills Winter-breeding Amphibian Monitoring		34
Biologists Conduct Species Status Assessment for Hellbenders		36
Pine Barrens Treefrog Surveys		37
Releasing Gopher Frogs		38
Saving Hellbenders is All in a Dam Day’s Work		39
Wetland Restoration Partnership		40
Breeding Gopher Frogs: Then and Now		41
Data Collection for an Eastern Hellbender Nesting Ecology Study		42
NCPARC		43
MAMMALS		48
Tricolored Bats Continue to Be Found in Winter on Coastal Plain Bridges		48
Bat-friendly Cave Gate Installed at Boone’s Cave		50
Capture of Northern Long-eared Bat at Historic Net Site		51
Assessing Impacts to Gray Bat Roosts from Hurricane Helene		52
FISHES		53
Cape Fear Shiner Broodstock Collection		53
Robust Redhorse Sampling and Propagation		54
Rare Coastal Fishes Surveys		55
Broadtail Madtom Surveys		56
Sicklefin Redhorse Conservation		57
Rare Coastal Fishes Surveys		58
Lake Waccamaw Fish and Mussel Monitoring Surveys		59
Carolina Pygmy Sunfish Monitoring		60
Broadtail Madtom Collections 		61
Uwharrie Mussel and Host Fish Collections		62
Roanoke Logperch Stocking		63
Hurricane Helene Updates		64
Initial Assessments from Hurricane Helene Flood Damage in Portions of Western North Carolina		65
MOLLUSKS		66
Magnificent Ramshorn Snail Project		66
Biologists Work to Learn Impacts of Lyngbya on Native Mussels		67
Deep River Mussel Monitoring		68
Haw River Land Acquisition Parcel Surveys		69
Pee Dee River Mussel Surveys		70
HABITAT MANAGEMENT		71
Design Features of NCWRC’s Motus Stations in Western North Carolina		71
Road to Recovery		73
Training Opportunities to Enhance Bog Conservation		74
Partners for Green Growth		75
Training for Partner Agencies		76
Hurricane Helene Recovery–Stream Impacts		77

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