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######## U.S. Shorebird 

######## 

######## Conservation Plan

###### **Central Plains / Playa Lakes**

###### 

**Regional Shorebird Conservation Plan**

####### **Version 1.0**

####### 

Written by:

Suzanne Fellows, Kelli Stone,

Stephanie Jones, Noreen Damude, Stephen Brown

**TABLE OF CONTENTS**

Executive Summary 1

Overview of the Central Plains/Playa Lakes Region (CP/PLR) 3

Shorebird Community 4

Species Composition and Use of CP/PLR 4

Breeding Species 4

Migration 4

Priority Shorebirds 5

Shorebird Habitats in the CP/PLR 5

General Habitat Types 5

Priority Habitat Types 6

Major Shorebird Issues 6

Habitat Management and Conservation Issues 9

Overview of Current Habitat Management Activities 9

Information Needs of Habitat Managers 10

Management Coordination Needs 10

Research and Monitoring Issues 11

Regional Goals 11

Funding 13

Conclusion. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13

Literature Cited 13

Acknowledgments 15

Table 1. Shorebird species occurrence and use of the Central Plains and
Playa Lake Region . . . 16

Table 2. Priority Species in the Central Plains and Playa Lake Region
(CP/PLR) and justification as a priority species . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . .18

Appendix A. High Priority Habitats in the CP/PLR 20

Shortgrass Prairie 20

Pawnee National Grassland. 20

Comanche, Cimarron, Rita Blanca, and Kiowa National Grasslands. 20

Ogalala National Grassland 20

Mixed and Tallgrass Prairie 21

Semipermanent Impoundments and Mudflats 21

Cheyenne Bottoms Wildlife Management Area and Preserve 21

Quivira National Wildlife Refuge 21

Hackberry Flat Wildlife Management Area 22

Salt Flats 22

Salt Plains National Wildlife Refuge 22

Slate Creek Wetlands 23

Saline Lakes 23

Playa Lakes 23

Rainwater Basin 24

Rolling Plains, Perched Water-table Lakes 24

Riverine and Associated Flood Plains and Oxbows 24

Red River 24

Canadian River 25

Sandhills of Nebraska 25

Reservoirs 25

**EXECUTIVE SUMMARY**

The Central Plains/Playa Lakes Region (CP/PLR) includes Texas (excluding
the coast), eastern New Mexico and Colorado, western Oklahoma, Kansas
and Nebraska, and the southeastern corner of Wyoming. There are five
North American Bird Conservation Initiative (NABCI) Bird Conservation
Regions (BCR's) within the CP/PLR. Shorebird habitat types within the
CP/PLR include ephemeral wetlands such as playa lakes, semi-permanent
wetlands, seasonally flooded wetlands, mud and alkali flats, wet
meadows, shortgrass prairie, agricultural fields, reservoirs, rivers and
other shallow water sources such as ditches and farm ponds.

Thirty-eight species of migrating shorebirds forage and rest within the
CP/PLR. These species use the CP/PLR to replenish body reserves required
both to complete their migration and to enhance their reproductive
success once they arrive on the breeding grounds. Thirteen of these
species also breed within the area, including the federally threatened
Piping Plovers and the candidate for federal listing Mountain Plovers.

Within the CP/PLR, sixteen shorebird species have been identified as
species of primary concern. Piping, Mountain, and Snowy plovers (western
populations), Long-billed Curlews, and Upland and Buff-breasted
sandpipers are considered examples of priority species due to low
population numbers and/or dependence upon regional uplands, grasslands,
and other habitats. Other priority species depend heavily upon interior
wetlands due to specialized migratory routes or other life history
requirements. These species include the White-rumped, Baird's, and
Pectoral sandpipers.

There are three Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network Sites in
the CP/PLR. These areas are Cheyenne Bottoms Wildlife Management Area
and Quivira National Wildlife Refuge in south central Kansas and Salt
Plains National Wildlife Refuge in north central Oklahoma. In addition
to these and other key migratory stop-over sites in the area, shorebirds
also rely on numerous small wetland complexes and interior rivers.
Collectively, these sites support a large percentage of the hemisphere's
long-distance migrants such as Stilt and White-rumped sandpipers. These
mosaics of ephemeral wetlands are critical to shorebird survival but are
extremely dynamic and unpredictable, making management, monitoring and
planning efforts challenging. The hydrology of most of the wetlands in
the CP/PLR have been negatively altered by the draining of aquifers and
lowering of the water table due to pumping for irrigation of
agricultural crops, drainage for agricultural conversion, water
development projects, and urbanization. Many of the rivers have been
altered by damming, dredging, and channelization.

Major shorebird issues in the CP/PLR are the lack of data on shorebird
use of the area and limited monitoring of priority species. The lack of
information on shorebird habitat use and needs within the CP/PLR impedes
efforts to conserve shorebirds by reducing the ability to effectively
manage for and provide quality shorebird habitat. A major component of
the land base in the CP/PLR is privately-owned land. Shorebird
conservation cannot be fully achieved solely on the relatively small
public land base set aside for wildlife purposes. In addition, the
federal and state programs assisting private land owners with habitat
protection and maintenance are underfunded and understaffed.

However, most of the major shorebird habitat management challenges
revolve around complicated water issues. Management efforts include
securing and maintaining water rights, managing water levels to benefit
invertebrates and to create dynamic hydro-periods, controlling
encroachment of vegetation into wetlands, and maintaining appropriate
vegetation structure on upland habitats while meeting other wildlife
habitat needs. Other habitat management challenges include unpredictable
precipitation, increased salinization of wetlands, and lack of funding
to support shorebird habitat management activities.

The CP/PLR can contribute to hemispheric populations of shorebirds by
identifying, restoring, and protecting key shorebird staging and
breeding areas; improving the quality of habitat presently managed for
shorebirds; maintaining an appropriate configuration of wetland and
grassland habitats; working with private landowners to protect and
provide suitable habitat; protecting water quality and availability;
increasing and improving monitoring of shorebird populations and
habitat; and increasing the awareness and understanding of grasslands,
wetlands, and rivers within the CP/PLR and their importance to shorebird
populations. None of these goals can be achieved without cooperation
from private landowners, the state and federal agencies and private
organizations managing wetland and grassland habitats, the natural
resource, agriculture, and regulatory agencies which impact shorebird
habitat, and the Joint Ventures within the CP/PLR.

**OVERVIEW OF THE CENTRAL PLAINS/PLAYA LAKES REGION (CP/PLR)**

The Central Plains/Playa Lakes Region (CP/PLR) encompasses Texas
(excluding the coast), eastern New Mexico and Colorado, western
Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska and the southeastern corner of Wyoming
(Figure 1). The region consists of five Bird Conservation Regions
(BCR's), the Short Grass Praire (#18), Central Mixed Grass Prairie
(#19), Oaks and Prairies (#21), Edwards Plateau (#20), and Tamaulipan
Brushlands (#36) (Figure 2).

In general, the CP/PLR is characterized by flat to rolling topography,
relatively low precipitation, from a high of 60 cm (24 in) in central
Kansas to a low of less than 38 cm (15 in) in the western portions of
the region, high spring winds, and in some situations, saline soils.
Cattle ranching and agriculture are common economic uses of the area.

With the exception of Cheyenne Bottoms Wildlife Management Area in south
central Kansas, the interior of the United States is generally not
recognized as important shorebird habitat due to the lack of coastlines,
major water bodies, and shorebird data. However, the grasslands,
wetlands and interior rivers of the southern plains lie within a major
migratory corridor for approximately 38 shorebird species (Helmers 1992;
E. Young pers. comm.). The CP/PLR is essential to the western
hemisphere's shorebird populations. Several species use the interior
exclusively during migration (Skagen 1997). Shorebirds rely upon
invertebrate populations at CP/PLR staging areas to replenish body
reserves used during migration. The interior is especially critical to
long-distance migrants such as Stilt Sandpipers (scientific names for
shorebird species are found in Table 1) which migrate from the southern
end of South America to the Arctic to breed (Skagen et al. 1999). Spring
migration is a critical time for shorebirds, especially for those
breeding in the Arctic, where there is a short window of time for
successful reproduction. It is important for shorebirds to arrive on the
breeding grounds in adequate body condition so nesting may be quickly
initiated.

Thirteen species breed in the CP/PLR, including Piping and Mountain
plovers and Long-billed Curlews.

Three wetland areas in the CP/PLR have been recognized as sites which
traditionally support large numbers of migrating and breeding shorebirds
and have been established as Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve
Network (WHSRN) Sites (Myers et al. 1987). These sites are Cheyenne
Bottoms Wildlife Management Area (Hemispheric Site [\>]{.underline}
500,000 shorebirds) and Quivira National Wildlife Refuge (Regional Site
[\>]{.underline} 20,000) in south central Kansas and Salt Plains
National Wildlife Area (also a Regional Site) in north central Oklahoma.
Collectively, the WHSRN sites and other staging areas in the CP/PLR
support a large percentage of the populations of the hemisphere's
long-distance migrants such as Stilt and White-rumped sandpipers as well
as large numbers of Baird's and Pectoral sandpipers.

**SHOREBIRD COMMUNITY**

SPECIES COMPOSITION AND USE OF CP/PLR

There are at least 38 species of migrating and breeding shorebirds which
occur within the CP/PLR (Table 1). Thirteen of these breed within the
CP/PLR. The Eskimo Curlew, presumed to be extinct was also once part of
the CP/PLR spring migratory bird fauna. Historical accounts numbered
them in the hundreds of thousands. Since there have not been any
confirmed or reliable sightings since 1987 (Gill et al. 1998), it will
not be considered further in the CP/PLR Shorebird Plan.

*Breeding Species*.

Federally threatened Piping Plovers nest on vegetation-free to sparsely
vegetated mudflats, river sandbars and islands, sandy shorelines,
reservoirs, and sandpits within the northern edge of the CP/PLR. In the
latest International Piping Plover Survey in 1996 (Plissner and Haig
1997), 155 breeding pairs were documented in Nebraska (excluding the
Missouri River population which is not included in the CP/PLR), three
breeding pairs in Colorado, and one breeding pair in Kansas. Breeding
pairs were not found in New Mexico, Oklahoma, or areas of Texas included
in the CP/PLR (N. McPhillips, pers. comm.). This represents
approximately 2% of the breeding population. Mountain Plovers, which are
candidates for federal listing as a threatened species, breed in
shortgrass prairie, grazed and burned pastures, and fallow agricultural
fields in eastern Colorado, northeast New Mexico, Oklahoma panhandle,
southwest Kansas, southwest Nebraska and southeast Wyoming (Knopf 1996).
Snowy Plover, a Species of Management Concern (USFWS 1995), also nests
on barren areas, usually on salt flats in Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas, and
New Mexico (Page et. al 1995). Grasslands within the CP/PLR are also
important breeding sites for Upland Sandpipers and Long-billed Curlews.
The CP/PLR also supports breeding populations of Killdeer, Black-necked
Stilts, American Avocets, Willets, Spotted Sandpipers, Common Snipe,
American Woodcocks, and Wilson's Phalaropes. These species breed
throughout the western United States and are not solely dependent upon
CP/PLR habitats. Successful breeding in the CP/PLR, however, helps to
ensure the long-term survival of hemispheric populations.

*Migration.*

Spring migration is a critical time for shorebirds when they must
quickly replenish body reserves (Hlemers 1992). In the spring,
shorebirds use CP/PLR staging areas from mid-March (Baird's Sandpipers)
to late May (White-rumped Sandpipers). Shorebirds migrating south begin
arriving in the CP/PLR as early as July (Lesser Yellowlegs, Solitary
Sandpipers, and Willets) and continue through late October (Skagen et.
al 1999). Fall migration for many shorebirds, especially Arctic-breeding
species, occurs as two peaks. The first is dominated by adults during
July and early August and the second peak is dominated by juveniles from
late August through September and October (Helmers 1992). In many
species, during both the spring and fall migrations, there may also be a
difference of several weeks between the migration times of males and
females (A. Farmer, pers. comm.).

During the spring season in years which have average precipitation
events, shorebird use of the CP/PLR is often spread out throughout the
landscape due to relative availability of water. Southward migration is
longer and occurs during the typically drier conditions of summer and
early fall. At this time shorebirds are often more heavily concentrated
on a few available sites than during the spring. They are often more
dependent upon rivers and reservoirs when water availability is low and
vegetation is high in wetlands and surrounding uplands.

Adding to the complexity of management for migrating shorebirds within
the CP/PLR is the differing resource needs of adults vs. juveniles and
males vs. females, as well as the prolonged migration periods, and water
and vegetation control issues.

*Priority Shorebirds*.

The National Shorebird Research and Monitoring (Brown et al. 2000) and
the CP/PLR working groups have developed a list of shorebird species of
high conservation priority within the region. A list of the 16 priority
species, their use of the CP/PLR and justification for being designated
as a priority species as well as the areas where they have been
documented to occur in high numbers, is found in Table 2. Species were
considered a priority in the CP/PLR if they were (1) federally or state
endangered or threatened and were found in fairly significant numbers
within the area (e.g. Piping Plovers); (2) species dependent upon unique
habitats within the CP/PLR for breeding and/or migrating purposes (e.g.
Mountain Plovers and Buff-breasted Sandpipers); (3) species with a
specialized migratory route which causes them to be dependent upon the
southern interior regions during some aspect of their migration (e.g.
White-rumped Sandpipers); (4) long-distance migrants which are
particularly dependent upon CP/PLR staging areas to replenish fat
reserves (e.g. Baird's Sandpipers); or (5) species with a large
percentage of the population relying upon the CP/PLR (e.g. Stilt
Sandpipers).

**SHOREBIRD HABITATS IN THE CP/PLR**

GENERAL HABITAT TYPES

While the shorebirds using the CP/PLR vary morphologically, many are
fairly opportunistic in their use of habitats and subsequently depend
upon a large variety of wetland and habitat types. Small shorebirds such
as White-rumped, Baird's and Least sandpipers use water depths of 7 cm
(3 in) or less. Greater Yellowlegs, Stilt Sandpipers, American Avocets
and other longer-legged shorebirds use wetlands with water up to 15 cm
(6 in). Most shorebirds use fairly unvegetated, shallow water wetlands
such as playa lakes, ephemeral wetlands, semi-permanent impoundments,
shallowly flooded mudflats and salt flats, rivers, receding reservoirs,
ditches, sewage lagoons, and stock and farm ponds. In many areas, rivers
are important breeding and migratory areas to shorebirds (e.g. Piping
Plovers) especially in the fall when water may be scarce. Species which
are more tolerant of vegetation (e.g. Wilson's Phalaropes and Pectoral
Sandpipers) also use flooded salt grass, wet meadows, and agricultural
fields. The CP/PLR also hosts shorebirds which primarily rely upon
upland habitats, during at least one portion of their life cycle,
including shortgrass prairies, abandoned agricultural fields, plowed
crop fields, and grazed pastures.

In addition to the WHSRN sites and other key migratory stopover sites in
the CP/PLR, shorebirds also heavily rely upon chains of small wetlands
and small to large rivers which dot the landscape. These small wetlands
support a myriad of shorebird species especially early in the spring
migration when the water in smaller wetlands warms earlier than larger
wetlands. These small wetlands provide the first bloom of aquatic
invertebrates (J. Minnerath, pers. comm.). The conservation, management,
and monitoring challenge of these interior wetland sites is that they
are dynamic and unpredictable (Skagen and Knopf 1993). Wetland complexes
with fewer numbers of birds (below the threshold for designation as a
WHSRN site) may be critically important for some species during some
years (Skagen and Knopf 1994). Additionally, small wetland complexes may
provide critical connections to regional breeding areas for Piping
Plovers (Plissner and Haig 1997) and complexes of small, closely spaced
wetlands can be important migration stopovers for mid-continent Pectoral
Sandpipers (Farmer and Parent 1997). In the aggregate, these sites
support large numbers of shorebirds.

PRIORITY HABITAT TYPES

All shorebird habitats within the CP/PLR are important to their
conservation, especially scattered and ephemeral wetlands. The most
critical habitats in the CP/PLR for those species experiencing
population declines, are the grasslands and other upland areas with low
vegetation structure, rivers, and salt flats. The salt flats and river
sandbars within the CP/PLR are used by migrating and nesting Piping
Plovers and nesting Snowy Plovers. Short-stature grasslands, mowed
areas, alfalfa fields, plowed agricultural fields, and sod farms in
Oklahoma, Kansas, and Nebraska are important to migrating Buff-breasted
Sandpipers. Shortgrass prairies, grazed grasslands, and fallow
agricultural fields in western Kansas and Nebraska and in the eastern
portions of New Mexico, Colorado, and Wyoming are breeding sites for
Mountain Plovers. Upland habitats, recently burned rangelands, and salt
flats within the CP/PLR are used as staging areas for American
Golden-Plovers. A particular challenge is that a high proportion of
potentially important playa lakes, salt plains, and grasslands are
either wholly or partly under private ownership (approximately 75%).
Appendix A discusses individual high priority habitats in the CP/PLR,
their use by shorebirds, and their identified threats.

**MAJOR SHOREBIRD ISSUES**

There are a myriad of habitat management, research, monitoring, and
outreach issues which impact shorebird conservation in the CP/PLR.
However, the following have been identified as the most critical issues
in the conservation of shorebirds in the CP/PLR.

*Issue 1. There is limited baseline data available on shorebird numbers,
population trends, and habitat use for most of the CP/PLR.* Currently,
the International Piping Plover Survey monitors populations and trends
of Piping Plovers across North America. There is a need for (1) baseline
population numbers of other priority shorebirds, including Mountain and
Snowy plovers and Long-billed Curlews, (2) a long-term monitoring
program which can track population trends of all shorebird species, and
(3) an inventory of habitat use by shorebirds across the CP/PLR.

Currently there are limited monitoring efforts for Mountain Plovers and
Long-billed Curlews on National Grasslands. This effort should be
expanded to include other public and private lands across the CP/PLR.
The International Shorebird Survey has been used to inventory shorebird
numbers and their temporal patterns on a relatively limited scale within
the CP/PLR (B. Harrington pers. comm.). There is a need to develop and
conduct surveys specifically designed to track population trends (Howe
et. al. 2000).

*Issue 2. Most of the land in the CP/PLR is under private ownership.*
Only a relatively small percentage of the land base in the CP/PLR is
publically owned by either a state or federal natural resource agency.
As was recognized by the North American Waterfowl Management Plan
(NAWMP), and which holds equally true for managing and conserving
shorebird habitats in the CP/PLR, "the efforts required to maintain and
enhance \[waterfowl\] habitat in North America are beyond the capability
of public land resource agencies alone."

Several federal and most state natural resource agencies have programs
designed to assist private landowners to manage wildlife and wildlife
habitat on their property. However, not all staff members involved in
private lands programs have the training or are familiar with tools
available to promote shorebird habitat preservation. In most cases
private land programs are understaffed and underfunded. Providing
training opportunities and increasing funding and staffing levels for
private lands programs would increase their ability to work with
landowners for shorebird conservation.

*Issue 3. Many critical habitats have limited or no habitat management
capabilities.* Currently, many sites throughout the CP/PLR are limited
in their ability to manage shorebird habitat for several reasons. Many
wetlands are ephemeral and dependent upon the natural, but altered,
water regime. Some management areas lack the water rights, water
management capabilities, funding, or administrative support to
manipulate or maintain habitat. Under these conditions, even in areas
set aside for wildlife, the appropriate habitat cannot be provided.

The CP/PLR is characterized by productive shallow water wetlands which
are very dynamic and unpredictable in space and time. Management of
dispersed and dynamic wetland habitats for the conservation of migrating
shorebirds is a challenge which will require an integrated approach
throughout the CP/PLR and other geographic regions (Skagen et al. 1999).
Some of the most numerous and important ephemeral wetlands in the CP/PLR
are playa lakes. Although many playas are not connected to groundwater,
unpredictable rainfall and ground water levels can determine their
presence. It is not usually feasible to pump or move water into these
depressions which are scattered over large, semi-arid areas and the
ability to manage these wetlands will probably never be fully realized.
Even if we are unable to manage playas, it is possible to protect some
of these wetlands from further degradation and loss.

*Issue 4. Wetland loss and drastically impacted hydrology of the CP/PLR
results in net loss of habitat and habitat management obstacles.* Many
of the CP/PLR's ephemeral and other wetlands have been lost or degraded
resulting in a net loss of shorebird habitat, a decrease in the quality
of remaining wetlands and the creation of management challenges and
difficulties. There are many challenges and obstacles in offsetting
these habitat losses primarily due to the drastically impacted hydrology
of the CP/PLR.

The draining of aquifers and ground water depletion from over-pumping,
water development projects, sedimentation, and other factors have
created or exacerbated many habitat management issues. These challenges
include issues of water quality, increased salinization of wetlands,
managing water levels to benefit invertebrates, mimicking dynamic
hydroperiods, controlling encroachment of undesired plant species, and
meeting other waterbird habitat needs within the same management area.

*Issue 5. Poor coordination and communication within agencies and
organizations that impact shorebird habitat.* There is a need for better
coordination and communication among the various government agencies at
the federal, state, and local levels and non-governmental organizations
with shorebird management responsibilities. Some regulatory agencies,
such as the Army Corps of Engineers, are not charged with managing
shorebirds, but in carrying out their duties shorebird habitats are
impacted. For example, in Oklahoma, breeding habitat for Snowy Plovers
is being altered due to channel alteration from bank stabilization
projects. Many agencies could do more to conserve shorebirds with
additional information on shorebird life history requirements, habitat
needs, population status, and maps of known shorebird use sites and
concentration areas as well as an increase in technical assistance,
coordination and communication.

Potential solutions could be the formation of an organization similar to
the Kansas Wetlands and Riparian Areas Alliance organized in 1996 as a
"response to the need to provide quality informational and educational
materials to a variety of audiences on the functions and values of
wetlands and riparian areas; to demonstrate how they could be enhanced,
restored and protected; and to encourage closer cooperation between
agencies, organizations, and groups that deal with these valuable
areas." Cooperation between the Kansas Livestock Association, Farm
Bureau with Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program (USFWS) has been
productive in dealing with some of the issues pertaining to the social,
economic and biological concerns in the tallgrass prairie region of
Kansas (J. Minnerath, pers. comm.). Tangible results could come about
through similar coalition activities in other states, if the correct
approach is taken.

*Issue 6. The general public does not recognize the CP/PLR as important
habitat for shorebirds.* Perhaps most importantly, the people living in
the CP/PLR as well as throughout the U.S., do not appear to recognize
the CP/PLR as containing important wetlands. Consequently many lack
interest in preserving and managing these unique and critical areas.
Examples of ways to mitigate this include dispensing shorebird habitat
management information to public and private landowners through programs
such as NRCS and USFWS Private Lands. Involvement in parks and tourism
departments at the local and state level could also advertise the
presence and increase public awareness of the vital habitat and roles it
plays in providing migratory shorebird habitat.

**HABITAT MANAGEMENT AND CONSERVATION ISSUES**

OVERVIEW OF CURRENT HABITAT MANAGEMENT ACTIVITIES

Providing habitat for shorebirds initially is currently most effectively
done by public land managers overseeing the management of impounded
wetland habitats. There are many local wetland habitat management issues
and practices throughout the CP/PLR which pertain to water, including
quality, availability, and timing of management actions. In many areas,
shallow water habitat no longer exists because of the degradation of
aquifers and other factors. It is a significant management challenge to
mimic the natural and dynamic hydroperiods which produced the productive
shallow water wetlands shorebirds evolved with and continue to depend
upon.

In some areas, wetland managers are implementing "moist soil
management," a technique used to produce annual plants for seed
production to provide a food base for waterfowl. These areas can also
provide appropriate shorebird habitat and wetland managers can flood and
drain impound- ments in an attempt to provide shallow water and mudflat
habitats that are conducive to invertebrate populations.

Throughout much of the CP/PLR, the ability to directly manage water
levels for shorebird habitat (wetland and grasslands) is not available.
Some of the most numerous and important wetlands in the CP/PLR are
ephemeral and are maintained by unpredictable rainfall and ground water
levels. Even on some publicly-owned wildlife areas, many land managers
do not have water rights or water management capabilities, which limits
or excludes the manipulation of water to create shorebird habitat. In
these cases, often the only management which can be conducted is
protection from excessive grazing, wetland filling, and dumping of
pesticides or oil and other waste products and controlling the
encroachment of woody vegetation.

Wetland managers are also challenged with providing wetlands with little
or no vegetation. As fires and natural forces which set back plant
succession were reduced or eliminated during European settlement, many
wetlands became overgrown and no longer provide habitat suitable for
shorebirds. Wetlands naturally become more vegetated due to siltation as
they age, but this process has been accelerated through human
activities. Managers can attempt to maintain or set back emergent
vegetation, such as cattail (*Typha* spp.), reed canarygrass *(Phalaris
arundinacea*), and bulrush (*Scirpus* spp.) using tools such as discing,
mowing, grazing, burning, and flooding. Woody species are also
controlled in the playa lakes along rivers of Texas, New Mexico, and
Oklahoma throughout the CP/PLR by burning, mowing, and chemical
applications.

Recent research on migrant shorebird use of playa lakes has resulted in
management recommendations which can be promoted to land managers (Davis
and Smith 1998). Management should focus on enhancing invertebrate
populations and on maintaining sparse vegetative cover and adequate
mudflat (at least 10-15%) and shallow water (at least 10-20%) habitats
throughout the period of use by shorebirds. Habitat can be managed
through gradual drawdowns of playas with deep water and flooding of dry
playas where water movement capabilities exist. Mowing and shallow
discing can be used to create preferred habitat conditions and provide a
detrital food base to enhance invertebrate populations. Variations of
current moist-soil management practices used by waterfowl managers
(Haukos and Smith 1993) may also benefit shorebirds, especially in the
spring.

Recommended habitat management activities for shorebirds on shortgrass
prairies within the CP/PLR are primarily vegetation manipulation
techniques to provide the proper vegetation structure for nesting
Mountain Plovers and, in some cases, Long-billed Curlews. Grazing and
winter use of prescribed fire are two tools currently being employed to
maintain shortgrass prairies specifically to create breeding habitat for
Mountain Plovers.

INFORMATION NEEDS OF HABITAT MANAGERS

In the CP/PLR some habitat managers are not aware of shorebird issues
such as timing of shorebird use, appropriate habitats, and managing for
invertebrates as a prey base. To increase the number of wildlife areas
that include shorebird habitat needs into management plans, land
managers must know migration chronology, species composition, and
habitat needs to be able to best incorporate their needs with habitat
management goals of other wildlife species. Information about shorebird
habitat needs, migration timing, and effective management techniques
should continue to be provided. Shorebird habitat management should be
presented at agency meetings and managers should be encouraged to attend
shorebird training workshops.

Many wetland areas, especially those owned by States, were purchased or
are maintained with hunting revenues, and therefore traditional wetland
management has also been primarily geared toward waterfowl management.
Increased interest in nongame wildlife, such as secretive marshbirds,
colonial waterbirds, and shorebirds is often seen to be contrary to the
primary purposes and goals of many wildlife areas. However,
multi-species management is both practical and possible. Understanding
of different management techniques and tools, timing of management
practices, availability of information on habitat needs of different
species groups, and flexibility on the part of both managers and
coordinators is necessary to provide quality habitat for both
traditional and non-traditional species.

MANAGEMENT COORDINATION NEEDS

The Playa Lakes Joint Venture (PLJV) and the Rainwater Basin Joint
Venture (RWJV), created under the NAWMP, should be aware of shorebird
issues and conservation and management recommendations. The Joint
Ventures are already protecting, improving, and maintaining wetlands in
areas critical to shorebirds. It is imperative for new, nongame money to
be brought into the Joint Ventures so shorebird habitat restoration
projects can be incorporated into their current habitat work. In the
PLJV, which includes eastern New Mexico and Colorado, western Kansas,
and the panhandles of Texas and Oklahoma, restoration and protection
should focus on playa lakes, freshwater wetlands, salt plains and
basins, riverine habitats including rainwater basins, and grasslands
with associated wetlands. Specific shorebird population objectives could
be added to the PLJV's population objectives in its Implementation Plan.
The need for shorebird monitoring at PLJV and RWJV project sites could
be added to the their Evaluation Plan.

**RESEARCH AND MONITORING ISSUES**

Understanding the large-scale, hemispheric needs of individual species
during different times of their life cycle, as well as their needs
during migration stopovers, will assist in setting population and
habitat management goals at the regional level. There are numerous
research and monitoring needs which have been recognized which are
relative to shorebirds and shorebird habitat in the CP/PLR. There is a
need is to increase monitoring of all shorebirds and their use in the
region. Due to their status as priority species breeding in the CP/PLR,
there is particularly a need to increase monitoring of Piping, Mountain,
and Snowy plovers and Long-billed Curlews, within the region. It is also
a need to increase the monitoring of shorebird habitats.

There are also numerous research questions regarding shorebirds in the
CP/PLR including the impact of various habitat management practices on
grasslands and wetlands, the importance of various staging areas within
the CP/PLR to hemispheric populations of shorebirds, and wetland
connectivity and its impact on managing and purchasing shorebird
habitat.

**REGIONAL GOALS**

The CP/PLR working group supports the hemispheric and national goals of
the U.S. Shorebird Conservation Plan, to "restore and maintain
populations of all species of shorebirds in the Western Hemisphere" and
to "stabilize populations of all shorebird species known or suspected of
being in decline due to limiting factors occurring within the U.S.,
while ensuring that common species remain common" (Brown, et al. 2000).
Land managers and biologists within the CP/PLR, however, cannot control
some of the factors which affect population sizes, such as conditions on
the wintering and, in most species, on the breeding grounds. Therefore,
the CP/PLR can best contribute to the above goals by concentrating on
protecting, improving and expanding the habitat available for migrating
shorebirds within the region and protecting, improving and expanding the
habitat available for the species which breed in the region.

*1) Protect, restore, and enhance habitat conditions to support
migrating shorebirds. Ensure an appropriate amount and quality of
staging habitat (primarily wetland habitat) is available to
long-distance migrants.*

> a\. Continue to identify and ultimately restore and/or protect wetland
> and upland habitats critical to shorebirds in the CP/PLR
>
> b\. Ensure priority habitats are protected from drainage, pesticide
> dumping, increased salinization, and other threats.
>
> c\. Improve and increase habitat management efforts on federal and
> state-owned wildlife areas which provide shorebird habitat, including
> National Wildlife Refuges and National Grasslands.
>
> d\. Support and/or improve the private lands programs which encourage
> and assist private landowners in restoring and/or maintaining
> wetlands.
>
> e\. Ensure management activities are carried out in conjunction with
> the timing of shorebird use, so habitat is available at all critical
> times for shorebird use.
>
> f\. Establish a communication format which can be used by wetland
> managers to help ensure, on a collective basis, there is adequate
> habitat within the CP/PLR.
>
> g\. Investigate tools to better manage, predict, and cope with dynamic
> and ephemeral habitats which are critical to shorebird conservation.

*2) Provide optimal breeding habitat to maintain and/or restore
populations of species which are high priority in the CP/PLR, namely
Piping, Snowy, and Mountain plovers, Long-billed Curlews, and Upland
Sandpipers.*

*3) Improve habitat quality of wetlands and grasslands currently owned
and managed by state, federal, non-government organizations, and private
landowners.*

> a\. Improve the dissemination of information about habitat management
> and shorebird issues to all land managers and landowners.
>
> b\. Conduct necessary research, training workshops, and monitoring
> programs to provide land managers with the information they need to
> better manage for shorebirds.
>
> c\. Manipulate water levels to maximize invertebrate populations when
> shorebirds need them.
>
> d\. Utilize burning, mowing, discing, and grazing, at appropriate
> levels and times, to maintain certain wetlands in early successional
> stages which will increase availability of invertebrates and increase
> habitat availability for shorebirds.
>
> e\. Maintain an appropriate configuration of wetland and grassland
> habitats.

*4) Gather baseline shorebird use data on key areas.*

> a\. Increase and improve monitoring of shorebird use of the key sites
> identified in the CP/PLR (Appendix A).
>
> b\. Increase coverage of monitoring efforts to look for other sites
> which may have high shorebird use.

*5) Protect water quantity and quality and ensure proper use of water
near key shorebird habitats (as well as other wetlands) to ensure their
existence and maintain their value as wildlife habitat.*

*6) Increase the general public's awareness and knowledge of wetland and
shorebird issues.*

> a\. Provide articles about the value of wetlands, shorebird facts, and
> shorebird habitat management strategies in farming and ranching
> journals and newspapers.
>
> b\. Produce area specific pamphlets, videos, or "mini-plans" which
> would be distributed to private landowners, Joint Ventures, and
> non-government organizations.
>
> c\. Seek out partnerships with private landowners to assist them in
> protecting and improving shorebird habitat.
>
> d\. Use pre-established infrastructures, such as the Joint Ventures,
> to facilitate cooperation, collect data, and disseminate information
> regarding shorebirds and their habitat needs

**FUNDING**

In general, more funding is needed to support the personnel charged with
managing and monitoring public-owned wetland and grassland areas in the
CP/PLR. Funding would potentially allow for additional personnel to
monitor shorebirds and shorebird habitat.

There is a need to increase funding to support operations and
maintenance of wetland areas. In some wetland management areas,
especially state-owned sites, increased funding from a nongame source
could help shift management orientation form a primarily waterfowl
habitat focus to a multi-species approach. Additional funding would
support shorebird habitat management training for wetland managers.

Additional funding would allow for programs specifically designed for
shorebird habitat conservation and management on private lands by
increasing personnel and funding for private lands programs.

One of the most effective methods of conserving shorebirds and shorebird
habitat in the CP/PLR is to cooperate and assist the established Joint
Ventures in their efforts to conserve wetland habitat.

**CONCLUSION**

Identifying, restoring and protecting key shorebird staging and breeding
areas; improving the quality of habitat currently managed for
shorebirds; working with private landowners to protect and provide
suitable habitat; protecting water quality and availability; increasing
and improving monitoring of shorebird populations and habitat; and
increasing the awareness and understanding of shorebird habitats within
the region and their importance to shorebirds, will allow the CP/PLR to
contribute to hemispheric populations of shorebirds. All of these goals
need the cooperation of private landowners, the agencies and
organizations responsible for managing shorebird habitats, the agencies
which impact shorebird habitat and the Joint Ventures within the CP/PLR.

**LITERATURE CITED**

Brown, S., C. Hickey, and B. Harrington, eds. 2000. United States
Shorebird Conservation Plan. Manomet Center for Conservation Sciences,
Manomet, MA. 60pp.

Davis, C. A. and L. M. Smith. 1998. Ecology and management of migrant
shorebirds in the Playa Lakes Region of Texas. Wildl. Monogr. 140:1-45.

Farmer, A. H., and F. Parent. 1997. Effects of landscape on shorebird
movements at spring migration stopovers. Condor 99: 698-707.

Gill, R. E., Jr., P. Canevari, and E. H. Iversen. 1998. Eskimo Curlew
(*Numeius borealis*). *In* The Birds of North America, No 347, A. Poole
and F. Gill, eds. The Birds of North America, Inc., Philadelphia, PA.

Haukos, D. A., and L. M. Smith. 1993. Moist-soil management of playa
lakes for migrating and wintering ducks. Wildl. Soc. Bull. 21:288-298.

Helmers, D. 1992. Shorebird Management Manual. Western Hemisphere
Shorebird Reserve Network, Manomet, MA. 58pp.

Howe, M., J. Bart, S. Brown, C. Elphick, R. Gill, B. Harrington, C.
Hickey, G. Morrison, S. Skagen, and N. Warnock, eds. 2000. A
Comprehensive Monitoring Program for North American Shorebirds. Manomet
Center for Conservation Sciences. http://www.Manomet.org/USSCP/files.htm

Knopf, F. L. 1996. Mountain Plover (*Charadrius montanus*). *In* The
Birds of North America, No. 211 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The
Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, PA, and The American
Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C.

Myers, J. P., R. I. G. Morrison, P. Z. Antas, B. A. Harrington, T. E.
Lovejoy, M. Sallaberry, S. E. Senner, and A. Tarak. 1987. Conservation
strategy for migratory species. Am. Sci. 75:18-26.

Page, G. W., J. S. Warriner, J. C. Warriner, and P. W. C. Paton. 1995.
Snowy Plover (*Charadrius alexandrinus*). *In* The Birds of North
America, No. 154 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Academy of Natural
Sciences, Philadelphia, PA, and The American Ornithologists' Union,
Washington, D.C.

Plissner, J. H. and S. M. Haig. 1997. 1996 International Piping Plover
census. Report to US Geological Survey, Biological Resources Division,
Forest and Rangeland Ecosystem Science Center, Corvallis, OR. 231 pp.

Skagen, S. K. 1997. Stopover ecology of transitory populations: the case
of migrant shorebirds. Ecological Studies 125:244-269.

Skagen, S. K., and F. L. Knopf. 1993. Towards conservation of
midcontinental shorebird migrations. Cons. Biol. 7:533-541.

Skagen, S. K., and F. L. Knopf. 1994. Migrating shorebirds and habitat
dynamics at a prairie wetland complex. Wilson Bulle. 106:91-105.

Skagen, S. K., P. B. Sharpe, R. G. Waltermire, and M. B. Dillon. 1999.
Biogeographical profiles of shorebird migration in midcontinental North
America. DOI, USGS, Biological Science Report USGS/BRD/BSR 2000-03. US
GPO, Denver, CO. 167pp.

USFWS. 1995. Avian species of management concern. USDOI, Fish and
Wildlife Service, Migratory Bird Management Office, Washington. D.C.

**ACKNOWLEDGMENTS**

The Central Plains/Playa Lakes Region working group would like to thank
the many individuals who provided substantial assistance with the Plan.
The report benefitted from comments from Mark Ball, Alison Banks, Bill
Busby, Alex Chappell, Tim Christian, Jeff Chynoweth, John Dinan, Stephen
Dinsmore, Jeff Drahota, Adrian Farmer, Tom Flowers, Helen Hands, Joe
Hartman, Bill Howe, Ted LaGrange, Nell McPhillips, Jim Minerath, Jim
Ray, Kelvin Schoonover, Jennie Slater, Max C. Thompson and Eugene A.
Young. We would also especially like to thank those people who served on
the working group committee, without their help and expertise, this
report would never have been written. Kelli Stone and Noreen Damude
served as co-chairpersons. Stephen Brown, John Dinan, Tom Flowers, Helen
Hands, Catherine Hickey, Melynda Hickman, Nathan Kuhnert, Jim Ray,
Kelvin Schoonover, Susan K. Skagen and Eugene A. Young were instrumental
in preparing this document.

  ---------------------- ------------------------ -----------------------
  Table 1. Shorebird                              
  species occurrence and                          
  use of the Central                              
  Plains and Playa Lakes                          
  Region (CP/PLR).                                

  Species                Scientific Name          Season of Use

  Black-bellied Plover   *Pluvialis squatarola*   M

  **American             *Pluvialis dominica*     **M**
  Golden-Plover**                                 

  **Snowy Plover**       *Charadrius              **M B**
                         alexandrinus*            

  Semipalmated Plover    *Charadrius              M
                         semipalmatus*            

  **Piping Plover**      *Charadrius melodius*    **M B**

  Killdeer               *Charadrius vociferus*   M W B

  **Mountain Plover**    *Charadrius montanus*    **M** w **B**

  Black-necked Stilt     *Himantopus mexicanus*   M b

  **American Avocet**    *Recurvirostra           **M B**
                         americana*               

  Greater Yellowlegs     *Tringa melanoleuca*     **M**

  Lesser Yellowlegs      *Tringa flavipes*        **M**

  Solitary Sandpiper     *Tringa solitaria*       M

  Willet                 *Catoptrophorus          M b
                         semipalmatus*            

  Spotted Sandpiper      *Actitis macularia*      M w B

  **Upland Sandpiper**   *Bartramia longicauda*   **M B**

  Whimbrel               *Numenius phaeopus*      m

  **Long-billed Curlew** *Numenius americanus*    **M** B

  **Hudsonian Godwit**   *Limosa haemastica*      **M**

  Marbled Godwit         *Limosa fedoa*           m

  Ruddy Turnstone        *Arenaria interpres*     m

  Red Knot               *Calidris canutus*       m

  Sanderling             *Calidris alba*          m

  **Semipalmated         *Calidris pusilla*       **M**
  Sandpiper**                                     

  Western Sandpiper      *Calidris mauri*         M

  **Least Sandpiper**    *Calidris minutilla*     **M** W

  **White-rumped         *Calidris fuscicollis*   **M**
  Sandpiper**                                     

  **Baird's Sandpiper**  *Calidris bairdii*       **M**

  **Pectoral Sandpiper** *Calidris melanotus*     **M**

  Dunlin                 *Calidris alpina*        m

  **Stilt Sandpiper**    *Calidris himantopus*    **M**

  **Buff-breasted        *Tryngites               **M**
  Sandpiper**            subruficollis*           

  Short-billed Dowitcher *Limnodromus griseus*    m

  **Long-billed          *Limnodromus             **M** W
  Dowitcher**            scolopaceus*             

  Common Snipe           *Gallinago gallinago*    M W b

  American Woodcock      *Scolopax minor*         w b

  Wilson's Phalarope     *Phalaropus tricolor*    **M** b

  Red-necked Phalarope   *Phalaropus lobatus*     m

  Red Phalarope          *Phalaropus fulcaria*    m

  B = Breeding, M =                               
  Migration, W =                                  
  Wintering. **B, M, W**                          
  = high concentrations,                          
  region extremely                                
  important to the                                
  species relative to                             
  other regions. B, M, W                          
  = common or locally                             
  abundant, region                                
  important to species.                           
  b, m, w = uncommon to                           
  fairly common, region                           
  within species range                            
  but species occurs in                           
  low abundance relative                          
  to other regions.                               
  **Bold species name**                           
  = priority species                              
  within CP/PLR (see                              
  text for definition).                           
  ---------------------- ------------------------ -----------------------

  ----------------------- -----------------------------------------------
  Table 2. Priority       
  Species in the Central  
  Plains and Playa Lake   
  Region (CP/PLR) and     
  justification as a      
  priority species.       

  Species                 Justification

  American Golden-Plover  Elliptical migration pattern which goes through
                          the CP/PLR

  Snowy Plover            USFWS Avian Species of Management Concern
                          (1995), local breeder

  Piping Plover           Federally threatened species, local breeder,
                          migrates through CP/PLR, winters in southern
                          portion of CP/PLR

  Mountain Plover         Federal candidate threatened species,
                          approximately 2/3 of the population breeds
                          within western one-third of CP/PLR

  American Avocet         Breeds in western half of region, migrates
                          throughout CP/PLR

  Upland Sandpiper        USFWS Avian Species of Management Concern
                          (1995), breeds in CP/PLR grasslands

  Long-billed Curlew      USFS Region 2 Sensitive Species, USFWS Avian
                          Species of Management Concern (1995), breeds in
                          western portion of region, migrates throughout
                          region, breeds in CP/PLR grasslands

  Hudsonian Godwit        Migrates through central and eastern portion of
                          CP/PLR

  Semipalmated Sandpiper  Large percentage of population migrates through
                          CP/PLR (Skagen et al 1999)

  Least Sandpiper         Large percentage of population migrates through
                          CP/PLR (Skagen et al 1999)

  White-rumped Sandpiper  Elliptical migration pattern, large percentage
                          of population migrates through CP/PLR in spring

  Baird's Sandpiper       Large percentage of population migrates through
                          CP/PLR (Skagen et al 1999)

  Pectoral Sandpiper      A large percentage of the population migrates
                          through Cheyenne Bottoms WMA (ISS data; Farmer
                          and Parent 1997)

  Stilt Sandpiper         A large percentage of the population migrates
                          through Cheyenne Bottoms WMA, narrow migration
                          period

  Buff-breasted Sandpiper Primarily documented in Central Plains,
                          Oklahoma, Rainwater Basin, Nebraska, sod farms
                          and other shortgrass areas in central Kansas;
                          dependent upon CP/PLR grasslands

  Long-billed Dowitcher   A large percentage of the population migrates
                          through Cheyenne Bottoms WMA (ISS data; Farmer
                          and Parent 1997)
  ----------------------- -----------------------------------------------

**APPENDIX A. HIGH PRIORITY HABITATS IN THE CP/PLR**

The following are descriptions of the priority habitats in the CP/PLR,
their use by shorebirds, and identified threats.

SHORTGRASS PRAIRIE

Found in eastern Colorado and New Mexico, western Oklahoma, Texas,
Kansas, southeast Wyoming and Nebraska. There are several National
Grasslands within the CP/PLR which are managed by the U.S. Forest
Service (USFS). These grasslands are breeding habitat for Mountain
Plovers, Long-billed Curlews, Upland Sandpipers and Killdeer and are
used by migrating shorebirds throughout the CP/PLR.

*Pawnee National Grassland (NG), Colorado, USFS*.

The Pawnee NG has large contiguous amounts of habitat where federal
lands are interspersed with private and state lands, totaling 193,000
acres about 80% of which (154,400 acres) is potentially suitable habitat
for Mountain Plovers. This area has less than 30 acres of permanent
water, no perennial streams and practically no ephemeral wetlands. In
wet springs, spring migrating Long-billed Curlews are present. Curlews
formerly nested in the Pawnee NG but they have not been documented
nesting there since 1985. American Avocets and Wilson's Phalaropes nest
on the Pawnee NG if water becomes available. Active habitat management
includes maintaining vegetation at a height of 7 cm (3 in) or less for
nesting Mountain Plovers. This grassland has extensive potential habitat
for this species because the dominant vegetation is blue grama and
buffalograss which can be grazed to a short stature while maintaining
system integrity (M. Ball pers. comm.).

*Comanche, Cimarron, Rita Blanca, and Kiowa National Grasslands, USFS*.

These grasslands occupy about 800,000 acres in southeast Colorado,
southwest Kansas, the panhandle of Oklahoma, northwest Texas, and
northeast New Mexico and are used by breeding Mountain Plovers and
Long-billed Curlews. Habitat types include shortgrass prairie, mixed
prairie, sand sage prairie and playa lakes. Mountain Plovers primarily
nest on or near the Cimarron and Comanche Grasslands. Their use is low
to nonexistent on the Rita Blanca and Kiowa National Grasslands because
the vegetation height is higher than their preferred nesting habitat (D.
Svingen pers. commun.). These grasslands also contain a small number of
playa lakes (about 1% of the area) which have migrating American
Avocets, Killdeer, Long-billed Dowitchers, Black-necked Stilts,
Pectoral, Baird's and White-rumped sandpipers. The number of birds using
the playas are relatively small (usually less than 50). These playas,
however, may receive greater use after the completion of projected
restoration work.

*Ogalala National Grassland, Nebraska, USFS*.

Contains shortgrass to mixed prairie, rolling plains, badlands, and rock
outcrops. Scattered stock ponds provide the only consistent source of
water. Nesting Long-billed Curlews and Upland Sandpipers use this
grassland.

MIXED AND TALLGRASS PRAIRIE

These habitats are found in the Flint Hills Grasslands, at the eastern
edge of the CP/PLR. They include Konza Prairie in north central Kansas
and the Tallgrass Prairie Reserve in north central Oklahoma. These
grasslands are used by nesting and migrating Upland Sandpipers.
Buff-breasted Sandpipers and American Golden-Plovers migrate through
mixed- and tallgrass prairies of the CP/PLR. Buff-breasted Sandpipers
are commonly reported around "sod" farms in eastern Nebraska, and
particularly in York and Seward counties in Nebraska and in Sedgwick,
Douglas and Johnson counties in Kansas.

SEMIPERMANENT IMPOUNDMENTS AND MUDFLATS

These wetlands are usually managed and maintained by various state,
federal, and non-government agencies with the intent of providing
habitat for migrating waterbirds, primarily waterfowl and shorebirds.
The availability of water within these wetlands is fairly stable and
reliable. As these wetlands dry during the summer or as high spring
winds move water from one side of the moist soil impoundment to the
other, mudflats emerge providing foraging and resting habitat to
migrating and nesting shorebirds.

*Cheyenne Bottoms Wildlife Management Area and Preserve, Kansas
Department of Wildlife and Parks (KDWP) and The Nature Conservency.*

This is one of the key large, (16,595 ha or 41,000 acres), and
relatively stable sites providing shorebird habitat in the CP/PLR. It is
an important stopover area for White-rumped, Baird's, Stilt, and
Pectoral sandpipers, Long-billed Dowitchers, Wilson's Phalaropes,
Hudsonian and Marbled godwits, and, in the surrounding dry fields,
Buff-breasted Sandpipers. It provides breeding habitat for American
Golden-Plovers, Snowy Plovers, Killdeer, Black-necked Stilts, American
Avocets, Spotted, Upland, Least and Semipalmated sandpipers and Wilson's
Phalaropes. This area is critical due to its large size, extensive
mudflats, relative isolation, and tremendous invertebrate populations.
Threats to Cheyenne Bottoms include cattail encroachment, unreliable
water rights, and development of hog processing/production industry in
the county and within the watershed of the Arkansas River and Walnut
Creek. Potential management conflicts include water management which
minimizes the spread of cattail, avian botulism outbreaks, and providing
a balance of relatively shallow water for migrating shorebirds and
deeper water for recreational use in the fall.

*Quivira National Wildlife Refuge (NWR), Kansas, USFWS.*

Also a WHSRN site, Quivira is another key stable areas of shorebird
habitat (\~12,000 acres). It is an important staging area for many
species of migrating shorebirds including priority species such as
White-rumped and Stilt sandpipers. It is also an important breeding site
within the CP/PLR for American Avocets, Black-necked Stilts, Snowy
Plovers, and Killdeer. This NWR is crucial to shorebirds due to its size
and availability of mudflats, shallow water wetlands, salt flats,
grasslands and habitat management capabilities. Potential threats to the
habitat quality and ability to manage habitat include water rights,
effects of groundwater pumping for irrigation, droughts and floods which
affect water availability, increase in water salinity, and control of
emergent vegetation. If a proposed hog processing plant is constructed
near Great Bend, there could be threats to water quality from production
facilities as well. Active oil wells, operated by private organizations
and individuals who own the mineral rights, are also located within the
refuge boundary. Although they are closely monitored, they do pose an
inherent threat of small localized oil spills.

*Hackberry Flat Wildlife Management Area, Oklahoma*.

Located in southwest Oklahoma it is a State-owned and managed wetland
area. A critical area for shorebirds due to the extensive and stable
amount of mudflats. There are 2880 total ha (7,120 ac); 1600 ha (4,000
ac) can be flooded and the remaining acres are upland habitat.
Restoration work has been completed, including the installation of a 27
km (17 mi) water delivery pipeline which will provide water management
capabilities on a year round basis. This area is an important stop-over
site for over 24 species of migrating shorebirds notably White-rumped,
Baird's, Stilt and Pectoral sandpipers, Long-billed Dowitchers, and
Mountain and Snowy plovers. The area also offers breeding habitat for
Killdeer, Black-necked Stilts, and American Avocets. There are numerous
wetlands that support from a hundred to a few thousand migrating
shorebirds in eastern New Mexico and Colorado and north central
Oklahoma. These wetlands may not be critical on an individual basis but
as whole they are quite important. The habitat that these sites provide
to migrating shorebirds is potentially threatened by a variety of
activities such as invasion of woody species, proximity to a superfund
site, urban sprawl and neighboring hog processing plants.

SALT FLATS

These large expanses of unvegetated, saline flats can be temporarily
flooded by precipitation or rising water levels in nearby lakes or
impoundments. Snowy Plovers generally nest on the drier portions of salt
flats. They forage on springs or other sources of ephemeral water
sources found within or near the flats. American Avocets also nest among
clumps of vegetation within salt flats. These flats are very important
staging areas for migrating shorebirds, especially Semipalmated Plovers,
Semipalmated, White-rumped and Stilt sandpipers and Dunlins. Often there
are pockets of salt flats within wetland management areas. These areas
may be viewed as "unused" and not important wildlife habitat due to
their stark appearance; however, collectively they are vital to
shorebirds, especially to nesting and migrating Piping Plovers and
nesting Snowy Plovers. Quivira NWR (above) is also an example of salt
flat habitat managed for shorebird habitat.

*Salt Plains NWR, Oklahoma, USFWS*.

This is the third WHSRN site located in the CP/PLR. This important
stopover are has extensive mudflats and shallow water which supports
thousands of migrating shorebirds and 600 pairs of nesting Snowy
Plovers. It is an important area for large numbers of American
Golden-Plovers, Baird's, Semipalmated and White-rumped sandpipers and
other species. Salt Plains NWR is critical because it is one of the most
reliable sources of mudflat and shallow water habitat in the CP/PLR. One
threat to the shorebird habitat on this refuge is tamarisk, or salt
cedar, encroachment.

*Slate Creek Wetlands, Kansas, KDWP and private.*

This 5,000 acre (2024 ha) area is a mosaic of freshwater and saline
water wetlands. This area is an important stop-over site for over 30
species of migrating shorebirds and it falls within the WHSRN guidelines
as a regional site with at least 20,000 shorebirds passing though
annually (E. Young and M. Thompson pers. comm.). Priority species such
as Hudsonian Godwit, Semipalmated, Least, White-rumped, Baird's, Stilt,
and Pectoral sandpipers, and Long-billed Dowitcher use the area during
migration. Additionally, Upland Sandpiper breed in the surrounding
uplands. Killdeer are common breeders and American Avocets and Snowy
Plovers are possible breeders being recorded throughout the nesting
season but breeding has not been confirmed. Potential threats include
urbanized development (primarily mobile home parks); siltation from
increased sediment loads both upstream along Slate Creek and in the
immediate area from development and farming; and management conflicts
that provide shallow water areas for migrating shorebirds versus deeper
water habitats for recreational use in the fall.

SALINE LAKES

These wetlands are primarily found in Texas and New Mexico and most are
in private ownership. These lakes provide shallow water and mudflat
habitats and support valuable invertebrate populations. Saline lakes are
breeding habitat for Snowy Plovers, American Avocets and Black-necked
Stilts, and an important stopover site for many migrating shorebird
species. Saline lakes are important to maintain because of the water
permanence and reliability relative to other wetlands (playas) in the
southern portion of the CP/PLR. These wetlands also may be a critical
stepping stone for migrating shorebirds between Cheyenne Bottoms and the
Texas Coast. Threats to this habitat include declining water table
(results in less permanence and higher salinities), pesticide dumping,
and petroleum development. Examples include Mound Lake, Cedar Lake,
Tahoka Lake, and Muleshoe NWR and Nebraska's Eastern Saline Wetlands.

PLAYA LAKES

Playa lakes are the "potholes of the southern Central Plains". They are
shallow depressions within the landscape that fill with water from
precipitation and/or ground water. Most are ephemeral but some may hold
water year round depending on conditions. These drying and wetting
cycles keep the wetlands very productive relative to invertebrate
production. However, the natural water regime has been disrupted by
agriculture, grazing, and other human demands on water in these arid
lands. Playa lakes constitute a large proportion of the wetlands within
the CP/PLR and can be found throughout the area with most found in the
panhandle of Texas and Oklahoma, southwest Kansas, eastern New Mexico
and Colorado, and southwest Nebraska. Some of these lakes are in state
and federal ownership but most are in private ownership. These ephemeral
lakes are used by thousands of migrating shorebirds (Davis and Smith
1998) including Long-billed Curlews and nesting Snowy Plovers (in New
Mexico and Oklahoma), American Avocets, Black-necked Stilts, and
Wilson's Phalaropes. In the southern portion of the CP/PLR, threats to
these wetlands include altered hydrology (primarily supplemental
pumping), and irrigation water re-use pits that drain numerous playas.
These pits are deep, sometimes up to 10 feet and eliminate shallow water
with the resulting impacts to plants and invertebrates, sedimentation,
tillage, and drainage. Management of water levels and other attributes
are not always possible due to the water regime. Other threats to playas
are runoff from confined animal feeding operations (e.g. hog farms) and
farming of surrounding grassland buffers.

*Rainwater Basin, Nebraska, USFWS, NGPC, private*.

Located in south central Nebraska, the Rainwater Basin covers 17
counties including Kearney, Phelps, Adams, Clay, Hamilton, York, and
Fillmore and measure approximately 4,200 square miles. The Rainwater
Basin is a series of temporary or seasonal playa lakes. Most temporary
or seasonal wetlands are farmed and most semipermenanet wetlands are
used for pasture land. However, shorebird habitat can be exceptional if
rainfall coincides with shorebird migration. This area is important to
large numbers of migratory Hudsonian Godwits, Long-billed Dowitchers,
Buff-breasted, White-rumped, Stilt, Least, and Pectoral sandpipers,
American Avocets, Lesser Yellowlegs, Semipalmated Plovers, Common Snipe,
Wilson's Phalaropes, and Killdeer. However, shorebird numbers and
stopover habitat may not be fully understood. With the cooperation of
landowners, state and federal natural resource agencies are conducting
wetland habitat restoration and improvement work on private lands as
part of the Rainwater Basin Joint Venture. However, most of this work
primarily benefits waterfowl due to the timing of agricultural practices
and natural rainfall patterns. Nevertheless, if agreements were made
with private landowners to graze vegetated playa lakes the amount of
relatively vegetation-free wetland habitat for shorebirds would be
increased. There are management activities that could be conducted on
these small basins, including vegetation management, timed water
delivery, and conversion to grazing land.

ROLLING PLAINS, PERCHED WATER-TABLE LAKES

These areas occur in the eastern third of the Texas panhandle and
further east into Haskel County, Oklahoma. Ownership is both private and
public, and the areas are important to migrating shorebirds and nesting
American Avocets and Black-necked Stilts. Threats include brush
encroachment along shorelines, impacts of altered hydrology
(supplemental pumping) to plants and invertebrates, sedimentation,
tillage, and drainage. Examples include Winchester and Taylor lakes.

RIVERINE AND ASSOCIATED FLOOD PLAINS AND OXBOWS

The rivers within the CP/PLR, such as the Red and Canadian, are critical
habitat for nesting Snowy Plovers and migrating habitat for many
species. The Platte, Niobrara, and Loup River systems in Nebraska are
also critical habitat for nesting Piping Plovers. Spotted Sandpipers
often nest along river banks and Killdeer nest along river edges or on
sandbars within the channels. Rivers within the CP/PLR benefit migrating
shorebirds especially in the fall when water levels in other wetlands
may be low, and they will use shallow water, sandbars, and mudflats
within the channel.

*Red River.*

This system is found in the Texas Panhandle and Oklahoma, and is in
private and state ownership. Snowy Plovers nest on sand and gravel bars
within the river. Migrating shorebirds use shallow water and sandbars
within the river channel as well as adjacent wet meadows. Threats to
shorebird habitat within this river system include bank stabilization,
establishment of vegetation, sand mining, and reservoir construction.

*Canadian River*.

This river system cuts through Oklahoma, Texas, and New Mexico.
Migrating shorebirds use shallow water, sandbars and wet meadows. Snowy
Plovers nest on sandbars within the river. Threats include bank
stabilization projects and sand mining operations.

SANDHILLS OF NEBRASKA

They are located in northwest and north central Nebraska. While most of
the area is in private ownership, it does contain the Crescent Lake and
Valentine NWRs, USFWS. The region contains over 405,000 ha (1 million
acres) of marshes, lakes and wet meadows. Crescent Lake and Valentine
NWRs provide important habitat for breeding and migrant shorebirds.
Within the CP/PLR, this is where most of the Long-billed Curlews,
Wilson's Phalaropes and Willets breed. This area is especially important
to shorebirds because of the abundance of migratory stopover habitat.
Management capabilities, however, are limited because wetlands depend on
a natural variable water regime.

RESERVOIRS

Large reservoirs are associated with river systems, including the
Platte, Arkansas, and Solomon rivers. Many reservoirs were developed for
flood control, recreation, and irrigation purposes. Their value as
wildlife habitat is often of secondary concern. However, these
reservoirs provide extensive mudflats for foraging shorebirds,
especially during late summer/early fall when water levels are receding
due to water being removed for crop irrigation and evaporation. During
dry years, nesting habitat is also available during the spring and early
summer. Issues and threats to these areas include water rights
(regarding sale of water to municipalities); woody vegetation
encroachment along shorelines; and shoreline recreation (ORVs, water
skiers, personal watercraft, and camping).