04/07/2004 Council Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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• • • Species Breeding Colony" would cost $74,620.00 with a request for $44,080.00 in grant monies. Should the grant be funded, Peltier heronry is one of five sites on which work would be focused. Final decision on this request in pending and competition for the funds is great. Fieldwork in 2003 included a mid - winter nest survey conducted with 8 observers on Feb 27, 2003. This survey, conducted after the breeding season, reflects the nesting activity of the summer 2002. The survey team counted 284 intact nests and 23 partial nests. This count was in line with estimates from aerial surveys of a maximum number of 300 -400 adult Great Blue Herons in the colony during the 2002 breeding season. While an estimated 50 Great Egrets were noted in the colony on the 4/9/02 aerial survey, only 4 or 5 pairs remained to nest at this site in 2002, as noted in last year's report. This past spring and summer 2003, was an active period with many individuals keeping watch over this colony. The first reports of Great Blue Herons returning to Peltier Lake were submitted by Wayne LeBlanc on 3/15/03, Glenn Fuchs from Anoka Co. Parks reported to Art Hawkins that he had seen about 30 birds at nests on Sunday 3/23. Keely Dinse saw at least 20 Great Blue Herons on the island on March 24th and Rebecca Pecchia reported an estimated 60 to 70 Great Blue Herons over the island on March 30th Clearly, the herons had returned to the nest site during the last weeks of March. The first reported Great Egret was noted in the Twin Cities area at Diamond Lake in Minneapolis on March 20, 2003. Ron Marier reported seeing his first Great Egret over Peltier Lake the morning of April 6th. On April 13th, Wayne LeBlanc noted two Great Egrets landing on the island. A crew from Anoka County Parks again provided nest material for the herons at the stick field. Art Hawkins began monitoring the "stick field " on April 15th. A large number of Great Blue Herons were observed gathering nesting material through the remainder of the month. Mr. Hawkins monitored this site through June 19th. He noted that the birds' behavior changed about May 7th when he observed as many birds leaving the colony (presumably to gather food) and not going to the stick field as were visiting the stick field. Glenn Fuchs also monitored the birds coming and going when they traveled west from the island into the Park for nesting material or other activities. Mr. Hawkins also noted, for the second year, an absence of the plunge diving feeding behavior that he had first observed as a prevalent foraging strategy in the late 1990s. DNR biologist Steve Kittelson conducted the first aerial survey of the Peltier Island colony on April 29th. He estimated 300 -350 active Great Blue Heron nests and also observed 3 active Great Egret nests. Subsequent aerial assessments occurred on May 13, June 3, and July 1st. In all cases, things appeared to be proceeding normally Mr. Kittelson reported 12 active Great Egret nests observed on the June 3rd aerial survey for the maximum number of pairs of this species believed to have occurred in the colony this year.