By Jonathan Vargas

From May 11 to 13, 2018, the workshop “Shorebirds and disturbance” was held in Ensenada, Baja California and attended by the Monitoring and Surveillance Group of  Santa Clara, Sonora, and staff of the Upper Gulf of California and Colorado River Delta Biosphere Reserve.

In this workshop, also participated Juan Andrés Figueroa, Biology student from the University of the Americas Puebla (UDLAP) and the biologist Erick Benjamín Cota.

The workshop was divided into a theorical and practical sessions where different topics were studied, such as the characteristics of shorebirds, bird identification techniques, effects of disturbance on shorebirds. Participants learned to apply the method of disturbance and shorebird monitoring that is used by Grupo Aves del Noroeste (GANO) in all the sites in Mexico that are part of the Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network (WHSRN).

During the workshop, the main problems affecting shorebirds and gulf grunion in the Gulf of Santa Clara were also discussed, as well as the conservation and disturbance mitigation actions that have been carried out in the area. The field work took place at the Shorebird Reserve Bahía de Todos Santos.

One of the results of the workshop was to reinforce the alliance with the Monitoring and Surveillance Group, Conanp and Terra Peninsular. It was agreed that the new monitoring method will be implemented in the Gulf of Santa Clara in order to evaluate and mitigate the shorebird disturbance that exists in this area of the country.

The workshop was given by Eduardo Palacios and Jonathan Vargas, Bird Conservation Projects Associate of Terra Peninsular.