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Sea level rise (SLR) and disturbances from increased storm activity are expected to diminish coastal ecosystems available to nesting species by removing habitat and inundating nests during incubation. We updated the United States Geological Survey's (USGS) Coastal Vulnerability Index, which provides a qualitative and relative assessment of a coastal area's vulnerability to erosion and shoreline retreat as a function of SLR and other factors, for the South Atlantic Bight. We considered a eustatic SLR projection of 14 cm by 2030. We linked long‐term survey data for 3 sea turtle species, 3 shorebird species, and 5 seabird species to future coastal erosion vulnerability to SLR to understand effects of future SLR on nesting habitats. Over 2,000 km (43%) of the South Atlantic Bight coastline is projected to have an increase in coastal erosion vulnerability by the 2030s, with respect to its present vulnerability. Future vulnerability of SLR‐induced erosion along the South Atlantic Bight is spatially variable, and the 11 coastal study species also varied in their use of coastal habitats with high future coastal vulnerability to SLR. For example, only 23% of high‐density nesting habitat for the brown pelican (Pelecanus occidentalis) is expected to be at increased vulnerability to SLR, whereas >70% of the high‐nesting density habitat for 2 seabird species (gull‐billed tern [Gelochelidon nilotica], sandwich tern [Thalasseus sandvicensis]) is predicted to have higher future coastal erosion vulnerability by 2030. We provide predictions for the level of susceptibility of the study species to erosion from future SLR, which is the first step in managing coastal species for the changing environmental conditions associated with climate change and SLR. © 2019 The Authors. Journal of Wildlife Management Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of The Wildlife Society.

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The rusty blackbird (Euphagus carolinus) is a species of conservation concern throughout its range and the cause of the species' population decline is unknown. We studied diet composition of rusty blackbirds with stable isotope mixing models in suburban landscapes in the southeastern United States. We captured blackbirds in Georgia and South Carolina from 2009 to 2012, and estimated proportions of earthworm, other animals, pecan, and acorn incorporated into individual diets. On the Piedmont Plateau, terrestrial and aquatic earthworms constituted the largest proportion incorporated into the diet (39% AE 2.9; mean AE SD by site and year) and animals other than earthworms (mostly larval invertebrates Odonata and Diptera) constituted 27% AE 12.9. In contrast, on the Coastal Plain, which featured milder winters than the Piedmont, earthworms constituted a lower proportion (19% AE 1.2) of incorporated food items and animals other than earthworms comprised 62% AE 3.3% of the diet. Increased incorporation of earthworms in the diet was related to increased upcoming precipitation and daily maximum temperature. Rusty blackbirds incorporated more tree mast into their diet on the Piedmont Plateau than the Coastal Plain. Increased incorporation of tree mast was related to advancing cold temperature. Mast, including crushed pecans (Carya illinoenensis) and pre-opened small-seeded red oak (Quercus spp.) acorns, is a high-lipid dietary component of blackbirds wintering in colder climates, and is incorporated prior to extreme cold weather. Therefore, planting mast trees, especially lipid-rich pecan, could be used to augment resources in known rusty blackbird wintering hotspots. Maintaining shallowly flooded wetlands with a fluctuating water regime and residential lawns with abundant red oak (Quercus spp.) leaf litter would promote acorn and invertebrate resources including earthworms. Ó 2015 The Wildlife Society.

Agriculture is the dominant land use in the Lower Flint River Basin (LFRB) of south-western Georgia, USA, and is often a significant disturbance factor affecting streams and riparian habitats. Streams in the LFRB harbor a great diversity of freshwater turtles, which are among the many groups of aquatic fauna impacted by agricultural disturbance to riparian habitats. The objective of this study was to assess turtle diversity and abundance in both agriculturally impacted and unimpacted or restored reaches of streams in the LFRB. In 2007 and 2008, we used hoop traps and effort-managed snorkel surveys to sample turtles on 14 reaches of two streams (Ichawaynochaway and Spring Creeks). We recorded 823 captures of 674 individuals representing nine turtle species. There was a measurable association between the percentage of riparian undisturbed land cover and the number of turtles captured for the four most frequently captured species (Trachemys scripta, Graptemys barbouri, Pseudemys concinna and Sternotherus minor). We found a negative relationship between the total number of turtles captured and percentage of undisturbed land cover within a 287 m buffer width due to a significant increase in the number of T. scripta in less-forested sections of the creeks; however, the number of G. barbouri captures declined with reduced undisturbed land cover. Species evenness was positively correlated with percentage of undisturbed land. These results suggest that loss of riparian forest is associated with a decline in freshwater diversity (evenness) and a decline in the abundance of the endemic, state protected G. barbouri; however, overall turtle abundance may remain stable or increase with loss of riparian forest cover due to an increase in common, cosmopolitan species. Our results suggest that maintenance or restoration of riparian forests is critical to freshwater turtle conservation.