Mary's Point Western Hemispheric Shorebird Reserve: a case study in community leadership and successful protected area management.

Abstract

Mary's Point Western Hemispheric Shorebird Reserve, located near Harvey, New Brunswick, Canada, is an example of excellence in small protected area management. Shorebird protection was initiated by and continues through the voluntary efforts of two community members. Working in cooperation with regional, national and international partners, the volunteer stewards successfully overcame serious obstacles including the protected area's small size; a low and unpredictable budget; and negative local reaction. Efforts spanning three decades resulted in transformation of Mary's Point (MP) from a highly disturbed recreational beach to an internationally acclaimed and locally respected shorebird reserve.

Using a case study approach, this paper presents the meaning of successful management at this small protected area. Secondly, it examines trends and key stages in the evolution of protecting MP. Thirdly, it examines seven factors associated with successful protection of this shorebird migratory stopover site: (1) dedicated volunteer stewards; (2) clear sense of purpose; (3) collaboration; (4) research and monitoring; (5) effective visitor management; (6) education and interpretation; and (7) local involvement. Leadership by ecologically literate community members played a pivotal role in collaborative efforts to protect migratory shorebirds at MP.

La Western Hemispheric Shorebird Reserve de Marys' Point, situee pres de Harvey, au Nouveau-Brunswick, Canada, est un exemple d'excellente gestion des petites zones protegees. La protection des oiseaux de rivage a debute et se poursuit grace aux efforts benevoles de deux membres de la collectivite. De concert avec des partenaires regionaux, nationaux et internationaux, les intendants benevoles ont franchi avec succes d'importants obstacles, incluant: Ia petite taille de la zone protegee; un budget petit et imprevisible; et des reactions locales negatives. Les efforts, qui se sont etendus sur trois decennies, ont resulte en la transformation de Mary's Point : de plage recreative tres perturbee qu'elle etait, elle est devenue une reserve d'oiseaux de rivage respectee localement et acclamee internationalement. Cet article, au moyen dune etude de cas, decrit ce que represente une gestion reussie pour cette petite zone protegee. II examine ensuite les tendances et les etapes cles de l'evolution dans les demarches de protection de Marys' Point. Puis I decrit sept facteurs associes une protection reussie de cet arret migratoire des oiseaux de rivage: (1) des intendants benevoles devoues; (2) un objectif clair; (3) de la collaboration; (4) de la recherche et de la surveillance; (5) une gestion efficace des visiteurs; (6) de l'education et de l'interpretation; et (7) un engagement local. Le leadership exerce par des membres de la collectivite eduques sur le plan de l'ecologie a joue un role essentiel dans les efforts de collaboration visant a proteger les oiseaux de rivage migrateurs de Mary's Point.

Key Words:

protected area, community, shorebird conservation, volunteer stewardship

Introduction

Mary's Point (MP) located near Harvey, New Brunswick, in Eastern Canada, is a small unit (107 ha) within the Shepody National Wildlife Area. It is owned and administered by the Canadian Wildlife Service (Environment Canada). The interpretive services are operated by, the New Brunswick Federation of Naturalists (NBFN), while day-to-day management occurs through the voluntary efforts of two local community members (both founding and active members of the NBFN). This case study provides insight into how the voluntary community stewards of this internationally acclaimed migratory shorebird reserve overcame serious threats to ecological integrity. These threats included small size; an unstable and low budget; and severe negative local reaction to initial protection efforts. Furthermore, the lifecycle needs of migratory shorebirds (involving nesting grounds in the Arctic, southward migratory stops in the upper Bay of Fundy, over-wintering habitats in South America, and northward migratory stops in prairie wetlands) dictate cooperative thinking and action at regional, national and international levels (Myers et al. 1987, Cox 1999). Despite these challenges, success has been achieved: MP is now an internationally recognized example of excellence in migratory shorebird protection and small protected area management.

Maintaining ecological integrity is a common goal in protected area management. According to Parks Canada Agency (2000:15), an ecosystem is said to have integrity "when it is deemed characteristic for its natural region, including the composition and abundance of native species and biological communities, rates of change and supporting processes." Importantly, ecological integrity is not just relevant to protected areas, nor does its protection necessarily imply the exclusion of human interests. Indeed, there is increasing recognition of the vital links between ecological integrity and community wellbeing resulting in numerous community-based conservation initiatives involving both public and private lands (Western and Wright 1994, Bernard and Young 1997, Hannum 1997, Weber 2000).

Extensive knowledge on threats to ecological integrity has led to widespread recognition of the need to integrate protected areas into their surrounding, dynamic ecological and socio-economic regions (see Shafer 1990, Schonewald-Cox et al. 1992, Grumbine 1994, and Sportza 1999 for reviews). Integrative approaches are particularly important for small protected areas given that the more fragmented and isolated a natural area becomes, the more difficult it becomes to maintain ecological integrity (Harris 1984, Noss 1987, Saunders et al. 1991). Thus sustaining ecological integrity in human-dominated landscapes dictates adaptive approaches that address the intertwined biophysical and social realities of protected area management (Ehrenfeld 1995, McNeely 1995, and Lister and Kay 2000). Case studies provide a useful means to study the interplay of the site-specific social and ecological dimensions of protected area management.

The purpose of this case study was to understand the management approach at MP. It presents -- from a community perspective -- the processes and factors associated with this natural area's transformation from a highly disturbed beach, to an internationally acclaimed and locally respected shorebird reserve.

Methods

This case study was initiated as part of a larger project exploring successful stewardship approaches for small protected areas (Curthoys Brown 1995). MP was nominated as a model of excellence in small protected area management through a peer review process. "Small" is defined as less than 1000 hectares in this study. A nonrandom, stratified (by country, region and protected area type) sample of 1,099 protected area managers from the United States and Canada was surveyed using either a self-administered questionnaire or a telephone interview. The 451 respondents were asked to recommend a small protected area that, in their opinion, demonstrated excellence in conservation management, where "management" was defined as "action toward desired end results" (Allen 1990). To obtain peer consensus, 60 other protected area managers and other professionals in conservation-related fields were asked to review the candidate list, resulting in 138 nominations. MP was one of the few places (6.9%) to be nominated three or mo re times, making it a prime study site (Curthoys Brown 1995).

Study Site

Mary's Point, named after a Micmac First Nation's woman, is situated in the Upper Bay of Fundy within a sparsely populated, rural region of New Brunswick's Bay (Figure 1). Located within a sheltered bay, the Point and surrounding area comprise mixed woodland, rocky shore, beach, sand dune, Spartina tidal marsh and intertidal mudflats (Environment Canada 2001). These mudflats consist of fine marine silts supporting extremely high densities of the Fundy mud shrimp Corophium volutator -- the principal prey of shorebirds. With their high fat and protein content and abundant numbers (up to 60,000 shrimp per square metre of mud), these amphipods provide the necessary energy required for the shorebirds three to four day, non-stop, 4,000 km flight to South America (Stoddard et al. 1983, Morrison 1984). The birds are particularly vulnerable while they are roosting as any disturbance causing them to fly results in loss of fat stored for the migratory flight (Helmers 1992).

The combination of shelter, sandy beaches at high tide, and plentiful food draws millions of shorebirds to MP from early July to mid-November, with the highest concentration occurring between mid-July and mid-August (Hicklin 1987). The most numerous shorebirds stopping at MP are the Semipalmated Sandpiper (Calidris pusilla) with total annual numbers ranging between 200,000 and 500,000 (Christie, pers.com). It is estimated that between 50 to 95 per cent of the world population of Semipalmated Sandpipers depend on the Fundy's mud flats for their survival (Mawhinney et al. 1993). Other species occurring in the thousands include the Least sandpiper (Calidris minutilla), White-rumped Sandpiper (C. fuscicollis), Sanderlings (C. alba), Dunlin (C. alpina), and Semipalmated Plover (Charadrius semipalmatus). MP is one of the largest migratory stop-over sites within the Bay of Fundy for these species (Hicklin 1987; Christie, pers.com.).