Tweeters:
I thought this would be of interest to you. Yesterday a federal
district court judge approved a temporary restraining order to prevent
the Army Corps of Engineers from harrassing the Caspian Terns off of
Rice Island in the Lower Columbia. Seattle Audubon, National Audubon,
and others filed a suit yesterday that you can read about in the press
release below. For additional information see today's Seattle Times
article at
http://www.seattletimes.com/news/local/html98/tern11m_20000411.html
-Lauren Braden, Seattle Audubon

National Audubon Society * Defenders of Wildlife
American Bird Conservancy * Seattle Audubon Society


FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACTS LISTED BELOW
MONDAY, APRIL 10, 2000


LARGEST TERN BREEDING AREA THREATENED
CONSERVATIONISTS FILE SUIT TO SAVE HABITAT
TERNS NOT CAUSE OF SALMON DECLINE

SEATTLE, WA --National Audubon Society, Defenders of Wildlife, Seattle
Audubon Society, and American Bird Conservancy today filed suit against
the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in an effort to save the largest
breeding colony of Caspian Terns in North America.

"The terns are being used as a scapegoat for those who don't want to
make tough choices on saving the salmon," said Daniel P. Beard, Senior
Vice President for National Audubon.

The suit asks the federal court to prevent the Army Corps of Engineers
from destroying tern-breeding habitat, harassing of nesting terns, and
destroying up to 300 tern eggs on Rice Island in the upper Columbia
River, until the Agency complies with the National Environmental Policy
Act (NEPA) by preparing an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS).

At issue is the future of the Caspian Terns in the upper Columbia River
estuary, which is the only breeding colony in the Pacific Northwest.
Caspian Terns have been intensely scrutinized by the National Marine
Fisheries Service and other organizations since the mid-1990s as a
potential cause of the decline of wild salmon stocks in the Columbia
River. Conservationists note there is no evidence of any link between
tern numbers and ESA-listed salmon.

"Moving terns will do little to increase the salmon in the Pacific
Northwest," said Rodger Schlickeisen, President of Defenders of
Wildlife. "Clearly, we need to address all Hs, habitat, harvest, hydro,
and hatcheries. Terns are not the major factor affecting salmon"


"This doesn't need to be a tern versus salmon they issue - the EIS will
provide the best scientific management for both salmon and terns," said
George H. Fenwick, President of American Bird Conservancy. "The current
plan could result in fewer salmon and fewer terns."

"Roughly less than 10 percent of salmon and steelhead in the upper
Columbia River are eaten by terns, while up to 40 percent of the salmon
are killed by dams", says Dr. Herbert Curl Jr., Science Advisor to
Seattle Audubon Society.
..
Since 1986, terns have nested on Rice Island, a dredge spoil island
created by the Corps in the 1980s in the upper Columbia estuary. The
colony has grown to approximately 10,000 pairs owing the destruction of
other nesting habitat. In 1999, seven of eight acres of nesting habitat
on Rice Island was eliminated to encourage relocation of the terns to
East Sand Island, an Army- managed location where suitable habitat had
been created. This effort failed when the same number of terns (more
than 8,000 pairs) crowded the remaining one acre of sand at Rice Island
while additional 1,400 pairs nested on East Sand Island. Thus more
terns were in the estuary in 1999 than in 1998. Ignoring this fact, the
Army wants to prohibit nesting on Rice Island and destroy nesting
habitat on 50 percent of East Sand Island.

Caspian terns are the largest terns in the world. Easily identified by
their coral red bill they are listed as threatened, endangered,
vulnerable or species of special concern in eight states and one
Canadian province. The Rice Island / East Sand colony represents
two-thirds of the U.S. West Coast population and one-third of the North
American population.


CONTACTS
National Audubon Society - Perry Plumart 202-861-2242
Defenders of Wildlife - Heather Pellet 202-682-9400 x100
American Bird Conservancy - Gerald Winegrad 202-778-9652
Seattle Audubon Society - Helen Ross 206-523-8243 x13

###


Lauren Braden
Advocate for Wildlife Habitat
Seattle Audubon Society
8050 35th Ave NE
Seattle, WA 98115
PHONE: 206 523-8243 x14
FAX: 206 528-7779
laurenb at seattleaudubon.org <mailto:laurenb at seattleaudubon.org>
www.seattleaudubon.org
Seattle Audubon Society protects birds and the natural environment by
involving volunteers and the community in education, advocacy,
preservation, science and enjoyment