Thanks for sharing Melanie.
Of 23 Grebes worldwide, 3 have gone extinct the last 40 years. The population of the Junin Grebe has been estimated around 200-300 birds the last 35 years, and it is known that there were over 1000 birds in the 60s.
There have been quite a few projects with the slogan "Save the Junin Grebe" but none have looked at the underlying cause why the population does not increase. It has usually been census of the whole population or creating awareness. I am not saying this is a bad thing. There have been some excellent campaigns.
We are actually not using "Save the Junin Grebe" as a slogan. We shall not save the Grebe, but we shall try to find out why the population is not increasing. If we know why, we shall also be able to get an idea of the How that is needed to SAVE THE JUNIN GREBE, because the How necessitates increasing the population to save it.
This is project different, as we shall monitor on a daily basis the breeding success. Incredibly, this has never been done before. With the simple data collected, we will be able to extrapolate the cause why the population is not increasing. Is it because rapid changes in water level destroys the nest? Is it because of starvation (possibly due to lack of fish, which could be explained by changed biotic conditions from mining or human waste)? Or is because of poisoning (dead eggs and birds will be collected for toxicity tests)? Or is there predation (possibilities include Andean Gull or big trout occurring in the lake)?
A very simple methodology will give excellent answers. But it is hard work to get out daily to the reed edge, and I think that many researchers have thought this study to be necessary in the past, but simply shunned because of lack of funds and the hard work involved. The sentiment is "
They would have to pay me very well if I were to do it" . So nothing is done.
I instead asked local bird guide Cesar Zevallos if he could do the work with his small aluminum canoe. He said yes. And a salary of mere $300 per month, is more than he earned in his previous work and what he was offered t o work for the Municipality.
This guy is Die Hard and used to the harsh conditions of rain, wind, hail and sometimes snow. He has also worked with previous researchers in the area, so he has hand on experience with the field work. But he is not a biologist. The data collected may not be perfect, but I shall supervise it, and I think it shall be good enough. At least good enough to show that this data collection is vital if we are to detect rapid changes in the population and if we are to pin down what is needed to increase the population.
And being such a cost effective study, that will give so many answers on questions that are pending and is also supporting a local, it is a great project to put out for crowdfunding.
So please have a look at
the proposal and let me know what you think. Please consider sharing it with your friends and making a contribution. 1 Dollar, Pound or Euro goes a long way if many people chip in.
The URL is
http://bit.ly/JuninGrebe
Saludos
Gunnar