[CPEO-IRF] "Fragile terns on shaky ground in Alameda" (CA)

[Lenny Siegel <lsiegel@cpeo.org>]

Fragile terns on shaky ground in Alameda
Future of bird colony at former naval base may depend on new owners

By Laura Ernde
Inside Bay Area/Oakland Tribune (CA)
June 10, 2005

ALAMEDA - Every spring, a flock of endangered California least terns 
returns to abandoned runways at the former Alameda Naval Air Station to 
build shallow nests and hatch a new generation.

So fragile is the population that one predator, such as a fox or a feral 
cat, could wipe out an entire breeding season in just a few days, said 
Leora Feeney, chairwoman of the Friends of the Alameda Wildlife Refuge.

Since the base closed in 1997, the small seabirds have prospered under 
the close watch of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

But their future on the 565-acre island refuge remains in limbo. The 
U.S. Navy is no longer negotiating with the wildlife service to take 
ownership of the refuge, said Ron Plaseied, who is managing the base 
closure for the Navy.

...

For the entire article, see
http://www.insidebayarea.com/portlet/article/html/fragments/print_article.jsp?article=2794630

--
Lenny Siegel
Director, Center for Public Environmental Oversight
c/o PSC, 278-A Hope St., Mountain View, CA 94041
Voice: 650/961-8918 or 650/969-1545
Fax: 650/961-8918
http://www.cpeo.org


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