PETALUMA
Wildlife group migrates to new home
PRBO Conservation Science leaves bluffs of Point Reyes for a restored marshland

By Glen Martin, Chronicle Environment Writer
Thursday, June 1, 2006

After years of making do in cramped quarters on the beautiful but isolated Point Reyes peninsula, one of the West Coast's major wildlife research organizations has moved to a spacious new facility -- in a Petaluma business park.

"At first, we assumed we'd build on open land," said Ellie Cohen, the executive director of Point Reyes Bird Observatory Conservation Science, during the recent dedication of the new offices. "But the more we considered it, the more sense the business-park option made. Here we're already zoned for the kind of intensive work we need to do. There's no need to develop more land. That's really what progressive 21st century planning should be about."

Besides, Cohen said, the business park isn't any old cracker-box development marooned in a sea of endless sprawl: It borders 500 acres of restored and reclaimed marshland on the Petaluma River, one of the richest tidal wetlands along San Francisco Bay and a ready laboratory for the study of estuarine birds of all feathers.

Since its founding 40 years ago, the observatory has specialized in compiling data on western birds, particularly seabirds, shorebirds and songbirds. It is the lead research group for the Farallon Islands, a federal wildlife refuge 10 miles west of San Francisco that is perhaps the richest seabird nesting site in the western United States.

The research is valuable for itself -- almost everyone appreciates birds and would like to see them thrive. But the observatory's work increasingly is seen as crucial for larger inquiries on the state of the planet. In studying birds, the observatory's scientists are also required to study their food sources and habitats, and the climatic and social forces that affect them.

That has made the observatory's findings pure gold to researchers in other fields, particularly those touching on climate change. The observatory that once was something of an exclusive think-tank for avian matters now serves as a kind of clearing house for North Pacific environmental data.

To meet the clamor for information, the organization has grown dramatically, quadrupling its size over the past decade. It now employs 180 permanent and seasonal staffers, and has an annual operating budget of $6 million. Most of the money comes from grants and donations.

At this time of year, the Petaluma River marsh is particularly active: Black-necked stilts and avocets forage in the mudflats, ruddy ducks, gadwalls and mallards court avidly on the ponds, red-winged blackbirds and common yellowthroats squabble in the cattails, snowy egrets and great blue herons hunt the sloughs and Canada geese nest just about everywhere.

"We're only two miles from some of our historic data sets, projects that are still active," said Cohen, gazing out on the marshes that teemed with breeding and feeding waterfowl and shorebirds. "This estuary is central to our work. And now we have the lab space and the computer stations, the high-speed Internet connections and advanced communication network we need."

And the space. The observatory's new digs encompass 20,000 square feet, compared with the 3,500 square feet that was available in the West Marin facility.

With growing concerns over global warming and declining fisheries, the marine sciences are very active right now, said Bill Sydeman, the observatory's director of marine ecology. Data obtained by the organization's staff on western seabirds, he said, bears critically on related fields of study.

One example: Many seabirds rely on larger zooplankton such as krill for food, Sydeman said. Last year was one of the worst on record for krill production off the Pacific Coast. Bird reproduction was down measurably on the Farallones, salmon were noticeably skinnier and the numbers of juvenile rockfish were down.

Plankton production is driven by upwelling -- the seasonal pumping of cold, nutrient-rich, offshore water into shallower inshore areas. Upwelling was drastically reduced last year, said Sydeman, and zooplankton production collapsed. This year plankton production is up slightly -- but it's still not good, Sydeman said.

"Overall, we've seen great variability in the California coastal ecosystem during the past decade, much greater than we've seen in the past 50 years," he said. "A generally supported prediction of climate change is more ecosystem ups and downs."

What worries Sydeman is that efforts are being made to increase commercial fishing of basic forage species such as krill and anchovies just as the environmental stresses on them are becoming clearer.

"We simply don't know whether they -- and the birds, fish and marine mammals that depend on them -- can take increased pressure," he said. "We need to do more research."

Steve McCormick, the president of the Nature Conservancy, the world's largest and best-funded environmental group, said the data provided by the observatory allow conservation groups to fine-tune priorities.

The Conservancy protects lands through outright purchase or conservation easements. It has conserved about 117 million acres and 5,000 miles of river corridors around the world. Picking the best candidates for protection, said McCormick, requires a plentitude of data, of the kind that only groups like the observatory can provide.

"I've been tremendously impressed by the way they've grown from an academic institution to one that enables organizations like ours to do more effective work," McCormick said at the dedication. "They're essential to what we do."

E-mail Glen Martin at glenmartin@sfchronicle.com.

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