FRACKING reduces the success rate of nesting songbirds, according to a new study.
Researchers found that the nesting success of the Louisiana Waterthrush is declining at sites in the US impacted by the controversial technique of drilling for shale gas.
The bird is a habitat specialist that nests along forested streams in West Virginia, where the potential for habitat degradation is high.
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West Virginia University’s Dr Mack Frantz and his colleagues mapped waterthrush territories and monitored nests along 14 streams from 2009 to 2011 and again from 2013 to 2015.
They used aerial photographs and satellite imagery as well as extensive work on the ground and classifying disturbances to streams and to the forest canopy according to whether they were related to shale gas development.
Their results, published in The Condor: Ornithological Applications journal, show that as shale gas development has expanded in the area, nest survival and productivity and riparian habitat quality have declined.
At the same time, the size of individual waterthrush territories has increased, suggesting birds need to travel further to find sufficient resources.
This study is one of the first to demonstrate that shale gas development can affect songbird reproductive success and productivity, both directly through the presence of fracking infrastructure and indirectly through effects on habitat quality.
Dr Frantz said: “I hope our findings lead to robust protections of our forested headwater stream ecosystems, which are currently overlooked for regulation despite their critical role in providing nutrients and organic matter downstream, not to mention as an important source for drinking water.
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“Waterthrushes are a modern-day ‘canary in the coal mine,’ and there are many more opportunities to study how anthropogenic disturbance affects and entangles food webs at the aquatic-terrestrial interface.”
Dr Leesia Marshall, from Louisiana State University-Alexandria, added: “After 12 years of research conducted with this species, I have seen the numerous impacts hydraulic fracturing has had on waterthrush survival and the toll that the industry has had on our nation’s wild places and wildlife,”
“This paper should serve as a call for all scientists to redouble efforts across all related disciplines to document the present impacts of shale gas extraction and to develop strategies for mitigation and avoidance of potential impacts in the future.”
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