Priorities for Future Research

The following is a list of research priorities that should be addressed to assist conservation and management organizations in protecting the species from extinction:

Monitoring. Regular surveys need to be conducted throughout the species’ range, especially in remote under-surveyed areas, to understand the species’ global distribution, assess abundance and population trend, and identify priority sites for protection (245 Pronkevich, V. V. (2002). Regarding nesting Nordmann’s Greenshank on Tugur Peninsula. Working Group on Waders of Northern Eurasia 15:156 (in Russian) Close , 109 Pronkevich, V. V. (2017). Investigation of the world population of the endangered species- Nordmann’s Greenshank (Tringa guttifer, Nordmann, 1835) and the search for ways to preserve it. Russian Academy of Science, Far Eastern Branch Close , 70 Collar, N. J., A. V. Andreev, S. Chan, M. J. Crosby, S. Subramanya, and J. A. Tobias, Editors (2001). Threatened Birds of Asia: the BirdLife International Red Data Book. BirdLife International, Cambridge, United Kingdom. Close , 77 Barter, M.A. (2002). Shorebirds of the Yellow Sea: importance, threats and conservation status. Wetlands International Global Series 9, International Wader Studies 12, Canberra, Australia. Close , 124 Gerasimov, Y. N., and F. Huettmann (2006). Shorebirds of the Sea of Okhotsk: Status and overview. Stilt 50:15–22 Close , 81 Bamford, M., D. Watkins, W. Bancroft, G. Tischler, and J. Wahl (2008). Migratory shorebirds of the East Asian-Australasian Flyway: population estimates and internationally important sites. Wetlands International, Canberra, Australia. Close , 87 Bird, J. P., A. C. Lees, S. U. Chowdhury, R. Martin, R. Halder, and E. Ul Haque (2010). Observations of globally threatened shorebirds in Bangladesh. BirdingASIA 14: 53–58. Close , 96 Abdillah, H., and M. Iqbal (2012). First record of Nordmann’s Greenshank Tringa guttifer in northern Sumatra, Indonesia. Wader Study Group Bulletin 119:140–141 Close , 112 Yu, C., D. Ngoprasert, T. Savini, P. D. Round, and G. A. Gale (2020). Distribution modelling of the endangered Spotted Greenshank (Tringa guttifer) in a key area within its winter range. Global Ecology and Conservation 22:10 Close ). Data from tracking devices would be useful to spatiotemporally focus survey efforts and increase the probability of encountering the species (246 Chan, Y., T. L. Tibbitts, T. Lok, C. J. Hassell, H. Peng, Z. Ma, Z. Zhang, and T. Piersma (2019). Filling knowledge gaps in a threatened shorebird flyway through satellite tracking. Journal of Applied Ecology 56(10):2305-2315 Close ). Subsequently, a comprehensive quantitative assessment of the species’ population abundance, trend, and age structure needs to be completed.

Migratory Ecology Studies. Migratory and stopover ecology studies need to be conducted using tracking devices and widespread mark-resight methods to fully understand the species’ migratory phenology, strategies, routes, turn-over rates, and to ultimately identify critical sites to create a network of protected areas throughout the East Asian-Australasian Flyway (EAAF) for greater population resiliency (70 Collar, N. J., A. V. Andreev, S. Chan, M. J. Crosby, S. Subramanya, and J. A. Tobias, Editors (2001). Threatened Birds of Asia: the BirdLife International Red Data Book. BirdLife International, Cambridge, United Kingdom. Close , 77 Barter, M.A. (2002). Shorebirds of the Yellow Sea: importance, threats and conservation status. Wetlands International Global Series 9, International Wader Studies 12, Canberra, Australia. Close , 156 Huettmann, F., and Y. N. Gerasimov (2006). Conservation of migratory shorebirds and their habitats in the Sea of Okhotsk, Russian Far East, in the year 2006: State-of-the-art and an outlook. Stilt 50:23–33 Close , 246 Chan, Y., T. L. Tibbitts, T. Lok, C. J. Hassell, H. Peng, Z. Ma, Z. Zhang, and T. Piersma (2019). Filling knowledge gaps in a threatened shorebird flyway through satellite tracking. Journal of Applied Ecology 56(10):2305-2315 Close , 24 Yang, Z., B. J. Lagassé, H. Xiao, M. V. Jackson, C.-Y. Chiang, D. S. Melville, K. S. K. Leung, J. Li, L. Zhang, H.-B. Peng, X. Gan, W.-L. Liu, Z. Ma, and C.-Y. Choi (2020). The southern Jiangsu coast is a critical moulting site for Spoon-billed Sandpiper Calidris pygmaea and Nordmann’s Greenshank Tringa guttifer. Bird Conservation International 30(4):649-660 Close ).

Ecological Studies. Studies are needed throughout Magadan, Khabarovsk, and Sakhalin provinces to fully understand the species’ breeding range, habitat requirements, reproductive biology, limiting factors, demographic structure, and life-history (18 Nechaev, V. A. (1978). The biology and behavior of Normann’s Greenshanks Tringa guttifer on Sakhalin Island. Russian Ornithological Journal:6073-6086 (in Russian) Close , 115 Piersma, T., P. Wiersma, and J. Van Gils (1997). The many unknowns about plovers and sandpipers of the world: Introduction to a wealth of research opportunities highly relevant for shorebird conservation. Wader Study Group Bulletin 82:23–33 Close , 156 Huettmann, F., and Y. N. Gerasimov (2006). Conservation of migratory shorebirds and their habitats in the Sea of Okhotsk, Russian Far East, in the year 2006: State-of-the-art and an outlook. Stilt 50:23–33 Close , 109 Pronkevich, V. V. (2017). Investigation of the world population of the endangered species- Nordmann’s Greenshank (Tringa guttifer, Nordmann, 1835) and the search for ways to preserve it. Russian Academy of Science, Far Eastern Branch Close ). Widespread tagging of the species with tracking devices would help researchers answer these questions.

Studies are needed to clarify the ecological and behavioral niche (breeding and non-breeding habitat requirements, factors limiting abundance, diet and foraging behavior, and juvenile and subadult life-history) to optimize management of habitat (70 Collar, N. J., A. V. Andreev, S. Chan, M. J. Crosby, S. Subramanya, and J. A. Tobias, Editors (2001). Threatened Birds of Asia: the BirdLife International Red Data Book. BirdLife International, Cambridge, United Kingdom. Close , 124 Gerasimov, Y. N., and F. Huettmann (2006). Shorebirds of the Sea of Okhotsk: Status and overview. Stilt 50:15–22 Close , 133 Zöckler, C., and P. Frew (2011). Unusual feeding behaviour of Nordmann’s Greenshank Tringa guttifer. Wader Study Group Bulletin 118:68 Close , 118 Conklin, J. R., Y. I. Verkuil, and B. R. Smith. 2014. Prioritizing Migratory Shorebirds for Conservation: Action on the East Asian-Australasian Flyway. WWF-Hong Kong Close , 92 Yu, C., D. Ngoprasert, P. D. Round, A. J. Pierce, T. Savini, and G. A. Gale (2019). Roost selection of the endangered Spotted Greenshank (Tringa guttifer) in critical habitat in the Inner Gulf of Thailand. Avian Research 10:10 Close , 112 Yu, C., D. Ngoprasert, T. Savini, P. D. Round, and G. A. Gale (2020). Distribution modelling of the endangered Spotted Greenshank (Tringa guttifer) in a key area within its winter range. Global Ecology and Conservation 22:10 Close ). These insights may help ecologists understand if an Allee Effect may be occurring (i.e., low abundance causing reduced colonial breeding and thus reduced reproductive success). Understanding the species’ use of artificial and supratidal wetlands (e.g., saltpans, rice-paddies, aquaculture ponds) needs to be assessed via telemetry and mark-resight methods as it is important to understand the potentially harmful effects these often polluted and disturbed sites incur on the species. A systematic remote-sensing analysis of the distribution of artificial wetlands and an evaluation of the sustainability and longevity of such wetlands should be conducted to ensure they remain viable in rapidly developing countries with frequent land-use changes (176 Jackson, M. V., L. R. Carrasco, C. Y. Choi, J. Li, Z. Ma, D. S. Melville, T. Mu, H. B. Peng, B. K. Woodworth, Z. Yang, L. Zhang, and R. A. Fuller (2019). Multiple habitat use by declining migratory birds necessitates joined-up conservation. Ecology and Evolution 9:2505–2515 Close , 173 Jackson, M. V., C. Y. Choi, T. Amano, S. M. Estrella, W. Lei, N. Moores, T. Mundkur, D. I. Rogers, and R. A. Fuller. 2020. Navigating coasts of concrete: Pervasive use of artificial habitats by shorebirds in the Asia-Pacific. Biological Conservation 247:11 Close , 157 Li, J., A. C. Hughes, and D. Dudgeon (2019). Mapping wader biodiversity along the East Asian-Australasian Flyway. PLoS ONE 14:1–26 Close ). Additional remote-sensing studies on the availability of suitable breeding, staging, stopover, and wintering sites throughout the species’ range, in conjunction with widespread ground-truthing surveys, needs to be conducted to prioritize conservation efforts and better inform management strategies (175 Murray, N. J., Z. Ma, and R. A. Fuller (2015). Tidal flats of the Yellow Sea: A review of ecosystem status and anthropogenic threats. Austral Ecology 40:472–481 Close , VVP). It is also essential to evaluate how the species differs in spatial behavior and demographic trends from other shorebirds in the EAAF, especially Common Greenshank, to establish baseline data and develop conservation strategies specifically targeting Nordmann’s Greenshank.

Hunting and Poaching Impact Assessments. The true impact of shorebird hunting and poaching throughout species range, as well as the socio-economic dimensions that may be driving these activities, are not fully understood and need to be studied. In addition, the appropriate place-based solutions for each region need to be identified (177 Bird, J.P., Lees, A.C., Chowdhury, S.U., Martin, R. and Ul Haque, E. (2010). A survey of the Critically Endangered Spoon-billed Sandpiper Eurynorhynchus pygmeus in Bangladesh and key future research and conservation recommendations. Forktail. 26: 1–8. Close , 196 Gallo-Cajiao, E., T. H. Morrison, B. K. Woodworth, A. C. Lees, L. C. Naves, D. L. Yong, C. Y. Choi, T. Mundkur, J. Bird, A. Jain, K. Klokov, E. Syroechkovskiy, S. U. Chowdhury, V. W. K. Fu, J. E. M. Watson, and R. A. Fuller (2020). Extent and potential impact of hunting on migratory shorebirds in the Asia-Pacific. Biological Conservation 246:1–12 Close ).

Reclamation and Development Impact Assessments. The multifaceted effects of reclamation and development need to be studied, as well as how the species may respond to habitat altercation and other forms of habitat loss (i.e., pollution and invasive species [Spartina spp.]). The functional links between development activities and biodiversity declines should be rigorously assessed. It is also crucial to conduct surveys of non-developed sites to accumulate baseline data in case reclamation and development were to occur (72 Moores, N. (2006). South Korea’s Shorebirds: A review of abundance, distribution, threats and conservation status. Stilt 50:62–72 Close , 169 MacKinnon, J., Y. I. Verkuil, and N. Murray. 2012. IUCN situation analysis on East and Southeast Asian intertidal habitats, with particular reference to the Yellow Sea (including the Bohai Sea). Occasional Paper of the IUCN Species Survival Commission No. 47. IUCN, Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, United Kingdom Close , 175 Murray, N. J., Z. Ma, and R. A. Fuller (2015). Tidal flats of the Yellow Sea: A review of ecosystem status and anthropogenic threats. Austral Ecology 40:472–481 Close , 110 Moores, N., D. I. Rogers, K. Rogers, and P. M. Hansbro (2016). Reclamation of tidal flats and shorebird declines in Saemangeum and elsewhere in the Republic of Korea. Emu 116:136–146 Close ).

Mortality Studies. The effects of indirect human-induced mortality (from wind turbines, pipeline construction, inshore and offshore oil extraction, hydroelectric dams, automobiles, boats, aircraft, and passenger tanks) needs to be assessed (196 Gallo-Cajiao, E., T. H. Morrison, B. K. Woodworth, A. C. Lees, L. C. Naves, D. L. Yong, C. Y. Choi, T. Mundkur, J. Bird, A. Jain, K. Klokov, E. Syroechkovskiy, S. U. Chowdhury, V. W. K. Fu, J. E. M. Watson, and R. A. Fuller (2020). Extent and potential impact of hunting on migratory shorebirds in the Asia-Pacific. Biological Conservation 246:1–12 Close ; VVP). Disease should be investigated as it may also play a role in reducing abundance. In addition, there is a need to evaluate how the recent discovery of off-shore fossil fuel deposits off Sakhalin Island (Nabilsky Bay), and the planned and ongoing up-stream damming of major waterways from the Tibetan Plateau (Brahmaputra, Irrawaddy, Mekong, Meghna, Padma, and Salween Rivers) by China may affect this species, as well as over 60 million people in down-stream nations such as Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam (247 Galipeau, B. A., M. Ingman, and B. Tilt (2013). Dam-induced displacement and agricultural livelihoods in China’s Mekong basin. Human Ecology 41:437–446 Close ).