Survey

NC Longleaf Summit

lepidopteran — Sat, 29 Nov 2025 05:34:09 +0000

NC Longleaf Summit lepidopteran Sat, 11/29/2025 - 00:34

Wed, Dec 3 2025, 9:30am - 3:30pm

NCBP member David George will present an update on the survey currently being conducted at the Sandhills Game Lands.

Habitat Survey of the Eastern Section of Hollow Rock Nature Park

lepidopteran — Mon, 13 Jan 2025 04:19:17 +0000

Habitat Survey of the Eastern Section of Hollow Rock Nature Park lepidopteran Sun, 01/12/2025 - 23:19

The 2021-2 survey conducted by the NCBP of the New Hope Creek corridor in Durham County included the Hollow Rock Nature Park but focused primarily on the floodplain habitats along the creek itself. An upland area located east of Pickett Road was noted, however, for the maturity of its stand and its somewhat unusual composition, with a large number of Shortleaf Pines and Post Oaks intermixed with Northern Shagbark Hickories and Florida Maples. In 2024, Steve Hall and Carol Tingley conducted a more detailed habitat analysis of this site in a project funded by the Durham Open Space Program. Although focused on the vegetation – surveyed over 61 randomly selected, 5m radius circular quadrats -- this project was conducted more as a habitat survey. Instead of recording structural features, including cover and dominance in the various strata, this survey evaluated species within a set of spatially overlapping habitats and based on the viability of their occurrences within the study area, qualities that could be applied to any taxon. The odd mixture of xerophytic and mesophytic species, and acidophilic and basophilic species was confirmed, with a number of species expected for the individual habitat types as found to be missing from the site. The ecosystem overall, however, appears to closely match the Mixed Moisture Hardpan Forest recently described by Mike Schafale in his 2012 revision of the Natural Communities of North Carolina. This site may, in fact, represent one of the largest and best developed examples of this type in the state.

/sites/default/files/publications/Hollow%20Rock%20Report%2C%202024-11-27.pdf

Steve Hall, Carol Tingley

2024

Hall, S., Tingley, C. 2024. Habitat Survey of the Eastern Section of Hollow Rock Nature Park. Report to the Durham County Open Space Program. North Carolina Biodiversity Project.

Vascular plants

Breeding Bird Survey, New Hope Bottomlands, 2024

lepidopteran — Mon, 13 Jan 2025 04:11:59 +0000

Breeding Bird Survey, New Hope Bottomlands, 2024 lepidopteran Sun, 01/12/2025 - 23:11

One of the noteworthy, but troubling, finds of the 2021-2 NCBP biodiversity survey of the New Hope Bottomlands was a strong decline in the number of breeding bird species compared to what had been recorded in a survey conducted in the 1980s. To confirm that this was not just a particularly bad year, with numbers recovering to a more normal level thereafter, a more intensive breeding bird survey was conducted in 2024 by Steve Hall (NCBP), David Bradley (Durham Open Space Program), and the following members of the New Hope Bird Alliance: Jin Bai, Gail Boyarsky, Vicki Nebes, and David Anderson. Unlike the 2021-2 survey, which was qualitative – recording species as present or absent over a series of survey trips – the method used in this survey was quantitative, based on the type of territory mapping approach that has long been the gold standard for assessing the density of breeding bird populations. However, instead of using a large grid typical of those studies, we mapped the territories intersecting a 40-meter-wide corridor following the loop trail that runs through the bottomlands. By using the same protocols for handling edge territories as used in the traditional approach, we were able to compare our results to those of the breeding bird surveys conducted by Haven Wiley, Helmut Mueller, and their students at Mason Farm from the 1970s to 2010s. Among the neotropical migrant species, twelve species had either smaller territorial densities than were recorded in the Mason Farm surveys or were missing altogether. On the other hand, four migratory species had slight increases in density, as did eight of the eleven species of permanent residents. Overall, there was a net loss of 1.64 territories per hectare, but with a net loss of 4.43 among just the neotropical migrants. These results are consistent with trends measured over eastern North America.

/sites/default/files/publications/Breeding%20Bird%20Survey%2C%20New%20Hope%20Bottomlands%2C%202024.pdf

Steve Hall, David Bradley, Jin Bai, Gail Boyarsky, Vicki Nebes, David Anderson

2024

Hall, S., Bradley, D., Bai, J., Boyarsky, G., Nebes, V., Anderson, D. 2024. Breeding Bird Survey, New Hope Bottomlands, 2024: Report to the Durham Open Space Program, New Hope Bird Alliance, and North Carolina Biodiversity Project.

Birds

New Hope survey featured in the news

lepidopteran — Sat, 17 Aug 2024 05:09:56 +0000

New Hope survey featured in the news lepidopteran Sat, 08/17/2024 - 01:09

This WUNC article about the upcoming moth night at Hollow Rock Nature Preserve features an interview with David Bradley of the Durham County Open Space Program. Bradley shares details about the NCBP survey of the New Hope Floodplain, and the threats faced by insect populations.

https://www.wunc.org/environment/2024-08-16/moth-night-durham-county-biodiversity-population-decline

News Link

https://www.wunc.org/environment/2024-08-16/moth-night-durham-county-biodiversi…

White Pines Survey Trip

lepidopteran — Tue, 25 Jun 2024 04:41:57 +0000

White Pines Survey Trip lepidopteran Tue, 06/25/2024 - 00:41

White Pines Survey Trip

lepidopteran — Thu, 06 Jun 2024 05:37:13 +0000

White Pines Survey Trip lepidopteran Thu, 06/06/2024 - 01:37

Sun, Jun 16 2024, 12 - 11pm

NCBP members are invited to gather for a group foray to White Pines Nature Preserve.

White Pines Survey

lepidopteran — Mon, 20 May 2024 01:47:44 +0000

White Pines Survey lepidopteran Sun, 05/19/2024 - 21:47

Wed, May 1 2024, All day

The NCBP is conducting a year-long biodiversity survey at White Pines Nature Preserve in Chatham County.

White Pines Survey

lepidopteran — Thu, 02 May 2024 01:45:53 +0000

White Pines Survey lepidopteran Wed, 05/01/2024 - 21:45

The NCBP is beginning a year-long biodiversity survey at White Pines Nature Preserve in Chatham County in conjunction with the NC Natural Heritage Program's county-wide survey.

White Pines Survey

lepidopteran — Mon, 29 Apr 2024 07:47:39 +0000

White Pines Survey lepidopteran Mon, 04/29/2024 - 03:47

New Hope Bottomlands Survey Meeting

lepidopteran — Wed, 24 Apr 2024 03:04:26 +0000

New Hope Bottomlands Survey Meeting lepidopteran Tue, 04/23/2024 - 23:04

Thu, Apr 25 2024, 5:30 - 7:30pm

NCBP members will meet at the New Hope Bottomlands Trail to discuss plans for monitoring leaf-mining insects.

Survey

NC Longleaf Summit

Habitat Survey of the Eastern Section of Hollow Rock Nature Park

Breeding Bird Survey, New Hope Bottomlands, 2024

New Hope survey featured in the news

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White Pines Survey Trip

White Pines Survey Trip

White Pines Survey

White Pines Survey

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White Pines Survey

New Hope Bottomlands Survey Meeting