Stantec selected to design floating nest structures for National Audubon Society

Stantec, a global leader in sustainable design and engineering, has been selected to help protect an at-risk bird that nests in the Great Lakes. The National Audubon Society selected Stantec to design unique floating nesting platforms and provide mitigation strategies for the black tern, a small, graceful marsh bird that is increasingly rare in the US and Canada.

Black terns breed and nest on mounds of floating vegetation in shallow wetlands and along lake shorelines. They tend to favor the same nesting sites year after year. Audubon scientists say black tern populations are declining due to low adult survival and have noted recent nest failures in their favored breeding areas, which could be an additional factor limiting their population growth. They believe the nest failures are caused by significant water-level changes, excessive wave action from severe weather, water wakes created by commercial and recreational vessels, chick predation by native and invasive species, and human disturbance.

Stantec’s floating nesting platform design will help black terns survive high water and other hazards. The National Audubon Society plans to deploy them in marshy areas of Michigan, where black tern numbers are facing declines of up to 99 percent. The conservation group is leading a multipronged conservation project to help black terns in the Great Lakes.

“Floating nesting platforms are less susceptible to water fluctuations and disturbances. They give black terns a better chance of producing chicks that survive to adulthood,” said Michael Preston, a Stantec senior wildlife ecologist who has designed nesting platforms for other species.

“Black Terns are an iconic species in the Great Lakes, but they are facing population declines up to 99% over the past 54 years and have an uncertain future in the region,” said Stephanie Beilke, senior manager of conservation science at Audubon Great Lakes. “Audubon Great Lakes is working to safeguard critical breeding grounds for these terns and Stantec’s floating nest platforms are an important piece to the conservation puzzle that will help them thrive.”

Preston and Jessica Costa, a Stantec biologist and bird expert, worked with the National Audubon Society to identify site-specific risks for black terns and potential design constraints. Their platform designs incorporated environmentally friendly design elements when possible, while considering functionality, cost, resiliency, and maintenance.

The National Audubon Society plans to deploy the floating black tern nest platforms at St. Clair Flats on the north shore of Lake St. Clair, about halfway between the western end of Lake Erie and Lake Huron. They will also be used on Lake Huron on Wigwam Bay on the north shore of Saginaw Bay.

The floating nest platform design incorporates a PVC tube frame with foam inserts to prevent sinking. A special “chick ramp” allows nestlings to climb back on the platform if they jump or fall off. A deterrent cage keeps turtles, snakes, waterfowl, and mammals off the platform. A unique anchor system keeps it securely in place, while not damaging watercraft in the event of a collision.

The National Audubon Society will coordinate the construction, deployment, and monitoring of the platforms with the help of volunteers and local chapters. The platforms will be deployed in clusters, spaced about 10 to 30 feet apart, so that they resemble the natural, semicolonial spacing of black terns.

The National Audubon Society has also selected Stantec to design offshore, floating nest platforms for least terns, American oystercatchers, and black skimmers that nest along the US Gulf Coast. Designs for those platforms are underway. All three species are coastal birds whose populations are impacted by nest disturbances.

Stantec’s ecology services support clients with environmental regulations, permitting, restoration, impact assessments, mitigation, and wildlife monitoring programs.

About the National Audubon Society
The National Audubon Society protects birds and the places they need, today and tomorrow. Audubon works throughout the Americas using science, advocacy, education, and on-the-ground conservation. State programs, nature centers, chapters, and partners give Audubon unparalleled wingspan that reaches millions of people each year to inform, inspire, and unite diverse communities in conservation action. A nonprofit conservation organization since 1905, Audubon believes in a world in which people and wildlife thrive.

About the National Audubon Society
The National Audubon Society protects birds and the places they need, today and tomorrow. Audubon works throughout the Americas using science, advocacy, education, and on-the-ground conservation. State programs, nature centers, chapters, and partners give Audubon unparalleled wingspan that reaches millions of people each year to inform, inspire, and unite diverse communities in conservation action. A nonprofit conservation organization since 1905, Audubon believes in a world in which people and wildlife thrive.

About Stantec
Stantec empowers clients, people, and communities to rise to the world’s greatest challenges at a time when the world faces more unprecedented concerns than ever before.   

We are a global leader in sustainable architecture, engineering, and environmental consulting. ​

Our professionals deliver the expertise, technology, and innovation communities need to manage aging infrastructure, demographic and population changes, the energy transition, and more. ​

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We are designers, engineers, scientists, project managers, and strategic advisors. We innovate at the intersection of community, creativity, and client relationships to advance communities everywhere, so that together we can redefine what’s possible.​

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Media Contact
Chris Niskanen
Stantec Media Relations
Ph: (612) 747-8613
chris.niskanen@stantec.com

Client Contact
Nicole Minadeo
Communications Director
Ph: (419) 308-4846
nicole.minadeo@audubon.org