Manomet, Inc.

The Monomy-pleasant Bay System of Cape Cod, Massachuestts Functions as a Priority 1 Staging Area for Red Knots and Has Been Identified as a Western Hemisphere Shorebird Reserve Network Site of Regional Importance. This Area Provides Critical Resources for an Estimated 1,500 - 2,000 Knots Annually (down From Est, 5,000 a Decade Ago) Comprised of Birds From Multiple Wintering Recovery Units, Including 100-300 Juveniles. Throughout the Last Few Decades, There Has Been a Shift in the Distribution and Abundance of Knots Within the Monomoy-pleasant Bay System, But the Cause of This Shift Is Poorly Understood. One Hypothesis Is Tha the Displacement of Knots Is Being Driven by the Shifting Distribution of Their Invertebrate Prey. to Test This Hypothesis, Traditional Methods and a New Environmental Dna (edna Metabarcoding) Technique Will Be Used to Characterize the Benthic Invertebrate Community in Terms of Distirbution, Abundance, and Phenology. Second, the Acutal Diet of the Knots Will Be Inferred With the Metabarcoding Analysis of Fecal Samples. This Approach Will Allow for the Documentation of Phenological Changes in Prey Abundance and Diversity in the Monomoy-pleasant Bay System in Tandem With Knot Prey Consumption. If Proven Effective, This Protocol and Use of Edna Can Be Cost-effective Tool to Rapidly Charaterize Prey Communities Monitor Climate-driven Phenological Shifts in Prey Speciesm and Investigating Shifts in Abundance of Shorebirds at a Given Site. in Addition, This Project Will Address Several of the Draft Red Knot Recovery Activities Including Characterization and Managment of a Priority 1 Stopover Area, Assessment of the Responses of Knots and Their Prey to Storm Events and Coastal Engineering Projects, Monitoring of Prey Resources, and Disturbance Management Related to the Aquaculture Industry.