Notes from the Field: Developing a Baseline Documentation Report for the Coenen Property
- hadrien57
- 2 hours ago
- 3 min read
by Lauren Gingerella of Chickadee Conservation Consulting
A little rain couldn’t stop field work. Alright, it was downpouring, but I would rather work in May showers than in the heat. I was conducting a baseline documentation survey for a new ORLT conservation easement along the Middle Oconee River, located right in the heart of Athens. The property protects nearly 2,000 feet of the Middle Oconee River, and the river was rolling that day after recent storms.
I started the baseline survey after chatting with the landowners, Sally and Dan Coenen. The couple’s kindness and enthusiasm for protecting their property were clearly evident as we talked about wildlife they have observed and why they love the land. They regularly walk the property along hiking trails and enjoy spending time in nature.
The rainfall transformed the forest to an exceptionally verdant landscape that morning. The conservation easement protects nearly 17 acres of bottomland hardwood forest, mesic hardwood forest, and oak-hickory-pine forest; all of which are significant habitats for the Piedmont ecoregion. Large mulberry, river birch, tulip poplar, and white oak trees occur on the property, many with cavities that provide homes for woodpeckers and small mammals. More than 40 plant species were documented during baseline surveys.
I found over 50 wildlife species occurring on the conservation easement. The early May baseline surveys aligned with spring bird migration, and the property is certainly providing stop-over habitat for numerous migratory songbirds. Stop-over areas are critical habitats where birds stop to rest, refuel, and find safety during their migration. The morning showers likely encouraged birds to pause their migration to rest, as hardwood trees along the Middle Oconee River hosted a great deal of migratory songbird activity, including Cape May Warbler, Blackpoll Warbler, American Redstart, and Summer Tanager.
To aid in wildlife documentation, I deployed an acoustic/ultrasonic recording unit and trail cameras. The recording device detects both bird and bat vocalizations, which I use to identify to species. The recorder documented an additional bird species that I did not observe during on-the-ground surveys: Prothonotary Warbler. Prothonotary Warblers are a Species of Greatest Conservation Need in Georgia and occur in the state during the breeding season, when they nest in bottomland and wetland forests, such as those occurring on the property. Additionally, eight bat species were detected passing by the recorder: big brown bat, evening bat, hoary bat, Mexican free-tailed bat, red/Seminole bat, silver-haired bat, southeastern bat, and tricolored bat. Three of these bat species, tricolored bat, hoary bat, and southeastern bat, are Species of Greatest Conservation Need, and habitat protection aids in their conservation.
Trail cameras captured numerous white-tailed deer as well as eastern coyote and raccoon. The conservation easement is located within a Conservation Opportunity Area (COA) identified by GADNR in the 2025 Georgia State Wildlife Action Plan. COAs use a Hub and Corridor approach to connect existing conservation land infrastructure with unprotected areas of high biodiversity value and landscape integrity. The conservation easement is specifically located within the Upper Oconee River Hub, and provides a movement corridor for wildlife and plants along the Middle Oconee River.
The Coenen conservation easement is special place. The permanent protection of the property’s forests and Middle Oconee River corridor through their Middle Oconee Conservation Corridor initiative supports biodiversity conservation in Athens and broadly throughout the landscape. I look forward to collaborating more with ORLT as they protect extraordinary places along this priority river system.
