Wondering what to do if you have been told that your property is in a scrub-jay zone? Here are some things you should know before you build on your property.
The Florida scrub-jay is a listed specie and requires special attention when there is the potential of impacting it’s habitat, or the birds themselves. Listed species are those species of wildlife and plants that are protected by law. they are placed on either the Federal or State Threatened and Endangered Species (T&E). Depending on which list, they are governed by either Federal or State laws, which have different procedures. They may be listed because they are endangered, threatened, or similar to and able to be confused with something that is endangered or threatened. The Florida Scrub-jay is on the Federal T&E list and protected by the US Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS).
Because they are on the protected species list with legal protection, there are regulations and laws about how to handle impacts to them. This includes property development and clearing.
Dealing with Florida scrub-jays
The Florida Scrub-jay is found only in Florida. It is a protected bird that is usually found in areas that remain high and dry, especially the scrub. While it has many endearing qualities for wildlife and bird lovers, and is fascinating and unique for biologists, it is often a problem for builders and land developers.
Since these jays prefer high dry land, it is often in direct competition with people for the same sites where we like to build our homes. It is required, then, for any property in these “scrubby” areas to be surveyed for scrub-jays before any impacts are made to the land.
If scrub-jays are not present, then your environmental consultant will send his report to the USFWS for a “release letter,” which you then add to your clearing or building permit application.
If a scrub-jay is present,
Then there are certain steps that have to be taken before clearing or impacting the property. These steps are part of federal regulations, but the process may vary slightly from one county to another, as they are applied to that counties process for obtaining a building permit. Two counties that have additona information or instructions, as they interface with the USFWS, are Charlotte County and Sarasota County. This Information used to be available on the USWFS web site, but was not included in the site redesign a few years ago.
An incidental take permit and a Habitat Conservation Plan, or HCP, is required by the federal government before impacting scrub-jay habitat. Some Counties have created a county-wide HCP, however. While this is supposed to streamline the process for the builder or land owner, it can also add some additional factors.
It may also either lower or raise the cost of a permit, depending on the county and on the individual situation. Either way, the costs are supposed to go towards the purchase and management of other scrub areas for the scrub-jays to live as mitigation for the impacts.
The idea is supposed to be a win-win situation. It can never make everyone happy, though, no matter how it is crafted.
Charlotte County’s HCP
Charlotte County’s is one of a handful of counties with a countywide HCP. If you are building or impacting scrub-jay habitat in this county, check their map of known scrub-jay habitat lots. This map requires updating every so many years and can, of course, have some inaccuracies. However, it is officially recognized by the USFWS, through the HCP, to define what properties are subject to scrub-jay permitting.
Under this HCP, any property developed in an identified scrub-jay area is subject to pay certain mitigation fees to the county in order to obtain the clearing and building permits. This is regardless of if there are any scrub-jays on the actual site. Technically, a property owner is supposed to be able to opt out of the countywide HCP. They would then pursue their own survey, which then determines if they need a Habitat Conservation Plan and mitigation through USFWS. If there are no scrub-jays present, the USFWS option is often less expensive for the property owner. We have found, however, that this can be difficult to push through. There tends to be some disagreement since the Countywide HCP has become the focus as the primary means for handling Florida scrub-jay permitting needs.
Sarasota County’s Scrub-jay Permitting
The Scrub-jay population has declined dramatically in Sarasota County over the past couple of decades. Much of what was previously tagged as Scrub-jay habitat requiring a survey, and potentially a permit, no longer is. Your environmental consultant can help you determine if your property needs to be surveyed. Sarasota does not have an HCP with USFWS. Development applicants are required by the County to “consult with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) and provide documentation of such coordination to the County.” This can be handled entirely by your environmental consultant, or you can view a list of parcels assembled by the County and USFWS. A current list is found in the “document library section at the bottom of the page at Sarasota County’s environmental permitting web page. The county has no other direct involvement.
It is important to note, however, that Sarasota County has its own regulations concerning “Protected Native Habitats.” The scrub on your property may require its own county permitting and mitigation as an ecosystem.
Other Counties
Most other counties in Florida are similar to Sarasota County in how Scrub-jay permitting is handled. The main difference is whether or not they have areas identified as requiring a a Scrub-jay survey, and how that information is presented.
Scrub-jay Surveys
Surveys are to be done by qualified biologists. Neither the federal or county agencies have the manpower or time to do this. Environmental consultants (or biological consultants) are hired by the land owner to do the surveys and to assist in the entire process as needed.
According to regulations, surveys must be done when the scrub-jays are likely to respond to the survey methods. This is the nesting season when they are defending their territories. Unfortunately, that means that reliable surveys can only be conducted part of the year:
March through October.
Scrub-jay surveys can still be done outside of this period for reasons unrelated to obtaining a permit. Such reasons include investigating a property before purchasing it as well as monitoring the birds for scientific or land management purposes. However, remember that surveys done outside of March – October are not going to be accurate since the birds do not stay within their territorial boundaries at that time. Not only could you miss seeing them on a property where they typically reside, but you could also see them on lands where they are not found during the nesting season. Either way could lead to a purchasing mistake.
Incidental Take Permits & HCPs
An incidental take permit is simply a permit issued by the USFWS to allow impacts of any kind to a Federally protected species. These include the degrading of its habitat.
A habitat conservation plan is required to obtain an incidental take permit. The HCP is simply a plan of how the impacts will be dealt with. They can include avoidance, minimization, and mitigation of impacts to the Florida scrub-jay. The HCP can be quite complicated, or fairly simple, depending on the property and your needs.
You need to plan ahead!
USFWS will take a couple months to more than a year after you have the survey done to review your Scrub-jay survey. This stands true even if there are no Scrub-jays and you only need the release letter instead of an incidental take permit.
The incidental take permit that is issued allows you to make impacts to the habitat (your property) as you planned. You still need to obtain the proper county or city building permits, but once you have the release letter or incidental take permit, you have one year to start construction. There is no limit on the finish time. If you have not started within a year, you would need to have a new survey done and resubmit it.
The the survey results and incidental take permit is also transferable with the property. Therefore, if you plan to sell your property, it can be helpful as an added bonus for your buyer.
I hope that you found this information helpful. Be sure to share your comments below!