Date of Award
Fall 2026
Language
English
Embargo Period
10-23-2026
Document Type
Master's Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Science (MS)
College/School/Department
Department of Geography, Planning, and Sustainability
Program
Biodiversity, Conservation & Policy
First Advisor
Andrei Lapenas
Committee Members
Jeffrey Zappieri, Alexander Buyantuev,
Keywords
Threatened and Endangered Species Management, Long Island NY, Shorebirds, Plants, Climate Change, Human disturbance, Increasing species productivity and abundance, Human Disturbance
Subject Categories
Biodiversity | Botany | Educational Psychology | Evolution | Ornithology | Plant Sciences | Population Biology | Social Influence and Political Communication | Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology
Abstract
Settled on the eastern end of the most human populated island in North America, Long Island, New York, is the Town of Southampton. The Towns’ Board of Trustees are responsible for the management of federal or state listed species, which they carry out through their Threatened and Endangered Species Program (T&E program). Currently the program manages two listed shorebirds and two listed seabeach plants; the Piping plover (Charadrius melodus), a federally threatened species, and the Least Tern (Sternula antillarum), a New York State threatened species, Seabeach amaranth (Amaranthus pumilus), both federal and state threatened, and Seabeach knotweed (Polygonum glaucum), listed as vulnerable within New York State. Each of these species are experiencing unique and increased threats to species’ recovery and future long-term viability. To properly address these specific threats, this thesis employs a policy analysis process to assess to what extent does the current management methods within the T&E program effectively mitigate the two most significant threats to species recovery, anthropogenic and climate change impacts, and identified specific policy recommendations to effectively mitigate these threats. It will investigate past species reports and other scientific literature to identify local policy intervention with the best practices that are most effective in reducing anthropogenic and climate-related threats to the managed species. Assessing threatened and endangered species protection programs by integrating specific threats of climate change and anthropogenic impacts to habitats, biodiversity and overall species recovery and making policy recommendations for improvement, will help local governments and communities to use the best available science to inform management decisions, increase public awareness and compliance, better mitigate human-wildlife conflicts, increase quality and effectiveness of threatened and endangered species protection programs, and improve endangered species viability and abundance outcomes while maintaining the integrity and versatility of the mixed-use of natural resources and land use opportunities. This thesis aims to improve the current management methods of the Town of Southampton Board of Trustees Threatened and Endangered Species Program by creating policy recommendations that can be utilized to improve species productivity.
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Recommended Citation
Smith, Joann, "Enhancing the Recovery of Threatened and Endangered Shorebird and Plant Species in Southampton, New York: A Structured Policy Analysis Approach" (2026). Electronic Theses & Dissertations (2024 - present). 557.
https://scholarsarchive.library.albany.edu/etd/557
Permission for use of Photos from Matthew Maazzella
Screenshot 2026-10-20 120547.png (181 kB)
Permission for use of Photos from Jeffrey Gross
Screenshot 2025-03-25 101906.png (1012 kB)
(Figure 21) Source: NYC Plover Project
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(Figure 20) Source: Atlantic Flyway Shorebird Initiative
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(Figure 18) Source: Atlantic Flyway Shorebird Initiative
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(Figure 14) Source: Dana Shaw, 27east
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(Figure 19) Source: Town of Southampton
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(Figure 1) Source: Joann Smith
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(Figure 10) Source: Jeffrey Gross
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(Figure 23) Source: Hamptons.com - LIVE! 4K W. Scott Cameron Beach, Bridgehampton, New York)
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(Figure 24) Source: Adapted from Matthew Mazzella
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(Figure 25) Source: Adapted from Matthew Mazzella
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(Figure 26) Source: Maryland Plant Atlas
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(Figure 9) Source: Town of Southampton Board of Trustees
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(Figure 11) Source: Joann Smith
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(Figure 12) Source: Joann Smith
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(Figure 13) Source: Joann Smith
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(Figure 8) Source: Joann Smith
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(Figure 7) Source: Joann Smith
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(Figure 6) Source: Joann Smith
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(Figure 1) Source: Joann Smith
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(Figure 2) Source: Joann Smith
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(Figure 3) Source: Joann Smith
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(Figure 4) Source: Town of Southampton Board of Trustees
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(Figure 5) Source: Matthew Mazzella
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(Figure 22) Source: Joann Smith
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(Figure 16) Source: Joann Smith
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(Figure 17) Source: Joann Smith
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(Figure 15) Source: Joann Smith
Thesis committee form.pdf (404 kB)
Thesis Approval Committee Form
Included in
Biodiversity Commons, Botany Commons, Educational Psychology Commons, Evolution Commons, Ornithology Commons, Population Biology Commons, Social Influence and Political Communication Commons, Terrestrial and Aquatic Ecology Commons