Assessing the relative use of clearcuts, burned stands, and wetlands as breeding habitat for two declining aerial insectivores in the boreal forest

Farrell, Claire E.; Wilson, Scott; Mitchell, Greg W.

doi:10.1016/j.foreco.2016.11.026

Cited by 12 publications

(29 citation statements)

References 38 publications

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“…As I was specifically interested in the effects of clearcut area, I controlled for local habitat effects by ensuring sampling sites were as similar as possible. Additionally, to eliminate possible confounding effects of recently burned stands and open wetlands as known breeding habitat for the study species (Farrell et al 2017), I selected sites that did not include any recently burned stand area within 5km and included the proportion of open wetland within the landscapes as a covariate in my statistical models. I also accounted for potentially confounding variables at the local scale: dominant forest tree type, local clearcut patch size, local clearcut age, and red squirrel presence.…”

Section: Overviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, other research shows that reptiles, large mammals like grizzly bears, and some species of birds can respond positively to different successional habitats created by aging clearcuts (Nielsen 2004;Wilson and Watts 2008;Becker et al 2011;Hollander et al 2011;Moorman et al 2011;Zmihorski 2012;Tozer et al 2014;Kellner et al 2016;Farrell et al 2017). It is important to understand how threatened species respond to clearcuts if one is to develop effective management plans for species at risk.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It is important to understand how threatened species respond to clearcuts if one is to develop effective management plans for species at risk. Two such species that are known to use clearcuts are Common Nighthawk and Eastern Whippoor-will (Morrison and Meslow 1983;Schieck et al 2000;Cink 2002;Hagar et al 2004;Wilson and Watts 2008;Brigham et al 2011;Tozer et al 2014;Akresh and King 2016;English et al 2017;Farrell et al 2017). Both migratory species are aerial insectivores that have shown marked declines in recent years (Nebel et al 2010;Environment Canada 2015;Environment Canada 2016 Canada, 2016).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Both Common Nighthawk and Eastern Whip-poor-will are crepuscular aerial insectivores that nest in wooded areas, and forage for insects in open areas (Cink 2002;Kotliar et al 2002;Russell et al 2009;Brigham et al 2011;Environment Canada 2015;Environment Canada 2016). Both species are known to select breeding sites that include nearby clearcuts and other types of open and early successional habitat, at least at the local scale (Morrison and Meslow 1983;Schieck et al 2000;Cink 2002;Hagar et al 2004;Wilson and Watts 2008;COSEWIC 2007;COSEWIC 2009;Brigham et al 2011;Tozer et al 2014;Akresh and King 2016;English et al 2017;Farrell et al 2017).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Early successional habitat created by clearcuts or by natural disturbances such as fires and insect outbreaks, is generally thought to have a "lifespan" of 0-15 years following the disturbance event (DeGraaf and Yamasaki 2003;Lorimer and White 2003). Age-specific habitat associations to xiii clearcuts have been shown for Eastern Whip-poor-will for < 6 year old clearcuts (Wilson and Watts 2008), 2-7 year old clearcuts (Akresh and King 2016), and 1-15 year old clearcuts (Tozer et al 2014;Farrell et al 2017) but they have also been shown to avoid nesting in clearcuts < 2 years old (Akresh and King 2016). Age-specific associations for Common Nighthawk are less clear because studies considered "young" forest stands to be 20-30 years old or had low detectability of the species (Hutto et al 1993;Stelfox 1995;Kirk and Hobson 2001).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Local-Scale Association of Boreal Birds with Clearcuts Does Not Translate to the Landscape Scale

Farrell¹

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Many boreal forest birds, including the Common Nighthawk and Eastern Whip-poor-will, have shown recent steep population declines. Both species are known to use clearcuts as habitat locally; however this relationship has not been tested at a landscape-scale. In this study I addressed the question: Are landscapes with more clearcut associated with higher occupancy of Common Nighthawk and Eastern Whip-poor-will? I selected 49 recent clearcuts (≤ 15 years old) of similar size and placed acoustic recorders on their edges. I measured the proportion of recent clearcut within multiple spatial extents around each bird sample site. I also measured the proportion of open wetland in the landscapes as a covariate. Occurrence of neither species was significantly affected by the proportion of clearcut in the surrounding landscape, at any of the tested spatial extents. However, Common Nighthawk occupancy was lower in landscapes with higher proportions of older (11-15years old) clearcuts, and for both species occupancy was higher in landscapes with higher proportions of open wetland, significantly so for Eastern Whippoor-will. I propose that these species nest on clearcut edges because they seem to be similar to other open habitat like wetland edges. However, clearcuts may not offer the same level of insect prey supply as offered in the open wetlands and therefore do not act as similar foraging habitat. Thus, clearcut edges may act as ecological traps, attracting birds to nest in areas of lower habitat quality. I demonstrated that local-scale habitat associations do not necessarily scale up to a landscape-scale. My results suggest that the conservation of open wetlands will be important for persistence of these boreal bird species. iv

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Section: Overviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Local-Scale Association of Boreal Birds with Clearcuts Does Not Translate to the Landscape Scale

Farrell¹

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Woodland restoration and forest structure affect nightjar abundance in the Ozark Highlands

2022

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Chuck‐will's‐widow (Antrostomus carolinensis) and eastern whip‐poor‐will (Antrostomus vociferus) are nightjars in eastern North America that have declined 69% and 67%, respectively, in abundance since 1966, resulting in conservation concerns for these species. We investigated relationships between nightjar abundance and landscape composition, forest structure, and application of tree thinning and prescribed fire because of regional interest in woodland restoration and nightjar conservation. We conducted nocturnal nightjar surveys at 385 points in southern Missouri, USA, in 2014 and 2015 and related counts to pine (Pinus spp.) and hardwood basal area, canopy closure, percent forest cover, and percent of area thinned or burned within 500 m of survey points. We modeled abundance of chuck‐will's‐widow and eastern whip‐poor‐will using time‐removal models that included a detection process and an abundance process within a hierarchical Bayesian framework. We detected 534 eastern whip‐poor‐will and 186 chuck‐will's‐widow during surveys. Our data supported global models that included all 6 vegetation and management variables for both species. Chuck‐will's‐widow abundance was negatively related to hardwood basal area and peaked at intermediate values of percent area burned and percent forest cover. Eastern whip‐poor‐will abundance was negatively related to hardwood basal area and canopy cover, positively related to percent forest cover and percent of area burned, and peaked at low to moderate levels of percent of area thinned. Relationships to forest structure and management activities generally supported the conclusion that woodland restoration benefits nightjars and that chuck‐will's‐widow select landscapes with less forest cover than eastern whip‐poor‐will.

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Local habitat association does not inform landscape management of threatened birds

et al. 2019

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Assessing the relative use of clearcuts, burned stands, and wetlands as breeding habitat for two declining aerial insectivores in the boreal forest

Cited by 12 publications

References 38 publications

Local-Scale Association of Boreal Birds with Clearcuts Does Not Translate to the Landscape Scale

Local-Scale Association of Boreal Birds with Clearcuts Does Not Translate to the Landscape Scale

Woodland restoration and forest structure affect nightjar abundance in the Ozark Highlands

Local habitat association does not inform landscape management of threatened birds

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