Northern Bobwhites and Postfire Succession

Abstract

Our study evaluated the effects of prescribed fire on northern bobwhites (Colinus virginianus) occupying native rangelands in Rolling Plains of Texas, USA, during 2002 and 2003. Prescribed fires were conducted during February of 1996, 1998, and 2000; pastures with no recent treatment history served as controls. We quantified bobwhite densities from line transects using distance sampling. We used a repeated‐measures analysis of variance to test for treatment‐year differences in bobwhite densities. We measured postfire herbaceous and woody vegetation attributes and evaluated vegetation relationships to bobwhite density using simple linear regression. We found significant between‐year differences in fall bobwhite densities (F = 13.05, df = 3, P = 0.036) but no differences among treatments or controls. Fall bobwhite densities were inversely related to visual obstruction (r2 = 0.179, df = 15, P = 0.058) and positively associated with increasing heterogeneity of grass cover (r2 = 0.416, df = 15, P = 0.004). Our results suggest prescribed fire at large spatial scales may be a neutral practice for managing bobwhite habitat on semiarid rangelands.

Response of Northern Bobwhite Movements to Management-Driven Disturbance in a Shrub-Dominated Ecosystem

“…However, prescribed fire affected bobwhite space use of coveys which was driven by smaller home range sizes in 25-6 ' TSF which has also been identified as the time period associated with the recovery (i.e., within 2-4 growing seasons) of shinnery oak to pre-fire structure (McIlvain 1954, Harrell et al 2001. Overall, the minimal effects of fire on bobwhite behavior that we observed are similar to the observations of Ransom and Schulz (2007) who found that fire had little influence on bobwhite density in Texas.…”

“…It is well understood that the long term conservation of rangelands, as well as the species that inhabit them, can be achieved partly through the use of prescribed fire to prevent the encroachment of woody species Engle 2004, Engle et al 2008). However, uncertainty regarding the usefulness of prescribed fire for both reducing woody encroachment and promoting bobwhite habitat has been a long-standing question and management concern in the western fringe of the bobwhite distribution (Renwald et al 1978, Carter et al 2002, Ransom and Schulz 2007. Our findings shows that prescribed fire applied at a landscape scale had limited influence on short-term bobwhite behavior and space use in a shinnery oak system.…”

“…Although attempting to burn at the smallest feasible scale may be the best approach for improving habitat quality for bobwhites in some landscapes (Ransom andSchulz 2007, Wellendorf andPalmer 2009), many small burns may be more logistically difficult to achieve than fewer large burns. These findings suggest that land managers in shinnery oak vegetation communities can utilize prescribed fire across large spatial extents without substantially altering the space use or movement of bobwhites.…”

“…For example, more than 35 years have passed since Renwald et al (1978) noted the lack of knowledge regarding bobwhite responses to prescribed fire in the western portion of its distribution; yet, our understanding of bobwhite ecology and management relative to fire is still limited. Although prescribed fire has been shown to contribute to improved bobwhite habitat in the southeastern United States (Cram et al 2002, Jones and Chamberlain 2004, Burke et al 2008, direct management implications from the few studies that have assessed bobwhite responses to fire in Oklahoma and Texas have been less definitive (Baumgartner 1946, Wilson and Crawford 1979, Carter et al 2002, Ransom and Schulz 2007. This uncertainty is especially problematic because prescribed fire inhibits woody encroachment and therefore is identified as a key component for the long term conservation of rangelands in North America Engle 2004, Engle et al 2008).…”

Northern Bobwhite Habitat Selection in Relation to Brush Management in the Rolling Plains of Texas

“…However, differences between used and random locations also existed in the untreated pasture (LC1, Fig. 2B), suggesting that habitat structure on the WER may be generally inadequate and that our management practices may have had a neutral effect; bobwhite densities were low across these and other treatment pastures on the WER (Ransom and Schulz 2007).…”