Opportunistically collected data reveal habitat selection by migrating Whooping Cranes in the U.S. Northern Plains

Niemuth, Neal D.; Ryba, Adam J.; Pearse, Aaron T.; Kvas, Susan M.; Brandt, David A.; Wangler, Brian; Austin, Jane E.; Carlisle, Martha J.

doi:10.1650/condor-17-80.1

Cited by 9 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 45 publications

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“…Our results indicate that wetlands are an integral part of Whooping Crane migration habitat needs, which is supported by the notion that it selects landscapes with diverse wetland features (Niemuth et al 2018). However, there has been considerable alteration of the natural wetlands, rivers, and streams (Myers 1983, Tiner 1984, Farmer and Parent 1997, Samson et al 2010) that serve as potential roosting and foraging sites for migrating Whooping Crane.…”

Section: Figuresupporting

confidence: 71%

“…Availability of water is an inherent requirement for Whooping Crane, and several general characteristics such as palustrine and lacustrine wetlands and riverine land-cover types for roosting are common among Whooping Crane stopover sites (Howe 1989, Austin and Richert 2001, Belaire et al 2014, Howlin and Nasman 2017, PRRIP 2017, Niemuth et al 2018. Whooping Crane uses shallow water features as nocturnal roosting habitat during migration (Howe 1989, Austin andRichert 2001).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Diurnal habitat selection of migrating Whooping Crane in the Great Plains

Baasch¹,

Farrell²,

Pearse³

et al. 2019

ACE

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Available stopover habitats with quality foraging opportunities are essential for migrating waterbirds, including Whooping Crane (Grus americana). Several studies have evaluated habitats used by Whooping Crane for roosting throughout its migration corridor; however, habitats associated with foraging and other diurnal activities have received less attention. We used data collected from 42 Whooping Crane individuals that included 2169 diurnal use locations within 395 stopover sites evaluated during spring 2013 to fall 2015 to assess diurnal habitat selection throughout the U.S. portion of the migration corridor. We found that Whooping Crane selected wetland land-cover types (i.e., open water, riverine, and semipermanent wetlands) and lowland grasslands for diurnal activities over all other land-cover types that we evaluated, including croplands. Whooping Crane generally avoided roads, and avoidance varied based on land-cover class. There has been considerable alteration and destruction of natural wetlands and rivers that serve as roosting and foraging sites for migrating Whooping Crane. Given recent droughts and the likelihood of future landscape changes within the migration corridor, directing conservation efforts toward protecting and enhancing wetland stopover areas may prove critical for continued growth of the last remaining wild population of Whooping Crane. Future studies of this Whooping Crane population should focus on specific wetland complexes and riverine sites throughout the migration corridor to identify precise management actions that could be taken to enhance and protect these imperilled land-cover types.

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Section: Figuresupporting

confidence: 71%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Diurnal habitat selection of migrating Whooping Crane in the Great Plains

Baasch¹,

Farrell²,

Pearse³

et al. 2019

ACE

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“…The 4,000 km north-south migration, undertaken biannually and predominantly diurnally, requires significant energetic expenditure (Johnson, 1981;Kuyt, 1992;Hefley et al, 2015). Therefore stopover habitats that provide secure roosting and ample foraging opportunities throughout the migration corridor are critical to sustaining migration (National Research Council, 2005;Newton, 2006;Chavez-Ramirez and Wehtje, 2012;Niemuth et al, 2018). Stopover duration can range from one day to over one month (Faanes and Lingle, 1988;PRRIP, 2017;Jorgensen and Brown, 2017).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Whooping Cranes select for and depend on diverse wetland habitats during migration (Lingle et al, 1991;Jorgensen and Dinan, 2016;Pearse et al, 2017;Niemuth et al, 2018). They generally prefer to roost and forage in shallow wetlands with relatively wide unobstructed views (Armbruster, 1990;Howlin and Nasman, 2017;Pearse et al, 2017;Farnsworth et al, 2018).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Trends in the occurrence of large Whooping Crane groups during migration in the great plains, USA

Caven¹,

Rabbe

Malzahn³

et al. 2020

Heliyon

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Recent detections of large gatherings of Whooping Cranes suggest that flock sizes may be increasing at some stopover locations during both the spring and fall migrations. We used the public sightings database managed by the US Fish and Wildlife Service from 1942 to 2018 to analyze data for long-term trends in group size. We then examined the spatial distribution of large groups to explore potential explanations for these occurrences. The proportion of Whooping Crane groups comprised of 2, 3, and 4-6 individuals showed no trend over time. However, observations of individuals showed a declining trend and groups of 7-9 and !10 showed an increasing trend. The frequency of groups observed exceeding 5 and 10 individuals were better predicted by survey year than by Whooping Crane population size suggesting that an increasing population is not the sole driver of large group occurrences. Our results indicate that large groups occur disproportionately within the 50% migration corridor, at staging areas within the first or last 20-30% of the migration path, and near conservation-managed wetlands, particularly within the southern Great Plains. Our results suggest that in addition to population growth, conspecific attraction, location within the migration corridor, and habitat loss may be contributing to large group occurrences. Further research is needed to determine the degree to which these factors influence large Whooping Crane group formation. The gathering of large numbers of Whooping Cranes in a single location presents potential tradeoffs for the species. While increasing group sizes may improve threat detection and avoidance, it comes at a cost of increased disease and mass mortality risk.

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“…Opportunistic data can be used to develop plausible models as some biases can be accounted for analytically (Sullivan et al 2009, Pacifici et al 2017). However, data collected using a standardized sampling framework and protocol have higher information quality, allow identification or interpretation of key relationships, and enable calculation of occupancy and density estimates that are difficult or impossible when using opportunistic data (Munson et al 2010, Broman et al 2014, Niemuth et al 2018, Altwegg and Nichols 2019).…”

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confidence: 99%

Spatially Explicit Habitat Models for Prairie Grouse: Implications for Improved Population Monitoring and Targeted Conservation

Runia¹,

Solem²,

Niemuth

et al. 2021

Wildlife Society Bulletin

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We collaboratively designed and implemented a pilot study to evaluate improved methods for estimating the distribution and abundance of prairie grouse in South Dakota and North Dakota. Current prairie grouse population monitoring in both states relies on annual surveys of male birds on leks within designated survey blocks. Although the survey results may give insight into local populations, they have limited utility in estimating statewide abundances or trends because survey blocks are often non‐random, biased toward high quality habitat, and lack adequate spatial coverage. To improve upon current methods, we surveyed male prairie grouse on 865 randomly selected Public Land Survey Sections from 2010–2016, then developed habitat‐based spatially explicit occurrence and density models, which we then applied to the universe of environmental predictors to create spatial maps. Our results were consistent with prairie grouse biology, showing strong selection for grasslands and avoidance of developed areas. We demonstrate how our approach provides several avenues to estimate relative abundance of males with confidence limits, along with suggestions to improve estimates. In addition to providing insight into broad‐scale habitat selection, spatially explicit habitat models can be valuable tools for identifying and prioritizing areas for conservation treatments such as protection, restoration, or enhancement of habitat. We provide recommendations for future data collection and application of conservation treatments to improve prairie grouse population monitoring and conservation delivery across large landscapes. © 2021 The Wildlife Society.

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Opportunistically collected data reveal habitat selection by migrating Whooping Cranes in the U.S. Northern Plains

Cited by 9 publications

References 45 publications

Diurnal habitat selection of migrating Whooping Crane in the Great Plains

Diurnal habitat selection of migrating Whooping Crane in the Great Plains

Trends in the occurrence of large Whooping Crane groups during migration in the great plains, USA

Spatially Explicit Habitat Models for Prairie Grouse: Implications for Improved Population Monitoring and Targeted Conservation

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