Improving habitat for forest birds: Landscape and stand-level management recommendations Black-throated blue warbler, Kelly Colgan Azar, Flickr CC
Outline Audubon background Status forest and bird populations Quality habitat for forest birds Landscape scale Stand-level Examples of forest management to improve habitat Audubon example Questions Head to the woods!
National Audubon National • Twenty-three state programs • 41 Audubon nature centers • Nearly 500 local chapters • Work together on shared priorities New York • 6 office locations in NY • 7 centers and sanctuaries • 27 Audubon Chapters
Our Strategic Priorities Coasts Working Water Bird Friendly Climate Lands Communities
Healthy Forests Initiative Priority forest areas Focus conservation efforts
New York Forests • 19M acres • 25% publically owned • 3M acres can’t be managed • 7M acres have management plans • 2M acres are certified
Benefits of Forests • Watershed protection • Flood control • Soil erosion prevention • Carbon sequestration • Forest products • Recreation • Wildlife • Aesthetics
Current Conditions • Lack of young or late successional forest age classes • Tree species diversity – northern hardwood closed canopy forests may lack shade intolerant or intermediate species • Species loss due to forest pests • Interfering vegetation • Regeneration issues
Priority Forest Birds Acadian Flycatcher Yellow-throated Vireo Olive-sided Flycatcher American Goldfinch Chestnut-sided Warbler Prairie Warbler American Redstart Cooper's Hawk Prothonotary Warbler American Woodcock Downy Woodpecker Purple Finch Baltimore Oriole Eastern Towhee Red Crossbill Black-and-white Warbler Eastern Whip-poor-will Red-shouldered Hawk Black-billed Cuckoo Eastern Wood-Pewee Rose-breasted Grosbeak Blackburnian Warbler Evening Grosbeak Ruffed Grouse Blackpoll Warbler Golden-winged Warbler Scarlet Tanager Black-throated Blue Warbler Hooded Warbler Sharp-shinned Hawk Black-throated Green Warbler Least Flycatcher Veery Blue-winged Warbler Louisiana Waterthrush Willow Flycatcher Broad-winged Hawk Northern Flicker Wood Thrush Brown Thrasher Northern Goshawk Worm-eating Warbler Canada Warbler Northern Saw-whet Owl Yellow-billed Cuckoo Cerulean Warbler
Priority Forest Birds Black-throated Blue Warbler Canada Warbler Wood Thrush Cerulean Warbler
Nearly 1/3 of 90 eastern forest bird species have experienced significant population declines over the past 50 years. BBS Survey-wide 1966-2013 Pop. Decline (%) Cerulean Warbler 75.0 Golden-winged Warbler 66.5 Canada Warbler 66.2 Wood Thrush 63.6 Prairie Warbler 60.6 American Woodcock 48.2 Rose-breasted Grosbeak 28.8
Habitat for Forest Birds: A Conservation Concern Loss of quality habitat • Forest fragmentation • Increased forest “edge” • Interfering vegetation • Deer overabundance • Homogenous forest structure • Forest pests • Climate change Wood thrush, Kelly Colgan Azar, Flickr CC
Quality Habitat for Forest Birds Black-throated blue warbler, Flickr CC • Diversity is key • Landscape and stand-level habitat conditions Nicholas A. Tonelli, Flickr CC
Young forest Prairie warbler, Jeff Bryant, Flickr CC nesting species Eastern towhee, Ellen and Tony, Flickr CC
Mature forest nesting species Scarlet Tanager, Kelly Colgan Azar, Flickr CC Wood thrush, Kelly Colgan Azar, Flickr CC
Species nesting in multiple forest age Evening grosbeak, Rejean J Deschenes, Flickr CC classes Northern parula, Flickr CC
Linnea Rowse, Audubon NY The Need for Young Forest • Habitat for young forest dependent nesting birds • Habitat for post-fledging period • Includes mature forest nesting birds • Stop-over habitat during migration (Anders et al. 1998, Vega Rivera et al. 1998, DeGraaf et al. 2006, Vitz and Rodewald 2006, King et al. 2011, Vitz and Rodewald 2011, Chandler et al. 2012, Stoleson 2013).
likeaduck, Flickr CC Linnea Rowse, Audubon NY Landscape-level Habitat Conditions • Diversity of forest age classes • 5-10% Young age class: 0-10 years (+/-) (Rosenberg et al. 1999, King et al. 2001, Dettmers 2003, Becker et al. 2011)
Nicholas A. Tonelli, Flickr CC Stand-level Habitat Conditions • Habitat features that can be created/improved through management • Apply to mature forest stands, and some to young forest stands
Vertical Structural Diversity • Layering of vegetation • Multiple canopy layers • Highly beneficial to many forest breeding birds • Managed by creating canopy gaps Nicholas A. Tonelli, Flickr CC (DeGraaf et al. 2006, Newell and Rodewald 2011)
Species Diversity • Native, non-invasive plants • Manage for a diversity of species of varying shade tolerance • Control interfering vegetation • Ensures that birds have available food sources, including insects and mast • Provides for habitat associations that birds have for particular tree and shrub species (DeGraaf et al. 2006) Nicholas A. Tonelli, Flickr CC
Large Diameter Trees • Nest trees for raptors, owls, and canopy nesting songbirds • Hardwood trees: 24 in. DBH • Softwood trees: 20 in. DBH • Bonus if also a cavity tree! (DeGraaf et al. 2006, Newell and Rodewald 2011) Nicholas A. Tonelli, Flickr CC
Softwood Inclusions • Desired breeding habitat for some forest birds • Retain or promote some softwoods where they occur, especially within predominantly hardwood stands • A small cluster of softwood trees can have high habitat value (Yamasaki et al. 2000, DeGraaf et al. 2006) Nicholas A. Tonelli, Flickr CC
Dead Standing Trees and Cavity Trees • Nesting, foraging, roosting for many wildlife species • Ideal: • Six snags or cavity trees per acre • One ≥ 18 inches DBH, and three ≥ 12 inches DBH • No snags or cavity trees? • Create snags • In clearcuts or seed tree sites, keep some cavity trees and snags as reserves (Hagan and Grove 1999, DeGraaf et al. 2006, Red-bellied woodpecker, Matt MacGillivray, Flickr CC Yamasaki and Leak 2006, Bryan 2007, Bennett 2010)
Downed Woody Material (DWM) • Coarse woody material (CWM) • Protect existing DWM during harvest operations and • Increase DWM by leaving poor quality logs and cull material, tree tops, or other slash • Providing CWM of different size classes and stages of decay is ideal Nicholas A. Tonelli, Flickr CC (DeGraaf et al. 2006, Bennett 2010)
How Can I Influence an Entire Landscape? • The impact of your property depends on its relative size • The larger the property the more effect you can have • But…..managing your small property can also have positive effects
Consider the surrounding properties to help inform your management decision • What is around you? • Who owns it? • How was it managed? • How is it likely to be managed?
Uneven-aged Management Removing single or small groups of trees Allows some sunlight to regenerate shade-tolerant species and creates vertical structural diversity
Even-aged Management Clearing all or nearly all trees in an area Light reaches the forest floor, promoting regeneration, often of pioneer species such as birches, cherries, and aspen A young forest is created
Rheinstrom Hill Audubon Sanctuary and Center Larry Federman, Audubon NY • Forest Demonstration Site • Creating young forest habitat • Challenges: high deer densities, invasive plants, lack of markets for low grade wood David Decker, Audubon NY
Land Owner Forest Stewardship Plan Pre-Management General Property Work Location and Description Landowner Goals Stand Descriptions and Maps Forest Management Recommendations: 10 year Work Plan
Surveys Pre-Management Work Bird and Vegetation Surveys were Conducted Prior to Management and will continue to measure the response to management
Management – All woody invasive species Management were treated prior to cutting – Trees were cut using a “Chop and Drop” method – A minimum of 5 snags were acre – 10 seed trees per acre were left – Deer exclosure installed to allow for regeneration without browse pressure
Best Management Practices for Birds 1. Work with a professional forester to have a forest management plan done for your property • Continue to work with a forester on the details and on any specific management action 2. Ask a wildlife biologist to provide input on your plan • Audubon New York staff can help • Technical assistance • Provide habitat management recommendations
Best Management Practices for Birds 3. Think about the landscape and not just the stand 4. Help bring the landscape into balance with regard to successional stages of forest: – 5-10% young forest 5. Limit management activities during the breeding bird season (April – August) 6. Retain key features: conifers, tree species diversity, snags, downed woody debris, etc. 7. Increase vertical structure in stands where it is lacking
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