[PDF] Conserving Grassland Birds eBook

Author : Robert Askins
Publisher : University of California Press
Page : 0 pages
File Size : 49,22 MB
Release : 2007
Category : Birds
ISBN : 9780943610788

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Northeastern grasslands -- Southeastern pine savannas -- Tallgrass prairie -- Shortgrass prairie -- Northern plains -- Desert grasslands -- General implications for grassland bird conservation.

Author : Torre James Hovick
Publisher :
Page : 128 pages
File Size : 29,98 MB
Release : 2014
Category :
ISBN :

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Grasslands are inherently dynamic in space and time evolving with frequent disturbance from fire and herbivores. Throughout much of the world, grasslands have been converted and fragmented and many remaining grasslands have become homogenous as a consequence of human actions. As a result, ecosystem function has declined and biodiversity loss has led to decreased ecological services. Of particular concern are highly imperiled grassland birds which have experienced greater population declines than any other habitat associated guild of birds in North America. Conservation efforts that restore heterogeneity to grasslands through the re-coupling of fire and grazing may be an effective strategy for stabilizing or increasing grassland bird populations. We examined Greater Prairie-Chicken (Tympanuchus cupido) ecology, breeding bird community diversity and stability, and non-breeding bird community diversity and patch occupancy in tallgrass prairie with restored structural and compositional heterogeneity. We found that Greater Prairie-Chickens selected for patches with greater time since fire and grazing and that taller vegetation increased nest survival. Additionally, nests that survived were in cooler environments and prairie-chickens displayed fine scale thermal habitat selection as nest sites were nearly 4°C cooler than micro-sites within 2 meters of nests. We found that heterogeneity increased breeding bird community diversity and that increased heterogeneity resulted in greater community stability over time. Finally, non-breeding bird community diversity increased as a result of structural heterogeneity and occupancy modeling revealed that certain species selected for varying patches along a disturbance gradient (i.e, recently disturbed to relatively undisturbed) that resulted from fire and grazing dependent heterogeneity. Our findings add to a growing body of literature supporting the use of fire and grazing to create a shifting grassland mosaic that increases vegetation structural and compositional heterogeneity and maximizes native biodiversity within rangeland ecosystems through the conservation of natural patterns and processes. Additionally, these data provide evidence that variation in grassland structure resulting from the fire-grazing interaction may be important in moderating thermal environments and highlights the complex and interactive effects of restored ecological processes on ecosystems. We recommend future management efforts in rangelands focus on restored disturbance process to increase heterogeneity and improve grassland bird conservation.

Author : Jeremy D. Wilson
Publisher : Cambridge University Press
Page : 0 pages
File Size : 49,99 MB
Release : 2009-07-09
Category : Nature
ISBN : 9780521734721

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Writing for researchers, professionals and graduate students, the authors summarize the collapse of populations of many farmland bird species in the 20th century, one of the biggest conservation problems of the day. They firstly set the historical context of change in agriculture and bird communities since the 18th century, and introduce the bird communities of agricultural land today. They then provide an overview of this very active area of applied conservation science, including in-depth case studies of 16 species that, taken together, illustrate the many ways that agricultural intensification has affected bird populations. Moreover, they show how this evidence base, coupled with recent greening of agriculture policy, has provided opportunities to manage agricultural land to better integrate the needs of food production and bird conservation. They conclude by looking forward to challenges that the conservation of bird populations on agricultural land is likely to face in the near future.

Author : Kristen Puryear
Publisher :
Page : 318 pages
File Size : 36,79 MB
Release : 2004
Category : Birds
ISBN :

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Grassland birds are declining throughout most of their range. As a result, artificial habitats such as the agricultural fields of Vermont's Champlain Valley have been identified as important for grassland bird conservation. In order to address the regional and statewide concerns about grassland bird populations, Audubon Vermont has recognized two Important Bird Areas (IBAs) in the Champlain Valley, Dead Creek and Little Otter Creek. Audubon Vermont has also proposed the development of a Landscape-Level Important Bird Area Complex that would encompass these two IBAs and contribute to regional grassland bird conservation efforts as they are developed by the North American Bird Conservation Initiative and Partners in Flight. In the summer of 2003 I surveyed grassland birds in the two IBAs to assess the effects of agricultural management on breeding success. I also developed a habitat model that identifies the best potential habitat for grassland birds in the Champlain Valley, to help Audubon Vermont develop a strategy towards landscape-level grassland bird conservation.

Author : Robert Askins
Publisher : Yale University Press
Page : 348 pages
File Size : 49,53 MB
Release : 2002-01-01
Category : Nature
ISBN : 0300093160

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This accessible book draws on recent research on bird species and their habitats to explain how basic principles of bird ecology and landscape ecology can help us create scientifically sound plans for protecting and restoring the rich diversity of North American birds. This edition includes an afterword that reviews noteworthy literature that has appeared since the first edition was completed in 1999. This new material--on such key issues as the importance of preserving large expanses of natural habitat, the importance of maintaining early successional habitats, and the habitat requirements of neotropical migrants--shows how the research on landscape ecology of birds has shaped conservation policy more rapidly than most would have predicted. Praise for the earlier edition: "This book is first-rate--very broad in scope and appeal, readable, and truly integrative in its coverage of landscape ecology and its implications for avian conservation biology. . . . It will be of significant interest to researchers and students of conservation biology, ornithology and ecology; land managers; conservation agencies; and anyone with an interest in protecting the rich avian diversity of North America."--Trevor E. Pitcher, American Scientist "This wonderful book . . . is especially relevant for conservation biologists from all walks of life."--Kathryn E. Sieving, Auk "An enjoyable read for anyone, from the amateur birder to the professional scientist."--J. Michael Reed, Ecology

Author : Paul D. Goriup
Publisher :
Page : 156 pages
File Size : 34,84 MB
Release : 1991
Category : Birds
ISBN :

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Dry grasslands support some specialised bird species, in particular bustards, stone-curlews and sandgrouse. However, they are disappearing in Europe, causing a decline in these birds' populations. This text presents the seminar which discussed the rate of decline / habitat loss, and recommendations for halting it, within a European context.