The lesser prairie-chicken (Tympanuchus pallidicinctus) is a species of grouse native to the southwest Great Plains that has experienced substantial population declines during the past 3 decades. Across their range, natural fire has been suppressed, leading to tree encroachment in the eastern portion of their range. Although tree encroachment has been implicated as a source of habitat loss due to the reduction of fire from much of their range, little is understood about how these affect lesser prairie-chicken ecology. �During 2013 � 2016, we investigated habitat selection, space use, and survival by female lesser prairie-chickens in a landscape managed with prescribed fire where tree encroachment into grasslands is a concern. Using a resource selection framework, we found that lesser prairie-chickens have a high probability of avoiding areas with >4 trees/ha and nested in areas with <2 trees/ha. Based on selection functions, >100,000 ha of habitat may have been lost to tree encroachment in the mixed grass prairie of Kansas. In contrast to habitat selection trends, adult and nest survival were not affected by distance to nearest tree or tree density. By selecting areas with lower tree densities and at greater distances from the nearest tree, lesser prairie-chickens are likely selecting densities that reduce potential predation risk by avoiding trees. Consequently, removing trees from the landscape will increase habitat availability for lesser prairie-chickens. Ongoing mechanical tree removal efforts at the study site have been matched with increased lesser prairie-chicken use. Once trees are removed, maintaining the prairie is necessary, otherwise trees will reestablish. We found prescribed fire, when implemented within a patch-burn grazing framework, to be a viable method to control future tree encroachment. Patch-burn grazing provides nesting and brooding habitats (>2 years-post-fire), while still controlling trees. Tree removal and prescribed fire have the ability to generate and maintain lesser prairie-chicken habitat.
Oral presentation and poster titles, abstracts, and authors from the Society for Range Management (SRM) Annual Meetings and Tradeshows, from 2013 forward.