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MULTI-SCALE ANALYSIS OF GRASSLAND BIRD ASSOCIATIONS ON A WORKING LANDSCAPE.
Author
Chepulis, Brian J.
Igl, Lawrence D.
DeKeyser, Edward S.
Publisher
Society for Range Management
Publication Year
2017
Body

The spatial arrangement and functioning of natural ecosystems worldwide are rapidly changing as humans continue to convert these areas for residential, commercial, and agricultural development. As the global human population continues to rise, landscape degradation and fragmentation will continue to be major drivers of biodiversity and thus, ecosystem stability. Of all the threats to natural ecosystems, the industrialization of rangelands is of particular concern due to their global vastness, high levels of biodiversity, and large economic and social benefits. In the northern Great Plains, many rangeland-dependent species are imperiled due to an unusually high rate of grassland conversion. For example, since 1966, 24 grassland obligate breeding birds have declined by nearly 40%. Our overall objective was to determine the landscape and site-specific factors influencing the presence and abundance of grassland birds on the Little Missouri National Grassland (LMNG) in western North Dakota. Since livestock grazing remains an important social and economic activity on the LMNG, it is essential to further understand the effects of grazing on breeding populations of grassland birds. The recent boom in energy development in the Bakken region of North Dakota also gave us the unique opportunity to assess the effects oil development on a suite of grassland bird species. We surveyed breeding bird populations over two years (2014-2015) on sixty quarter-sections in the LMNG. We also measured several multi-scale metrics that are believed to influence breeding grassland bird abundance (e.g., vegetation structure). Our results further highlight the importance of providing a landscape mosaic for different species of grassland birds. We hope that land managers can use the information from this study to identify specific mechanisms by which conservation measures for declining grassland birds can be improved.

Language
English
Resource Type
Text
Document Type
Conference Proceedings
Conference Name
SRM St. George, UT
Collection
SRM Annual Meeting Abstracts