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Exploring Old Data with New Tricks: Long-Term Monitoring Indicates Spatial and Temporal Changes in Populations of Sympatric Prairie Grouse in the Nebraska Sandhills. DIVERSITY 2023. [DOI: 10.3390/d15010114] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Abstract
The contiguous grasslands of the Sandhills region in Nebraska, USA, provide habitat for two sympatric, grassland-obligate species of grouse, the greater prairie-chicken (Tympanuchus cupido pinnatus) and the plains sharp-tailed grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus jamesi). Collectively referred to as prairie grouse, these birds are monitored and managed jointly by wildlife practitioners who face the novel challenge of conserving historically allopatric species in shared range. We reconstructed region-wide and route-specific prairie grouse population trends in the Sandhills, using a 63-year timeseries of breeding ground counts aggregated from old reports and paper archives. Our objective was to repurpose historical data collected for harvest management to address questions pertinent to the conservation of prairie grouse, species whose populations have declined precipitously throughout their respective ranges. Because we cannot change the sampling protocol of historical data to answer new questions, we applied 3 different methods of data analysis—traditional regional mean counts used to adjust harvest regulations, spatially implicit, site-specific counts, and spatially explicit trends. Prairie-chicken populations have increased since the 1950s, whereas sharp-tailed grouse populations have remained stable or slightly declined. However, each species exhibited unique shifts in abundance and distribution over time, and regional indices masked important aspects of population change. Our findings indicate that legacy data have the capacity to tell new stories apart from the questions they were collected to answer. By integrating concepts from landscape ecology—a discipline that emerged decades after the collection of our count data began—we demonstrate the potential of historical data to address questions of modern-day conservation concern, using prairie grouse as a case study.
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Gehrt JM, Moon DA, Stratton SC, Haukos DA. Role of landscape features in resource selection by female Greater Prairie-chickens within a constrained environment. Glob Ecol Conserv 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.gecco.2022.e02267] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
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Londe DW, Elmore RD, Davis CA, Hovick TJ, Fuhlendorf SD, Rutledge J. Why did the chicken not cross the road? Anthropogenic development influences the movement of a grassland bird. ECOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS : A PUBLICATION OF THE ECOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA 2022; 32:e2543. [PMID: 35080784 DOI: 10.1002/eap.2543] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/15/2021] [Accepted: 09/03/2021] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Movement and selection are inherently linked behaviors that form the foundation of a species' space-use patterns. Anthropogenic development in natural ecosystems can result in a variety of behavioral responses that can involve changes in either movement (speed or direction of travel) or selection (resources used), which in turn may cause population-level consequences including loss of landscape connectivity. Understanding how a species alters these different behaviors in response to human activity is essential for effective conservation. In this study, we investigated the effects of anthropogenic development such as roads, power lines and oil wells on the greater prairie-chicken (Tympanuchus cupido) movement and selection behaviors in the post-nesting and non-breeding season. Our first objective was to assess using integrated step selection analysis (iSSA) if greater prairie-chickens altered their movement behaviors or their selection patterns when encountering oil wells, power lines, or roads. Our second objective was to determine whether prairie-chickens avoided crossing linear features such as roads or power lines by comparing the number of crossing events in greater prairie-chicken movement tracks to the number of movements that crossed these features in simulated movement tracks. Based on the iSSA analysis, we found that greater prairie-chickens avoided oil wells, power lines, and roads in both seasons, and altered their rate of movement when near anthropogenic structures. However, changes in speed varied by season, with prairie-chickens increasing their movement rates in the post-nesting season when near to development and decreasing movement rates in the non-breeding season. Furthermore, prairie-chickens crossed roads and power lines at much lower rates than expected. These changes in behavior can result in habitat loss for greater prairie-chickens, as well as the potential loss of landscape connectivity. By considering both movement and selection, we were able to develop an ecological understanding of how increasing human activity may influence the space use of this species of conservation concern. Furthermore, this research provides insight into the decision-making processes by animals when they encounter anthropogenic development.
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Affiliation(s)
- David W Londe
- Department of Natural Resources Ecology and Management, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, Oklahoma, USA
| | - Robert Dwayne Elmore
- Department of Natural Resources Ecology and Management, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, Oklahoma, USA
| | - Craig A Davis
- Department of Natural Resources Ecology and Management, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, Oklahoma, USA
| | - Torre J Hovick
- School of Natural Resources Sciences-Range Science, North Dakota State University, Fargo, North Dakota, USA
| | - Samuel D Fuhlendorf
- Department of Natural Resources Ecology and Management, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, Oklahoma, USA
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Roberts CP, Uden DR, Cady SM, Allred B, Fuhlendorf S, Jones MO, Maestas JD, Naugle D, Olsen AC, Smith J, Tack J, Twidwell D. Tracking spatial regimes as an early warning for a species of conservation concern. ECOLOGICAL APPLICATIONS : A PUBLICATION OF THE ECOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA 2022; 32:e02480. [PMID: 34674399 PMCID: PMC9746655 DOI: 10.1002/eap.2480] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2021] [Revised: 04/07/2021] [Accepted: 05/18/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
In this era of global environmental change and rapid regime shifts, managing core areas that species require to survive and persist is a grand challenge for conservation. Wildlife monitoring data are often limited or local in scale. The emerging ability to map and track spatial regimes (i.e., the spatial manifestation of state transitions) using advanced geospatial vegetation data has the potential to provide earlier warnings of habitat loss because many species of conservation concern strongly avoid spatial regime boundaries. Using 23 yr of data for the lek locations of Greater Prairie-Chicken (Tympanuchus cupido; GPC) in a remnant grassland ecosystem, we demonstrate how mapping changes in the boundaries between grassland and woodland spatial regimes provide a spatially explicit early warning signal for habitat loss for an iconic and vulnerable grassland-obligate known to be highly sensitive to woody plant encroachment. We tested whether a newly proposed metric for the quantification of spatial regimes captured well-known responses of GPC to woody plant expansion into grasslands. Resource selection functions showed that the grass:woody spatial regime boundary strength explained the probability of 80% of relative lek occurrence, and GPC strongly avoided grass:woody spatial regime boundaries at broad scales. Both findings are consistent with well-known expectations derived from GPC ecology. These results provide strong evidence for vegetation-derived delineations of spatial regimes to serve as generalized signals of early warning for state transitions that have major consequences to biodiversity conservation. Mapping spatial regime boundaries over time provided interpretable early warnings of habitat loss. Woody plant regimes displaced grassland regimes starting from the edges of the study area and constricting inward. Correspondingly, the relative probability of lek occurrence constricted in space. Similarly, the temporal trajectory of spatial regime boundary strength increased over time and moved closer to the observed limit of GPC lek site usage relative to grass:woody boundary strength. These novel spatial metrics allow managers to rapidly screen for early warning signals of spatial regime shifts and adapt management practices to defend and grow habitat cores at broad scales.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caleb P. Roberts
- Agronomy & HorticultureUniversity of Nebraska‐LincolnLincolnNebraska68583‐0915USA
| | - Daniel R. Uden
- Agronomy & HorticultureUniversity of Nebraska‐LincolnLincolnNebraska68583‐0915USA
- School of Natural ResourcesUniversity of Nebraska‐LincolnLincolnNebraska68583‐0961USA
| | - Samantha M. Cady
- Department of Natural Resource Ecology and ManagementOklahoma State UniversityStillwaterOklahoma74078‐6013USA
| | - Brady Allred
- WA Franke College of Forestry and ConservationUniversity of MontanaMissoulaMontana59812USA
| | - Samuel Fuhlendorf
- Department of Natural Resource Ecology and ManagementOklahoma State UniversityStillwaterOklahoma74078‐6013USA
| | - Matthew O. Jones
- WA Franke College of Forestry and ConservationUniversity of MontanaMissoulaMontana59812USA
| | | | - David Naugle
- WA Franke College of Forestry and ConservationUniversity of MontanaMissoulaMontana59812USA
| | | | - Joseph Smith
- WA Franke College of Forestry and ConservationUniversity of MontanaMissoulaMontana59812USA
| | - Jason Tack
- US Fish and Wildlife ServiceMissoulaMontana59812USA
| | - Dirac Twidwell
- Agronomy & HorticultureUniversity of Nebraska‐LincolnLincolnNebraska68583‐0915USA
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Lautenbach JD, Haukos DA, Lautenbach JM, Hagen CA. Ecological Disturbance Through Patch‐Burn Grazing Influences Lesser Prairie‐Chicken Space Use. J Wildl Manage 2021. [DOI: 10.1002/jwmg.22118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Jonathan D. Lautenbach
- Kansas Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, Division of Biology Kansas State University Manhattan KS 66506 USA
| | - David A. Haukos
- U.S. Geological Survey, Kansas Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit Kansas State University Manhattan KS 66506 USA
| | - Joseph M. Lautenbach
- Kansas Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, Division of Biology Kansas State University Manhattan KS 66506 USA
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Schindler AR, Haukos DA, Hagen CA, Ross BE. A multispecies approach to manage effects of land cover and weather on upland game birds. Ecol Evol 2020; 10:14330-14345. [PMID: 33391719 PMCID: PMC7771187 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.7034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2020] [Revised: 10/09/2020] [Accepted: 10/19/2020] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Loss and degradation of grasslands in the Great Plains region have resulted in major declines in abundance of grassland bird species. To ensure future viability of grassland bird populations, it is crucial to evaluate specific effects of environmental factors among species to determine drivers of population decline and develop effective conservation strategies. We used threshold models to quantify the effects of land cover and weather changes in "lesser prairie-chicken" and "greater prairie-chicken" (Tympanuchus pallidicinctus and T. cupido, respectively), northern bobwhites (Colinus virginianus), and ring-necked pheasants (Phasianus colchicus). We demonstrated a novel approach for estimating landscape conditions needed to optimize abundance across multiple species at a variety of spatial scales. Abundance of all four species was highest following wet summers and dry winters. Prairie chicken and ring-necked pheasant abundance was highest following cool winters, while northern bobwhite abundance was highest following warm winters. Greater prairie chicken and northern bobwhite abundance was also highest following cooler summers. Optimal abundance of each species occurred in landscapes that represented a grassland and cropland mosaic, though prairie chicken abundance was optimized in landscapes with more grassland and less edge habitat than northern bobwhites and ring-necked pheasants. Because these effects differed among species, managing for an optimal landscape for multiple species may not be the optimal scenario for any one species.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - David A. Haukos
- U.S. Geological Survey, Kansas Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research UnitKansas State UniversityManhattanKSUSA
| | - Christian A. Hagen
- Department of Fisheries and WildlifeOregon State UniversityCorvallisORUSA
| | - Beth E. Ross
- U.S. Geological Survey, South Carolina Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research UnitClemson UniversityClemsonSCUSA
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Londe DW, Fuhlendorf SD, Elmore RD, Davis CA, Rutledge J. Female Greater Prairie‐Chicken response to energy development and rangeland management. Ecosphere 2019. [DOI: 10.1002/ecs2.2982] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- David W. Londe
- Department of Natural Resources Ecology and Management Oklahoma State University 008C Agriculture Hall Stillwater Oklahoma 74074 USA
| | - Samuel D. Fuhlendorf
- Department of Natural Resources Ecology and Management Oklahoma State University 008C Agriculture Hall Stillwater Oklahoma 74074 USA
| | - R. Dwayne Elmore
- Department of Natural Resources Ecology and Management Oklahoma State University 008C Agriculture Hall Stillwater Oklahoma 74074 USA
| | - Craig A. Davis
- Department of Natural Resources Ecology and Management Oklahoma State University 008C Agriculture Hall Stillwater Oklahoma 74074 USA
| | - Jimmy Rutledge
- El Coyote Ranch P.O. Box 392 Carrizo Springs Texas 78834 USA
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Severson JP, Hagen CA, Tack JD, Maestas JD, Naugle DE, Forbes JT, Reese KP. Better living through conifer removal: A demographic analysis of sage-grouse vital rates. PLoS One 2017; 12:e0174347. [PMID: 28333995 PMCID: PMC5363946 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0174347] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2016] [Accepted: 03/07/2017] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) obligate wildlife species such as the imperiled greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) face numerous threats including altered ecosystem processes that have led to conifer expansion into shrub-steppe. Conifer removal is accelerating despite a lack of empirical evidence on grouse population response. Using a before-after-control-impact design at the landscape scale, we evaluated effects of conifer removal on two important demographic parameters, annual survival of females and nest survival, by monitoring 219 female sage-grouse and 225 nests in the northern Great Basin from 2010 to 2014. Estimates from the best treatment models showed positive trends in the treatment area relative to the control area resulting in an increase of 6.6% annual female survival and 18.8% nest survival relative to the control area by 2014. Using stochastic simulations of our estimates and published demographics, we estimated a 25% increase in the population growth rate in the treatment area relative to the control area. This is the first study to link sage-grouse demographics with conifer removal and supports recommendations to actively manage conifer expansion for sage-grouse conservation. Sage-grouse have become a primary catalyst for conservation funding to address conifer expansion in the West, and these findings have important implications for other ecosystem services being generated on the wings of species conservation.
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Affiliation(s)
- John P. Severson
- Department of Fish and Wildlife Sciences, University of Idaho, Moscow, Idaho, United States of America
| | - Christian A. Hagen
- Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Oregon State University, Bend, Oregon, United States of America
| | - Jason D. Tack
- Wildlife Biology Program, University of Montana, Missoula, Montana, United States of America
| | - Jeremy D. Maestas
- United States Department of Agriculture, Natural Resources Conservation Service, Redmond, Oregon, United States of America
| | - David E. Naugle
- Wildlife Biology Program, University of Montana, Missoula, Montana, United States of America
| | - James T. Forbes
- Lakeview District, Bureau of Land Management, Lakeview, Oregon, United States of America
| | - Kerry P. Reese
- Department of Fish and Wildlife Sciences, University of Idaho, Moscow, Idaho, United States of America
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Ross BE, Haukos DA, Hagen CA, Pitman JC. Landscape composition creates a threshold influencing Lesser Prairie-Chicken population resilience to extreme drought. Glob Ecol Conserv 2016. [DOI: 10.1016/j.gecco.2016.03.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/22/2022] Open
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Hovick TJ, Allred BW, Elmore RD, Fuhlendorf SD, Hamilton RG, Breland A. Dynamic Disturbance Processes Create Dynamic Lek Site Selection in a Prairie Grouse. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0137882. [PMID: 26394226 PMCID: PMC4578950 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0137882] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2015] [Accepted: 08/22/2015] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
It is well understood that landscape processes can affect habitat selection patterns, movements, and species persistence. These selection patterns may be altered or even eliminated as a result of changes in disturbance regimes and a concomitant management focus on uniform, moderate disturbance across landscapes. To assess how restored landscape heterogeneity influences habitat selection patterns, we examined 21 years (1991, 1993–2012) of Greater Prairie-Chicken (Tympanuchus cupido) lek location data in tallgrass prairie with restored fire and grazing processes. Our study took place at The Nature Conservancy’s Tallgrass Prairie Preserve located at the southern extent of Flint Hills in northeastern Oklahoma. We specifically addressed stability of lek locations in the context of the fire-grazing interaction, and the environmental factors influencing lek locations. We found that lek locations were dynamic in a landscape with interacting fire and grazing. While previous conservation efforts have treated leks as stable with high site fidelity in static landscapes, a majority of lek locations in our study (i.e., 65%) moved by nearly one kilometer on an annual basis in this dynamic setting. Lek sites were in elevated areas with low tree cover and low road density. Additionally, lek site selection was influenced by an interaction of fire and patch edge, indicating that in recently burned patches, leks were located near patch edges. These results suggest that dynamic and interactive processes such as fire and grazing that restore heterogeneity to grasslands do influence habitat selection patterns in prairie grouse, a phenomenon that is likely to apply throughout the Greater Prairie-Chicken’s distribution when dynamic processes are restored. As conservation moves toward restoring dynamic historic disturbance patterns, it will be important that siting and planning of anthropogenic structures (e.g., wind energy, oil and gas) and management plans not view lek locations as static points, but rather as sites that shift around the landscape in response to shifting vegetation structure. Acknowledging shifting lek locations in these landscapes will help ensure conservation efforts are successful by targeting the appropriate areas for protection and management.
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Affiliation(s)
- Torre J. Hovick
- School of Natural Resource Sciences—Range Program, North Dakota State University, Fargo, North Dakota, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| | - Brady W. Allred
- College of Forestry and Conservation, University of Montana, Missoula, Montana, United States of America
| | - R. Dwayne Elmore
- Natural Resource Ecology and Management, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, Oklahoma, United States of America
| | - Samuel D. Fuhlendorf
- Natural Resource Ecology and Management, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, Oklahoma, United States of America
| | - Robert G. Hamilton
- Tallgrass Prairie Preserve, The Nature Conservancy, Pawhuska, Oklahoma, United States of America
| | - Amber Breland
- Dahomey National Wildlife Refuge, United States Fish and Wildlife Service, Boyle, Mississippi, United States of America
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Winder VL, Carrlson KM, Gregory AJ, Hagen CA, Haukos DA, Kesler DC, Larsson LC, Matthews TW, McNew LB, Patten MA, Pitman JC, Powell LA, Smith JA, Thompson T, Wolfe DH, Sandercock BK. Factors affecting female space use in ten populations of prairie chickens. Ecosphere 2015. [DOI: 10.1890/es14-00536.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
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Hovick TJ, Dahlgren DK, Papeş M, Elmore RD, Pitman JC. Predicting Greater Prairie-Chicken Lek Site Suitability to Inform Conservation Actions. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0137021. [PMID: 26317349 PMCID: PMC4552759 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0137021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2015] [Accepted: 08/11/2015] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
The demands of a growing human population dictates that expansion of energy infrastructure, roads, and other development frequently takes place in native rangelands. Particularly, transmission lines and roads commonly divide rural landscapes and increase fragmentation. This has direct and indirect consequences on native wildlife that can be mitigated through thoughtful planning and proactive approaches to identifying areas of high conservation priority. We used nine years (2003-2011) of Greater Prairie-Chicken (Tympanuchus cupido) lek locations totaling 870 unique leks sites in Kansas and seven geographic information system (GIS) layers describing land cover, topography, and anthropogenic structures to model habitat suitability across the state. The models obtained had low omission rates (<0.18) and high area under the curve scores (AUC >0.81), indicating high model performance and reliability of predicted habitat suitability for Greater Prairie-Chickens. We found that elevation was the most influential in predicting lek locations, contributing three times more predictive power than any other variable. However, models were improved by the addition of land cover and anthropogenic features (transmission lines, roads, and oil and gas structures). Overall, our analysis provides a hierarchal understanding of Greater Prairie-Chicken habitat suitability that is broadly based on geomorphological features followed by land cover suitability. We found that when land features and vegetation cover are suitable for Greater Prairie-Chickens, fragmentation by anthropogenic sources such as roadways and transmission lines are a concern. Therefore, it is our recommendation that future human development in Kansas avoid areas that our models identified as highly suitable for Greater Prairie-Chickens and focus development on land cover types that are of lower conservation concern.
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Affiliation(s)
- Torre J. Hovick
- School of Natural Resource Sciences-Range Program, North Dakota State University, Fargo, ND, United States of America
| | - David K. Dahlgren
- Department of Wildland Resources, Utah State University, Logan, UT, United States of America
| | - Monica Papeş
- Department of Integrative Biology, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK, United States of America
| | - R. Dwayne Elmore
- Department of Natural Resource Ecology and Management, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK, United States of America
| | - James C. Pitman
- Western Association of Fish & Wildlife Agencies, Emporia, KS, United States of America
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McNew LB, Hunt LM, Gregory AJ, Wisely SM, Sandercock BK. Effects of wind energy development on nesting ecology of greater prairie-chickens in fragmented grasslands. CONSERVATION BIOLOGY : THE JOURNAL OF THE SOCIETY FOR CONSERVATION BIOLOGY 2014; 28:1089-99. [PMID: 24628394 PMCID: PMC4315899 DOI: 10.1111/cobi.12258] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/24/2013] [Accepted: 11/06/2013] [Indexed: 05/06/2023]
Abstract
Wind energy is targeted to meet 20% of U.S. energy needs by 2030, but new sites for development of renewable energy may overlap with important habitats of declining populations of grassland birds. Greater Prairie-Chickens (Tympanuchus cupido) are an obligate grassland bird species predicted to respond negatively to energy development. We used a modified before-after control-impact design to test for impacts of a wind energy development on the reproductive ecology of prairie-chickens in a 5-year study. We located 59 and 185 nests before and after development, respectively, of a 201 MW wind energy facility in Greater Prairie-Chicken nesting habitat and assessed nest site selection and nest survival relative to proximity to wind energy infrastructure and habitat conditions. Proximity to turbines did not negatively affect nest site selection (β = 0.03, 95% CI = -1.2-1.3) or nest survival (β = -0.3, 95% CI = -0.6-0.1). Instead, nest site selection and survival were strongly related to vegetative cover and other local conditions determined by management for cattle production. Integration of our project results with previous reports of behavioral avoidance of oil and gas facilities by other species of prairie grouse suggests new avenues for research to mitigate impacts of energy development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lance B McNew
- Division of Biology, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS 66506, U.S.A..
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Hovick TJ, Elmore RD, Allred BW, Fuhlendorf SD, Dahlgren DK. Landscapes as a moderator of thermal extremes: a case study from an imperiled grouse. Ecosphere 2014. [DOI: 10.1890/es13-00340.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
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Mcnew LB, Gregory AJ, Sandercock BK. Spatial heterogeneity in habitat selection: Nest site selection by greater prairie-chickens. J Wildl Manage 2013. [DOI: 10.1002/jwmg.493] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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McNew LB, Gregory AJ, Wisely SM, Sandercock BK. Demography of greater prairie-chickens: Regional variation in vital rates, sensitivity values, and population dynamics. J Wildl Manage 2012. [DOI: 10.1002/jwmg.369] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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