Monitoring Programs and Common Forest Birds of Minnesota

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1 Monitoring Programs and Common Forest Birds of Minnesota You ll learn the things you never knew, you never knew - Vanessa Williams from Pocahontas Colors of the Wind

2 Minnesota County Biological Survey Ecological Services Monitoring & Control Natural Heritage & Nongame Research Nongame Wildlife Program Scientific & Natural Areas Forest Wildlife Populations & Research Group (Grand Rapids) Division of Fish & Wildlife (game spp.) Farmland Wildlife Populations & Research Group (Madelia) Wetland Wildlife Populations & Research Group (Bemidji) Central Office (St. Paul) & Biometrics Group (Carlos Avery WMA)

3 Monitoring for Tomorrow s Habitat -Approach Statewide Comprehensive Focus on key habitats Identify a common set of indicators Integrate existing information Fill monitoring gaps

4 KEY HABITATS Prairies, surrogate grasslands, savannas Key river reaches Lakeshores Wetlands Upland & lowland coniferous forest Amount Quality Associated species in greatest conservation need

5 Forest Wildlife Research Group Prairie-chicken Lek Survey (1960 s, , ) Sharp-tailed Grouse Lek Survey (1940 s, ) Ruffed Grouse Drumming Survey ( , )

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7 Waterfowl Breeding Population Survey (archives) & (digital) May 1-25 (focus on breeding mallards in Prairie and Transition zones) 115 aerial transects (0.25-mi wide) Double sampling (14 air-ground segments) to estimate visibility corrections Estimated total ducks (by species) and May ponds in sampling frame Annual report (MNDNR public website) Steve Cordts (MNDNR, Bemidji)

8 Statewide Bald Eagle Surveys Statewide surveys every 5 years: 2000 & 2005 completed

9 Statewide Bald Eagle Survey Number of known active bald eagles in Minnesota

10 Northern Goshawk Project 2003-Present Surveys for goshawk in new areas in NE Minnesota Monitoring an average of 64 nests per year Habitat assessment and management plans for territories

11 Minnesota Loon Monitoring Program 1989 Loon Survey 12, adult loons in Minnesota Developed monitoring program in 1994 because: Historical declines have occurred Minnesota contains over 50% of breeding adults in the lower 48 states Current anthropogenic threats exist People care about loons.

12 Piping Plover and Common Tern Monitoring The Lake of the Woods area is the only remaining breeding site for piping plovers in Minnesota. Nesting common terns are also assessed annually

13 Minnesota County Biological Survey Breeding bird surveys

14 MCBS Statewide breeding season bird surveys 69 counties completed +5 partially completed 5,431 survey locations 4,454 point counts 977 species lists 73,000+ bird records

15 Animap : MCBS common animal data

16 Minnesota Owl Survey Routes In 2005, 51 MFTCS routes used to conduct owl surveys. 31 new routes added to initial study area in In 2007, remainder of MFTCS routes added in state (~86).

17 Wisconsin Owl Survey Routes Used BBS routes to survey for owls. Approximately 91 routes exist in the state. Addition of new routes under consideration.

18 For more information: -Check out the WBCI website: OR -Check out the Hawk Ridge Bird Observatory website: Photo credit:

19 HAPET Bird Monitoring in Minnesota Diane Granfors, USFWS BCM Breeding Bird Inventory and Monitoring Workshop Duluth February

20 Pairs = 2.718[ (lnsize)+a]

21 SECRETIVE MARSHBIRD SURVEYS Playback List 5-minutes silence Black Rail Least Bittern Yellow Rail Sora Virginia Rail King Rail American Bittern Pied-billed Grebe

22 SECRETIVE MARSHBIRD SURVEYS 2002: 31 plots 2 reps (morn, eve) 2003: 9 routes 2 reps 2004: 11 routes 3 reps 2005: 6 routes 3 reps 2006: 11 routes 3 reps Rex Johnson

23 Christmas Bird Counts- 68 COUNT CIRCLES IN 2005

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27 What is MAPS? The World Bird Population Institute (WBPI) investigates the reasons why bird populations change. The MAPS project is a part of the WBPI The Monitoring Avain Productivity Success (MAPS) studies birds while they nest in the spring. Birds are temporarily caught and then released. Scientists estimate the number of birds born and that survive into adulthood from this information Check out are Web site

28 Breeding Bird Survey 3,100+ routes across US and Canada (random systematic) ~80 roadside routes in Minnesota Experienced volunteers 24.5 mile routes, 3 min stops every 0.5 mile

29 Where?

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32 House Finch Western species Introduced on Long Island in 1940 Rapid growth in numbers with expanding geographic range in Eastern US Expansion detrimental to native Purple Finch

33 House Finch

34 Eastern US

35 Purple Finch

36 Eastern US

37 Breeding Bird Atlas 5 Years to complete, 2008 = Year 1 Will survey all townships in MN and record all breeding bird activity ANYONE can participate Website:

38 Minnesota s Forest Bird Diversity Initiative Funded by National Forest System Program Leader Lee Pfannmuller Head, Ecological Services Division, MN DNR; Dr. Jerry Niemi, NRRI, UMD

39 Forest songbird conservation efforts should be directed at the largest tracts of forest such as the Smokies, Adirondaks, and the North Woods of Minnesota and Maine. John Terborgh, Why American Songbirds are Vanishing Scientific American - May 1992

40 Reasons/Objectives to Initiate Regional Monitoring Conduct off-road, habitat-specific monitoring Better our understanding of bird-habitat relationships Link population trends with habitat and landscape changes

41 Monitoring Design Proportional-stratified but restricted random design proportional with available habitat and restricted by logistics 10-minute point counts (subdivided by 3 and 5 min) with about 12 points per morning Experienced (tested for song ID and hearing ability) and trained (standardize field methods for 3-4 days) observers

42 Monitoring Design Continued All birds seen or heard are identified from point a concerted effort made to eliminate double-counting We use those individuals detected within 100 m in trend estimates - > 90 % of all observations > 1600 points censused annually

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47 General Summary of Results 1991 to ,500 surveys 377,000 birds observed 175 species 73 species tested for trends in 2007

48 Internet

49 Common Forest Birds of northern MN/WI NRRI/U of MN Forest Bird Monitoring Rank Species Count 1 Ovenbird Red-eyed Vireo Nashville Warbler White-throated Sparrow Chestnut-sided Warbler Veery Least Flycatcher Hermit Thrush Blue Jay Black-throated Green Warbler American Robin Common Yellowthroat Mourning Warbler Rose-breasted Grosbeak American Redstart Black-capped Chickadee Winter Wren Yellow-bellied Sapsucker Blackburnian Warbler American Crow 4872

50 Summary of species with increasing trends (P 0.05) on three national forests ( ). Increased in one national forest Increased in two national forests American Goldfinch American Redstart Black-and-white Warbler Black-capped Chickadee Blackburnian Warbler Cedar Waxwing Brown Creeper Rose-breasted Grosbeak Black-throated Blue Warbler Yellow-bellied Flycatcher May Warbler Chestnut-sided Warbler Golden-crowned Kinglet Hairy Woodpecker Indigo Bunting Magnolia Warbler Red-eyed Vireo White-breasted Nuthatch Yellow-bellied Sapsucker Northern Flicker Yellow Warbler Increased in three national forests Red-breasted Nuthatch

51 Summary of species with decreasing trends on three national forests ( ). Decreased in one national forest Decreased in two national forests Decreased in three national forests American Crow Great Crested Flycatcher Eastern Wood-Pewee American Robin Yellow-rumped Warbler Hermit Thrush Blue-headed Vireo Veery Ovenbird Brewer s Blackbird Scarlet Tanager Brown Thrasher Brown-headed Cowbird Winter Wren Black-throated Green Warbler Warbler Common Yellowthroat Evening Grosbeak Mourning Warbler Warbler Rose-breasted Grosbeak Ruffed Grouse Red-winged Blackbird Song Sparrow Tennessee Warbler White-breasted Nuthatch

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54 Ovenbird Breeding Habitat Mature deciduous and coniferous forest Most abundant in forests with an open understory Long-distance migrant

55 Red-eyed Vireo

56 Nashville Warbler

57 White-throated Sparrow

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59 White-throated Sparrow breeding habitat Recent 3-20 year old logged areas Black spruce/tamarack forested wetlands Requires thick coniferous understory Species over-winters in southern United States

60 Chestnut-sided Warbler

61 Veery

62 Least Flycatcher

63 Hermit Thrush

64 Blue Jay

65 Black-throated Green Warbler

66 American Robin

67 Common Yellowthroat

68 Mourning Warbler

69 Rose-breasted Grosbeak

70 Winter Wren

71 Black-capped Chickadee

72 American Redstart

73 Yellow-bellied Sapsucker

74 Blackburnian Warbler

75 American Crow

76 Northern Goshawk

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78 Boreal Chickadee