Multiscale occupancy of the Lesser Prairie-Chicken: the role of private lands in conservation of an imperiled bird

Avian Conservation and Ecology

article

Christian A. Hagen¹  Jason D. Carlisle²  Fawn E. Hornsby²  Michael E. Houts³  Lyman L. McDonald²  David C. Pavlacky Jr.⁴ 

[1] Oregon State University, Department of Fisheries and Wildlife;Western EcoSystems Technology, Inc.;University of Kansas;Bird Conservancy of the Rockies

关键词: aerial survey;    Conservation Reserve Program;    Environmental Quality Improvement Program;    Great Plains;    Lesser Prairie-Chicken;    occupancy;    private lands conservation;   

DOI  :  10.5751/ACE-01672-150217

学科分类：口腔科学

来源: Resilience Alliance Publications

【 摘 要 】

Grasslands are one of the most imperiled ecosystems globally, and the Lesser Prairie-Chicken (Tympanuchus pallidicinctus 95%) of its range being privately owned. The U.S. Department of Agriculture currently offers technical and financial resources that facilitate prairie restoration, e.g., Conservation Reserve Program (CRP), and improve habitat quality and ecosystem services, e.g., Environmental Quality Improvement Program, on private lands. We modeled Lesser Prairie-Chicken occupancy at two scales relative to covariates that described landscape composition and configuration, anthropogenic development, drought-related climatic conditions, and conservation efforts from 2012 to 2016. Large-scale (225 km²) occupancy was most associated with shrubland, grassland patch size, and CRP range-wide. Patterns of small-scale (56.25 km²) occupancy varied regionally, but key covariates included shrubland, grassland, and CRP landcover. These covariate relationships may be useful for identifying conservation practices at different spatial scales and habitat factors that influence Lesser Prairie-Chicken distributions ecoregionally. Notably, CRP-enrolled lands appear to serve as a surrogate for prairie habitat in some ecoregions, especially in conjunction with larger extant patches of native habitat. Although not as influential as CRP at large scales, every 2.25 km² of prescribed grazing increased the odds of site occupancy by 11%. In addition to supported covariates, we found that for every 0.56 km² of industrial development at small scales and 2.25 km² of woodland cover (10%-canopy) at large scales, odds of occupancy decreased by 22% and 13%, respectively. Our results suggest that increased amounts of native grassland and shrubland, and in particular higher levels of CRP enrollment could expand LEPC distribution by as much as 17% (1418–1744 km²). Moreover, our findings illustrate the potential for federal conservation policies to benefit the distribution of an imperiled species.

【 授权许可】

CC BY