A Land Manager's Guide to Conserving Habitat for Forest Birds in Southern

Ministry of Natural Resources A land manager’s guide to conserving habitat for forest birds in southern Ontario Science and Information Resources Division and Trent University “Conservation is a state of harmony between men and land.” Aldo Leopold Photo: Al Woodliffe Funding for this publication was generously provided by: • Environment Canada: – Habitat Stewardship Program (HSP) for Species At Risk – Interdepartmental Recovery Fund • Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources: – Species at Risk Stewardship Fund – Southern Science and Information Section • Eastern Ontario Model Forest Authors: Dawn Burke, Ken Elliott, Karla Falk, and Teresa Piraino Artwork: Peter Burke Acknowledgements: We would also like to acknowledge the hard work and dedication of the following people: Laurie Dool for layout and design, Lyn Thompson for graphics and editing, Trent University staff for administrative assistance, Melissa Strauss and Julia Phillips for writing assistance, our reviewers for ensuring we were on the right track: Jon McCracken — Bird Studies Canada, Erica Nol — Trent University, Brian Batchelor — OMNR Southern Science and Information, Michael Rosen — Tree Canada, and John Enright — Upper Thames River Conservation Authority. We would also like to extend our thanks to Al Woodliffe, Mark Peck, Greg Lavaty, Lucas Foerster, Brad Woodworth, Doug Tozer, Harold Lee, Scott Gillingwater, Bob McBroom, Scott Reid, Terry Schwan, Jarrid Spice, Kyle Aldinger, Mark Marek, and the Algonquin Park Museum for generously donating their photographs for use in this guide. Without this kind offer we would not have been able to produce such a visually appealing document. Finally, we would like to thank all the public and private land owners who have allowed us to work in their forests for the past 10 years. It is through this benevolent support that we have been able to develop an Ontario-based understanding of the relationships between birds, woodlands, and their management. Cover Foreground Cover Background Rose-breasted Grosbeak — Photo: Jayne Gulbrand Photo: Al Woodliffe A land manager’s guide to conserving habitat for forest birds in southern Ontario CONTENTS PREFACE...........................................................................1 INTRODUCTION..............................................................3 FORESTS OF SOUTHERN ONTARIO ..........................11 FOREST BIRDS IN ONTARIO........................................15 THE FRAGMENTED FOREST .......................................25 FOREST HARVESTING ..................................................35 HARVESTING EFFECTS ON BIRDS .............................49 GUIDELINES FOR FOREST MANAGEMENT AND MAINTENANCE OF FOREST BIRD DIVERSITY ..........61 WHERE TO BEGIN.........................................................77 SUMMARY ......................................................................83 ADDITIONAL RESOURCES...........................................85 BIBLIOGRAPHY..............................................................86 BIRDS OF CONCERN....................................................88 GLOSSARY OF TERMS..................................................89 BIRD SPECIES ACCOUNTS ..........................................99 Photo: OMNR “We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors; we borrow it from our children.” Native American Proverb American Robin — Photo: Brandon Holden Male Scarlet Tananger — Photo: Jeff Nadler PREFACE Forests are important for our communities, socially, economically, and ecologically. They maintain clean air and water, provide habitat for thousands of plants and animals, present recreational opportunities, provide income, and contribute to human health and general well being. In southern Ontario, the amount of forest has been dramatically reduced from what it was before European settlement in the early nineteenth century. Today, ensuring the quality and ecological integrity of those remaining woodlands is vital. Healthy forests continue to provide natural goods and services while maintaining biodiversity. Individual landowners are stewards over much of these remaining woodlands. Though many recognize the value of ensuring long-term health and ecological function, how to accomplish this is often unclear. For example, landowners of forests with economically valuable mature trees may be interested in harvesting, but are uncertain of the associated effects on wildlife and overall forest health. Some may wish to identify the most appropriate harvesting method to meet their management goals. Others may wish to employ management techniques that can benefit wildlife, or preserve wildlife areas. Finally, some landowners may want to know how their woodlot contributes to biodiversity conservation at a larger, landscape scale. This guide is designed to address these questions and provide landowners with information on the habitat requirements of local forest bird species, and the effects of different land management strategies on their populations. A clever woodlot owner has the awareness and knowledge to effectively manage his or her forests for profit and still preserve diverse and healthy forests for future generations. Although the forests of southern Ontario provide habitat for a variety of organisms including plants, invertebrates, reptiles, amphibians, and small mammals (some of which may be sensitive to disturbances associated with timber harvesting), we have chosen to focus this discussion on forest birds. Birds are one of the most visible wildlife groups, comprising hundreds of different species of extraordinary variety from hummingbirds to eagles. Each species is unique in appearance, habits, and habitat. Some occur in huge numbers while others are sparse; some are sedentary, preferring to spend their entire lives within a few hectares, while others undertake extraordinary annual migrations. Birds are an obvious and diverse component of our forest ecosystem and among one of the most valued and appreciated components of our biodiversity. Land birds in particular, provide billions of dollars in ecosystem services (natural processes that benefit humans) as consumers of pest insects, pollinators, dispersers, and predators of native seeds. They help maintain the same ecosystems that support human life. Many forest birds are sensitive to the structure, composition, and configuration of forests and are good indicators of general forest health. Because birds are valuable to humans in a multitude of ways, current declines in some populations are cause for concern. As wildlife habitat is directly affected by how humans use the land, we all have a responsibility for not simply preventing extinctions, but in maintaining healthy Skunk cabbage in swamp Photo: Robert McCaw populations of species that are still common. Preface 1 Photo: Harold Lee “The oldest task in human history: to live on a piece of land without spoiling it.” Aldo Leopold 2 Photo: Algonquin Museum INTRODUCTION Prior to European settlement, forests spread nearly continuously across eastern North America and consisted of a patchwork of large tracts of mature forests interspersed with patches of forest at different ages or successional stages. These forests were dynamic environments which depended on frequent small scale and infrequent large scale disturbances for regeneration, such as: ice storms, windstorms, insects, disease, and fire. These natural disturbances worked to maintain a variety of forest stand structures and ages across the landscape. Where large-scale forest fires and wind storms periodically destroyed huge patches of forest, they created big openings to be regenerated by succession; starting with the growth of sun-loving fast growing plants (such as poplars or grasses) and progressing slowly over many decades toward trees tolerant of shade (see Forest Succession — Part 1 page 4). From the mid 1700s to early 1900s much of the forest of southern Ontario was cleared by settlers for agriculture, roads, and town development. Early practices such as the use of fire, grazing by cattle and other livestock in the woodlands, and the harvesting of the most valuable trees had an effect on the remaining woodlands. Later in the 20th century, forest fire suppression, devastating exotic tree diseases (e.g., chestnut blight, Dutch elm disease), and the continued use of heavy partial harvesting methods further changed the face of the landscape. Forest fragments — Photo: Scott Gillingwater Introduction 3 Beech, maple forest — Photo: Al Woodliffe Forest Succession — Part 1 Change is constant on the land. Nature has a basic progression of plant and animal communities. As a field matures to a forest, or goes through the process of succession, there are a series of changes in species composition of plant and wildlife communities. Some species prefer young forests, some prefer older forests, and others require different successional stages at various times in their life (see Bird Response to Forest Management Practices pages 50 to 53). Depending on the harvesting techniques used, you will create or maintain different successional stages of forest, which favour different groups of birds. From a songbird perspective, the “best” approach to management may depend on availability of habitat nearby or the sensitivity of species in the area. By retaining a variety of ages and successional stages on the landscape we can ensure a healthy and diverse wildlife community across southern Ontario. Succession is one of the most important concepts in natural resource management. Nature continually changes.

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