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The Desert Bird Conservation Plan a Strategy for Protecting and Managing Desert Habitats and Associated Birds in the Mojave and Colorado Deserts

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The Desert Bird Conservation Plan a Strategy for Protecting and Managing Desert Habitats and Associated Birds in the Mojave and Colorado Deserts The Desert Bird Conservation Plan A Strategy for Protecting and Managing Desert Habitats and Associated Birds in the Mojave and Colorado Deserts A project of California Partners in Flight and PRBO Conservation Science The Desert Bird Conservation Plan A Strategy for Protecting and Managing Desert Habitats and Associated Birds in the Mojave and Colorado Deserts Version 1.0 2009 Conservation Plan Authors Chris McCreedy Melissa Pitkin Jennie Duberstein Kim Kreitinger Ryan DiGaudio Species Account Authors Burrowing Owl – Christine Bates, Arizona Bureau of Land Management Costa’s Hummingbird – Susan Wethington and Barbara Carlson, The Hummingbird Network Gila Woodpecker – Chris McCreedy, PRBO Conservation Science Ladder-backed Woodpecker – Dennis Jongsomjit and Lishka Arata, PRBO Conservation Science Ash-throated Flycatcher – Debra Hughson, National Park Service Common Raven – William I. Boarman, PhD. United States Geologic Survey Verdin – Roy Churchwell, San Francisco Bay Bird Observatory Black-tailed Gnatcatcher – Jason Tinant, California Bureau of Land Management LeConte’s Thrasher – James Weigand, California Bureau of Land Management, and Sam Fitton, Audubon Ohio Crissal Thrasher – Justin Hite, PRBO Conservation Science Phainopepla – Lisa Crampton, University of Nevada-Reno Lucy’s Warbler – Chris Otahal, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Black-throated Sparrow – Matt Johnson, United States Geologic Survey Scott’s Oriole – Ron Gartland, California Bureau of Land Management Species Account Range Maps Dennis Jongsomjit Chris McCreedy Data Contributions The growing list of data contributors is updated frequently and can be viewed at http://cain.nbii.gov/prbo/calpifmap/livemaps/sitecreds.htm . Technical Editors Elizabeth Condon and Ryan DiGaudio Design and Layout Kim Kreitinger, PRBO Conservation Science Cover Illustration Keith Hansen (www.keithhansen.com ). Illustration is from the upcoming book entitled “A Guide to the Birds of the Sierra” by Ted Beedy and David Lukas. California Partners in Flight Desert Bird Conservation Plan -ii- Financial Contributors PRBO Conservation Science DMARLOU Foundation National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Sonoran Joint Venture Acknowledgements: PRBO Conservation Science and California Partners in Flight wishes to thank the DMARLOU Foundation, National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, and the Sonoran Joint Venture for funding this important project. Many thanks to everyone who helped write, edit, and publish this document. Many individuals and organizations volunteered time to this project and continue to support the mission of Partners in Flight. Special thanks to those who contributed to the development of this plan: University of Nevada-Reno, University of Arizona, University of California-Riverside, California Bureau of Land Management, Pronatura Sonora, Pronatura Baja California, IMADES, Arizona GFD, Yuma Proving Grounds, NPS Mojave I&M Network, Audubon California, Tucson Audubon, The Nature Conservancy, The Hummingbird Monitoring Network, Arizona Bureau of Land Management, U.S.D.A.- Natural Resources Conservation Service, Sonoran Joint Venture, ABCI, CDFG, CA SWRCB, Jones & Stokes, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service. Recommended Citation CalPIF (California Partners in Flight). 2009. Version 1.0. The Desert Bird Conservation Plan: a Strategy for Protecting and Managing Desert Habitats and Associated Birds in California. California Partners in Flight. http://www.prbo.org/calpif/plans.html California Partners in Flight Desert Bird Conservation Plan -iii- Table of Contents EXECUTIVE SUMMARY....................................................................................................... VII BIOLOGICAL NEED .................................................................................................................... VII MISSION AND OBJECTIVES ......................................................................................................... IX FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ...................................................................................... XI CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION................................................................................................ 1 CONSERVATION PLAN FRAMEWORK AND OBJECTIVES ..........................................................2 PARTNERS IN FLIGHT ....................................................................................................................2 JUSTIFICATION FOR THE CONSERVATION PLAN .......................................................................4 CHAPTER 2. DESERT HABITATS IN CALIFORNIA.......................................................... 6 COLORADO DESERT .....................................................................................................................6 MOJAVE DESERT ...........................................................................................................................8 CLASSIFICATION OF DESERT HABITAT TYPES ..........................................................................9 A STANDARDIZED CALIFORNIA VEGETATION CLASSIFICATION .........................................13 CHAPTER 3. DESERT HABITAT CONSERVATION AT THE LANDSCAPE SCALE. 15 WHAT IS LANDSCAPE ECOLOGY ? .............................................................................................15 ALTERED HYDROLOGY ...............................................................................................................16 HABITAT FRAGMENTATION AND LANDSCAPE CONDITION ...................................................16 BARRIERS TO MOVEMENT ..........................................................................................................17 CONSERVATION APPROACHES ..................................................................................................17 FRAGMENTATION VS . NATURAL PATCHINESS ..........................................................................19 THE LANDSCAPE PARADIGM ......................................................................................................20 CHAPTER 4. PROBLEMS AFFECTING DESERT BIRDS ................................................ 21 URBANIZATION ............................................................................................................................22 EXOTIC VEGETATION ................................................................................................................23 RECREATION ................................................................................................................................24 DOMESTIC AND FERAL LIVESTOCK GRAZING .........................................................................25 NEST PARASITISM ........................................................................................................................25 HABITAT LOSS ..............................................................................................................................26 HABITAT FRAGMENTATION .......................................................................................................26 CHAPTER 5. THE CONSERVATION PLANNING PROCESS.......................................... 28 CRITERIA FOR SELECTING DESERT FOCAL SPECIES ..............................................................28 FOCAL SPECIES ............................................................................................................................29 DATA -GATHERING EFFORT ......................................................................................................46 CHAPTER 6. POPULATION TARGETS AND SPECIES SPECIFIC RECOMMENDATIONS ............................................................................................................ 51 SPECIES -SPECIFIC OBJECTIVES ..................................................................................................53 BLACK -TAILED GNATCATCHER (POLIOPTILA MELANURA ) ...........................................53 BLACK -THROATED SPARROW (AMPHISPIZA BILINEATA ) ...............................................55 GILA WOODPECKER (M ELANERPES UROPYGIALIS) ........................................................56 LE CONT ’S THRASHER (TOXOSTOMA LECONTEI ).............................................................57 LUCY ’S WARBLER (VERMIVORA LUCIAE ) ........................................................................58 California Partners in Flight Desert Bird Conservation Plan -iv- Table of Contents CHAPTER 7. BIOREGIONAL CONSERVATION OBJECTIVES..................................... 60 PORTFOLIO SITES ........................................................................................................................60 MOJAVE DESERT BIOREGION ...................................................................................................61 SONORAN DESERT (L OWER COLORADO SECTION ) BIOREGION .........................................63 CHAPTER 8. CONSERVATION ACTION RECOMMENDATIONS ................................ 67 HABITAT PROTECTION RECOMMENDATIONS .........................................................................67 RESTORATION RECOMMENDATIONS ........................................................................................68 CULTIVATED RESTORATION RECOMMENDATIONS ...............................................................69 MANAGEMENT RECOMMENDATIONS ......................................................................................71 MONITORING AND RESEARCH RECOMMENDATIONS ............................................................74 POLICY RECOMMENDATIONS ....................................................................................................78
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