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Middle Spotted Woodpecker Ecological considerations to conciliate forest activities and conservation of the MIDDLE SPOTTED WOODPECKER This document has been written as part of the action 4.1 included in the project POCTEFA Habios EFA 079/15 “Preserving and managing the habitats for avian bioindicators in the Pyrenees”. This project has been 65% co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) through the Spain-France-Andorra V-A Interreg Programme (POCTEFA 2014- 2020). The POCTEFA programme intends to strengthen the social and economic integration of the Spain-France-Andorra cross-border area. It aims to provide financial support for the implementation of cross-border economic, social and environmental projects by promoting joint strategies that foster sustainable territorial development. Partners Associate beneficiaries Co-funding European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) Authors: Hugo Robles, Carlos Ciudad and José María Fernández-García. Photos: Mikel Arrazola/Irekia (back cover, CC license), Carlos Ciudad, José María Fernández- García, Hazi Foundation, iStock.com/LuCaAr, Hugo Robles, Gianluca Roncalli, Jonathan Rubines and Frank Vassen (front cover, CC license). Edition: Hazi Foundation. Design and outline: © Centre de Ciència i Tecnologia Forestal de Catalunya. English review: Brian Webster Recommended citation: Robles, H., Ciudad, C. & Fernández-García, J. M. 2021. Ecological considerations to conciliate forest activities and conservation of the Middle Spotted Woodpecker. POCTEFA Habios project. The opinions in this document belong to their authors and do not necessarily reflect the point of view of the European Commission or any other institution involved in the Habios project. Acknowledgments Much of the knowledge shared in this document comes from long-term studies carried out in the Cantabrian (León and Palencia provinces) and the Basque mountains (Álava province), in northern Spain. Among other organizations that have participated in the projects on the ecology and conservation of the Middle Spotted Woodpecker, we should mention the Provincial Council of Álava and the universities of León, A Coruña and Antwerp. Finally, we are very grateful to numerous assistants, both hired and volunteer members, who have contributed to collecting the data that was used in this document. We want to highlight the contributions by Chano Robles and Javier López de Luzuriaga, as well as those by the rangers and officials of the Izki Natural Park. 3 4 Contents Introduction 7 Biology and ecology of the Middle Spotted Woodpecker 9 General description 9 Distribution and populations 10 Reproduction 12 Trophic ecology 13 Demography, spatial ecology and social structure 14 Conservation concerns 14 On the habitat of the Middle Spotted Woodpecker at multiple spatial levels 17 The tree level 18 The habitat patch level 21 The landscape level 26 Forest activities compatible with the conservation of the Middle Spotted Woodpecker 29 General planning 29 Field protocol for the detection of the Middle Spotted Woodpecker 30 Calendar for the development of forest activities 31 Criteria at the tree level 32 Criteria at the habitat patch level 34 Criteria at the landscape level 37 References 43 Summary 47 Resumen 48 Résumé 49 Laburpena 50 Resum 51 5 6 Introduction The POCTEFA Habios project (EFA 079/12, www.habios.eu), which was carried out between 2016 and 2020, and was co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), met together diverse stakeholders working on the conservation of biodiversity and the sustainability of nature resources throughout the Pyrenean region. They included public administrations, as well as organizations involved in nature management, environmental research bodies, and non-governmental organizations. Habios intended to mobilise all those entities to enhance their technical capacitation, to promote the exchange of knowledge and to increase transboundary coherence of the actions carried out in forested and alpine habitats on both the Spanish and French slopes of the Pyrenees. The Middle Spotted Woodpecker (Dendrocoptes medius) is one of the target species in POCTEFA Habios. This woodpecker has functional characteristics that highlight its conservation value regardless of its own patrimonial value per se. With a global range mostly located in Europe, the Pyrenean, Basque and Cantabrian populations of the Middle Spotted Woodpecker are placed in the south-western edge of its range, which can make those populations particularly vulnerable. It is considered a habitat specialist that depends on old-growth oak forests, or at least on forests with large deciduous trees (Pasinelli, 2003). Predominant in the past in the lowlands of temperate Europe, this type of forested landscape has been severely reduced and fragmented historically by agriculture and urbanization, among other activities. The Middle Spotted Woodpecker is very sensitive to structural changes in its forested habitat and, together with the Lesser Spotted Woodpecker (Dryobates minor), has been shown to be the best indicator of species richness and abundances of other forest birds, at least in north Europe (Roberge & Angelstam, 2006). Like other woodpeckers, the Middle Spotted Woodpecker provides cavities in trees that can be used by other organisms. Although the impact of woodpeckers on structuring animal communities through cavity supplementation has not been properly and sufficiently studied in Europe (Fuller & Robles 2018), European woodpeckers may play, under certain circumstances, a key role (“keystone species”) in the persistence of other forest organisms. This may be the case for the Bechstein’s Bat (Myotis bechsteinii), as around 80 % of their known roosting sites in the Basque Country and Extremadura have been found in cavities excavated by woodpeckers (Napal et al., 2013). In addition, the Middle Spotted Woodpecker is a charismatic species that has become a flagship for the conservation of forest ecosystems (Virkkala, 2006). Being included in Annex I of the Directive 2009/147/CE, the Middle Spotted Woodpecker must be subjected to special conservation actions in its habitat to ensure the survival and reproduction of this woodpecker throughout its range. In addition, the States of the European Union are expected to take actions for avoiding, especially within the Special Protection Areas for Birds (SPAs), any deterioration of its habitat with strong negative effects on the species and, consequently, on the aims of the Directive (article 6 of the Directive 92/43/CEE). These serious deteriorations of its habitat are likely to be linked to important negative effects on the behavioural characteristics or ecological dynamics of other sensitive avian populations co-habiting the SPAs (Álvarez, 2011). In France, the Middle Spotted Woodpecker is included in the Decree (Arrêté Ministériel) of the 29th October of 2009, which establishes the species to be protected and the categories for their protection. In Spain, the transposition of these European regulations into the Spanish legislation has occurred under two laws: (i) Law 42/2007 regarding the natural patrimony and biodiversity, and (ii) Law 33/2015 that modifies the former. The Middle Spotted Woodpecker is included in the Spanish list of wild species subjected to special protection (Listado de Especies Silvestres en Régimen de Protección Especial, Royal Decree 139/2011), which requires the application of the actions included in the articles 54, 56 and 76 of the Law 42/2007. Among the autonomous communities within Spain, only Asturias has approved a specific plan for the conservation of its habitat (Decree 104/2002) through the categorisation of the Middle Spotted Woodpecker as “sensitive to habitat alteration” (Sensible a la alteración del hábitat, Decree 32/1990). In the Basque Country, this woodpecker is classified as “vulnerable” Vulnerable( , Decree 167/1996 and Order of the 10th of January of 2011). In Navarre, it is classified as “endangered” En( peligro de extinción, Foral Decree 563/1995); in Catalonia it is included in category B of the “Law for the protection of the animals” (Ley de Protección de Animales, Decree-law 2/2008) and is classified as “very sensitive” Muy( sensible, 7 Decree 148/1992). Finally, in Castile and León the Middle Spotted Woodpecker is listed in Instruction 02/ DGMN/2005, concerning the criteria for forest management actions and the use of phytosanitary products compatible with the conservation of forest birds and bats. According to all these regulations, it is necessary to guarantee the preservation of habitat quality and the viability of Middle Spotted Woodpecker populations in forests subjected to wood harvesting and other activities that are susceptible to modify substantially the composition, structure and functionality of the forests. It is advisable, therefore, to produce a manual or compilation of ecological criteria that help technicians, project planners and managers to guarantee the maintenance of Middle Spotted Woodpecker populations in forests subjected to silvicultural interventions and other forestry activities, both in areas occupied by the species and in areas with potential habitats that could be occupied. Even though numerous initiatives have resulted in guidebooks or compilations of suggestions aimed at minimising the impact of silvicultural activities on the general biodiversity or on specific biodiversity components (e.g., Jiménez et al., 2006; Camprodon, 2013; Atauri, 2020), just a few documents have included detailed recommendations for the management and conservation
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