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Updated Focal Species of the Prescott National Forest the Rationale for Change

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Updated Focal Species of the Prescott National Forest the Rationale for Change Updated Focal Species of the Prescott National Forest The Rationale for Change Francisco Anaya, Forest Ecologist Tonnie Casey, Wildlife Biologist Noel Fletcher, Wildlife Biologist Albert Sillas, Fisheries and Wildlife Biologist 30 July 2019 Background With the advent of changes in the 1982 Planning Rule, the Prescott National Forest’s Land and Resource Management Plan (Forest Plan) (USDA 2015) replaced Management Indicator Species (MIS) with Focal Species. In 2016 per the change in the Planning Rule, Forest identified a series of species, which could enable the Forest to determine potential management effects to plant and animal communities. The focal species originally identified for the Prescott National Forest (PNF) included the following four species: Northern goshawk for the pine potential natural vegetation types (PNVTs) (Ponderosa Pine/Evergreen Oak and Ponderosa Pine/Gambel Oak) Woodhouse’s scrub jay (previously known just as scrub jay but now split from California scrub jay) for the chaparral PNVT Meadowlark for the grasslands PNVTs (Great Basin Grassland, Semi-desert Grassland, and Juniper Grassland) Aquatic macroinvertebrates for water quality During the subsequent two years of monitoring of these species, wildlife biologists on the forest recognized issues with using some of these species as focal species for the Potential Natural Vegetation Types (PNVTs) they represented. Goshawks are extremely difficult to locate, because they may be present but not make any sound. Aquatic macroinvertebrates are good indicators of water quality, but water quality is not always a result of our management actions, nor is it an ecosystem community type or PNVT that we are managing for certain outcomes. Woodhouse’s scrub jays are ubiquitous and easy to identify. But chaparral is managed to improve structure and restore fire regime, and these birds show no apparent preference for the different structural components of chaparral, so do not provide good information as to the effectiveness of management actions in this vegetation community. They do, however, provide good information on 1 some other vegetation types on the Prescott, namely Piñon-Juniper Evergreen Shrub. Meadowlark does seem responsive to management actions for grasslands. Over a period of several months, the wildlife biologists, ecologist, and program manager met several times to discuss options for focal species. These meetings usually resulted in the need for additional information prior to making any determination. Finally, on September 28, 2018, the group agreed on a suite of eight focal species to represent seven of the 10 potential natural vegetation types (PNVTs) that occur on the PNF. The remaining PNVTs will be monitored by vegetation structure (see Table 1). Avifauna were chosen because they are relatively easy to survey and to measure their habitat manipulation responses (Robinson et al. 1995, Tewksbury et al. 1998, Freudenberger 1999, Roberge and Angelstam 2006). Additionally, the focal species for the Prescott National Forest were selected because they are non-migratory and they are relatively easy to identify; both by sight and sound. Table 1 lists the PNF’s PNVTs and their associated focal species, where a species was identified for that vegetation community. Table 1. List of PNF PNVTs and associated focal species PNVT Name Focal Species; Common Name Scientific name Semi-Desert Grassland Western meadowlark Sturnella neglecta Eastern meadowlark S. magna. Great Basin Grassland Western meadowlark Sturnella neglecta Eastern meadowlark S. magna. Juniper Grassland Western meadowlark Sturnella neglecta Eastern meadowlark S. magna. Piñon-Juniper Evergreen Shrub Woodhouse’s Scrub-Jay Aphelocoma woodhouseii Interior Chaparral* N/A N/A Ponderosa Pine-Evergreen Oak Acorn woodpecker Melanerpes formicivorus Red-breasted nuthatch Sitta candensis White-breasted nuthatch S. carolinensis Pygmy nuthatch S. pygmaea Ponderosa Pine-Gambel Oak Acorn woodpecker Melanerpes formicivorus Red-breasted nuthatch Sitta candensis White-breasted nuthatch S. carolinensis Pygmy nuthatch S. pygmaea Piñon-Juniper Woodland* N/A N/A Desert Communities** N/A N/A Riparian Gallery Forest Song sparrow Melospiza melodia * Changes in woody vegetation structure will be used to monitor management effectiveness. ** Predominantly passive management; therefore, nothing was selected. Monitoring Methodology All bird counts, except for the song sparrow, will be conducted using a point count method. Trained observers will count all focal species (both seen and heard) within a five-minute period from a set point. 2 Points and routes will be spread throughout the PNF to try and capture focal species response to our management at the landscape scale. Points will be also be placed in a mixture of old treatments, planned treatments, and passive management areas. The point counts are intended to show the trends of whether focal species populations in the various areas are stable, increasing, or decreasing over time. For the song sparrow, crews conducting willow flycatcher and yellow-billed cuckoo surveys will record any song sparrows encountered and document the location. This will be a presence/absence approach. Grasslands Semi-Desert, Great Basin, and the Juniper Grassland PNVTs will be represented by meadowlarks. Both Eastern (Sturnella magna) and Western meadowlarks (Sturnella neglecta) have been lumped together because they both have similar life histories and are hard to distinguish from each other, especially if they are not singing. Both species are known to occur on the PNF, though western meadowlarks are more common. Meadowlarks were chosen because they utilize grassland habitats, tend to avoid heavily wooded areas, and are ground nesters, often shielded by dense vegetation. Desired conditions for the PNF’s grasslands are for a more open appearance and reduced encroachment by brush and juniper to restore grassland habitat, particularly for pronghorn. Because management efforts are primarily focused on reducing encroachment by brush and juniper, changes in numbers of meadowlarks would be expected to demonstrate effectiveness of management actions toward this goal. Piñon-Juniper Evergreen Shrub The Piñon-Juniper Evergreen Shrub PNVT will be represented by the Woodhouse’s scrub jay (Aphelocoma woodhouseii). This jay is common in this PNVT, utilizes trees for nesting, has a wide range in diet (e.g. lizards, insects, seeds), and is important for large seed dispersal due to their caching behavior. Desired conditions for this PNVT are for a mix of trees and shrubs and herbaceous ground cover with low to moderate canopy cover. Current conditions are moderately departed from desired conditions. Management actions in this PNVT are primarily focused on restoring and/or maintaining a mix of species, age and size classes, and densities, and to restore fire to its natural role in the ecosystem. Woodhouse’s scrubjays are expected to respond positively as this system becomes more diverse. Interior Chaparral It was decided that monitoring canopy cover would be sufficient to track management effectiveness in Interior Chaparral. Ponderosa Pine Forest This includes both Ponderosa Pine-Evergreen Shrub and Ponderosa Pine-Gambel Oak PNVTs. Desired conditions for these forest types include a mix of structural stages ranging from young to old trees, including snags, with small clumps and groups of trees interspersed with variably sized openings and a healthy understory shrubs and grasses. These PNVTs are severely departed from desired conditions, as they both have too many young and mid-aged trees and not enough old trees, mainly due to the historic use of these trees for building and mining timbers. These forests are also overly-dense due to the exclusion of fire over several decades. Management actions are focused on increasing age and structural diversity and creating a more open forest with shrubs, forbs, and grasses in the understory. 3 Both these PNVTs will be represented by nuthatches and acorn woodpeckers. The desired structural conditions that we hope to achieve by management actions should favor healthy populations of both birds. There are three nuthatch species known to occur within the PNF; red-breasted nuthatch (Sitta canadensis), white-breasted nuthatch (Sitta carolinensis; most common), and the pygmy nuthatch (Sitta pygmaea), but they were grouped together for ease of surveying and because of their similar life histories. Nuthatches were chosen because they inhabit forests, are primarily insectivores and gleaners, and they nest in cavities. The selection of the acorn woodpecker was based on their feeding and storage behavior. Acorns, along with other large nuts, make up a large portion of the acorn woodpecker’s diet and they store them in granary trees that are typically snags. Not only are they tied to oaks and nut producing plants, they may be a good indication of the presence and distribution of snags across the landscape. Pinon-Juniper Woodland Vegetation structure and component will be used to monitor this PNVT. Desert Communities Making up <1% of the PNF and it being predominately passive management, nothing has been chosen to represent management effectiveness in our desert communities. Riparian Gallery Forest The Prescott National Forest has many riparian gallery forest types covering approximately 12,400 acres (about 1%) of the forest. Although this PNVT is a small portion of the forest, it is among the most critical, partly due to its rarity since these forests depend on reliable water sources
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