DOCSLIB.ORG

Nest Site Selection by Mountain Plovers (Charadrius Montanus) in a Shrub-Steppe Habitat

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Nest Site Selection by Mountain Plovers (Charadrius Montanus) in a Shrub-Steppe Habitat Western North American Naturalist Volume 61 Number 2 Article 10 4-23-2001 Nest site selection by Mountain Plovers (Charadrius montanus) in a shrub-steppe habitat Ann E. Ellison Manning Brigham Young University Clayton M. White Brigham Young University Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/wnan Recommended Citation Ellison Manning, Ann E. and White, Clayton M. (2001) "Nest site selection by Mountain Plovers (Charadrius montanus) in a shrub-steppe habitat," Western North American Naturalist: Vol. 61 : No. 2 , Article 10. Available at: https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/wnan/vol61/iss2/10 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Western North American Naturalist Publications at BYU ScholarsArchive. It has been accepted for inclusion in Western North American Naturalist by an authorized editor of BYU ScholarsArchive. For more information, please contact [email protected], [email protected]. Western North American Naturalist 61(2), © 2001, pp. 229–235 NEST SITE SELECTION BY MOUNTAIN PLOVERS (CHARADRIUS MONTANUS) IN A SHRUB-STEPPE HABITAT Ann E. Ellison Manning1,2 and Clayton M. White1,3 ABSTRACT.—Habitat use by Mountain Plovers was studied in Duchesne County, Utah, from 1996 to 1998. This area is a shrub-steppe habitat and is different from the shortgrass prairie where current Mountain Plover breeding densities are greatest. Mountain Plovers prefer areas of short, sparse vegetation. Habitat surveys quantified vegetation and open space composition at nest and randomly selected sites. Data gathered in 1998 showed significant differences between nest and random sites in maximum vegetation height (P = 0.0021) and percentage total rock cover (P = 0.0027). As per- centage rock cover also reflects open space, these results are consistent with general habitat characteristics preferred by the Mountain Plover. White-tailed prairie dogs were present significantly more often near the 5 nest sites located in 1998 than the 20 random sites. Insects collected from the same nest areas and random points reflected food items known to be in the Mountain Plover diet, but there were no significant differences in diversity of insects between nest and random sites. Key words: Mountain Plover, Charadrius montanus, breeding habitat, Uinta Basin. The Mountain Plover (Charadrius montan- (Knopf and Miller 1994). On the Pawnee us), a species native to grasslands, typically National Grassland, Colorado, Mountain Plovers breeds in open, flat shortgrass prairie. Histori- prefer to nest in areas where mean grass cally, shortgrass prairies were composed of height is <8 cm in April when breeding sites treeless bottoms and uplands vegetated by are being selected (Graul 1975). In California blue grama (Bouteloua gracilis) and buffalo during winter Mountain Plovers strongly grass (Buchloe dactyloides). Bison (Bison bison), select alkaline flats, recently burned fields, pronghorn (Antilocapra americana), and prairie and grasslands which have been heavily grazed. dogs (Cynomys sp.) evolved as the primary Flat, cultivated lands are also used for forag- herbivores on this landscape. Because native ing and roosting (Knopf and Rupert 1995). grasslands have been altered by the removal Knopf and Miller (1994) suggested that Moun- of primary native grazers and by agricultural tain Plovers are a species of disturbed prairie use of the Great Plains, there is less suitable or semidesert, rather than strictly restricted to breeding habitat available, as tall vegetation typical shortgrass prairie. In 1993 surveys con- hinders the ability of this bird to detect preda- firmed a Mountain Plover population, of un- tors (Knopf 1996). As a result of such alterations, known size, breeding in Utah on the Myton native species are declining in number, and Bench, Duchesne County, Uinta Basin (Day exotic species diversity and density are increas- 1994). Prior to 1992 there were 12 documented ing (Knopf 1994). Because of long-term declines, historical sightings of Mountain Plovers in the Mountain Plover was listed as a candidate Utah, and 6 were in the Uinta Basin (Audubon species under the U.S. Endangered Species Field Notes 1966, Waller 1967, White et al. Act on 3 May 1993 and is currently under con- 1983, S. Madsen, BLM, personal communica- sideration for a threatened designation. tion). Observed population numbers have Breeding Mountain Plovers occur geogra- always been small but fairly consistent from phically from Montana south to New Mexico 1993 to 1998 (UDWR 1997). (Knopf 1996). Studies of breeding populations Habitat characteristics in the Uinta Basin in Colorado and Montana found Mountain are notably different from typically standard Plovers selecting nest sites in areas of low shortgrass prairie breeding areas. In Utah veg- herbaceous vegetation and sparse shrub cover etation is sparse; sagebrush communities are 1Department of Zoology, Brigham Young University, Provo, UT 84602. 2Present address: 276 S. 1000 E., Salt Lake City, UT 84102. 3Corresponding author. 229 230 WESTERN NORTH AMERICAN NATURALIST [Volume 61 dominated by Artemisia spp. with a compo- 1500 m to 1920 m elevation. Climate and nent of grasses including Sandberg bluegrass habitats of the Uinta Basin represented within (Poa secunda), Indian ricegrass (Sorghastrum the study area are typical of the shrub-steppe nutans), and needle-and-thread (Stipa comata; habitat type found in the Great Basin (Good- Goodrich and Neese 1986). White-tailed prairie rich and Neese 1986). Vegetative complexes dogs are resident, thinly spread rather than in range from essentially bare sand and/or gravel dense clustered towns, and are known to be to low-growing black sagebrush (A. nova). an ecological “keystone” species in creating Greasewood (Sarcobatus vermiculatus), shad- suitable habitat for other species, including scale (Atriplex confertifolia), and occasional the Mountain Plover (Gilbert 1980, Terborgh big sagebrush (A. tridentata) stands are spo- 1986). Prairie dogs graze on vegetation, and radically present throughout the area. their mounds, being relatively bare, provide open space. Because of their habitat require- METHODS ments, Mountain Plovers are strongly associ- ated with active black-tailed prairie dog towns Mountain Plover surveys have been con- in Montana in their breeding, nesting, and feed- ducted in the study area since 1993 (UDWR ing areas (Knowles et al. 1982, Olson 1985). 1995). Vegetation surveys were completed at Where Mountain Plovers breed in Utah, oil and all known nest sites from 1993 to 1998 (n = gas development contributes to the amount of 11) and at 20 randomly selected sites. Random surface disturbance and bare ground. These points were selected by choosing 20 sections habitat modifications may have some benefits, from the total study area and fixing the sample and Mountain Plovers are known to raise point as close to the center of the section as broods near excessive local disturbance (Knopf possible. At each site we measured a 10-m- and Miller 1994). radius macroplot and sampled ten 1-m2 The diet of the Mountain Plover through- quadrats within the macroplot. We then esti- out its breeding range consists mainly of mated percentage of each of the following: ground-dwelling and winged invertebrates total vegetative cover, shrub, forb, grass, total perched on the ground; foraging is oppor- rock cover, large rock (>7 cm), medium rock tunistic (Knopf 1996). (2–7 cm), and small rock (<2 cm). We also It is of interest that a small Mountain Plover counted the number of species noted as population is able to breed in Utah. There are shrubs, forbs, grasses and grasslikes. Measure- no data to indicate whether the Myton Bench ments were taken of maximum and average population is a relic; thus, it is important to vegetation heights. Presence or absence of know which habitat characteristics the Moun- white-tailed prairie dogs was noted. Distance tain Plover prefers when selecting a nest site from nearest prairie dog mound, roadway, and in this atypical region. Information is also well pad was recorded at each nest site. Slope needed to understand the impacts of intensive and aspect at each nest site were also recorded. oil development and associated vegetative In 1998 potential prey availability was sam- changes on this population. The objectives of pled. We collected insects from nest areas and this study were to quantify habitat parameters random sites before and during Mountain at Mountain Plover nest sites in the Uinta Plover nesting time and then again after hatch- Basin and measure available food resources at ing. Collection areas were approximately cir- these sites. cular, extending about 0.2 km in radius from each nest or at randomly selected points. Forty STUDY AREA minutes was spent at each collection site, and anything visible to the surveyors was caught Surveys were done from Castle Peak and with sweep net or forceps. All insects col- Wells Draws east to the border of Pariette lected were classified to the level of family by Wetlands Wildlife Habitat Management Area, Richard W. Baumann, Monte L. Bean Life approximately 20 km southwest of Myton, Science Museum, Brigham Young University. Duchesne County, Utah. The study area gen- Using discriminant analysis, stepwise dis- erally encompasses T8S to T9S, and R16E to criminant analysis, and Wilcoxon 2-sample R18E. These areas have a highly variable, bro- tests, we compared 14 habitat characteristics ken topography ranging from approximately at nest and random sites. The diversity of 2001] NEST SITE SELECTION BY MOUNTAIN PLOVERS 231 insects collected at nest and random sites was al large visual barriers are not as great a hin- estimated with the Shannon function (Pielou drance to the Mountain Plover in Utah as in 1977) and then compared with Wilcoxon rank other parts of the breeding range. sums tests. A pooled t test for small samples Regardless of degree of slope, the prairie was used to compare Utah nest sites with nest dog plays an important role for Mountain sites in Montana and Wyoming. Plovers as 4 of 5 nest sites in Utah in 1998 were located an average of 8.5 m from a RESULTS AND DISCUSSION white-tailed prairie dog mound (Table 1).
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Mountain Plover Responses to Plague in Montana Stephen J
    Natural Resource Ecology and Management Natural Resource Ecology and Management Publications 2-2010 Mountain Plover Responses to Plague in Montana Stephen J. Dinsmore Iowa State University, [email protected] Mark D. Smith Auburn University Main Campus Follow this and additional works at: http://lib.dr.iastate.edu/nrem_pubs Part of the Animal Diseases Commons, Natural Resources Management and Policy Commons, and the Ornithology Commons The ompc lete bibliographic information for this item can be found at http://lib.dr.iastate.edu/ nrem_pubs/35. For information on how to cite this item, please visit http://lib.dr.iastate.edu/ howtocite.html. This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Natural Resource Ecology and Management at Iowa State University Digital Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Natural Resource Ecology and Management Publications by an authorized administrator of Iowa State University Digital Repository. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Mountain Plover Responses to Plague in Montana Abstract Plague is a bacterial (Yersinia pestis) disease that causes epizootic die-offs in black-tailed prairie dog (Cynomys ludovicianus) populations in the North American Great Plains. Through their grazing and burrowing, prairie dogs modify vegetation and landscape structure on their colonies in ways that affect other grassland species. Plague epizootics on prairie dog colonies can have indirect effects on species associated with colonies. The mountain plover (Charadrius montanus) preferentially nests on black-tailed prairie dog colonies and is thus negatively impacted by the loss of prairie dogs. We studied the effects of plague and colony spatial characteristics on the occupancy of 81 prairie dog colonies by nesting plovers in Phillips County, Montana, during a 13-year period (1995–2007).
    [Show full text]
  • Mountain Plover Questions and Answers February 1999
    Mountain Plover Questions and Answers February 1999 1. What does the recent proposal to list the mountain plover as a threatened species mean? The proposal means that the Fish and Wildlife Service, after thoroughly examining the best scientific information available, believes that the mountain plover is likely to become endangered in the foreseeable future throughout all or a significant portion of its range unless actions are taken now to reverse the decline in population. While there is not an immediate threat of extinction, several factors were identified that may have caused the decline, and which are likely to continue in the future. Unless these problems are solved, the mountain plover is likely to disappear at some currently occupied sites, which could increase the likelihood of extinction throughout its range. 2. What is the difference between a threatened and an endangered species listing? By definition, an endangered species is one that is in immediate danger of extinction throughout all or a significant portion of its range; a threatened species is one that is likely to become endangered within the foreseeable future throughout all or a portion of its range. Protections under the Act are generally the same for threatened and endangered species. However, for threatened species, special rules can be developed which allow for greater flexibility in land use. 3. Why is the mountain plover important? Like canaries in coal mines, the mountain plover and other native species are indicators of the health of native prairies. The decline of the mountain plover and its habitat is an early warning that the replacement of many native grasslands with urban development, as well as some specific grazing and farming practices, are hindering the survival of the short-grass prairie.
    [Show full text]
  • Species Assessment for Mountain Plover (Charadrius Montanus)
    SPECIES ASSESSMENT FOR MOUNTAIN PLOVER (CHARADRIUS MONTANUS ) IN WYOMING prepared by 1 2 HAMILTON SMITH AND DOUGLAS A. KEINATH 1 Wyoming Natural Diversity Database, University of Wyoming, 1000 E. University Ave, Dept. 3381, Laramie, Wyoming 82071; 307-766-3023 2 Zoology Program Manager, Wyoming Natural Diversity Database, University of Wyoming, 1000 E. University Ave, Dept. 3381, Laramie, Wyoming 82071; 307-766-3013; [email protected] drawing by Summers Scholl prepared for United States Department of the Interior Bureau of Land Management Wyoming State Office Cheyenne, Wyoming November 2004 Smith and Keinath – Charadrius montanus November 2004 Table of Contents INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................................. 3 NATURAL HISTORY ........................................................................................................................... 4 Morphological Description ...................................................................................................... 4 Taxonomy and Distribution ..................................................................................................... 5 Habitat Requirements............................................................................................................. 6 General ............................................................................................................................................6 Breeding ..........................................................................................................................................7
    [Show full text]
  • The Effects of Management Practices on Grassland Birds—Mountain Plover (Charadrius Montanus)
    The Effects of Management Practices on Grassland Birds— Mountain Plover (Charadrius montanus) Chapter E of The Effects of Management Practices on Grassland Birds Professional Paper 1842–E U.S. Department of the Interior U.S. Geological Survey Cover. Mountain Plover. Photograph by Ron Knight, used with permission. Background photograph: Northern mixed-grass prairie in North Dakota, by Rick Bohn, used with permission. The Effects of Management Practices on Grassland Birds—Mountain Plover (Charadrius montanus) By Jill A. Shaffer,1 Lawrence D. Igl,1 Douglas H. Johnson,1 Marriah L. Sondreal,1 Christopher M. Goldade,1,2 Melvin P. Nenneman,1,3 Travis L. Wooten,1,4 and Betty R. Euliss1 Chapter E of The Effects of Management Practices on Grassland Birds Edited by Douglas H. Johnson,1 Lawrence D. Igl,1 Jill A. Shaffer,1 and John P. DeLong1,5 1U.S. Geological Survey. 2South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks (current). 3U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (current). 4San Diego Zoo Institute for Conservation Research (current). 5University of Nebraska-Lincoln (current). Professional Paper 1842–E U.S. Department of the Interior U.S. Geological Survey U.S. Department of the Interior DAVID BERNHARDT, Secretary U.S. Geological Survey James F. Reilly II, Director U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, Virginia: 2019 For more information on the USGS—the Federal source for science about the Earth, its natural and living resources, natural hazards, and the environment—visit https://www.usgs.gov or call 1–888–ASK–USGS. For an overview of USGS information products, including maps, imagery, and publications, visit https://store.usgs.gov.
    [Show full text]
  • Predator-Prey Relationships Between Mountain Plover, Burrowing Owl
    The Potential for a Predator-Prey Interaction; A Case Study on Thunder Basin and Pawnee National Grasslands. Tyler Michels1, Ryan Parker1, Allison Pierce1, Courtney Duchardt2, Angela Dwyer3, Michael B. Wunder1 1University of Colorado Denver 2University of Wyoming 3Bird Conservancy of the Rockies Significance? Conservation USFS Region 2 WYGF CPW Swift Fox Sensitive Species Tier II SSC/Tier II Single-species Multi- Burrowing Owl Sensitive Species Tier I ST/Tier I species Mountain Plover Sensitive Species Tier I SSC/Tier I Management Black-tailed Prairie Sensitive Species Tier II SSC/Tier II Dog BCR Large-Scale Mountain Plover Study • Species of Focus • Grassland Overview • Thunder Basin USFS • Pawnee USFS • Trend Data/Patterns • Species Interaction? • What Next? Specht-Ponto Swift Fox (Vulpes velox) Small Fox of the Great Plains Threatened by Habitat Loss USFS Burrowing Owl (Athene cunicularia) Small Migrating Owl - Pre-Excavated Burrows - Black-tailed Prairie Dog Colonies Threatened by Habitat Loss FactZoo Mendosa, 2013 Migrating Shorebird Mountain Plover (Charadrius montanus) Short-Grass/Bare-Ground Habitat Requirement Disturbance NWF USFS • Species of Focus Thunder Basin National Grassland • Grassland Overview • Thunder Basin • Pawnee Pawnee • Trend Data/Patterns National Grassland • Species Interactions? • What Next? On Thunder Basin National Grassland… USFS Black-tailed Prairie Dog (Cynomys ludovicianus) On Pawnee National Grassland… USFS TBNG Colony fluctuation caused by sylvatic plague outbreaks 1:134,381 1:134,381 20092015 PNG
    [Show full text]
  • Mountain Plover Population Responses to Black-Tailed Prairie Dogs in Montana
    View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska University of Nebraska - Lincoln DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln USGS Staff -- Published Research US Geological Survey 10-2005 Mountain Plover Population Responses to Black-Tailed Prairie Dogs in Montana Stephen J. Dinsmore Colorado State University, [email protected] Gary C. White Colorado State University - Fort Collins, [email protected] Fritz L. Knopf U.S. Geological Survey Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/usgsstaffpub Part of the Earth Sciences Commons Dinsmore, Stephen J.; White, Gary C.; and Knopf, Fritz L., "Mountain Plover Population Responses to Black-Tailed Prairie Dogs in Montana" (2005). USGS Staff -- Published Research. 48. https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/usgsstaffpub/48 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the US Geological Survey at DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. It has been accepted for inclusion in USGS Staff -- Published Research by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@University of Nebraska - Lincoln. Mountain Plover Population Responses to Black-Tailed Prairie Dogs in Montana Author(s): Stephen J. Dinsmore, Gary C. White, Fritz L. Knopf Source: The Journal of Wildlife Management, Vol. 69, No. 4 (Oct., 2005), pp. 1546-1553 Published by: Allen Press Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/3803514 Accessed: 23/06/2009 00:45 Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of JSTOR's Terms and Conditions of Use, available at http://www.jstor.org/page/info/about/policies/terms.jsp. JSTOR's Terms and Conditions of Use provides, in part, that unless you have obtained prior permission, you may not download an entire issue of a journal or multiple copies of articles, and you may use content in the JSTOR archive only for your personal, non-commercial use.
    [Show full text]
  • Status of the Mountain Plover in Cimarron County
    .. ...-~.- W 2800.7 E56s No. E-51 1999 c. 3 ENDANGERED SPECIES ACT OKLAHOMA o FEDER.I\L AID PROJECT E-51 Status of the Mountain Plover on Cultjvated Landscapes in Western Oklahoma STATE: Oklahoma Project Number E-51 PROJECT TITLE: Status of the Mountain Plover on Cultivated Landscapes in Western Oklahoma 1 June1999-3l December 1999 Revisit cultivated fields in northwestern Oklahoma that have previously supported nesting mountain plovers, as documented by Shackford et al. (1999), and document current breeding activities of plovers on those fields. Currently, the mountain plover (Charadrius montanus) is a candidate species under consideration for Threatened Species status (U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service 1999). We studied this species on cultivated fields of the western end (primarily Cimarron County) of the Oklahoma Panhandle during the breeding season of 1999. We inspected 98 fields where Shackford had observed mountain plovers in Oklahoma from 1986 through 1998. Of these, nine (9%) had been (re)converted to pasture land or were overgrown with thick vegetation, 38 (39%) had crops or other vegetation deemed too high to effectively survey (2: 60 em), while 51 (52%) had crops or other vegetation < 60 em (24 in) and were searched for mountain plovers. Of those 51, we found mountain plovers on 16 (31%) fields, but no mountain plovers on the remaining 35 (69%) fields. Of the 38 fields with vegetation deemed too tall to effectively survey, mountain plovers fortuitously were located on two (5%) fields. Thus, of the 98 fields with mountain plovers in the past, we found mountain plovers on 18 (18%) fields.
    [Show full text]
  • Charadrius Montanus): a Technical Conservation Assessment
    Mountain Plover (Charadrius montanus): A Technical Conservation Assessment Prepared for the USDA Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Region, Species Conservation Project December 8, 2003 Stephen J. Dinsmore Department of Wildlife & Fisheries Box 9690 Mississippi State, MS 39762 Peer Reviewed Administered by Society for Conservation Biology Dinsmore, S.J. (2003, December 8). Mountain Plover (Charadrius montanus): a technical conservation assessment. [Online]. USDA Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Region. Available: http://www.fs.fed.us/r2/projects/scp/ assessments/mountainplover.pdf [date of access]. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS I thank F. L. Knopf, S. Oyler-McCance, and M. B. Wunder for allowing me access to unpublished data from on- going research studies. F. L. Knopf reviewed an earlier version of this assessment and offered many useful comments. D. B. McDonald assisted with the matrix population analysis. The final Assessment benefited from detailed reviews by G. D. Hayward and two anonymous reviewers. AUTHOR’S BIOGRAPHY Stephen J. Dinsmore is an avian population ecologist in the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries at Mississippi State University. He has studied mountain plovers throughout their breeding and wintering ranges since 1991, primarily on the breeding grounds in Montana. In 2001, he completed a doctorate at Colorado State University; his dissertation was entitled “Population biology of mountain plovers in southern Phillips County, Montana.” COVER PHOTO CREDIT Mountain plover (Charadrius montanus). Photo taken by author. 2 3 SUMMARY OF KEY COMPONENTS FOR CONSERVATION OF THE MOUNTAIN PLOVER The mountain plover (Charadrius montanus) is a local and declining bird throughout its range. It was proposed for listing under the Endangered Species Act by the U.S.
    [Show full text]
  • Mountain Plover (Charadrius Montanus)
    Mountain Plover (Charadrius montanus) NMPIF level: Species Conservation Concern, Level 1 (SC1) NMPIF assessment score: 20 NM stewardship responsibility: Low U.S. Shorebird Plan Status: Category 5, Highly Imperiled New Mexico BCRs: 16, 18, (34), (35) Primary breeding habitat(s): Plains-Mesa Grassland Other habitats used: Chihuahuan Desert Grassland, Agricultural Summary of Concern Mountain Plover is a grassland shorebird species endemic to the western Great Plains and the Colorado Plateau. It has experienced extensive historical loss of habitat and significant population declines since the 1970s. Associated Species Long-billed Curlew (SC1), Burrowing Owl, Horned Lark, Vesper Sparrow Distribution The breeding range of the Mountain Plover includes prairie grassland and open mesa portions of southern Canada, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado, and the northern half of New Mexico. The range may have formerly extended into southern New Mexico (Ligon 1961), and isolated breeding records exist for west Texas and the central Mexican Plateau. Most of the species population winters in central and southern California, but some birds winter in northern and central Mexico and southern Arizona (Knopf 1996). In New Mexico, the species breeds primarily in the northeast quadrant, from Las Vegas and Mosquero north in Harding and Union Counties and north of Tres Piedras in Taos County. It also breeds occasionally at Santo Domingo Pueblo and sporadically in the western half of the state from the Plains of San Agustin west to Quemado and north to the Farmington area (Craig et al. 1985). Ligon (1961) reported extensive breeding grounds in Roosevelt County, Lea County, and on Otero Mesa in Otero County, but the species has not been reported breeding in these areas for decades.
    [Show full text]
  • Project Proposals 2020-2021
    Project Proposals 2020-2021 TABLE OF CONTENTS Protection of Wintering and Stop-Over sites in the Conservation Coast Birdscape, Guatemala................................ 3 Protection of Desert Grasslands Migratory Bird Habitat in the El Tokio Grassland Priority Conservation Area (in the Saltillo BirdScape) ................................................................................................................................................ 6 A Sustainable Grazing Network to Protect and Restore Grasslands on Private and Communal Lands in Mexico’s Chihuahuan Desert ................................................................................................................................................... 10 Protecting stopover and wintering habitat for key priority species of shorebirds and waterbirds in Laguna Madre, Mexico ...................................................................................................................................................................... 13 Migratory Bird Wintering Grounds Conservation in Nicaragua and Honduras ........................................................ 16 Conserving Critical Piping Plover and other Shorebirds Wintering Sites in the Bahamas ........................................ 23 Conservation and Management of Neotropical Migratory Birds and Thick-billed Parrots in old-growth forests of the Sierra Madre Occidental, Mexico ....................................................................................................................... 27 Neotropical
    [Show full text]
  • Mountain Plover (Charadrius Montanus) Fact Sheet Colorado NRCS November 2010
    Mountain Plover (Charadrius montanus) Fact Sheet Colorado NRCS November 2010 General Information: The mountain plover belongs to the order Charadriiformes, the shorebirds, and the family Charadriidae, along with the killdeer and several other plovers. Mountain plover is the endemic plover of the shortgrass prairie. About the size of a killdeer, the mountain plover averages 7-1/2 inches in length, with yellow to flesh-colored legs, and a short, fairly thick bill. During the breeding season, the mountain plover has a distinct black cap and a thin black line between the eye and the bill. Mountain plovers lack the black breast bands common to other plovers. The diet of this neotropical migrant is 95% insects. A key feature that distinguishes the mountain plover from the killdeer is the lack of black bands on the chests of plovers. Mountain Plover photo by Lou Mountain Plover Chick photo by Vicky Hodges, CDOW Volunteer Dreitz, CDOW Status: This bird has been designated as a Federal Proposed species by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) under authority of the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The current population is approximately 18,000 birds (Andres and Stone 2009). Evidence that the mountain plover is continuing to decline is provided by long-term research conducted at breeding sites in Montana and Colorado, Breeding Bird Survey data, Christmas Bird Count data from California, and National Wildlife Refuge records from California. While there is no reliable estimate of the rate of decline, the number of nesting mountain plovers on breeding transects in Montana and Colorado has declined during the past 10 years, and fewer mountain plovers are reported from key wintering areas in California.
    [Show full text]
  • Incubation Behavior and Dispersal Patterns in the Mountain Plover (Charadrius Montanus) Paul Daniel Blom Skrade Iowa State University
    Iowa State University Capstones, Theses and Graduate Theses and Dissertations Dissertations 2008 Incubation behavior and dispersal patterns in the Mountain Plover (Charadrius montanus) Paul Daniel Blom Skrade Iowa State University Follow this and additional works at: https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/etd Part of the Environmental Sciences Commons Recommended Citation Skrade, Paul Daniel Blom, "Incubation behavior and dispersal patterns in the Mountain Plover (Charadrius montanus)" (2008). Graduate Theses and Dissertations. 11563. https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/etd/11563 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Iowa State University Capstones, Theses and Dissertations at Iowa State University Digital Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in Graduate Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of Iowa State University Digital Repository. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Incubation behavior and dispersal patterns in the Mountain Plover ( Charadrius montanus ) by Paul Daniel Blom Skrade A thesis submitted to the graduate faculty in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF SCIENCE Major: Animal Ecology Program of Study Committee: Stephen J. Dinsmore, Major Professor Rolf R. Koford Carol M. Vleck Iowa State University Ames, Iowa 2008 ii TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES...................................................................................................................iii LIST OF FIGURES .................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]