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Mapping Potential Golden-Cheeked Warbler Breeding Habitat Using Remotely Sensed Forest Canopy Cover Data Loomis Partners, Inc

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Mapping Potential Golden-Cheeked Warbler Breeding Habitat Using Remotely Sensed Forest Canopy Cover Data Loomis Partners, Inc APPENDIX A Mapping Potential Golden-cheeked Warbler Breeding Habitat Using Remotely Sensed Forest Canopy Cover Data Loomis Partners, Inc. (2008) Hays County Regional Habitat Conservation Plan Mapping Potential Golden-cheeked Warbler Breeding Habitat Using Remotely Sensed Forest Canopy Cover Data Prepared for: County of Hays 111 E. San Antonio Street San Marcos, Texas 78666 Prepared by: ENGINEERING, LAND SURVEYING & ENVIRONMENTAL CONSULTING 3101 Bee Cave Road, Suite 100 Austin, TX 78746 512/327-1180 FAX: 512/327-4062 LAI Proj. No. 051001 August 12, 2008 Mapping Potential GCW Habitat LAI Proj. No. 051001 Table of Contents 1.0 INTRODUCTION..................................................................................................................................1 1.1 PURPOSE AND OBJECTIVES........................................................................................................................1 1.2 GOLDEN-CHEEKED WARBLER...................................................................................................................1 1.3 NATIONAL LAND COVER DATABASE 2001 ...............................................................................................3 2.0 METHODS .............................................................................................................................................3 2.1 HABITAT MAPPING ...................................................................................................................................3 2.2 PROBABILITY OF OCCUPANCY ANALYSIS .................................................................................................5 2.3 COMPARISON WITH MAPPED WARBLER OCCURRENCES ...........................................................................6 2.3.1 Loomis GCW Observations..................................................................................................................6 2.3.2 Hays County GCW Observations.........................................................................................................6 3.0 RESULTS................................................................................................................................................7 3.1 POTENTIAL GCW HABITAT MAP AND OCCUPANCY ANALYSIS ................................................................7 3.2 COMPARISON WITH MAPPED WARBLER OCCURRENCES .........................................................................12 4.0 DISCUSSION .......................................................................................................................................13 5.0 REFERENCES.....................................................................................................................................15 6.0 SIGNATURES......................................................................................................................................16 List of Figures Figure 1. GCW recovery units and the Edwards Plateau and Cross Timbers ecoregions. Figure 2. Potential GCW habitat over the range of the species. Figure 3. Potential GCW habitat in Hays County, Texas, and the relative potential for occupancy. Figure 4. Known GCW localities in Hays County, Texas. List of Tables Table 1. Area of potential GCW habitat within each recovery region. Table 2. Area of potential GCW habitat in Hays County, Texas. ©2008 H:\Enviro_Projects\Hays_Co_HCP_(051001)\Resources_of_Concern\Golden-cheeked_Warbler\GCW_Habitat_Mapping\Mapping_Potential_GCW_Habitat_(20080812).doc Page i Mapping Potential GCW Habitat LAI Proj. No. 051001 1.0 Introduction 1.1 Purpose and Objectives This study describes a method for mapping potential golden-cheeked warbler (Dendroica chrysoparia, GCW) habitat and estimating the relative quality of this habitat based on the average amount of woodland canopy cover in the landscape. This study was initiated to support the development of the Hays County Regional Habitat Conservation Plan, which includes the golden-cheeked warbler as one of the covered species. A regional accounting of the extent, location, and relative quality of potential warbler habitat was needed to facilitate development of this Plan. However, this mapping product has broader application to planning efforts throughout the range of the warbler. Previously published range-wide information on the extent of golden-cheeked warbler habitat was based on satellite data collected between 1979 and 1981 and analyzed with dated software (Wahl et al. 1990). Further, the actual mapping product of that effort is no longer available. Therefore, recent, range-wide maps and specific county-level maps of the extent and distribution of potential warbler habitat were lacking. 1.2 Golden-cheeked Warbler The golden-cheeked warbler is a small (about five inches long) insectivorous bird. The warbler was listed as federally endangered by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) on December 27, 1990 (55 FR 53153), and the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department also lists the species as endangered in the State of Texas. The golden-cheeked warbler migrates between wintering grounds in southern Mexico and Central America and breeding grounds in central Texas (Ladd and Gass 1999). Ladd and Gass (1999) describe the breeding range of the warbler as including portions of the Edwards Plateau, Lampasas Cut Plain, Central Mineral Region (or Llano Uplift), Comanche Plateau, Western Cross Timbers and North Central Prairies physiographic regions, as delineated by Kier et al. (1977). Within the range of the warbler, these physiographic regions generally correspond to portions of the Edwards Plateau and Cross Timbers Level III Ecoregions, as mapped by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (2004) at a scale of 1:250,000 (Figure 1). The golden-cheeked warbler is the only bird in Texas that nests exclusively within the state's boundaries (Oberholser 1974). The species has been recorded from 41 of the 254 Texas counties, of which 25 are currently known to have breeding populations. Counties with known breeding populations are Bandera, Bell, Bexar, Blanco, Bosque, Burnet, Comal, Coryell, Gillespie, Hays Johnson, Kendall, Kerr, Kimble, Lampasas, Llano, Medina, Palo Pinto, Real, San Saba, Somervell, Travis, Uvalde, Williamson, and Young (Ladd and Gass 1999). ©2008 H:\Enviro_Projects\Hays_Co_HCP_(051001)\Resources_of_Concern\Golden-cheeked_Warbler\GCW_Habitat_Mapping\Mapping_Potential_GCW_Habitat_(20080812).doc Page 1 Mapping Potential GCW Habitat LAI Proj. No. 051001 Figure 1. GCW recovery units and the Edwards Plateau and Cross Timbers ecoregions. In Texas, the golden-cheeked warbler is an inhabitant of old-growth or mature regrowth juniper-oak woodlands (Pulich 1976, Wahl et al. 1990, USFWS 1992). Ashe juniper (Juniperus ashei) and various oak species are the most common tree species throughout the golden-cheeked warbler's breeding range (USFWS 1992). Models predicting warbler use of woodland vegetation suggest that a higher density of deciduous oaks is positively associated with increased warbler density (Wahl et al. 1990). The golden-cheeked warbler is a slightly forest-interior species (Coldren 1998, DeBoer and Diamond 2006) that also utilizes woodland edges, particularly after young have fledged (Kroll 1980, Coldren 1998). Typical nesting areas are located in dense forest or woodland habitat with a high percent canopy cover in the middle and upper layers (Ladd and Gass 1999). Total tree cover measured at several sites across the breeding range of the warbler averaged 70 percent at three meters, 74 percent at five meters, and 70 percent above 5.5 meters (Ladd and Gass 1999). Others have reported that the species will utilize areas with less overstory canopy cover (down to ©2008 H:\Enviro_Projects\Hays_Co_HCP_(051001)\Resources_of_Concern\Golden-cheeked_Warbler\GCW_Habitat_Mapping\Mapping_Potential_GCW_Habitat_(20080812).doc Page 2 Mapping Potential GCW Habitat LAI Proj. No. 051001 approximately 35 percent), particularly during the later part of the breeding season (Ladd and Gass 1999, Campbell 2003). Ladd and Gass (1999) state that prime warbler habitat is found in patches of at least 250 acres (i.e., 100 hectares), but smaller habitat patches are also utilized by the species (USFWS 1992). Much of the available habitat for the species is within these smaller patches. DeBoer and Diamond (2006) estimated that approximately 32 percent of available warbler habitat range-wide was in patches of less than 100 hectares. However, larger patches have been shown more likely to be occupied by warblers (Coldren 1998, DeBoer and Diamond 2006) and result in better pairing and reproductive success than smaller patches (Coldren 1998). Male warblers are territorial during the breeding season and defend territories that have been shown to range from approximately four to ten acres (Ladd and Gass 1999). 1.3 National Land Cover Database 2001 The National Land Cover Database (NLCD) 2001 includes land cover classifications, tree canopy cover classifications, and urban impervious cover classifications for the conterminous U.S. and Puerto Rico at a pixel resolution of 30 meters. The dataset was developed by the Multi- Resolution Land Characteristics Consortium (MLRC) to provide relevant land cover information for a variety of scientific, economic, and governmental applications, such as analyzing ecosystem status and health, studying biodiversity patterns, and developing land management policies. The MRLC is an umbrella organization comprised of 13 government programs across 10 federal agencies. The NLCD 2001
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