Appendix AAI Titus, K., C. Flatten, and R. Lowell. 1996. Goshawk ecology and habitat relationships on the Tongass National Forest: selected analysis and 1995 field season progress report. Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Alaska Department of Fish and Game Division of Wildlife Conservation Federal Aid in Wildlife Restoration Research Proaess Report Goshawk EcoloB and Habitat Relationships on the Tonass National Forest= Selected Analyses and 1995 Field Season Progress Report Kim Titus Craig Flatten Richard Lowell Richard E LwU Grant SE-4-2 July 1996 STATE OF ALASKA Tony Knowles, Governor DEPARTMENT OF FISH AM)GAME Frank Rue, Commbrioaer DMSION OF WILDLIFE CONSERVATION Wayne L. Regelin, Director Persons intending to cite this material should receive permission from the author@) andlor the Alaska Department of Fish and Game. Becauw mort reports deal with preliminary results of continuing studier, conclwlons are teatative and should be identified ns such. Please give nuthorrr credit. 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GOSHAWK ECOLOGY AND HABITAT RELATIONSHIPS ON THE TONGASS NATIONAL FOREST SELECTED ANALYSES AND I 1995 FIELD SEASON PROGRESS REPORT I Preparedfor USDA FOREST SERVICE ALASKA RJWION TONGASSNATIONAL Fom ORDERNUMBER 43-01 09-6-0258 USDA FORESTSERVIQ PACIFICNORTHWEST FOREST & RANGE EXPERIMENTSTATION JUNEAU FomSCIENCES LABORATORY ORDER NUMBER43-01 09-6-0333 US FISH& WILDLIFESERVICE RESEARCH PROGRESS REPORT FOR ENDANGEREDSPECIES - SECTION 6 AND US FISH& WILDLIFESERVICE ALASKA m1m JUNEAU ECOLOGICAL SERVICES Prepared by ALASKA DEPARTMENTOF FISH AND GAME DIVISIONOF WILDLIFE CONSERVATION DOUQLAS AND mHlKAN GOSHAWK ECOLOGY AND HABITAT RELATIONSHIPS ON THE TONGASS NATIONAL FOREST Selected Analyses and 1995 Field Season Progress Report Kim Titus Craig Flatten Richard Lowell 4 July 1996 RESEARCH PROGRESS REPORT STATE: Alaska STUDY: SE42 COOPERATORS: US Forest Service, Alaska Region, Tongass National Forest, Pacific Northwest Forest and Range Experiment Station - Juneau Forest Sciences Laboratory, US Fish and Wildlife Service, Alaska Region. STUDY TITLE:Goshawk Ecology and Habitat Relationships on the Tongass National Forest: Selected Analyses and 1995 Field Season Progress Repod AUTHORS: Kim Titus, Craig Flatten, and Richard Lowell PERIOD: 15 March 1995-August 31,1995 SUMMARY In 1991 the Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) and the USDA Forest Service (USFS) initiated a study of northern goshawk (Accipiter gentiris) ecology and habitat relationships on the Tongass National Forest in Southeast Alaska. In 1995 ADF&G, USFS, and US Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) personnel completed the fourth field seaSon of interagency goshawk nest searches on the Tongass. To date, 36 goshawk nesting areas have been identified in Southeast Alaska, and between 1991 and 1994 33 nesting areas were identified. Goshawk survey efforts increased mually during this period and, as a result, the documented number of active nests and cumulative nest areas also increased annually. This trend ended when the number of documented active nests declined from a high of 2 1 in 1994 to just 10 in 1995. Despite substantial efforts to locate nests in 1995, only 3 new nest sites were identified. Based on our search efforts, only 7 (23%) of 30 previously documented nest areas examined this year contained an active' nest. These results support speculation that goshawk nesting densities and nest ma reoccupancy rates are low on the Tongass National Forest. In 1995 10 documented nesting attempts produced 20 young with a mean productivity of 2.0 young pr nest. Between 1991 and 1995 46 documented nesting attempts produced a total of 97 young at 33 nest areas with a mean productivity of 2.1 young per attempt (range = 0-3). In 1995 ADF&G personnel captured and banded 22 goshawks (15 adults, 6 juvenile, 1 immature). Since 1992, 72 goshawks (35 adults, 32 juveniles, 5 immatures) have been captured and banded in Southeast Alaska. Of the 72 captured goshawks, 67 were fitted with radio transmitters (35 adults, 29 juveniles, 3 immatures). Using fixed-wing aircraft and standard aerial radiotracking techniques, 2333 goshawk relocation points were collected between June 17, 1992 and January 1, 1996, including 716 relocations collected during 1995. We analyzed 1210 relocation points from 52 goshawks (27 adults, 22 juveniles, 3 immatures) radiotagged at 19 Southeast Alaska nest sites between June 17, 1992 and Janua~y1, 1995 for goshawk habitat selection and movement patterns. Field relocation data from 26 adult goshawks radiotagged at 17 nest sites in Southeast Alaska 1 I between 1992 and 1994 demonstrate that A. g. luingi does not exhibit long-range mud 1 migration. Adult goshawks exhibited 2 separate patterns of seasonal movements. Some adults used winter and breeding season areas that overlapped extensively, while others used spatially separated winter and breeding season areas with little or no overlap. 1 For the larger area around nest sites, we described nesting habitat at 39 goshawk nests at 29 nest area and tested whether land covertypes at 2 scales (30 acre and 160 acre) 1 differed from other nearby forested habitats by analyzing plots on color and black-and- white aerial photographs. I We used aerial radiotelemetry relocations of adult goshawks to test patterns of habitat selection in pristine versus clearcut portions of the Tongass National Forest. We I monitored 24 adult goshawks during the nesting (15 March-15 August) and winter seasons, representing 32 sampling units for log-ratio compositional analyses of habitat selection, Our analyses compared point estimates of habitat use with estimates of thc 1 seasonal use area of a bird as determined by the minimum convex polygon home range estimate. We used USFS timber and land-type maps within a geographic information system (GIS) to determine habitat covertypes, discern old-growth forest blocks, and i buffer edges for interior old-growth versus edge old-growth habitat selection, During the nesting season 67% of all relocations were in productive upland old-growth forest or forested riparian ecotones according to GIS analysis. There was selection against early I succession and clearcut covertypes. Based on a log-ratio compositiond analysis, goshawks strongly selected for old-growth forest covertypes, compared to the availability of this habitat in goshawk use areas. We found similar selection for come-grained I canopy (usually higher volume, old-growth forests) forests during the winter. We testad for differences in selection comparing ‘nonproductive’ forest, ‘productive’ forest 400 m from edge and ‘productive’ forest >IO0 m from edge. In both the nesting and wintcr 1 seasons, we found strong selection for productive forest, but wc were unable to demonstrate differences in selection for forest edges versus forest interior patches. 8 Using data collected from June 1992 through May 1995, we estimated the mual survival rates for 27 adult goshawks (15 males, 12 females) radiotagged across the Tongass National Forest using the staggered-entry design Kaplan-Meier estimator, The annual I survival rate for 27 adult goshawks was 0.76 when pooling across years and sexes. Estimates of juvenile survival rates were not possible due to the large number of censorad I birds. Key Words: Accipiter gentilis, Accipitridae, forest management, northern goshawk, I raptor, Tongass National Forest. I 8 I ii 1 CONTENTS Summary ................................................................................................................... L ............ i List of Figures ........................................................................................................................ v List of Tables .......................................................................................................................... PART 1 1995 Field Season Report ................................................................................................... 1 Introduction ............................................................................................................................ 1 Objectives .............................................................................................................................. 1 Nesting Activity ....................................................................................................................