FINAL REPORT As Required by THE ENDANGERED SPECIES PROGRAM TEXAS Grant No. TX E-102-R Endangered and Threatened Species Conservation Five-year Status Review: Golden-cheeked Warbler Prepared by: Julie Groce, Heather Mathewson, Micheal Morrison, Neal Wilkins Carter Smith Executive Director Clayton Wolf Director, Wildlife 15 April 2010 FINAL REPORT STATE: ____Texas_______________ GRANT NUMBER: ___ TX E-102-R___ GRANT TITLE: Five-year Status Review: Golden-cheeked Warbler REPORTING PERIOD: ____1 Oct 08 to 31 Mar 2010_ OBJECTIVE(S): To conduct in one year a status review of the Golden-cheeked Warbler. Segment Objectives: Task 1. Updated information and current species status. Summarize new information, citing detailed information and analyses and provide an updated status of the species, citing new information about the species and its breeding, wintering, and migratory range. Task 2. Electronic GIS layers (shapefiles or geodatabases). Task 3. An annotated bibliography using Reference Manager, ProCite or some other form of bibliographic software that can export to an RIS format, and copies (pdfs) of all literature (not already in FWS files) pertaining to the species since the time of listing. Significant Deviations: None. Summary Of Progress: Attached files contain: Attachment A – the Five-year Status Review document (pdf) Attachment B – zip file containing Personal Communications among Review participants. Files to be sent separately: Electronic files: Subgrantee is to deliver electronic GIS files to Austin ES Office. Literature cited files: These will be mailed separately as two CDs to Austin ES Office. Location: Texas State University, San Marcos, Texas. Cost: ___Costs were not available at time of this report, they will be available upon completion of the Final Report and conclusion of the project.__ Prepared by: _Craig Farquhar_____________ Date: 15 April 2010 Approved by: ______________________________ Date:_____15 April 2010__ C. Craig Farquhar 1 2 3 4 SCIENTIFIC EVALUATION FOR THE 5-YEAR STATUS REVIEW OF THE 5 GOLDEN-CHEEKED WARBLER 6 7 November 2010 8 9 10 Prepared for 11 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service 12 13 14 Prepared by 15 Julie E. Groce, Heather A. Mathewson, Michael L. Morrison, and Neal Wilkins 16 17 Institute of Renewable Natural Resources 18 and the 19 Department of Wildlife & Fisheries Sciences 20 Texas A&M University, College Station,Texas 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 1 Table of Contents 35 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY ............................................................................................................ 9 36 CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................. 12 37 1.1 Background ......................................................................................................................... 12 38 1.2 Objectives ........................................................................................................................... 12 39 1.3 Authors and Review Panel .................................................................................................. 13 40 1.3.1 Status Review Team .................................................................................................... 13 41 1.3.2 Review Panel ............................................................................................................... 13 42 1.3.3 Peer review................................................................................................................... 14 43 1.4 Scientific information and data quality ............................................................................... 14 44 1.5 Organization of the Scientific Evaluation ........................................................................... 14 45 1.6 Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................. 15 46 CHAPTER 2. GENERAL ECOLOGY......................................................................................... 16 47 2.1 Physical Appearance and Molts .......................................................................................... 16 48 2.2 Systematics ......................................................................................................................... 16 49 2.3 Geographic Distribution...................................................................................................... 17 50 2.3.1 Breeding Range ............................................................................................................ 17 51 2.3.2 Wintering Range .......................................................................................................... 18 52 2.3.3 Rare Occurrences ......................................................................................................... 21 53 2.4 Migration............................................................................................................................. 21 54 2.4.1 Route ............................................................................................................................ 21 55 2.4.2 Spring Migration .......................................................................................................... 21 56 2.4.3 Fall Migration .............................................................................................................. 22 57 2.5 Diet and Foraging Behavior ................................................................................................ 22 58 2.5.1. Breeding Grounds ....................................................................................................... 22 59 2.5.2 Wintering Grounds....................................................................................................... 24 60 2.6 Reproduction ...................................................................................................................... 25 61 2.6.1 Mating System and Extra-pair Relations ..................................................................... 25 62 2.6.2 Territories ..................................................................................................................... 26 63 2.6.3 Defense Behavior ......................................................................................................... 26 64 2.6.4 Nest Description........................................................................................................... 27 65 2.6.5 Nesting Phenology ....................................................................................................... 27 66 2.7 Vocalizations and Sounds ................................................................................................... 28 67 2.7.1 Types of Vocalizations ................................................................................................ 28 68 2.7.2 Daily and Seasonal Variation....................................................................................... 28 69 2.7.3 Social Context .............................................................................................................. 29 70 2.8 Responses to Conspecifics, Heterospecifics, and Predators ............................................... 29 71 2.9 Summary for General Ecology ........................................................................................... 31 72 Appendix 2.A. Golden-cheeked warbler molt schedule ........................................................... 32 73 Appendix 2.B. Non-breeding season records of golden-cheeked warblers in countries other 74 than the United States. .............................................................................................................. 33 75 Appendix 2.C. Locations and sample sizes for studies describing golden-cheeked warbler 76 foraging substrate and behavior on the breeding grounds of central Texas ............................. 36 77 2 Appendix 2.D. Locations and sample sizes for studies describing golden-cheeked warbler 78 foraging substrate and behavior on the wintering grounds. ...................................................... 36 79 Appendix 2.E. Bird species commonly found in mixed-species flocks with golden-cheeked 80 warblers on the golden-cheeked warbler’s wintering grounds ................................................. 37 81 CHAPTER 3. DEMOGRAPHY ................................................................................................... 38 82 3.1 Long-term Study Sites: Fort Hood, Balcones Canyonlands Preserve, and Camp Bullis ... 38 83 3.2 Trends in Relative Abundance and Density........................................................................ 39 84 3.2.1 Abundance on Fort Hood 1992–2008 .......................................................................... 39 85 3.2.2 Territory Density .......................................................................................................... 40 86 3.3 Population Structure............................................................................................................ 42 87 3.3.1 Age at First Breeding ................................................................................................... 42 88 3.3.2 Age Ratios .................................................................................................................... 42 89 3.3.3 Nestling and Hatch-year Sex Ratios ............................................................................ 43 90 3.3.4 Adult Sex Ratios .........................................................................................................