Conservation Biology Research Grants Program Natural Heritage & Nongame Research Program1 Division of Ecological Services Minnesota Department of Natural Resources BIODIVERSITY OF SOUTHEASTERN MINNESOTA FORESTED STREAMS: RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN TROUT HABITAT IMPROVEMENT PRACTICES, RIPARIAN COMMUNITIES AND THE LOUISIANA WATERTHRUSH REPORT TO: NATURAL HERITAGE AND NONGAME WILDLIFE PROGRAM PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATORS: JENNIFER HATHAWAY STUCKER DR. FRANCESCA J. CUTHBERT DEPARTMENT OF FISHERIES AND WILDLIFE UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA 1980 FOLWELL AVE. ST. PAUL, MN, 55108 JANUARY 2000 DO NOT PUBLISH OR DISTRIBUTE WITHOUT WRITTEN PERMISSION OF AUTHORS 2 Jennifer Hathaway Stucker 2000 3 TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT ACKNOWLDGEMENTS CHAPTER 1. Louisiana Waterthrush Ecology in Southeastern Minnesota Introduction.......... ............................................. ......................................... 1 Study Area ........... ............................................. ......................................... 2 Methods ................ ............................................. ......................................... 4 Point Counts .................................... ...... .............. ................................. 4 Nest Searching.................................. ...... .............. ................................. 6 Nest Measurements ....................................... ......................................... 7 Aquatic Invertebrates ............................................................................. 7 Stream and Streambank Habitat..................... ......................................... 8 Statistics .......................................... ...... .............. ................................. 8 Results ................... ............................................. ......................................... 10 Natural History ................................ ...... .............. ................................. 10 Reproductive Success....................... ...... .............. ................................. 15 Point Counts and Bird Communities ...... .............. ................................. 17 Stream and Stream Bank Habitat .... ...... .............. ................................. 21 Aquatic Invertebrates......................................... ............. ....... ............... 21 Discussion............... ............................................. ......................................... 32 Natural History ................................................. ............. ....... ............... 32 Reproductive Success........................................ ............. ....... ............... 33 Co-occurring Avian Species .............................. ............. ....... ............... 34 4 Stream and Stream Bank Habitat....................... ............. ....... ............... 35 Aquatic Invertebrates......................................... ............. ....... ............... 36 Conservation and Management Implications ............................................37 References ......................................................................................................39 CHAPTER 2. Trout Habitat Improvement Projects and Avian Communities of southeastern Minnesota Introduction ..................................................................................................42 Study Area ....................................................................................................44 Methods..........................................................................................................46 Point Counts ................................................................... ....... ...............46 Nest Searching ............................................................... ....... ...............48 Nest Measurements ........................................................ ....... ...............49 Statistics ......................................................................... ....... ...............49 Results ............................................................................................................52 HI and Avian Species and Communities .......... ............. ....... ...............52 HI and Louisiana Waterthrushes ....................... ............. ....... ...............52 HI, Louisiana Waterthrushes, and Avian Species and Communities .....60 Discussion ......................................................................................................93 HI and Avian Species and Communities .......... ............. ....... ...............93 HI, Louisiana Waterthrushes, and Avian Species and Communities .....94 Conservation and Management Implications ...........................................97 References .....................................................................................................99 5 CHAPTER 3. Trout Habitat Improvement Projects, Macroinvertebrate Communities and Riparian Physical Habitats of Southeastern Minnesota Introduction ................................................................................................ 103 Study Area .................................................................................................. 106 Methods ........................................................................................................ 109 Aquatic Invertebrates . ............................................................................ 109 Stream and Streambank Habitat............................................................... 110 Statistics....................... ............................................................................ 111 Results ......................................................................................................... 111 Macroinvertebrates and HI Projects ....................................................... 111 Macroinvertebrates, Habitats, HI and Louisiana Waterthrushes ............ 111 Discussion .................................................................................................... 131 Macroinvertebrate Species, Assemblages and HI Projects ..................... 131 Physical Habitat and HI Projects............................................ .... ........... 132 Macroinvertebrates, Habitats, HI and Louisiana Waterthrushes. ........... 132 Conservation and Management Implications ......................... .... ........... 134 References................................................... ...... ......................................... 136 APPENDICES A. Avian species detected during point counts and community categories B. Aquatic invertebrate species identified from Surber samples 6 TABLES AND FIGURES CHAPTER 1. Table 1. Streams, watersheds and Louisiana Waterthrush breeding locations in southeastern Minnesota Table 2. Louisiana Waterthrush locations during 1996 -1997 Figure 1. Map of streams studies in southeastern Minnesota Figure 2. Height and distance ranges for Louisiana Waterthrush nests Figure 3. Bank angle and nest entrance direction for Louisiana Waterthrush nests... Figure 4. Leaves found in Louisiana Waterthrush nest bases Figure 5. Louisiana Waterthrush eggs, chicks, fledglings, and nonviable eggs per nest Figure 6. Brown headed Cowbird eggs, chicks, fledglings, and nonviable eggs per Louisiana Waterthrush nest Figure 7. Average number of Acadian Flycatchers, Veerys, and Louisiana Waterthrushes Figure 8. Average number of Black capped Chickadees, Eastern Wood Pewees, Swamp Sparrows and Great Crested Flycatchers Figure 9. Average number of permanent residents and permanent residents of disturbed habitat. Figure 10. Average number of breeding continental migrants of contiguous forest Figure 11. Number of species detected along streams in southeastern Minnesota Figure 12. Average number of Common Yellowthroats, Eastern Towhees and Chipping Sparrows .. Figure 13. Average number of open habitat species and transient migrants Figure 14. Percentage of stream in riffle, run and pool habitats Figure 15. Percentage of stream edge, and exposed and vegetated banks 7 Figure 16. Percentage of rock% July and rock% April exposed with streams. Figure 17. Average Ephemeroptera Plecoptera Trichoptera (EPT), Trichoptera and Plecoptera dominance CHAPTER 2. Table 1. Study areas counties, stream, sample sizes, years, and HI work Figure 1. Streams studied in southeastern Minnesota and HI classification Figure 2. Data analysis categories Figure 3. Chipping and Field Sparrows and HI Figure 4. Brown headed Cowbirds and Red winged Blackbirds and HI Figure 5. Continental migrants, disturbed forest species and forest edge species and HI Figure 6. Breeding continental migrants of disturbed, open and water habitats and HI Figure 7. Acadian Flycatchers, Veerys and Louisiana Waterthrushes and HI Figure 8. Permanent residents of forest and disturbed habitat and HI Figure 9. American Redstarts and Eastern Phoebes and HI Figure 10. American Goldfinches, LOWA and HI Figure 11. Field Sparrows, LOWA and HI Figure 12. Red winged Blackbirds, LOWA and HI Figure 13. Continental migrating open habitat species, LOWA and HI Figure 14. Forest edge habitat species, LOWA and HI Figure 15. Warbling Vireos, LOWA and HI Figure 16. Acadian Flycatchers, LOWA and HI Figure 17. Eastern Phoebes , LOWA and HI Figure 18. Brown headed Cowbirds, LOWA and HI Figure 19. Common Yellowthroats, LOWA and HI Figure 20. Great Blue Herons, LOWA and HI Figure 21. Ruffed Grouse, LOWA and HI 8 Figure 22. House Wren, LOWA and HI Figure 23. Permanent residents