Habitat and Species Cooperative Restoration Program Joint Base Lewis-McChord Center for Natural Lands Management JBLM Lark Monitoring Final Report 2015 W911S8-14-2-0026 W911S8-15-2-0001 CNLM Task Orders #G1108, G1118 April 2016 Submitted to: Joint Base Lewis-McChord Fish and Wildlife Program Submitted by: Adrian Wolf, Gary Slater and Hannah Anderson Center for Natural Lands Management 120 Union Avenue Southeast Olympia WA, 98501 Phone: 360-584-2538 Joint Base Lewis-McChord is a key military installation and the most important conservation area in the Puget Trough region. The Center for Natural Lands Management strives to assist Joint Base Lewis-McChord in the conservation of its natural resources within the framework of the military training mandate. Joint Base Lewis- McChord and its conservation partners have shared interests because: Healthy natural ecosystems are essential for realistic and sustainable training lands. Rare species recovery throughout the region reduces the burden of recovery on any single landowner or site. Pest plants harm natural areas and reduce their suitability for military training. Page 2 Table of Contents Project Highlights ............................................................................................................................ 5 1.0 Introduction ............................................................................................................................. 6 1.1 Goals and Objectives ............................................................................................................ 6 2.0 Abundance and Distribution .................................................................................................... 8 2.1 Methods ............................................................................................................................... 8 2.1.1 Abundance Transects .................................................................................................... 8 2.1.2 Area Searches of Sites with Unknown Occupation Status (Occupancy Surveys) ......... 8 2.2 Results and Discussion ......................................................................................................... 9 2.2.1 Abundance Transects .................................................................................................... 9 2.2.2 Area Searches/Occupancy Surveys ............................................................................... 9 3.0 Territory Mapping .................................................................................................................. 12 3.1 Methods ............................................................................................................................. 12 3.1.1 Home Range ................................................................................................................ 12 3.2 Results ................................................................................................................................. 13 3.2.1 Breeding Pairs and Territories .................................................................................... 13 4.0 Nest Monitoring ..................................................................................................................... 19 4.1 Methods ............................................................................................................................. 19 4.1.1 Nests ............................................................................................................................ 19 4.1.2 Clutch Initiation Date .................................................................................................. 20 4.1.3 Vital Rates ................................................................................................................... 20 4.1.4 Characterizing Human Activities ................................................................................. 21 4.1.5 Communications with JBLM Airfield and Training Area Managers ............................ 22 4.2 Results and Discussion ....................................................................................................... 22 4.2.1 Nests ............................................................................................................................ 22 4.2.3 Clutch Initiation Date .................................................................................................. 23 4.2.4 Vital Rates ................................................................................................................... 23 4.2.5 Characterizing Human Activities ................................................................................. 27 4.2.6 Noteworthy Species .................................................................................................... 28 5.0 Genetic Rescue at 13th Division Prairie ................................................................................. 28 6.0 Juvenile and Adult Survivorship ............................................................................................. 30 6.1 Methods ............................................................................................................................. 31 6.1.1 Serpentine Transects and Juvenile Area Searches ..................................................... 31 6.1.2 Return Rates ................................................................................................................ 31 6.1.3 Annual Survival ............................................................................................................ 31 6.1.4 Post-fledging Survival .................................................................................................. 32 6.2 Results and Discussion ....................................................................................................... 33 6.2.1 Serpentine Transects and Juvenile Area Searches ..................................................... 33 6.2.2 Return Rates ................................................................................................................ 34 6.2.3 Annual Survival (Program MARK) ............................................................................... 35 6.2.4 Post-fledging Survival .................................................................................................. 37 SHLA_JBLM_FinalReport_2015 Page 3 7.0 Optimizing Site Co-Use ........................................................................................................... 40 7.1 Breeding Phenology and Fledgling Vulnerability ............................................................... 42 7.1.1 Communications with JBLM Airfield and Training Area Managers ............................ 42 8.0 Population Management Recommendations ........................................................................ 45 8.1 Coordinate Management Actions Closely with Nest Status .............................................. 45 8.2 Continue Lark Monitoring at Occupied Sites ..................................................................... 46 8.3 Convert Vegetation at Airfields .......................................................................................... 46 8.4 Evaluate Effect of Disturbances ......................................................................................... 47 8.5 Survey Other Suspected and Potential Lark Locations ...................................................... 47 9.0 Habitat Management at 13th Division Prairie ....................................................................... 48 10.0 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................ 48 11.0 Acknowledgments ................................................................................................................ 50 12.0 Literature Cited .................................................................................................................... 51 13.0 Appendices ........................................................................................................................... 55 List of Figures Figure 1. Streaked Horned Lark study sites on, and in the vicinity of, JBLM, WA in 2015. .......................... 7 Figure 2. Maximum number of Streaked Horned Lark males and total maximum number counted on abundance transects surveys at four sites on JBLM, WA, 2010-2015 ........................................................ 10 Figure 3. Streaked Horned Lark detection locations from abundance transects and nest locations, 13th Division Prairie, Gray Army Airfield, McChord Airfield, Range 76 and Range 50, in 2015 at JBLM, WA .... 11 Figure 4. Site use areas, territory home ranges and nest locations at 13th Division Prairie in 2015, at JBLM, WA .................................................................................................................................................... 16 Figure 5. Site use areas, territory home ranges and nest locations at McChord Airfield in 2015 at JBLM, WA ............................................................................................................................................................... 17 Figure 6. Site use areas, territory home ranges and nest locations at Gray Army Airfield in 2015 at JBLM, WA ............................................................................................................................................................... 18 Figure 7. Number of nests initiated by date