Dean F. Stauffer

Forestry Matters: Decline of Oaks Will Impact Wildlife in Hardwood Forests

Abstract Acorn production by oaks (Quercus spp.) is an important food resource for wildlife in many deciduous forests. Its role as a hard mast crop that can be either stored or used to build fat reserves for winter survival cannot be replaced by most other potential foods. Changes in forest management, introduced pests and pathogens, and increased deer populations have resulted in significant changes in the demography of oaks in eastern North America, as evident in Forest Inventory and Analysis data. Specifically, maples (Acer spp.) are replacing oaks in many forests through dominance of the younger age classes. These changes are not yet obvious in mast production but will take decades to reverse. Effective forest management for mast production is arguably one of the more important tasks facing wildlife professionals, yet receives scant attention by both public and private land managers. Public forests need to explicitly include mast production in their forest planning and reduce adversarial relationships over forest management. Market forces are driving commercial forests toward forest certification. Private forests compose 80% of our oak forests and are the hardest group to influence. States have not been able to effectively market forest plans and we recommend joining with advocacy groups more adept at motivating the public. Increased communication between wildlife and forestry professionals is needed through agency restructuring and joint meetings of professional agencies at the state level. Professional wildlife and forest managers are encouraged to make increased use of monitoring data and form a multiagency cooperative using a joint venture model, which has been successful for other organizations.

Habitat use and movements of American black ducks in winter

We determined habitat use and movement patterns of 22 female American black ducks (Anas rubripes) wintering at Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge (NWR), Virginia, with radio telemetry and aerial survey techniques during 15 December 1985-28 February 1986. Proportional use of saltmarsh, impoundment, and natural pool habitats was greater (P 1. Habitat use was affected by the day-night cycle and a tide-ice interaction. J. WILDL. MANAGE. 53(2):390-400 American black duck populations wintering along the Atlantic Flyway have declined almost 50% since 1954 (Steiner 1984). Excessive harvest (Geis et al. 1971, Blandin 1982, Grandy 1983), acid rain (Hansen 1987), and hybridization with mallards (Anas platyrhynchos) (Heusmann 1974, Ankney et al. 1987) have been suggested as factors responsible for this decline. Others believe that loss and degradation of wintering habitat may be affecting black duck populations, although the evidence is somewhat con-

Sub-sampling Genetic Data to Estimate Black Bear Population Size: A Case Study

Abstract Costs for genetic analysis of hair samples collected for individual identification of bears average approximately US

Ruffed Grouse (Bonasa umbellus) Brood Microhabitat Selection in the Southern Appalachians

50 [2004] per sample. This can easily exceed budgetary allowances for large-scale studies or studies of high-density bear populations. We used 2 genetic datasets from 2 areas in the southeastern United States to explore how reducing costs of analysis by sub-sampling affected precision and accuracy of resulting population estimates. We used several sub-sampling scenarios to create subsets of the full datasets and compared summary statistics, population estimates, and precision of estimates generated from these subsets to estimates generated from the complete datasets. Our results suggested that bias and precision of estimates improved as the proportion of total samples used increased, and heterogeneity models (e.g., Mh[Chao]) were more robust to reduced sample sizes than other models (e.g., behavior models). We recommend that only high-quality samples (>5 hair follicles) be used when budgets are constrained, and efforts should be made to maximize capture and recapture rates in the field.

Relationship of Ruffed Grouse (Bonasa umbellus) Home Range Size to Landscape Characteristics

Abstract Brood cover is a critical component of ruffed grouse habitat during a period when chick mortality may be high. We compared microhabitat characteristics at ruffed grouse (Bonasa umbellus) brood locations with random locations to determine characteristics selected by females with broods in the Appalachian region of Virginia and West Virginia. Females with broods used forested sites with a well-developed overstory canopy (>70%). These sites had a higher abundance of arthropods in the first 3 wk after hatch (P = 0.02), taller ground cover (P < 0.1) and higher percent ground cover (P < 0.1) in the first 6 wk after hatch than random sites. Total woody stem densities were not different (P > 0.1) between brood and random sites as has been found in several studies from more northern sites. Most management prescriptions for ruffed grouse brood habitat are based on increasing hardwood stem densities; our results suggest alternative habitat management techniques that promote ground cover, such as prescribed burning and forest stand thinning, may be more appropriate in the southern Appalachian region.

Hunting, Exotic Carnivores, and Habitat Loss: Anthropogenic Effects on a Native Carnivore Community, Madagascar

Abstract We investigated how size and spatial arrangement of landscape-level habitat types influenced home range size of ruffed grouse (Bonasa umbellus) in Virginia. Grouse home ranges were overlaid onto a GIS database derived from Landsat TM imagery (30-m pixel scale) and landscape metrics were calculated for 22 habitat types. We used multiple regression to relate home range size to landscape metrics. The amount of core area within the habitat patches in a birds home range, number of different habitat types, mean shape index of the habitat patches (all positive relations), and amount of high contrast edge (negative relation) predicted home range size (Radj2 = 0.617, P < 0.01). Our results suggested that landscapes containing small (0.5–5 ha), regularly shaped (e.g., square) patches with high interspersion of preferred habitat types and an extensive amount of high contrast edge will decrease ruffed grouse home range size and movement. Such landscapes may contain ruffed grouse habitat requirements within smaller areas, thereby reducing travel costs, decreasing exposure to predators and increasing survival.

NIGHT ROOST SELECTION DURING WINTER BY RUFFED GROUSE IN THE CENTRAL APPALACHIANS

The wide-ranging, cumulative, negative effects of anthropogenic disturbance, including habitat degradation, exotic species, and hunting, on native wildlife has been well documented across a range of habitats worldwide with carnivores potentially being the most vulnerable due to their more extinction prone characteristics. Investigating the effects of anthropogenic pressures on sympatric carnivores is needed to improve our ability to develop targeted, effective management plans for carnivore conservation worldwide. Utilizing photographic, line-transect, and habitat sampling, as well as landscape analyses and village-based bushmeat hunting surveys, we provide the first investigation of how multiple forms of habitat degradation (fragmentation, exotic carnivores, human encroachment, and hunting) affect carnivore occupancy across Madagascar’s largest protected area: the Masoala-Makira landscape. We found that as degradation increased, native carnivore occupancy and encounter rates decreased while exotic carnivore occupancy and encounter rates increased. Feral cats (Felis species) and domestic dogs (Canis familiaris) had higher occupancy than half of the native carnivore species across Madagascar’s largest protected landscape. Bird and small mammal encounter rates were negatively associated with exotic carnivore occupancy, but positively associated with the occupancy of four native carnivore species. Spotted fanaloka (Fossa fossana) occupancy was constrained by the presence of exotic feral cats and exotic small Indian civet (Viverricula indica). Hunting was intense across the four study sites where hunting was studied, with the highest rates for the small Indian civet (x¯ = 90 individuals consumed/year), the ring-tailed vontsira (Galidia elegans) (x¯ = 58 consumed/year), and the fosa (Cryptoprocta ferox) (x¯ = 31 consumed/year). Our modeling results suggest hunters target intact forest where carnivore occupancy, abundance, and species richness, are highest. These various anthropogenic pressures and their effects on carnivore populations, especially increases in exotic carnivores and hunting, have wide-ranging, global implications and demand effective management plans to target the influx of exotic carnivores and unsustainable hunting that is affecting carnivore populations across Madagascar and worldwide.

Ruffed Grouse Nest Success and Habitat Selection in the Central and Southern Appalachians

Abstract In northern regions, ruffed grouse (Bonasa umbellus) conserve considerable energy during winter by burrowing under snow cover to roost. When conditions are unsuitable for snow burrowing grouse almost invariably roost in conifers. We studied selection of winter night roosts by ruffed grouse in western Virginia, a region where snow accumulations are rare and transient. Grouse almost always used ground roosts when snow was present even though snow was never deep enough for snow burrowing. When snow was absent grouse did not show any clear preference in roost microsite type, and were found roosting in and under deciduous and evergreen trees and shrubs, in brush piles, and in leaf litter. We hypothesize that this ambivalence to conifers was due in part to persistent accumulations of fallen oak leaves, which likely afford grouse good thermal cover and concealment. Grouse were frequently found at low elevations during daytime, but rarely roosted in bottoms. This suggests daily elevational movements, possibly to avoid cold air settling in low-lying areas during night.

Relationship of ruffed grouse Bonasa umbellus to landscape characteristics in southwest Virginia, USA

Abstract Ruffed grouse (Bonasa umbellus; hereafter, grouse) populations in the central and southern Appalachians are experiencing declines, which may be linked to deteriorating recruitment. Because nest success is an important component of recruitment, understanding the influence of habitat on nest success is important for developing regional grouse management strategies. Therefore, our objectives were to determine grouse nest success rates, characterize nest site selection, and identify habitat characteristics associated with successful nests in this region. From 1995 to 2002, we located 234 nests, of which 147 (63%) were successful (≥1 egg hatched). We characterized habitat at 167 of these nests and compared successful and unsuccessful nests using logistic regression and Akaikes Information Criterion (AIC). Similarly, we characterized nest site selection by pairing 73 nests with 1–8 nearby systematic sites and conducting a matched-pairs logistic regression followed by AIC. Eleven of 25 candidate models of nest success were supported; distance to a road or opening, ground cover, deciduous canopy cover, coarse woody debris, and basal area were increasingly important predictors of nest success. Increases in basal area, coarse woody debris, and deciduous canopy cover improved the odds of nest success. Alternatively, greater amounts of ground cover and increased distance to a road or opening decreased the odds of a nest being successful. The two supported models of habitat selection were basal area with coarse woody debris and basal area alone. Odds of a habitat being selected increased with both variables. Selection of these habitat elements likely reflects the tendency for females to nest at the base of large trees, stumps, or logs, which can reduce their exposure to predators and seems to improve nest success. Increased ground cover may reduce the females ability to detect a predator and increase the susceptibility of a nest. We recommend managers ensure coarse woody debris is available for nest sites, particularly when logging operations (e.g., clearcuts, thinnings) remove a high proportion of the standing basal area.

Landscape-level habitat use and movement patterns of black bears in northeastern Arizona

We examined ruffed grouse Bonasa umbellus selection of landscape characteristics and cover types. Grouse home ranges derived from telemetry data gathered from fall 1996 through fall 1998 were overlaid onto a GIS map of the Clinch Mountain Wildlife Management Area, southwest Virginia, USA, composed of 22 cover types (10,343 ha). We calculated the landscape metrics using FRAG-STATS/ARC. We compared landscape metrics of 23 home ranges to those calculated for the area encompassed by the home range plus a surrounding 300 m buffer, and to metrics calculated for 50 random plots of 33 ha each. We used compositional analysis to test for preferential use of cover types. Ruffed grouse selected areas with high densities of smaller than average patches of uniform size and shape, containing higher than average amounts of high contrast edge (P < 0.01). Grouse preferred areas containing a greater diversity of cover types (P < 0.01). Regeneration cuts and mesic deciduous stands with a rhododendron Rhododendron spp.-laurel Kalmia latifolia understory were the most preferred cover types (P < 0.10). Creating and maintaining a landscape with high densities of small patches of uniform size and regular shape would provide the highest quality ruffed grouse habitat in this region. These patches should contain early successional cover. Rhododendron and/or laurel thickets may act as supplemental cover in the absence of regeneration cuts, and may also be beneficial as winter cover.