Research poster: Eco-hydrological pathways inferred from stable isotopes in a Pinus ponderosa and Pinus monophylla woodland of the Sheep Range, southern Great Basin, USA

Research poste

Final Report for W-162-R-4: The Forests and Woodlands Campaign of the Illinois Wildlife Action Plan – Segment 4

To better understand the response of wildlife populations to forest management activities under the wildlife action plan, Segment 4 of the Forest Campaign was devised to meet the following objectives (1 September 2013 through 31 August 2014): 1) Continue monitoring protocols that measure the response of forest wildlife to various forest management tools that include, but are not limited to, thinning, fire, re-forestation that reduces forest fragmentation, and the removal of invasive exotic plant species; 2) Use a “before-after-treatment-control” monitoring framework (with replication) in a number of sites across Illinois to begin documenting the effects of forest management on populations of forest- and woodland-dwelling birds; 3) Identify existing and begin developing new demonstration sites that highlight successful forest management techniques and actions, and that can be used to inform and educate various constituencies.Illinois Department of Natural Resources Division of Wildlifeunpublishednot peer reviewedOpe

Monitoring grassland birds at Pyramid State park, Perry County, Illinois

The specific objectives of this research were : (1) To conduct a second year of avian surveys at the Pyramid State Park grassland complex, Perry County, Illinois to document all species utilizing the site during the breeding season and winter. (2) Identify any state listed species and the habitats that they are using, and document any unusually high concentrations of grassland birds present within the complex. (3) Submit all sightings and confirmed breeding by state listed species at PSP to the Natural Heritage Database . (4) Complete a report summarizing the presence, abundance and distribution of birds in the PSP grassland complex. Report presents on monitoring from 1 January to 30 July 2003.Illinois Department of Natural Resources, Illinois Wildlife Preservation Fundunpublishednot peer reviewedOpe

Final Report for W-162-R-9: The Forests and Woodlands Campaign of the Illinois Wildlife Action Plan - Segment 9

To better understand the response of wildlife populations to forest management activities under the wildlife action plan, Segment 9 of the Forest Campaign was devised to meet the following objectives (1 September 2018 through 31 August 2019): 1) Continue the implementation of monitoring protocols that measure the response of forest wildlife to various forest management tools including thinning, fire, re-forestation, and the removal of invasive exotic plant species; 2) Use a “before-after-treatment-control” monitoring framework (with replication) at 5 or more sites across Illinois (more than 450 established survey points each visited multiple times per year) to document the immediate and longer-term effects of forest management on populations of forest and woodland-dwelling birds and other wildlife; 3) Use breeding bird point counts (~450 points), “camera traps” (~100 7-day deployments), and nocturnal bird surveys (at 3 of the study sites), all in conjunction with vegetation surveys (~225 points) to document how management activities affect forest structure and composition and in turn influence particular species; 4) Submit at least one manuscript for publication in a peer-reviewed journal and provide one popular article about this project to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources by the grant end date (popular article will be approximately 500 words in length with at least two pictures provided).U.S. Fish and Wildlife ServiceIllinois Department of Natural Resources Division of Wildlifeunpublishednot peer reviewedOpe

Final Report for W-162-R-2: The Forests and Woodlands Campaign of the Illinois Wildlife Action Plan – Segment 2

The Forests and Woodlands Campaign (Forest Campaign hereafter) is one of the important campaigns outlined in the Illinois Comprehensive Wildlife Conservation Plan and Strategy (wildlife action plan). The wildlife action plan highlights very well the many current conservation issues involving Illinois’ wooded habitats including the alteration or loss of natural disturbance processes, changing composition of forested habitats away from oak-hickory dominance to maple dominance, general decline in forest quality caused by increasing numbers of invasive exotic plant species, and extensive forest fragmentation. While the wildlife action plan provides direction in the form of a general list of priority actions, the Forest Campaign, over the next several years will specifically move the wildlife action plan forward by addressing the following needs: 1) Forging new and reinvigorating existing conservation partnerships consisting of those groups committed to improving Illinois’ forests and forest wildlife; 2) Identifying and collaborating with organizations that are implementing specific forest wildlife conservation activities, particularly those emphasizing the already-identified Conservation Opportunity Areas (COAs) around the state; 3) Developing strategies to facilitate additional priority forest management actions outlined in the wildlife action plan; 4) Establishing goals and specific targets for what the response of the wildlife and habitat to these actions should be; 5) Using the best science available to establish monitoring protocols to measure the effectiveness of management activities and determine whether or not wildlife and habitat goals are being achieved; 6) Establishing demonstration sites where land managers and the public can observe and learn more about forest management in action and how it benefits wildlife.Illinois Department fo Natural Resources Division of Wildlifeunpublishednot peer reviewedOpe

Final Report for W-162-R-8: The Forests and Woodlands Campaign of the Illinois Wildlife Action Plan - Segment 8

To better understand the response of wildlife populations to forest management activities under the wildlife action plan, Segment 8 of the Forest Campaign was devised to meet the following objectives (1 September 2017 through 31 August 2018): 1) Continue the implementation of monitoring protocols that measure the response of forest wildlife to various forest management tools including, but not limited to, thinning, fire, timber harvest, and the removal of invasive exotic plant species; 2) Use a “before-after-treatment-control” monitoring framework (with replication) at 6 or more sites across Illinois (more than 450 established survey points each visited multiple times per year) to document the immediate and longer-term effects of forest management on populations of forest and woodland-dwelling birds and other wildlife; 3) Specifically, to use breeding bird point counts (~450 points distributed among 5 study sites each visited twice when possible during May-July), “camera traps” (~50 point subset of the 450 survey points each surveyed with a 7-day camera deployment), and nocturnal nightjar surveys (at least 10 survey points at each of 3 study sites, each point visited 2 times during late April and early June), all in conjunction with vegetation surveys (~225 point subset of the 450 survey points sampled during July-August and representing the various treatments and controls) to document how management activities affect forest structure and composition and in turn influence particular wildlife species. 4) One popular article about this project will be provided to the Illinois Department of Natural Resources by the grant end date. This article will be approximately 500 words in length with at least 2 pictures provided.Illinois Department of Natural Resources Division of Wildlifeunpublishednot peer reviewedOpe

Final Report for W-162-R-6: The Forests and Woodlands Campaign of the Illinois Wildlife Action Plan - Segment 6

To better understand the response of wildlife populations to forest management activities under the wildlife action plan, Segment 6 of the Forest Campaign was devised to meet the following objectives (1 September 2015 through 31 August 2016): 1) Continue monitoring protocols that measure the response of forest wildlife to various forest management tools that include, but are not limited to, thinning, fire, and the removal of invasive exotic plant species; 2) Use a “before-after-treatment-control” monitoring framework (with replication) in a number of sites across Illinois to begin documenting the effects of forest management on populations of forest- and woodland-dwelling birds; 3) Identify existing and begin developing new demonstration sites that highlight successful forest management techniques and actions, and that can be used to inform and educate various constituencies.Illinois Department of Natural Resources Division of Wildlifeunpublishednot peer reviewedOpe

Final Report for W-162-R-7: The Forests and Woodlands Campaign of the Illinois Wildlife Action Plan - Segment 7

To better understand the response of wildlife populations to forest management activities under the wildlife action plan, Segment 7 of the Forest Campaign was devised to meet the following objectives (1 September 2016 through 31 August 2017): 1) Continue monitoring the response of forest wildlife to various forest management tools that include, but are not limited to, thinning, fire, re-forestation, and the removal of invasive exotic plant species; 2) Use a “before-after-treatment-control” monitoring framework (with replication) at 4 or more sites across Illinois (more than 400 established survey points each visited multiple times per year) to document the immediate and longer-term effects of forest management on populations of forest and woodland-dwelling songbirds; 3) Specifically, to use breeding bird point counts (~400 points distributed among 5 study sites each visited at least twice during May-July), winter bird point counts (~150 point subset of the 400 survey points each visited once during December-February), “camera traps” (~60 point subset of the 400 survey points each surveyed with a 5-day camera deployment), and nocturnal nightjar surveys (10 survey points at each of 2 study sites, each point visited 6 times during May-July), all in conjunction with vegetation surveys (~200 point subset of the 400 survey points sampled during July-August and representing the various treatments and controls) to document how management activities affect forest structure and composition and in turn influence particular wildlife species.Illinois Department of Natural Resources Division of Wildlifeunpublishednot peer reviewedOpe

Effects of bottomland forest restoration on the breeding bird community in the Cache River watershed - Year 3

We include the project justification and objectives for the entire 3-year research endeavor, and provide a summary of what was accomplished during, and some preliminary results from, the third year. We are continuing to enter and analyze data from our bird surveys (point counts) and our nest searching and monitoring efforts (from both the period 1993-1995 and 2010-2012), and we will update the USFWS with the results of new and additional analyses as we complete them. The size and scope of this database are such that we anticipate the publication of several manuscripts from it in the next 3 years and will send copies of those to the USFWS as they become availableUnited States Fish and Wildlife Service INT F12AC00297unpublishednot peer reviewedOpe