Response of Breeding Songbirds to Vegetation Management in Conifer Plantations Established in Boreal Mixedwoods

Abstract

We examined the response of breeding songbird communities 11 years after four vegetation management treatments were applied. Post-treatment vegetation was characterized by manually interpreting large-scale aerial photography and estimating proportional cover of eight vegetation classes. Songbird abundance was assessed by territory mapping. Using GIS layers, number of registrations and average vegetation proportions were compared among treatments. Ordination of the relative abundance of the 11 most frequent bird species suggested differences between Vision® and untreated areas. These results show that effects of vegetation management on songbirds may be more persistent than previous studies suggest and that monitoring should continue.Key words: ecological inertia, forest vegetation management, singing male avian communities RÉSUMÉ Nous avons étudié les réactions des communautés d' oiseaux chanteurs 11 ans après l'application de quatre traitements de contrôle de la végétation. La végétation après traitement était évaluée par l'interprétation manuelle de photographies à grande échelle et par l' estimation du recouvrement proportionnel de huit classes de végétation. L'abondance des oiseaux chanteurs a été établie par la cartographie du territoire. En utilisant des unités de surface obtenues par un SIG, le nombre d'inscriptions et les proportions moyennes de la végétation ont été comparés entre les traitements. La classification de l'abondance relative des 11 espèces d' oiseaux les plus fréquentes laissent entrevoir des différences entre les superficies traitées au Vision® et les superficies non traitées. Ces résultats démontrent que les effets du contrôle de la végétation sur les oiseaux chanteurs seraient plus persistants que ne l'indiquent les études antérieures et que le suivi devrait être maintenu.Mots clés : inertie écologique, contrôle de la végétation forestière, communautés aviaires de mâles chanteurs

The database of the PREDICTS (Projecting Responses of Ecological Diversity In Changing Terrestrial Systems) project

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ThePREDICTSdatabase: a global database of how local terrestrial biodiversity responds to human impacts

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Synthesis of Silviculture Options, Costs, and Consequences of Alternative Vegetation Management Practices Relevant to Boreal and Temperate Conifer Forests: Introduction

“…As well, they indicate that these effects may be more persistent than previous studies suggest. Zimmerman et al (2011) recommend that songbird monitoring studies continue beyond the expected turnover time (i.e., the life expectancy of the resident population of songbirds at the time the treatment was applied) of the study populations. McLaren et al (1998) suggested a list of possible wildlife indicator species for monitoring the effects of forest management in boreal Ontario.…”

“…Lautenschlager and Sullivan (2002), Guiseppe et al (2006), and NCASI (2009) recommended evaluating treatment effects at the species level in the context of how specific treatments affect habitat for the species. Zimmerman et al (2011) examine abundance of songbirds in relation to habitat within a replicated study 11 years after establishment of the conifer plantations. Vegetation management treatments included aerial application of herbicides (glyphosate and triclopyr), cutting (motor-manual cutting with brush saws and tractor-mounted Silvana Selective ® ), and untreated controls.…”