Site occupancy of brown-headed nuthatches varies with habitat restoration and range-limit context

Stanton, Richard A.; Thompson, Frank R.; Kesler, Dylan C.

doi:10.1002/jwmg.903

Cited by 10 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…In terms of management implications, our study substantiates the utility of ENM in systematic conservation planning to focus protection efforts on areas that are predicted to become more climatically suitable in the future (Schuetz et al 2015, Grand et al 2019). For example, the Brown‐headed Nuthatch’s range is predicted to expand northwestward (Matthews et al 2011, Stanton et al 2015), and our strata‐level occupancy results suggest that birds may already be moving in that direction during both seasons (Fig. 5).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 53%

Community science validates climate suitability projections from ecological niche modeling

Saunders

Michel

Bateman

et al. 2020

Ecological Applications

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Climate change poses an intensifying threat to many bird species and projections of future climate suitability provide insight into how species may shift their distributions in response. Climate suitability is characterized using ecological niche models (ENMs), which correlate species occurrence data with current environmental covariates and project future distributions using the modeled relationships together with climate predictions. Despite their widespread adoption, ENMs rely on several assumptions that are rarely validated in situ and can be highly sensitive to modeling decisions, precluding their reliability in conservation decision‐making. Using data from a novel, large‐scale community science program, we developed dynamic occupancy models to validate near‐term climate suitability projections for bluebirds and nuthatches in summer and winter. We estimated occupancy, colonization, and extinction dynamics across species’ ranges in the United States in relation to projected climate suitability in the 2020s, and used a Gibbs variable selection approach to quantify evidence of species–climate relationships. We also included a Bird Conservation Region strata‐level random effect to examine among‐strata variation in occupancy that may be attributable to land‐use and ecoregional differences. Across species and seasons, we found strong evidence that initial occupancy and colonization were positively related to 2020 climate suitability, illustrating an independent validation of projections from ENMs across a large geographic area. Random strata effects revealed that occupancy probabilities were generally higher than average in core areas and lower than average in peripheral areas of species’ ranges, and served as a first step in identifying spatial patterns of occupancy from these community science data. Our findings lend much‐needed support to the use of ENM projections for addressing questions about potential climate‐induced changes in species’ occupancy dynamics. More broadly, our work highlights the value of community scientist observations for ground‐truthing projections from statistical models and for refining our understanding of the processes shaping species’ distributions under a changing climate.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 53%

Community science validates climate suitability projections from ecological niche modeling

Saunders

Michel

Bateman

et al. 2020

Ecological Applications

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“…All continuous site covariates were z‐standardized

x - \bar{x} / σ

to a mean of 0 and unit standard deviation prior to analysis in order to facilitate model convergence and comparisons among covariates (Stanton, Thompson, & Kesler, ). A preliminary set of 13 covariates was tested for collinearity using Pearson's correlation in R 3.3.1 (R Core Team, ).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Identifying important conservation areas for the clouded leopard Neofelis nebulosa in a mountainous landscape: Inference from spatial modeling techniques

Penjor

Macdonald

Wangchuk

et al. 2018

Ecology and Evolution

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The survival of large carnivores is increasingly precarious due to extensive human development that causes the habitat loss and fragmentation. Habitat selection is influenced by anthropogenic as well as environmental factors, and understanding these relationships is important for conservation management. We assessed the environmental and anthropogenic variables that influence site use of clouded leopard Neofelis nebulosa in Bhutan, estimated their population density, and used the results to predict the species’ site use across Bhutan. We used a large camera‐trap dataset from the national tiger survey to estimate for clouded leopards, for the first time in Bhutan, (1) population density using spatially explicit capture–recapture models and (2) site‐use probability using occupancy models accounting for spatial autocorrelation. Population density was estimated at trueD^normalBayesian=0.40 (0.10 SD) and trueD^maximum−likelihood=0.30 (0.12 SE) per 100 km2. Clouded leopard site use was positively associated with forest cover and distance to river while negatively associated with elevation. Mean site‐use probability (from the Bayesian spatial model) was trueψ^normalspatial=0.448 (0.076 SD). When spatial autocorrelation was ignored, the probability of site use was overestimated, trueψ^normalnonspatial=0.826 (0.066 SD). Predictive mapping allowed us to identify important conservation areas and priority habitats to sustain the future of these elusive, ambassador felids and associated guilds. Multiple sites in the south, many of them outside of protected areas, were identified as habitats suitable for this species, adding evidence to conservation planning for clouded leopards in continental South Asia.

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“…We assumed variables to be correlated when r > 0.7. In addition, we z -standardized all covariates ( μ = 0, SD = 1), facilitating posterior comparison of the effects amongst covariates and model convergence (Stanton et al, 2015).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Status of terrestrial mammals in the Yangambi Landscape, Democratic Republic of the Congo

Vliet¹,

Quintero²,

Muhindo³

et al. 2023

Oryx

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In this study we provide the first comprehensive camera-trap assessment of terrestrial mammals in the Yangambi landscape, comprising the Yangambi Biosphere Reserve and a logging concession in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The terrestrial mammal community in this area exhibits lower occupancy and species richness compared to other conservation areas in the Congo Basin. The community is dominated by four species: Emin's pouched rat Cricetomys emini (1.3 kg), African brush-tailed porcupine Atherurus africanus (2.8 kg), blue duiker Philantomba monticola (5 kg) and bay duiker Cephalophus dorsalis (12 kg), which are known to be highly resilient. Large ungulates and medium-sized carnivores have particularly low abundances. Our study also confirmed the presence of four species categorized as threatened on the IUCN Red List: the chimpanzee Pan troglodytes, giant ground pangolin Smutsia gigantea, black-bellied pangolin Phataginus tetradactyla and white-bellied pangolin Phataginus tricuspis. Our findings highlight the need to consider wildlife conservation at the landscape level, including the logging concession, where species showed higher occupancy levels compared to the Biosphere Reserve, and highlighting the need for planning infrastructure construction and developing mitigation schemes, reducing forest degradation from logging and developing permanent cash crop agriculture. Landscape-level conservation will only be possible if a collaborative management model steered by local communities is developed with the participation of all constituencies.

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Site occupancy of brown-headed nuthatches varies with habitat restoration and range-limit context

Cited by 10 publications

References 31 publications

Community science validates climate suitability projections from ecological niche modeling

Community science validates climate suitability projections from ecological niche modeling

Identifying important conservation areas for the clouded leopard Neofelis nebulosa in a mountainous landscape: Inference from spatial modeling techniques

Status of terrestrial mammals in the Yangambi Landscape, Democratic Republic of the Congo

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