Structural Characteristics of Grasshopper Sparrow Habitat

Whitmore, Robert C.

doi:10.2307/3808729

Cited by 51 publications

(40 citation statements)

References 2 publications

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“…However, in areas where grass is too tall or dense, grazing benefits Grasshopper Sparrows by creating patchy areas, decreasing vegetation height, and thinning dense vegetation (Skinner 1974, Kantrud 1981, Whitmore 1981. Kantrud and Kologiski (1982) found significantly greater Grasshopper Sparrow densities on lightly grazed plots than on heavily grazed plots, and moderately grazed plots supported intermediate sparrow densities.…”

Section: Brown-headed Cowbird Brood Parasitismmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In eastern and Great Plains grasslands, discourage woody vegetation (Whitmore 1981). This can be accomplished by disturbing (mowing, burning, or grazing) idle grassland (Skinner 1974).…”

Section: Management Recommendationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Maintain open grassland by burning habitat once every 2-4 yr (Whitmore 1981, Madden 1996, Johnson 1997, Madden et al 1999. In Minnesota, Johnson and Temple (1990) found lower rates of nest depredation on nests in recently burned (<3 yr) areas.…”

Section: Management Recommendationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Plant bunch grasses on disturbed sites; bunch grasses allow openings in vegetation that facilitate foraging by Grasshopper Sparrows (Smith 1963, Whitmore 1981.…”

Section: Management Recommendationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Regardless of management treatment, avoid disturbing (e.g., burning, haying, heavy grazing) nesting habitat during the breeding season, approximately mid-April to late August (Stewart 1975, Whitmore 1981, Frawley 1989, Rodenhouse et al 1995, Vickery 1996. Treatments can be done in early spring (several weeks prior to the arrival of adults on the breeding grounds) or possibly in the fall after the breeding season, as suggested for Bobolinks (Dolichonyx oryzivorus) (Renken 1983, Martin andGavin 1995).…”

Section: Brown-headed Cowbird Brood Parasitismmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Effects of management practices on grassland birds: Grasshopper Sparrow

Dechant¹,

Sondreal²,

Johnson³

et al. 1998

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Section: Brown-headed Cowbird Brood Parasitismmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In eastern and Great Plains grasslands, discourage woody vegetation (Whitmore 1981). This can be accomplished by disturbing (mowing, burning, or grazing) idle grassland (Skinner 1974).…”

Section: Management Recommendationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Management Recommendationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Plant bunch grasses on disturbed sites; bunch grasses allow openings in vegetation that facilitate foraging by Grasshopper Sparrows (Smith 1963, Whitmore 1981.…”

Section: Management Recommendationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Brown-headed Cowbird Brood Parasitismmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Effects of management practices on grassland birds: Grasshopper Sparrow

Dechant¹,

Sondreal²,

Johnson³

et al. 1998

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Social interactions do not drive territory aggregation in a grassland songbird

Winnicki

Munguía

Williams

et al. 2019

Ecology

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2020. Social interactions do not drive territory aggregation in a grassland songbird. Ecology 101(2):Abstract. Understanding the drivers of animal distributions is a fundamental goal of ecology and informs habitat management. The costs and benefits of colonial aggregations in animals are well established, but the factors leading to aggregation in territorial animals remain unclear. Territorial animals might aggregate to facilitate social behavior such as (1) group defense from predators and/or parasites, (2) cooperative care of offspring, (3) extra-pair mating, and/or (4) mitigating costs of extra-pair mating through kin selection. Using experimental and observational methods, we tested predictions of all four hypotheses in a tallgrass prairie in northeast Kansas, United States. Grasshopper Sparrow (Ammodramus savannarum) males formed clumps of territories in some parts of the site while leaving other apparently suitable areas unoccupied. Despite substantial sampling effort (653 territories and 223 nests), we found no support for any hypothesized social driver of aggregation, nor evidence that aggregation increases nest success. Our results run counter to previous evidence that conspecific interactions shape territory distributions. These results suggest one of the following alternatives: (1) the benefits of aggregation accrue to different life-history stages, or (2) the benefits of territory aggregation may be too small to detect in short-term studies and/or the consequences of aggregation are sufficiently temporally and spatially variable that they do not always appear to be locally adaptive, perhaps exacerbated by changing landscape contexts and declining population sizes.

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Cattle grazing in CRP grasslands during the nesting season: effects on avian reproduction

et al. 2021

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Bird populations in grasslands have experienced declines coinciding with loss and fragmentation of prairies. The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)‐administered Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) is the most extensive grassland restoration program in North America and it has especially benefitted grassland birds. Grazing by domestic cattle has been restricted in CRP during avian nesting seasons despite the potential improvements in structuring habitat for a greater diversity of grassland bird species. Potential negative consequences of grazing in CRP grasslands include trampling of nests by cattle, reductions in nest concealment from predators, and attraction of brood‐parasitic brown‐headed cowbirds (Molothrus ater). We designed an experiment to test for effects of cattle grazing in CRP fields during the nesting season on nest survival and brood parasitism of 5 bird species that commonly nest in CRP grasslands: mourning dove (Zenaida macroura), grasshopper sparrow (Ammodramus savannarum), dickcissel (Spiza americana), and eastern (Sturnella magna) and western (S. neglecta) meadowlarks. Grazing was implemented during summers 2017 and 2018 on 17 of 36 fields followed by a year of rest on all fields in 2019. Of the 879 nests on grazed fields, only 4 were likely trampled by cattle (vs. 54% of all nests estimated as failing because of depredation). Experimental grazing (grazed vs. ungrazed fields) had variable effects on nest survival and cowbird parasitism among the bird species analyzed. Negative effects of grazing on daily nest survival of dickcissel and meadowlarks were apparent, at least in some years. We found no direct effects of grazing on nest survival of mourning dove or grasshopper sparrow. Probability and intensity (cowbird offspring/nest) of cowbird parasitism in dickcissel nests was higher on grazed versus ungrazed sites but only in conservation practice (CP) CP2 (vs. CP25 fields). Parasitism probability of grasshopper sparrow nests by cowbirds was higher on grazed fields in the 2 years after introduction of cattle in 2017. Greater vegetative concealment around nest sites was associated with reduced cowbird parasitism of meadowlark and grasshopper sparrow nests and higher nest survival for grasshopper sparrows. Reductions in vegetative height caused by longer‐term or high‐intensity grazing might therefore have negative consequences for some grassland birds by increasing nest site visibility and exposure to cowbird parasitism. Our results indicate that cattle grazing in CRP fields during the nesting season might have some negative effects on reproductive success of some grassland bird species, at least in the short term; however, the potential improvements of structuring habitat to accommodate more grassland bird species and increasing landowner participation in the CRP are considerable.

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Structural Characteristics of Grasshopper Sparrow Habitat

Cited by 51 publications

References 2 publications

Effects of management practices on grassland birds: Grasshopper Sparrow

Effects of management practices on grassland birds: Grasshopper Sparrow

Social interactions do not drive territory aggregation in a grassland songbird

Cattle grazing in CRP grasslands during the nesting season: effects on avian reproduction

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