Trading Habitat Patches for the Red Cockaded Woodpecker: Incorporating the Role of Landscape Structure and Uncertainty in Decision Making

Abstract

The public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing the burden, to the Department of Defense, Executive Services and Communications Directorate (0704-0188). Respondents should be aware that notwithstanding any other provision of law, no person shall be subject to any penalty for failing to comply with a collection of information if it does not display a currently valid OMB control number. Our SEED project derived a method to trade habitat that incorporates the role of landscape connectivity for population viability, and level of scientific uncertainty regarding landscape-scale processes. Our project focuses on the development and application of spatially-explicit population models (SEPMs) to inform habitat trading decisions. Military readiness will often require changing the spatial allocation of endangered species habitat prior to reaching a scientific consensus regarding the dispersal behaviors of listed species. Therefore, we used Pattern Oriented Modeling to reduce uncertainty in SEPMs regarding dispersal of red-cockaded woodpeckers (RCW) for Camp Lejeune. We used the subset of SEPMs capable of reproducing observed patterns to evaluate six alternative habitat trades. Landscape Equivalency Analysis was used to estimate if the patches traded make equivalent contributions to rates of population growth and migration at a regional scale. Decision analysis indicated that despite the remaining uncertainty in dispersal behaviors, a further reduction in uncertainty will likely not change the estimate of the most cost-effective trade. PLEASE DO NOT RETURN YOUR PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES) 8. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION REPORT NUMBER SPONSORING/MONITORING AGENCY NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES) 10. SPONSOR/MONITOR'S ACRONYM(S) SPONSOR/MONITOR'S REPORT NUMBER(S)endangered species, tradable credit systems, Encroachment Partnering, spatially-explicit population models, red-cockaded woodpecker, uncertainty analysis, decision analysis, ecological services, genetic diversity, landscape ecology 68 Douglas James Bruggeman