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Assessment of Rusty Blackbird Habitat Occupancy in the Long Range Mountains of Newfoundland, Canada Using Forest Inventory Data

Manson, Kathleen K.E.; McDermott, Jenna P.B.; Powell, Luke L.; Whitaker, Darroch M.; Warkentin, Ian G.

Assessment of Rusty Blackbird Habitat Occupancy in the Long Range Mountains of Newfoundland, Canada Using Forest Inventory Data Thumbnail


Authors

Kathleen K.E. Manson

Jenna P.B. McDermott

Luke L. Powell

Darroch M. Whitaker

Ian G. Warkentin



Abstract

Rusty blackbirds (Euphagus carolinus), once common across their boreal breeding distribution, have undergone steep, range-wide population declines. Newfoundland is home to what has been described as one of just two known subspecies (E. c. nigrans) and hosts some of the highest known densities of the species across its extensive breeding range. To contribute to a growing body of literature examining rusty blackbird breeding ecology, we studied habitat occupancy in Western Newfoundland. We conducted 1960 point counts across a systematic survey grid during the 2016 and 2017 breeding seasons, and modeled blackbird occupancy using forest resource inventory data. We also assessed the relationship between the presence of introduced red squirrels (Tamiasciurus hudsonicus), an avian nest predator, and blackbird occupancy. We evaluated 31 a priori models of blackbird probability of occurrence. Consistent with existing literature, the best predictors of blackbird occupancy were lakes and ponds, streams, rivers, and bogs. Red squirrels did not appear to have a strong influence on blackbird habitat occupancy. We are among the first to model rusty blackbird habitat occupancy using remotely-sensed landcover data; given the widespread availability of forest resource inventory data, this approach may be useful in conservation efforts for this and other rare but widespread boreal species. Given that Newfoundland may be a geographic stronghold for rusty blackbirds, future research should focus on this distinct population.

Citation

Manson, K. K., McDermott, J. P., Powell, L. L., Whitaker, D. M., & Warkentin, I. G. (2020). Assessment of Rusty Blackbird Habitat Occupancy in the Long Range Mountains of Newfoundland, Canada Using Forest Inventory Data. Diversity, 12(9), Article 340. https://doi.org/10.3390/d12090340

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date Aug 29, 2020
Online Publication Date Sep 4, 2020
Publication Date 2020-09
Deposit Date Sep 10, 2020
Publicly Available Date Sep 10, 2020
Journal Diversity
Electronic ISSN 1424-2818
Publisher MDPI
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 12
Issue 9
Article Number 340
DOI https://doi.org/10.3390/d12090340
Public URL https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1262464

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Publisher Licence URL
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Copyright Statement
© 2020 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).





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