Abstract
AbstractAimEvaluating conservation effectiveness is essential to protect at‐risk species and to maximize the limited resources available to land managers. Over 60% of North American grassland and aridlands have been lost since the 1800s. Birds in these habitats are among the most imperilled in North America, yet most remaining habitats are unprotected. Despite the need to measure impact, conservation efforts on private and working lands are rarely evaluated, due in part to limited availability of suitable methods.LocationNorthern Great Plains of North America.MethodsWe developed a novel metric to evaluate grassland and aridland bird community response to habitat management, the Bird‐Friendliness Index (BFI), consisting of density estimates of grassland and aridland birds weighted by conservation need and a functional diversity metric to incorporate resiliency. We used the BFI to identify ecologically significant areas for grassland and aridland birds and compared them with other prioritizations. Then, we used the BFI to evaluate the effects of simulated habitat management on grassland and aridland bird communities.ResultsThe most resilient bird communities were found in the Prairie Potholes region of Alberta, Saskatchewan and North Dakota and the lowest BFI values in the southern and western regions of the Northern Great Plains. BFI values were significantly greater in areas included in one or more prioritization, and increased with the number of prioritizations an area was included within. BFI values increased in response to simulated bird‐friendly habitat management.Main conclusionsOur findings suggest that practices recommended for use in bird‐friendly grassland habitat management plans will increase the abundance and resilience of the grassland and aridland bird community and that bird community responses to management will be detected using the BFI. The BFI is a tool by which conservationists and managers can carry out adaptive management and accountable conservation now and into the future.
Highlights
Grasslands and aridlands, and the birds that rely on them, are under threat
Main conclusions: Bird-Friendliness Index (BFI) values increased in response to simulated habitat management, suggesting that practices recommended for use in bird-friendly grassland habitat management plans will increase the abundance and resilience of the grassland and aridland bird community, and will be detected using the BFI
The BFI is a tool by which conservationists and managers can carry out accountable conservation and into the future
Summary
Grasslands and aridlands, and the birds that rely on them, are under threat. Over 60% of North America’s grasslands have been lost since the 1800s, with some of the greatest losses in the Northern Great Plains Tallgrass and Mixed-grass Prairie regions (Comer, Hak, Kindscher, Muldavin, & Singhurst, 2018). Populations of grassland-dependent birds have declined by an estimated 53.3% since 1966, with 74.2% of North American grassland bird species declining and 27% of species considered to be of high conservation concern (North American Bird Conservation Initiative, 2016; Rosenberg et al, 2019). Aridlands face multiple threats, including habitat loss due to urban sprawl and energy development, drought, desertification, and invasive species (Ryan et al, 2008; North American Bird Conservation Initiative, U.S Committee, 2014). Aridland bird species have declined an average of 17-46% since 1968, with 56.5% of species declining and 39% of species of conservation concern (North American Bird Conservation Initiative, U.S Committee, 2014; North American Bird Conservation Initiative, 2016; Rosenberg et al, 2019)
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