SHORT-TERM EFFECTS OF TIMBER HARVEST ON ABUNDANCE, TERRITORY CHARACTERISTICS, AND PAIRING SUCCESS OF OVENBIRDS IN RIPARIAN BUFFER STRIPS

Abstract

Abstract In managed forests, riparian buffer strips typically are maintained to protect water quality. If properly designed, buffer strips also may act as wildlife reserves. However, forest managers have lacked the information to develop standards for buffer strips to maximize benefits for wildlife species. We assessed the conservation potential of 20-, 100-, and 200-m wide buffers for an area-sensitive songbird in boreal mixed-wood forest in Alberta. We measured abundance, territory characteristics, and pairing success of Ovenbirds (Seiurus aurocapillus) at treatment and control lakes one year before and after upland timber harvest. After harvest, Ovenbirds were absent from 20-m buffer strips. Harvesting did not significantly influence abundance or territory size in 100-m or 200-m buffers, although territories generally became narrower. Postharvest territory position did not change in 200-m buffers, but territories in 100-m strips shifted lakeward and included more habitat adjacent to the riparian edge t...