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1 December 2005 USE OF GROUP-SELECTION AND SEED-TREE CUTS BY THREE EARLY-SUCCESSIONAL MIGRATORY SPECIES IN ARKANSAS
LYNN E. ALTERMAN, JAMES C. BEDNARZ, RONALD E. THILL
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Abstract

Silviculture in the Ouachita National Forest in Arkansas and Oklahoma has shifted in recent years from mostly even-aged management to a mix of even- and uneven-aged regeneration systems, including group-selection. Researchers have described presence/absence of early-successional bird species in forest openings created by even- and uneven-aged silviculture, but few have examined nest success. We examined occupancy and nest success of three early-successional species—Indigo Bunting (Passerina cyanea), Yellow-breasted Chat (Icteria virens), and Prairie Warbler (Dendroica discolor)—within 6- and 7-year-old openings created by group-selection (uneven-aged, ≤0.8 ha) and seed-tree (even-aged, 11–16 ha) cuts in Arkansas. We found 54 Indigo Bunting nests in openings created by seed-tree cuts and 28 in openings created by group-selection cuts (hereafter “seed-tree stands” and “group-selection stands,” respectively). We found 50 Yellow-breasted Chat nests in seed-tree stands, but only 2 were found in group-selection stands. We found 14 Prairie Warbler nests in seed-tree and none in group-selection stands. Mayfield nest success for Indigo Bunting was 30.9% in seed-tree stands and 41.9% in group-selection openings, but there was no difference in daily nest survival (0.952 ± 0.009 and 0.964 ± 0.010, respectively; χ2 = 0.792, P = 0.37). Our data suggest that Indigo Buntings can nest successfully in both regenerating seed-tree and group-selection stands; however, group-selection openings may be too small to support nesting Yellow-breasted Chats and Prairie Warblers. Public concerns about clear-cutting have resulted in increased use of uneven-aged management by the USDA Forest Service. However, before widespread implementation of group-selection cutting, additional research should be conducted to evaluate the effects of this management strategy on Neotropical migratory bird communities.

LYNN E. ALTERMAN, JAMES C. BEDNARZ, and RONALD E. THILL "USE OF GROUP-SELECTION AND SEED-TREE CUTS BY THREE EARLY-SUCCESSIONAL MIGRATORY SPECIES IN ARKANSAS," The Wilson Bulletin 117(4), 353-363, (1 December 2005). https://doi.org/10.1676/04-113.1
Received: 18 November 2004; Accepted: 1 August 2005; Published: 1 December 2005
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