Tag: Birds

Forest Birds & Forest Trees

by Sarah Farmer, SRS Science Communications  • 
For every stage of forest succession, there’s a bird species that needs it. But others are flexible, thriving in many types of forests. The blue-gray gnatcatcher, eastern wood-pewee, great crested flycatcher, summer tanager, and white-breasted nuthatch are all associated with mature forests. But a recent study suggests these birds are forest generalists rather than mature…  More 

For Nesting Least Terns, Water Levels Matter

by Stephanie Worley Firley, Eastern Threat Center  • 
Least terns (Sternula antillarum) are small water birds that nest along the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers and some of their tributaries, as well as coastal areas in the U.S. Monitoring the species began after the U.S. interior population of least terns was federally listed as an endangered species in 1985. “In the Missouri River basin, least…  More 

Creating Young Forests to Benefit Wildlife

by Zoe Hoyle, SRS Science Communications  • 
There’s a tendency to think of the hardwood forests of the South as pristine, undisturbed, and unchanging. But forests are constantly changing, which is a good thing for disturbance-dependent species that require open structural conditions created immediately after forest disturbances or at some point early in the process of recovery. Historically and still today, windstorms,…  More 

Cutting Trees for the Early Birds

by Zoe Hoyle, SRS Science Communications  • 
U.S. Forest Service scientists recently published the results of one of the longest studies conducted on the effects of multiple forest harvest methods on early successional bird species. Published online in Forest Ecology and Management, the article by Forest Service Southern Research Station research wildlife biologist Roger Perry and retired scientist Ron Thill presents findings…  More