Skip to main content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Assessing management of raptor predation management for snowy plover recovery

Informally Refereed

Abstract

On February 4, 2014, a seven-member expert panel provided objective technical information on the potential effectiveness and feasibility of activities to manage raptors (northern harriers and great horned owls) to aid the recovery of western snowy plovers. The panel discussed and scored the 26 raptor control techniques in nine main categories of habitat modification, exclusions, hazing, live capture and relocation, nest or egg depredation, lethal hunting and removal, conditioned taste aversion, avicides, and combinations of techniques. The panel also identified areas of information that could be useful to help trigger activities for managing raptor predation for western snowy plover recovery, including use of cameras to detect raptor predation events and behavioral patterns, determining thresholds of numbers of predation events, better understanding of raptor nesting timing and locations, and other topics.

Keywords

Western snowy plover, threatened species, raptor control, predation effects, expert panel.

Citation

Marcot, Bruce G.; Elbert, Daniel C. 2015. Assessing management of raptor predation management for snowy plover recovery. Gen. Tech. Rep. PNW-GTR-910. Portland, OR: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Northwest Research Station. 67 p.
Citations
https://www.fs.usda.gov/research/treesearch/48865