SEAFWA 2018

AUTHORS: J. Matthew Carroll, Forest Resources Department, Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College, Tifton, Georgia; Torre J. Hovick, School of Natural Resource Sciences-Range Program, North Dakota State University, Fargo, North Dakota; Craig A. Davis, Dwayne R. Elmore, Samuel D. Fuhlendorf – Department of Natural Resource Ecology and Management, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, Oklahoma

ABSTRACT: The role of fire as a disturbance mechanism which promotes and maintains northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus; hereafter bobwhite) habitat is well understood. However, the effects of fire on bobwhite life history periods (e.g., nesting) remains an understudied aspect of bobwhite ecology. This scarcity of information has presented managers with uncertainty regarding bobwhite responses to practices aimed at restoring fire as an ecological process on the landscape, particularly in the western bobwhite distribution. We present findings from a 4 year radio-telemetry study aimed at assessing nest survival on a shinnery oak (Quercus havardii) landscape managed with prescribed fire at the Packsaddle Wildlife Management Area in western Oklahoma, USA. Radio-collared bobwhites (n=1077) were tracked from 2012-2015, and subsequently, 157 nests were monitored. We observed that bobwhites shifted their nest site use from predominately (71%) herbaceous vegetation in >36 month post fire treatments, yet nested predominately (72%) in shrubs in 0-12 months post fire treatments. Bobwhite nest success was high (57-72%) during each year of the study and nest survival estimates were 0.974 and 0.984 for the constant and most plausible nest survival models ranked by AIC, respectively. Importantly, time since fire did not influence nest survival when included as a covariate in nest survival models. These ?ndings demonstrate how bobwhites adjusted nest site use differently among different time since fire treatments yet maintained high nest survival. Furthermore, these results suggest that land managers in shinnery oak communities can use prescribed ?re without negatively influencing bobwhite nest survival rates.