Bird Community Monitoring at Pipestone National Monument, Minnesota Status Report.

摘要

In 2009, the Heartland I&M Network (HTLN) initiated breeding bird surveys at Pipestone National Monument (PIPE), Minnesota to address two objectives. First, we monitored changes in bird community composition and abundance. Secondly, we monitored the responses of bird communities to changes in habitat structure and other habitat variables related to management activities. This report attempts to put trends in the park’s breeding bird populations into the context of trends observed within the North American Bird Conservation Initiative’s (NABCI) Prairie Potholes Bird Conservation Region, the bird conservation region in which the park is located. By doing so, we can assess the influence of habitat management within the park on bird populations with an understanding of what population trends are doing regionally. In other words, we have tried to separate variability occurring within the region from that seen strictly within the park, and thus, potentially attribute the within-park variability to park conditions.