Bird monitoring at Wind Cave National Park: 2008-2009 report
Blakesley JA, Pavlacky DC, Hanni DJ. 2010. Bird monitoring at Wind Cave National Park: 2008-2009 report. Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory Technical Report Series. M-WICA09-01. Brighton, Colorado
Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory, in cooperation with the National Park Service, designed and implemented a program to monitor birds in Wind Cave National Park in 2008 and 2009. The study design consisted of a spatially balanced sample of 20 sampling units, each consisting of a grid of 9 points from which we surveyed birds. We used Distance sampling to estimate density of avian species with moderate to large sample sizes. For less abundant species we estimated the proportion of sample grids occupied. Estimates of density and occupancy incorporated estimates of detection probability. We surveyed each point three times during the avian breeding season each year and obtained sufficient numbers of detections to estimate density of 22 species and occupancy rate of an additional 10 species. We were able to estimate densities of five species designated by Partners in Flight as stewardship species or species of concern the Badlands and Prairies Bird Conservation Region. Monitoring birds can be an important component of effective ecosystem management. We recommend that the National Park Service continue to monitor birds at Wind Cave National Park following the sampling design implemented by Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory.
- Type
- Published Report
- Authors
- Blakesley, Jennifer; Pavlacky, D; Hanni, D
- Date of Issue
- 2010-01
- Units
- NGPN , WICA
- Keywords
- landbird monitor, landbird monitoring, monitoring report
- Subjects
- Ecological Framework: Biological Integrity | Focal Species or Communities | Birds