Monitoring Breeding Landbirds in National Parks of the Gulf Coast Network: Protocol Narrative

Segura, Martha; Carlson, Jane; Granger, Whitney; Finney, William; Bracewell, Jeff

This protocol narrative describes the purpose, objectives and methods used for monitoring breeding landbirds in Gulf Coast Network parks. The diverse bird species that reside and breed in the Gulf Coast region are an important attraction for many park visitors. As regional landscapes change and climate patterns shift, however, bird populations may be threatened. The network’s monitoring objectives for breeding landbirds are to document species richness and composition during annual visits to the parks and assess long-term trends in occupancy and the relative abundance or density for the most-common species. Six parks within the Gulf Coast Network conduct annual avian monitoring using point-count surveys: Big Thicket National Preserve, Gulf Islands National Seashore, Jean Lafitte National Historical Park and Preserve, Palo Alto Battlefield National Historical Park, San Antonio Missions National Historical Park, and Vicksburg National Military Park. A minimum of 21 point-count and maximum of 33 point-count locations are monitored at each park. The Natchez Trace Parkway is not included in this monitoring program because the entire length of the park is actively monitored by the North American Breeding Bird Survey. Padre Island National Seashore is not included in this protocol because pilot data collection on the barrier islands resulted in very low numbers and few species of the landbirds targeted for this monitoring protocol. Only the mainland units of Gulf Islands National Seashore are included for this same reason. Landbird monitoring by the Gulf Coast Network targets common breeding species by sampling each of 179 permanent point-count locations twice per season, using variable circular plot methods. This parallels the approaches taken by other Inventory and Monitoring (I&M) networks (e.g., Northeast Temperate Network, Eastern Rivers and Mountains and Great Lakes Network) as well as the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, which allows for broader-scale comparisons. Sampling is conducted annually during the breeding season of most landbirds found within the area covered by the parks included in the protocol (May and June). The Gulf Coast Network conducts bird surveys using point-count observation methods. An observer navigates to the point-count location by GPS, and over a 10-minute period, records the number of individuals seen or heard of each bird species. The observer also records the distance of each bird from the observer’s location and the minute the bird was first observed. Distances are recorded in bands of 0–25 meters (0–82 feet [ft]), 25–50 meters (82–164 ft), 50–100 meters (164–328 ft) and greater than 100 meters (328 ft). Once a bird is detected and recorded, it is removed from further consideration, reducing the probability that any individual bird is counted twice. Each point is re-sampled between two and four weeks after the initial sample. Monitoring birds in parks not only provides crucial information on the birds themselves, but can also be indicative of habitat changes within the parks. These data will also contribute to regional or national databases that further our understanding of continental bird population trends and provide a broader context for park-specific data.

Monitoring Breeding Landbirds in National Parks of the Gulf Coast Network: Protocol Narrative

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