Assessment of habitat for sagebrush steppe dependent birds at Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve

Kaltenecker, Gregory; Moser, Ann; Bond, Laura

This project was designed to supplement a basin-wide effort to assess distribution and habitat associations for at-risk bird species using standardized protocols at Craters of the Moon National Monument (Craters). The study began in 2002 and was conducted by Boise State University’s Idaho Bird Observatory. This statewide effort surveyed shrubsteppe birds and habitat at some 50 sites across southwestern and south-central Idaho during 2002 and 2003. In 2004, an effort to survey shrubsteppe birds and habitat at Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve was undertaken, and followed similar design as the two previous years of study. We sampled a total of 21 sites for shrubsteppe birds and vegetation during the 2004 breeding season between 5 May and 23 June at Craters. We surveyed one site within the Craters of the Moon National Monument Wilderness Boundary, 19 sites within the Craters of the Moon Administrative Boundary, and two sites outside the Craters of the Moon Administrative Boundary. Including all detections, we counted a total of 3,338 birds of 37 different species at these 21 study sites. The most abundant breeding species detected during surveys were Horned Lark (Eremophila alpestris; n = 932), Western Meadowlark (Sturnella neglecta; n = 781), Brewer’s Sparrow (Spizella brewerii; n = 711), Sage Thrasher (Oreoscoptes montanus; n = 193), Lark Sparrow (Chondestes grammacus; n = 190), Vesper Sparrow (Pooecetes gramineus; n = 129), Grasshopper Sparrow (Ammodramus savannarum; n = 99), Sage Sparrow (Amphispiza belli; n = 74), Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura); (n = 65), Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater); (n = 60), Loggerhead Shrike (Lanius ludovicianus; n = 42), and Lark Bunting (Calamospiza melanocorys; n = 31).

Assessment of habitat for sagebrush steppe dependent birds at Craters of the Moon National Monument and Preserve

Collections