PARENT SESSION
Poster Session 28: Avian Ecology
Thursday, August 11, 5:00 PM - 6:30 PM, Exhibit Hall 220 A-E, Level 2, Palais des congrès de Montréal
Demise during winter of 2000 and recovery of Carolina Wren populations in managed forests within the Arkansas Ozarks.
Smith, Kimberly*,1, Mlodinow, Michael1, Self, Jan 2, 1 University of Arkansas, Fayetteville, AR, USA2 U. S. Forest Service, Jasper, AR, USA
ABSTRACT- Harsh winters can have large impacts on birds, particularly insectivores like Carolina Wrens (Thryothorus ludovicianus), a sedentary species that forages on the ground. It is hypothesized that snow and ice directly affect foraging ability of Carolina Wrens, leading to starvation. Here we report for the first time the actual demise of wrens on 4 different study sites in the Arkansas Ozarks during winter of 2000. These populations have been studied from 1993 through 2004. After two ice storms of December 2000, described as the worst ice storms ever recorded in the Arkansas Ozarks, Carolina Wrens disappeared from all study sites prior to the breeding season of 2001. Wrens gradually recolonized our study sites, but one still had no breeding wrens as of 2003. We also compare our results with the nearest Christmas Bird Counts (CBC) to see if a decrease in wrens was evident in that database as well. The demise was evident in some CBCs, but urbanization may ameliorated the effects of the ice storms.
Key words: Carolina Wrens, population demise, ice storms