Current Search:  Water birds -- Florida -- Geographical distribution (x)

View All Items

  • CSV Spreadsheet
(1 - 2 of 2)
A habitat suitability model for wading birds in a large subtropical lake: linking hydrologic fluctuations and nesting
Title
A habitat suitability model for wading birds in a large subtropical lake: linking hydrologic fluctuations and nesting.
Creator
Botta, Richard A., Gawlik, Dale E., Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Biological Sciences
Abstract/Description
Anthropogenic hydrologic alterations can affect the quality of lake littoral zone habitats for wading birds, such as the great egret (Ardea alba), snowy egret (Egretta thula), and white ibis (Eudocimus albus). One such lake in Florida, Lake Okeechobee, has experienced a marked decline in wading bird nesting since the 1970’s, concomitant with changes in lake level management. It’s hypothesized that a reduction in foraging habitat has led to the nesting decline; however, there is little...
Show moreAnthropogenic hydrologic alterations can affect the quality of lake littoral zone habitats for wading birds, such as the great egret (Ardea alba), snowy egret (Egretta thula), and white ibis (Eudocimus albus). One such lake in Florida, Lake Okeechobee, has experienced a marked decline in wading bird nesting since the 1970’s, concomitant with changes in lake level management. It’s hypothesized that a reduction in foraging habitat has led to the nesting decline; however, there is little quantitative evidence of this link. A habitat suitability model was developed for Lake Okeechobee wading birds that incorporate the spatial and temporal dynamics of environmental factors that affect wading bird foraging and tests whether foraging habitat is linked to numbers of nests.
Show less
Date Issued
2014
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004082
Subject Headings
Birds -- Florida -- Lake Okeechobee -- Geographical distribution, Estuarine ecology -- Florida -- Lake Okeechobee, Restoration ecology -- Florida -- Lake Okeechobee, Water birds -- Habitat
Format
Document (PDF)
Development, evaluation, and application of spatio-temporal wading bird foraging models to guide everglades restoration
Title
Development, evaluation, and application of spatio-temporal wading bird foraging models to guide everglades restoration.
Creator
Beerens, James M., Noonburg, Erik G., Florida Atlantic University, Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Biological Sciences
Abstract/Description
In south Florida, the Greater Everglades ecosystem supports sixteen species of wading birds. Wading birds serve as important indicator species because they are highly mobile, demonstrate flexible habitat selection, and respond quickly to changes in habitat quality. Models that establish habitat relationships from distribution patterns of wading birds can be used to predict changes in habitat quality that may result from restoration and climate change. I developed spatio-temporal species...
Show moreIn south Florida, the Greater Everglades ecosystem supports sixteen species of wading birds. Wading birds serve as important indicator species because they are highly mobile, demonstrate flexible habitat selection, and respond quickly to changes in habitat quality. Models that establish habitat relationships from distribution patterns of wading birds can be used to predict changes in habitat quality that may result from restoration and climate change. I developed spatio-temporal species distribution models for the Great Egret, White Ibis, and Wood Stork over a decadal gradient of environmental conditions to identify factors that link habitat availability to habitat use (i.e., habitat selection), habitat use to species abundance, and species abundance (over multiple scales) to nesting effort and success. Hydrological variables (depth, recession rate, days since drydown, reversal, and hydroperiod) over multiple temporal scales and with existing links to wading bird responses were used as proxies for landscape processes that influence prey availability (i.e., resources). In temporal foraging conditions (TFC) models, species demonstrated conditional preferences for resources based on resource levels at differing temporal scales. Wading bird abundance was highest when prey production from optimal periods of wetland inundation was concentrated in shallow depths. Similar responses were observed in spatial foraging conditions (SFC) models predicting spatial occurrence over time, accounting for spatial autocorrelation. The TFC index represents conditions within suitable depths that change daily and reflects patch quality, whereas the SFC index spatially represents suitability of all cells and reflects daily landscape patch abundance. I linked these indices to responses at the nest initiation and nest provisioning breeding phases from 1993-2013. The timing of increases and overall magnitude of resource pulses predicted by the TFC in March and April were strongly linked to breeding responses by all species. Great Egret nesting effort and success were higher with increases in conspecific attraction (i.e., clustering). Wood Stork nesting effort was closely related to timing of concurrently high levels of patch quality (regional scale) and abundance (400-m scale), indicating the importance of a multi-scaled approach. The models helped identify positive and negative changes to multi-annual resource pulses from hydrological restoration and climate change scenarios, respectively.
Show less
Date Issued
2014
PURL
http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004078, http://purl.flvc.org/fau/fd/FA00004078
Subject Headings
Everglades National Park (Fla.) -- Environmental conditions, Restoration ecology -- Florida -- Everglades National Park, Water birds -- Florida -- Geographical distribution, Water birds -- Habitat -- Florida -- Everglades National Park, Wetland restoration -- Florida -- Everglades National Park
Format
Document (PDF)