Fire regimes are important in shaping the composition and structure of fire-adapted landscapes, yet little is known about how many birds respond to fire in high marsh habitats. Prescribed fire has been implemented in Gulf coast marshes throughout the last 15-20 years as a tool to reduce fuel loads and increase habitat availability for black rails, yellow rails, and mottled ducks using high marsh habitats. Given that fire is likely to continue to be used as an important management tool, there is a continuing need to reduce uncertainty about how the focal species are responding to fire in high marsh habitats. The goal of this project is to take an adaptive management approach to identify and reduce uncertainty around alternative management actions in Gulf of Mexico high marsh habitats to benefit black rails, yellow rails, and mottled ducks.
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Successful recovery of endangered species requires an understanding of factors that limit population size and growth rate. Regulatory protection and management interventions for piping plovers have been largely successful in recovering populations throughout the breeding range; however, some subpopulations have not recovered, including the New Jersey population. The goal of this study was to understand how predators, foraging habitat, and management actions affect piping plover population dynamics in New Jersey.
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