Douglas Johnson (Former Employee)

The key to Swainson's Hawk (Buteo swainsoni) management is providing open grasslands that contain patches of trees for nesting and perching, sometimes near cultivated areas.

Keys to Ferruginous Hawk (Buteo regalis) management are providing suitable nest sites, protecting active nest areas from human disturbance, and providing suitable habitat for prey.

The key to Mountain Plover (Charadrius montanus) management is maintaining sparsely vegetated grasslands. Grasslands can be made suitable for breeding Mountain Plovers by preserving large prairie dog (Cynomys species) towns, conducting prescribed burns, or implementing heavy grazing in some situations. Mountain Plovers have been reported to use habitats with 2–38 centimeters average...

Keys to Marbled Godwit (Limosa fedoa) management include providing large expanses of short, sparsely to moderately vegetated landscapes that include native grasslands and wetland complexes. Optimal wetland complexes should contain a diversity of wetland classes and sizes, such as ephemeral, temporary, seasonal, semipermanent, permanent, and alkali wetlands, as well as intermittent...

The key to Upland Sandpiper (Bartramia longicauda) management is providing grasslands of various heights with few shrubs. In general, Upland Sandpipers forage within short vegetation and nest and rear broods within taller vegetation. Upland Sandpipers have been reported to use habitats with less than (

Keys to Long-billed Curlew (Numenius americanus) management include providing large, open, level to gently rolling grasslands with short vegetation, and tailoring grazing regimes to local conditions. Long-billed Curlews have been reported to use habitats with 3–75 centimeters (cm) average vegetation height, less than or equal to 27 cm visual obstruction reading, 20–71 percent grass cover...

The key to Wilson’s Phalarope (Phalaropus tricolor) management is providing wetland complexes containing suitable wetland characteristics (that is, open water, emergent vegetation, and open shoreline) and upland habitat (native grassland or tame hayland) throughout the breeding season. Wilson’s Phalaropes have been reported to use habitats with 15–32 centimeters (cm) average vegetation...

Keys to Willet (Tringa semipalmata inornata) management include providing large expanses of native grasslands and wetland complexes. Wetland complexes should contain a diversity of wetland sizes and classes, such as ephemeral, temporary, seasonal, semipermanent, and permanent wetlands, as well as intermittent streams. Willets use wetlands of various salinities. Willets require short...

Keys to American Bittern (Botaurus lentiginosus) management include protecting wetlands and adjacent uplands and maintaining idle upland habitat. American Bitterns have been reported to use habitats with 30–203 centimeters (cm) average vegetation height, 44–99 cm visual obstruction reading, and less than 91 cm water depth.

The Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater) is an obligate brood parasite that relies entirely on host species to incubate its eggs and rear its young. The Brown-headed Cowbird is a host generalist; eggs of the cowbird have been found in nests of more than 220 species of North American birds. Although cowbirds are not considered a serious threat to their primary avian hosts, cowbird brood...

Since the mid-1960s, populations of grassland birds have been declining more precipitously than any other group of birds in North America. These long-term declines highlight the need to better understand the habitat requirements of grassland birds and how management practices affect individual species and their habitats. Although resource managers have long recognized that every...

This scientific investigations report describes an effort by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) that used research, monitoring data, and modeling to develop a methodology to assess both the current and future population-level consequences of wind energy development on species of birds and bats that are present in the United States during any part of their life cycle. The methodology is...