DOI: 10.5061/dryad.8ff85
title: Data from: Managing individual nests promotes population recovery of a top predator

description: Threatened species are managed using diverse conservation tactics
 implemented at multiple scales ranging from protecting individuals, to
 populations, to entire species. Individual protection strives to promote
 recovery at the population- or species-level, although this is seldom
 evaluated. After decades of widespread declines, bald eagles, Haliaeetus
 leucocephalus, are recovering throughout their range due to legal
 protection and pesticide bans. However, like other raptors, their recovery
 remains threatened by human activities. Bald eagle nests are commonly
 managed using buffer zones to minimize human disturbance, but the benefits
 of this practice remain unquantified. Within Voyageurs National Park
 (VNP), Minnesota, USA, managers have monitored bald eagle populations for
 over 40 years, and since 1991, have protected at-risk nests from human
 disturbance using buffer zones (200 and 400 m radius). We aimed to (1)
 quantify the recovery of bald eagles in VNP (1973–2016), and (2) provide a
 first-ever evaluation of the individual- and population-level effects of
 managing individual nests. To do so, we developed Bayesian Integrated
 Population Models combining observations of nest occupancy and
 reproductive output (metrics commonly collected for raptors) to estimate
 nest-level probabilities of occupancy, nest success, and high productivity
 (producing ≥2 nestlings), as well as population-level estimates of
 abundance and growth. The breeding population of bald eagles at VNP
 increased steadily from &lt;10 pairs in the late 1970s to 48 pairs by
 2016. At the nest-level, management significantly improved occupancy and
 success. At the population-level, management led to 8% and 13% increases
 in nest success and productivity rates, respectively, resulting in a 37%
 increase in breeding pair abundance. Synthesis and applications. There is
 a clear need to evaluate how management approaches at multiple scales
 assist in species recovery. Our study uses an Integrated Population Model
 to reveal the population-level benefits of a widely used, individual-based
 management action (protecting nests using buffer zones) on a recovering
 raptor.
description: Nest occupancy and
 reproductive outcomes for bald eagle nests in Voyageurs National Park
 (1973-2016).Data from repeated areal
 surveys of bald eagle nests. From 1973-1997, only summary records were
 available for each nest, each year, listing the number of times it was
 surveyed, whether it was ever occupied during that year, and what the
 final reproductive outcome was. For 1998-2016, data included detailed
 occupancy records and dates for each areal survey conducted each year.
 Columns are: (1) Year: of monitoring; (2) NestNumber: nest id; (3)
 SurveyDate: Date nest was surveyed (only for 1998-2016); (4) Visits:
 number of times each nest was surveyed that given year (also available for
 1973-1997 records); (5) WaterDist_m: Distance to the closest permanent
 lake in meters; (6) MgmtType: 2 if nest was managed using a buffer zone
 (either 200 or 400 m radius) to minimize human disturbance, 1 if it was
 not managed; (7) OccCode: 1 if nest was observed to be occupied, 0
 otherwise; (8) RepCode: 1 if nest produced one eaglet to near-fledging, 2
 if it produced either two or three eagles, 3 if it did not produced any
 successfully.OnlineData.csv