DOI: 10.5061/dryad.c866t1g7n
title: Can at-risk species serve as effective conservation surrogates? Case study in northeastern US shrublands

description: Targeted, single-species management and ecosystem-based management are
 generally considered disparate conservation approaches. In imperiled
 ecosystems, these approaches may be complementary, when habitat management
 for targeted at-risk species provides broad ecosystem benefits through an
 umbrella or surrogate species effect. In the northeastern United States,
 extensive management has been ongoing since 2011 to restore declining
 habitat for an at-risk shrubland habitat specialist, the New England
 cottontail (Sylvilagus transitionalis), with the goal that other
 shrubland-obligate wildlife will also benefit; yet the efficacy of these
 efforts has not been evaluated. In this study, we assessed whether habitat
 management targeting New England cottontail provides conservation benefits
 for shrubland-obligate birds. Specifically, we (1) identified
 shrubland-obligate birds that are indicative of the microhabitat
 conditions and habitat types suitable for New England cottontails, and (2)
 determined microhabitat and patch-level influences on shrubland bird
 occupancy at sites occupied by or managed for New England cottontail.
 Through avian point count surveys and indicator species analyses, we
 identified 12 shrubland-obligate bird species on patches occupied by New
 England cottontail and in microhabitat conditions suitable for New England
 cottontail. Occupancy models for five shrubland bird species further
 identified species-specific habitat associations. Generalized linear
 models showed that shrubland bird species richness was positively
 associated with herbaceous vegetation and low shrubs, indicating that
 shrublands managed for the purpose of cottontail colonization can also
 benefit a suite of shrubland birds before the habitat is dense enough to
 provide cover for cottontails. Our findings show that managing habitat for
 New England cottontail on a variety of site types can maintain a range of
 microhabitat conditions to support a high diversity of shrubland-obligate
 birds. These findings provide evidence for broad ecosystem benefits of
 managing for New England cottontail and exemplify the value of at-risk
 habitat specialists as conservation surrogates in imperiled ecosystems.
description: Bird point counts were conducted in 2015 and 2016 via the U.S.
 Fish and Wildlife Service landbird monitoring standard operating
 procedures. During each point count, the observer recorded all birds
 detected at distance bins of 0-25 m, 26-50 m, 51-100 m, and &gt;100
 m. We retained data from the 0-25 m
 and 26-50 m distance bins for analyses and excluded flyover detections.
 The raw data are provided by site, including detection covariates
 (temperature, time of
 survey, cloud cover, wind speed, background noise level, survey day, i.e.,
 days since the start of the survey/breeding season).
 Vegetation data were collected at point count locations in 2017,
 at 20 sampling points placed in 4 cardinal directions within 50 m of each
 survey point. Measured habitat variables were
 averaged over the 20 sampling points and these data are provided in this
 dataset. For patch-level covariates
 (patch, woody
 vegetation species richness, and proportion of woody invasive vegetation),
 averages are given across the patch. Further details are provided in the
 metadata tab of the vegetation spreadsheet data.
description: See ReadMe and Metadata tabs of spreadsheets.