Effects of Vegetation Structure and Composition on Grassland Bird Habitat Occupancy

In response to grassland bird decline, management practices modify land to cater to their habitat preferences. We studied 6 sites to identify vegetation features characterizing the preferred habitat of 4 grassland bird species. We analyzed spot maps and observed behaviors to determine bird densities and territories and surveyed sites to quantify vegetation characteristics. We determined that our 4 grassland bird species prefer different vegetation structure, indicating a change that emphasizes the importance of continuing local habitat preference studies. Analyses between bird territories and vegetation parameters suggested that surveyed sites have excess habitat available to support higher bird densities. We used this information to make species-specific management recommendation