A Birdʼs Eye View
A Guide to Managing and Protecting Your Land for Neotropical Migratory Birds in the Upper Mississippi River Blufflands (condensed version)
More than half the bird species that breed in North America spend part of every year in warmer climates. In other words, more than 350 species that nest in Canada and the United States make that daunting journey thousands of miles to their winter homes in the tropics of Mexico, Central and South America and the Caribbean. These birds are known as Neotropical migratory birds, or Neotropical migrants for short. A growing list of Neotropical migrants are in trouble. Some species’ populations have declined by as much as 75% in the last 25 years. Nineteen species of Neotropical migrants that nest within the Upper Mississippi River bluffland counties of Iowa, Illinois, Minnesota and Wisconsin have been identified by states as endangered, threatened or species of special concern. If we do not alter the environmental pressures affecting these beautiful and beneficial birds, and soon, we may lose an important part of our biological systems. Neotropical migrants, like other birds, benefit our environment in many ways. For example, of Iowa’s nesting bird species with declining populations, 59% regularly eat harmful insects, while 28% regularly consume weed seeds. They also help control rodents, disperse seeds, eat carrion, become food for others—and brighten our lives. And with more than a billion dollars spent on wildlife watching in Iowa in 2001, they can brighten our economy as well. Our environment stays healthy only if a diversity of plants and animals survive, thrive and reproduce. If a member of an ecosystem is removed, the entire system is disrupted. All components interact to form a healthy environment—for wildlife and humans. Bob Hurt
The Upper Mississippi River blufflands region contains a variety of natural communities that provide crucial habitat for Neotropical migrant species.
Cerulean Warbler, by Tom Conry
Why Neotropical migrants?
Protecting threatened birds has a long and successful history. A century ago, Congress passed laws to protect several birds from near-extinction caused by hunting feathers for women’s fancy hats. A few decades later, declining waterfowl populations spurred public and private organizations to protect these species. Later in the century, DDT nearly wiped out several species (including the Bald Eagle), birds that are now recovering since DDT was banned. The challenge of protecting Neotropical migrants belongs to this generation.
Why the Upper Mississippi River blufflands?
The Mississippi River is a key migration route for many migratory birds. The ecosystems of the Upper Mississippi River blufflands region provide critical habitat for many species to breed and nest. With agricultural and development pressures, these habitats are at risk—and so are the Neotropical migrants. But there is hope. In the blufflands region, over 90% of the forested lands are privately owned, including 92% in Iowa. Private landowners can be on the front lines to protect critical habitat for these and other wildlife species. Meanwhile, the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation and its Blufflands Alliance partner organizations in Wisconsin, Illinois and Minnesota are working to improve and protect this area for the benefit of all of us.
Threats to Neotrops Many threats face Neotrops in the Midwest, like natural disasters, pesticides, towers, tall buildings and cats. However, the three primary threats are habitat loss, habitat fragmentation and changes in habitat quality.
Habitat Loss
While all the blufflands states have experienced great changes to their landscape, the scope and speed of the alteration to Iowa’s 36 million acres is remarkable. When Europeans settled the state, the landscape looked quite different: • Of an estimated 30 million acres of prairie, 30,000 now remain. • Of an estimated 3 million acres of original prairie pothole wetlands, 10,000 remain. • Of an estimated 7 million acres of forestland, including oak savannas and woodlands, 2 million remain. Birds and other species spent millennia
Marlene Ehresman
adapting to habitats that have disappeared in a couple centuries.
Habitat Fragmentation
Fragmentation occurs when roads, houses or new cropfields break large blocks of habitat into smaller pieces with more edge (the borders where different habitats, like crop fields and forests, meet). Fragmentation causes the following problems for Neotropical migrants: • Area sensitivity: Some species require habitats of at least a minimum area. For example, the insect-eating Cerulean Warbler may require unfragmented forest habitat ranging from hundreds to thousands of acres. Bob Hurt
The view from the cabin at the top of the hill may be lovely, but the fragmented landscape spells trouble for many bird species.
• Edge effects: Each new fragment creates more edge. Some species that have adapted to the interior of large ecosystems have trouble adjusting to the different plant, predator and parasite species that thrive along edges. When interior habitats disappear, these species suffer.
Habitat Quality
Iowa is considered one of the most altered landscapes in the nation. In northeastern Iowa, where much of the state’s original forest and savanna lands existed, trees have been lost to roads, houses, fields, utility lines and more. Because many Neotropical migrants and other species require special habitats for survival, protecting our remaining large habitats becomes critical.
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Many of these remaining natural areas are degraded, with most of them barely resembling the original habitat. In forests, habitat degradation is often accompanied by loss of particular tree species, such as oaks; loss of understory trees, shrubs and groundcover; floodplain disturbance; and/or exotic species invasion. Domestic livestock grazing, deer overpopulations, and improper logging techniques are all culprits in the loss of habitat structure and composition. Species that require specific niches, such as dead trees for cavity-nesting birds or understory plants for ground-nesting birds, may suffer.
What You Can Do Get the bird’s eye view
As a first step, walk your property and try to figure out what treasures your land holds for birds and other species. If you would like assistance, have trusted professionals walk your property with you to help evaluate the site and draw up a management plan. Your local county conservation board staff, DNR biologists and foresters and land stewardship businesses are good places to seek assistance. Otherwise, be bold! With a map, notebook and maybe a bird identification guide, head for the woods! • Try to draw up at least a cursory inventory of plants and animals, including birds, currently found and determine the property’s habitat quality. • Gauge where forest, savanna or prairie might have grown historically on your site. (Prior to the walk, look at old photos or read a county historical account.) • Note where current nest trees are located and protect them because breeding birds often return to the same nest year after year.
Use bird-friendly land management Since every piece of land is different, the fine details of land management are not included in this publication. However, here are a few general management principles that can start you on your way to creating diverse, functioning ecosystems and meeting your own personal objectives. 1. The larger the habitat area, the better. 2. The higher the habitat quality, the better. Strive for adequate and appropriate tree and plant species and structure.
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Preserve unbroken interior ecosystems when possible. Concentrate disturbances in already disturbed or fragmented areas. 4. When it comes to edge (sharp borders between habitats, like crops and forests), less is better. To maintain the maximum amount of habitat with the least amount of edge, encourage circular- or square-shaped tracts rather than linear ones. 5. Further minimize edge by keeping your buildings clustered and near the road, rather than spread out across a larger area. 6. Encourage native species of trees, shrubs, grasses and flowers. 7. Discourage non-native and invasive species, such as tartarian honeysuckle and garlic mustard. 8. Use prescribed, or planned, burning as a management tool in the appropriate places with professional assistance. 9. Avoid creating a lot of disturbance during nesting season (late April through early August). 10. Keep grazing animals out of the forest and in their appropriate habitats; rotate them seasonally. 11. If trees are to be harvested, seek advice from a professional who understands birds’ habitat needs. 12. Provide clean water and brush piles and leave large trees and dead and dying trees for bird habitat. (Top the dead trees if you must, but leave trunks.) 13. Limit use of pesticides. 14. Keep your cats indoors. 15. Plan cooperatively with area landowners. 16. Consider protecting your land beyond your lifetime by contacting INHF or visiting our website (www.inhf.org) for more information about voluntary
land protection methods. 17. For more information about managing your land in a bird-friendly way (including lists of programs that support or fund such work), ask for the complete 52-page version of this booklet or find it online at www.inhf.org. (Adapted from Herkert et al. 1993; Norris 1999; Packard and Mutel 1997; M. Ehresman and Kurtz 2000)
For anyone
A world that’s healthier for Neotropical migrants and other birds is healthier for all species, including humans. Support efforts to protect birds in these and other ways: • Visit bird-watching areas; then let local business know you came and why. • Support and encourage landowners who “do the right thing.” • Contact public decision-makers about birds and their needs. • Join organizations that support bird and habitat protection. Bill Witt
Jim Riggs
Gary Hamer
For landowners
A well-managed landscape yields many tangible and intangible rewards.
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Common Species Carl Kurtz
The more common bird species of the Midwest, such as those on this page, are often found in or along habitats that have been disturbed by humans, such as grazed pastures or towns. These species have become accustomed to altered landscapes. Not all of these birds are Neotropical migrants. The American Kestrel, American Robin and Tree Swallow are considered short-distance migrants; you may even see a kestral or robin in your area throughout the winter. Baltimore Oriole (Neotrop) Carl Kurtz Carl Kurtz
American Kestrel (short-distance migrant)
Carl Kurtz
INHF
Grazing is a common disturbance in bird habitats. Allowing cattle free access to some natural areas, such as this stream or the nearby woodland, is detrimental to both birds and water quality.
Dickcissel (Neotrop) Carl Kurtz
Carl Kurtz
American Robin (short-distance migrant)
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Barn Swallow (Neotrop)
Tree Swallow (short-distance migrant)
Threatened and Endangered Betty Cottrille/Cornell Lab of Ornithology
Acadian Flycatcher (Neotrop) Jim Messina/Prairie Wings
Some bird species have special food or habitat requirements and are vulnerable to further population declines because of habitat loss or change. The Neotropical migrants shown on this page are some of the Mississippi River bluffland species identified as endangered, threatened or of special concern in at least one of the four Blufflands Alliance states: Iowa, Illinois, Minnesota and Wisconsin. These designations, respectively, mean that a bird is either in danger of extinction throughout its state range, declining in number and likely to become endangered, or very uncommon or unique and in need of monitoring.
Cornell Lab of Ornithology
Bell’s Vireo (Neotrop) Jim Messina/Prairie Wings
Carl Kurtz
Swainson’s Hawk (Neotrop) Ty Smedes
Loggerhead Shrike (juvenile) (Neotrop)
Prothonotary Warbler (Neotrop) Jim Messina/Prairie Wings
Cornell Lab of Ornithology
Peregrine Falcon (Neotrop)
Kentucky Warbler (Neotrop)
Veery (Neotrop)
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Upland Community Ty Smedes
Different communities (groups of trees, understory and plants, wildlife and insects) are found in bottomland habitats than are found on hillsides or upland habitats. The species on this page— both common and at risk, shortdistance migrant, Neotropical migrant or resident—prefer upland habitats. They each fill a niche in the community. For example, the Yellow-bellied Sapsucker prefers to nest in a tree cavity 25 feet above ground and feeds on sap, fruit and insects. The Rose-breasted Grosbeak builds a nest less than 10 feet from the ground and prefers to eat seeds.
Carl Kurtz
Gray Catbird (Neotrop) Ed Siems
Broad-winged Hawk (Neotrop) Bill Witt
Scarlet Tanager (Neotrop) Jim Messina/Prairie Wings
Jim Messina/Prairie Wings
Hikers look for birds in a northeastern Iowa upland forest.
Veery (Neotrop)
Carl Kurtz
Carl Kurtz
Rose-breasted Grosbeaks (Neotrop)
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Ruby-throated Hummingbird (Neotrop) Marlene Ehresman
Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (short-distance migrant)
Wild Turkey (permanent resident)
Floodplain Community Jim Messina/Prairie Wings
The species on this page, both common and at-risk, Neotropical migrant and short-term migrant, are often found in floodplain (bottomland) habitats. The Prothonotary Warbler is eastern North America’s only cavity-nesting warbler, nesting in old woodpecker holes sometimes 30 feet above the ground. This warbler, like most warblers, prefers insects. The Cooper’s Hawk nest is usually found in large oak-hickory forests. This hawk eats other birds and sometimes mammals or amphibians.
Bill Duyck/Cornell Lab of Ornithology
Hooded Warbler (Neotrop)
Cooper’s Hawk (short-distance migrant)
Carl Kurtz
Jim Messina/Prairie Wings
Prothonotary Warbler (Neotrop)
Silver maples are a common tree in the floodplain.
Bruce Ehresman Ty Smedes
Common Yellowthroat (Neotrop)
American Robin (short-distance migrant)
Carl Kurtz
American Redstart (Neotrop)
Ty Smedes
Wood Duck (short-distance migrant)
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Hope for the future
Larry Stone
Working cooperatively, we can change the course of the future and reverse the trends that now threaten Neotropical migrant birds. By protecting and improving the remaining habitats, we give Neotropical migrants —along with other birds, animals and plants—a fighting chance for survival. There are ways to restore the landscape to health, and there are resources to guide the way. For example, the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation is one of the leading organizations protecting Iowa’s remaining forests, savannas, prairies, rivers and wetlands. Please join us in protecting Iowa’s natural areas for the sake of our future—and for the birds. For more about protecting your land’s natural resources, Neotropical migrants, Iowa’s natural resources, outdoor recreation resources and much more, Financial support ask for the 52-page version of this booklet or visit www. Thanks to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation and inhf.org. the Alliant Energy Foundation for providing major support for this booklet.
This booklet was produced and distributed by
Thanks to the following organizations for additional financial support:
505 Fifth Avenue, Suite 444 Des Moines, Iowa 50309-2321 515-288-1846 • info@inhf.org • www.inhf.org researched and written by Marlene Ehresman, INHF staff member
INHF and partners thank the many landowners, land managers and bird enthusiasts who help protect Neotropical migrant habitat along the Upper Mississippi River blufflands. This pamphlet is dedicated to you, to those who follow—and to the birds.
Ruth A. Swaner IDNR Wildlife and Forestry bureaus Audubon—Upper Mississippi River Campaign Audubon Iowa Iowa Important Bird Areas Program; Big Bluestem, Prairie Rapids and Dubuque Audubon Societies Kingfisher Fund Des Moines Audubon Society Anonymous INHF member Gifts in memory of Karl J. Emendorfer, Jr.
IOWA ORNITHOLOGISTS’ UNION
This 8-page color pamphlet is available separately and as part of a more detailed, 52-page booklet. If you’d like a copy of the larger booklet, contact the Iowa Natural Heritage Foundation or the organization that gave you this pamphlet.