| | Accession Number | 5004264 |
| | Title | A metapopulation viability analysis for the golden-cheeked warbler |
| | Project Description | The purpose of this study is to extend the population viability analysis (PVA) of the |
| | golden-cheeked warbler (Dendroica chrysoparia) to a metapopulation model. This endangered |
| | species nests in oak-juniper woodlands in central Texas and winters in high-elevation, pine-oak |
| | woodlands of Mexico and Central America. The most recent PVA for this species was conducted |
| | in 1995 (USFWS, 1996, Golden-cheeked warbler population and habitat viability assessment |
| | report, compiled and edited by C. Beardmore, J. Hatfield, and J. Lewis). This report documented |
| | the need for a PVA based on patch size of occupied fragments of habitat. To do this analysis, a |
| | spatially explicit model is needed which allows for dispersal of individuals among habitat |
| | fragments, or patches, and breeding and survival of individuals tailored to patch size. This would |
| | require estimating these parameters using valid statistical techniques among habitat fragments of |
| | various patch sizes. Since 1995, improved population parameter estimates have become available |
| | from several studies (Fort. Hood, Balcones Canyonlands National Wildlife Refuge, Balcones |
| | Canyonlands Preserve, others). This project would summarize all known productivity, survival, and |
| | dispersal information for the warbler by territory (after the breeding season of the Spring of 2001), |
| | and link the parameter estimates to patch size. These parameter estimates would be linked to the |
| | Austin Fish and Wildlife Services geographic information system (GIS) depicting the distribution |
| | of oak-juniper woodland (based on 1996/1997 satellite imagery) throughout the warblers range. |
| | The GIS would be used to estimate the size of fragments for which productivity, survival, and |
| | dispersal data are available. All of this information will then be incorporated into a metapopulation |
| | model for the warbler using RAMAS Metapop software. The updated PVA, based on the best |
| | available information, is critical to estimating the amount and configuration of habitat necessary to |
| | sustain a viable warbler population. |
| | Keywords | dendroica chrysoparia, geographic information system, golden-cheeked warbler, metapopulation, |
| | population viability analysis, |
| | Principal | Jeff S Hatfield, USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center: jeff_hatfield@usgs.gov; David D |
| | Investigators | Diamond, USGS Patuxent Wildlife Research Center: david_diamond@usgs.gov; |
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