Grassland songbird populations have experienced declines due to habitat loss. In Canada, gas well development continues to fragment and disturb prairie habitat. From 2010-2012, I monitored a total of 374 nests in mixed-grass prairie located in southeastern Alberta. I estimated the probabilities of nesting success relative to gas well infrastructure to test for effects on reproductive success. There was very little effect of well pads on nesting success, while roads had a greater impact. Savannah sparrow and chestnut-collared longspur clutch sizes and fledgling numbers per nest were lower near gas well pads and cattle water sources, suggesting lower quality habitat in these areas. Large-sized predators occurred less in areas with older well pads. Concentrations of new well pads may have greater effects on chestnut-collared longspur reproductive success. Minimizing habitat disturbance surrounding gas well pads, and reducing abundance of roads, should minimize impacts on reproductive success for most grassland songbirds.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:MANITOBA/oai:mspace.lib.umanitoba.ca:1993/23850 |
| Date | 21 August 2014 |
| Creators | Yoo, Jenny |
| Contributors | Koper, Nicola (Natural Resources Management), Baydack, Rick (Environment and Geography) Ellison, Kevin (World Wildlife Fund) |
| Source Sets | University of Manitoba Canada |
| Detected Language | English |
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