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AMJV Timber Harvest Virtual Tours
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These 360° Virtual Tour videos from Appalachian Mountains Joint Venture partners show different timber harvest techniques and their outcomes. Simply click and drag within the video to look around as you learn about different management techniques such as shelterwood harvests, overstory removals, and midstory removals that benefit many wildlife species including the Golden-winged Warbler. Includes 5 total videos.
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Best Management Practices for Golden-winged Warbler Habitat in the Aspen Parkland Transition Zone of Canada
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The Aspen Parkland Transition Zone comprises the contact
zone between the prairie parkland and the greater boreal
ecosystems (Figure 1). Whereas the prairie biome is dominated
by grasses and the boreal biome by coniferous tree species and
mixed woods, the Aspen Parkland Transition Zone is dominated
by deciduous trees, especially Trembling Aspen (Populus tremuloides)
and Bur Oak (Quercus macrocarpa), in complex mosaics
with grassland and wetlands.
The Aspen Parkland Transition Zone is the only remaining
large area within the Golden-winged Warbler range where
Blue-winged Warbler does not occur. Thus, maintaining healthy
populations of Golden-winged Warbler in this area is critical.
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Golden-Winged Warbler Great Lakes/Canada Fact Sheets
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Best Management Practices For Golden-winged Warbler Habitats in the Great Lakes Region: A Guide for Land Managers and Landowners
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This guide is intended to provide land managers and landowners with regional, habitat-specific strategies and techniques to begin developing and restoring habitat for Golden-winged Warblers. This document includes general information that applies to all habitat types in the Great Lakes region and should be used along with supplemental documents dedicated to the management of specific regional habitat types (deciduous forests, aspen parkland transition zone, abandoned farmlands, utility rights-of-way, forest and shrub wetlands) most important to Golden-winged Warblers.
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Golden-Winged Warbler Great Lakes/Canada Fact Sheets
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Best Management Practices for Golden-winged Warbler Habitat in Deciduous Forests of the Great Lakes
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This supplement for Deciduous Forests accompanies Best Management Practices for Golden-winged Warbler Habitats in the Great
Lakes Region, which includes general information that applies to all habitat types in this area. Users should refer to both documents
to develop a comprehensive management strategy for Golden-winged Warbler. The following are guidelines and not absolute
rules for the creation of breeding habitat, thus prescriptions that fall outside the numerical ranges presented can provide habitat,
too. Consult a Golden-winged Warbler or young forest habitat expert for assistance in tailoring a management plan to your property,
and, if available, follow forest management guidelines for your state or province.
Historically, young forest in this region was generated by natural disturbances such as wind, ice, insect outbreaks, flooding, beaver
activity, and fire. Today, much habitat is created through commercial management of deciduous forests, which is the focus of this
habitat guide. Deciduous forest management opportunities exist throughout the Great Lakes on public, private, and tribal lands.
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Golden-Winged Warbler Great Lakes/Canada Fact Sheets
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Best Management Practices for Golden-winged Warbler Habitat on Utility Rights-of-way in the Great Lakes
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Utility ROWs consist of long, linear corridors that are often
managed in a way that can provide habitat for Golden-winged
Warbler and other shrubland birds. Many landscapes within
the Great Lakes region are traversed by extensive and growing
networks of electric transmission lines and gas pipelines (Figure
1), and in some of these the utility corridors are the principal
sites of extensive shrubland habitat. Only a small proportion of
these utility ROWs are managed for Golden-winged Warbler;
therefore, substantial opportunities exist to benefit this species
while still meeting the vegetation management goals of utility
companies and working within acceptable budgets.
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Golden-Winged Warbler Great Lakes/Canada Fact Sheets
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Best Management Practices for Golden-winged Warbler Habitat on Abandoned Farmlands in the Great Lakes
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Since the early 20th century, abandoned farmland has become
an important component of the Great Lakes landscape.
When crop and pasture lands become inactive, they begin
succeeding into their pre-agricultural state, which is often
deciduous forest. The span of time from field to forest takes
decades, during which there is a period of years where the ratio
of herbaceous vegetation, shrubs, and young trees on a given
site can potentially create habitat for breeding Golden-winged Warblers (Figure 1). Without active management, this is a temporary
condition that typically persists for less than a decade.
Throughout the region there is an excellent opportunity, especially on private lands, to create habitat for Golden-winged Warbler
on abandoned farmlands. Perhaps the best opportunities exist on poorly drained soils that are too wet for pasture or crops.
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Golden-Winged Warbler Great Lakes/Canada Fact Sheets
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Best Management Practices for Golden-winged Warbler Habitat in Shrub Wetlands of the Great Lakes
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Shrub wetlands are extensive in the region, particularly in
the western Great Lakes. Not all shrub wetlands are occupied
by Golden-winged Warbler for a variety of reasons including
high water levels, lack of desired woody and herbaceous
vegetation patchiness, lack of scattered canopy trees, and
distance to upland deciduous forest. Dense mature stands of
unbroken woody shrub cover over large areas often are unsuitable.
Reduced flooding and beaver activity may be partially
responsible for these conditions and restoration of these
natural disturbance regimes could improve habitat quality. In
other cases, mechanical treatments provide the mechanism
for creating or restoring breeding habitat (Figure 1) and are
the focus of the included guidelines.
For this insert, shrub wetlands are defined as palustrine
wetlands dominated by broad-leaved deciduous woody vegetation
less than 20 feet tall. The species include true shrubs,
young trees, and scattered trees of varying size. See Table 1
for common dominant shrub and tree species.
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Capture of GWWA on Nonbreeding Grounds
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While studying migratory birds on their Costa Rican wintering grounds in March 2017, associates at the Roger Tory Peterson Institute of Natural History (RTPI) were able to add some important data to the understanding of Golden-wing Warbler biology. RTPI affiliate Sean Graesser, who was working in a remote rainforest reserve in northeastern Costa Rica with other RTPI staff on a tropical biology course for high school students, captured a gorgeous male Golden-winged Warbler. When he extracted it from the net to collect data and band it, he realized that this bird already had a uniquely numbered band on its leg – a band that Sean had put there himself a year ago! Since the bird was last seen in March of 2016, it had flown to North America – likely somewhere in that upper Great Lakes Region area, possibly nested and raised young against all odds, and returned to Costa Rica to overwinter. This bird looked healthy as could be and was getting ready to make the same trek again – possibly travelling as far as 6,000 miles each year between its breeding and wintering grounds.
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Multimedia
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Golden-winged Warbler Conservation Initiative Brochure
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This printable brochure from the Golden-winged Warbler Working Group highlights research priorities as well as key management strategies for private landowners and public land managers.
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Golden-Winged Warbler General Fact Sheets
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Golden-winged Warbler Ecology and Guidelines for Creating Breeding Habitat Presentation
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Presented by Jeff Larkin, Ph.D., Indiana University of Pennsylvania, and Marja Bakermans, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Researcher, Indiana University of Pennsylvania
The Golden-winged Warbler is a neo-tropical migrant that breeds in early successional habitats of North America. This imperiled songbird has experienced a 90%+ population decline in the Appalachian region over the past 50 years. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is currently considering listing this species under the Endangered Species Act. The recent completion of a study in portions of Pennsylvania and Maryland provided the foundation of a Golden-winged Warbler Forestland BMP publication. These BMP's have potential for implementation through Farm Bill programs on private lands. Learn more by viewing this webinar.
The opinions expressed in this video are those of the presenter(s) and do not necessarily reflect the opinion of USDA.
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