< Impacts of Sea Level Rise Tracking Azalea >
Red-cockaded Woodpeckers have a record year in Virginia
 |
|
Mike Wilson, CCB Biologist, kneels with a brood of woodpeckers after banding in cluster 1. |
Red-cockaded woodpeckers in Virginia had a very successful year in 2009 with 6 breeding pairs successfully fledging 15 birds. The 9 females and 6 males hatched and fledged in 2009 represent the greatest production of young since recovery efforts were initiated a decade ago. The 2009 season also marks only the second time since the late 1980s that six breeding pairs have bred successfully; in 2006, 6 pairs produced 9 chicks.
The Nature Conservancy’s (TNC) Piney Grove Preserve is the only location in Virginia where red-cockaded woodpeckers are known to breed. TNC purchased this land in 2000 to protect, what was at the time, the last 2 remaining breeding clusters in the state and to manage the site to increase the population. The purchase was a turning point for the population that led to the formation of a partnership focused on recovering the species, that includes The Nature Conservancy, The Center for Conservation Biology (CCB), the Virginia Department of Game and Inland Fisheries, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Ten years of intensive habitat management by TNC and population management by CCB is paying off in terms of population growth. At the close of the 2009 breeding season, the total number of individuals at the Piney Grove Preserve was 43.
 |
|
Entrance to red-cockaded woodpecker nest cavity in loblolly pine tree - The woodpeckers maintain open resin wells in the sapwood to keep the sap flowing around cavities. |
A translocation program established in the early phase of management is continuing to produce positive results. Between 2001 and 2005, 25 red-cockaded woodpeckers were translocated from the Carolinas to bolster the Virginia population. Translocated birds set up new breeding territories and paired with native Virginia birds, increasing both the number of breeding sites and the overall productivity. Since 2001, 6 of 25 translocated birds became breeders at Piney Grove. By 2008, only 5 of these translocated birds were still remaining in the population but 4 of them were breeders. In 2009, only 3 translocated birds remained but all were breeding. Now many of the translocated birds’ progeny are breeding and the Piney Grove population is becoming more self-sustaining.
|
A view from a woodpecker nest-cavity of the pine savannah habitat maintained by TNC on the Piney Grove Preserve |
 |
|
Bryan Watts uses a loop to inspect the crown of chicks after banding. |
Funding for population management at Piney Grove has been provided by the Virginia chapter of The Nature Conservancy (TNC), The Center for Conservation Biology (CCB), and the Virginia Dept. of Game and Inland Fisheries (VDGIF).
CCB TNC VDGIF
Related Literature
Wilson, M. D., B. D. Watts, C. Lotts, B. J. Paxton, and F. M. Smith 2009. Investigation of Red-cockaded Woodpeckers in Virginia: Year 2008 report. Center for Conservation Biology Technical Report Series, CCBTR-09-002. College of William and Mary and Virginia Commonwealth University, Williamsburg, VA. 33 pp.
Wilson, M. D., B. D. Watts, C. Lotts, B. J. Paxton, and F. M. Smith. 2008. Investigation of Red-cockaded Woodpeckers in Virginia: Year 2007 report. Center for Conservation Biology Technical Report Series, CCBTR-08-04. College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, VA. 30 pp.
Watts, B.D. and S.R. Harding. 2007. Virginia Red-cockaded Woodpecker Conservation Plan. Center for Conservation Biology Technical Report Series, CCBTR-07-07. College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, VA. 42 pp.
Watts, B. D., M. D. Wilson, B. J. Paxton, F. M. Smith, D. S. Bradshaw and C. Lotts. 2007. Investigation of Red-cockaded Woodpeckers in Virginia: Year 2006 report. Center for Conservation Biology Technical Report Series, CCBTR-07-04. College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, VA. 27 pp.
Watts, B. D., D. S. Bradshaw, and M. D. Wilson. 2006. Investigation of Red-cockaded Woodpeckers in Virginia: Year 2005 report. Center for Conservation Biology Technical Report Series, CCBTR-06-03. College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, VA. 18 pp.
Watts, B. D. and D. S. Bradshaw. 2005. Decline and protection of the Virginia red-cockaded woodpecker population. In R. Costa and S. J. Daniels, editors. Red-cockaded woodpecker: road to recovery. Hancock House Publishers, Blain, Washington, USA.
Bradshaw, D. S. and B. D. Watts. 2005. Investigation of Red-cockaded Woodpeckers in Virginia: Year 2004 Report. Center for Conservation Biology Technical Report Series, CCBTR-05-12. College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, VA. 23 pp.
Bradshaw, D. S. and B. D. Watts. 2003. Investigation of Red-cockaded Woodpeckers in Virginia: Year 2003 report. Center for Conservation Biology Technical Report Series, CCBTR-03-10. College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, VA. 30 pp.
Bradshaw, D. S. and B. D. Watts. 2003. Investigation of Red-cockaded Woodpeckers in Virginia: Year 2002 report. Center for Conservation Biology Technical Report Series. CCBTR-03-01. College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, VA. 32 pp.
Watts, B. D. and D. S. Bradshaw 2001. Investigation of Red-cockaded Woodpeckers in Virginia: Year 2001 report. Center for Conservation Biology Research Report, CCBTR-01-13. College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, VA. 72 pp.
Watts, B. D. and D. S. Bradshaw. 2000. Investigation of Red-cockaded Woodpeckers in Virginia: Year 2000 report. Center for Conservation Biology Technical Report, CCBTR-00-10. College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, VA. 87 pp.
Bradshaw, D.S. 1999. Status and distribution of Red-cockaded Woodpeckers and their habitat in southeastern Virginia. Center for Conservation Biology Technical Report Series, CCBTR-99-01. College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, VA. 33 pp.
Bradshaw, D.S. 1999. 1999 Status Information for Red-cockaded Woodpecker Groups on Lands Managed by Resource Management Service, Inc. in Southeastern Virginia. Center for Conservation Biology Technical Report Series, CCBTR-99-06. College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, VA. 12 pp.
Bradshaw, D. S. 1995. Habitat use by a relict population of red-cockaded woodpeckers in southeastern Virginia. Pages 482-488 in D. L. Kulhavy, R. G. Hooper, and R. Costa, editors. Red-cockaded woodpecker: recovery, ecology and management. Center for Applied Studies in Forestry, College of Forestry, Stephen F. Austin State University, Nacogdoches, TX.
Bradshaw, D. S. 1990. Habitat quality and seasonal foraging patterns of the red-cockaded woodpecker (Picoides borealis) in southeastern Virginia. M. A. Thesis, The College of William and Mary, Williamsburg, VA.
