S6 



Biuls — Our Living Rt'siiiirccs 



Red-cockaded 

 Woodpeckers 



by 



Ralph Costa 



U.S. Fish and Wildlife Senice 



Joan L. Walker 



U.S. Forest Service 



Table. Number of red-cockaded 

 woodpecker active clusters, by 

 state and land ownership category, 

 for various years between 1990- 

 94.* 



The led-cockaded woodpecker (RCW; 

 Picoidcs horealis) is a teiritorial. nonmigra- 

 tory. cooperative breeding species (Lennartz et 

 al. 1987). Ecological requirements include habi- 

 tat for relatively large home ranges (34 to about 

 200 ha or 84 to about 500 acres; Connor and 

 Rudolph 1941); old pine trees with red-heart 

 disease for nesting and roosting (Jackson and 

 Schardien 1986); and open, parklike forested 

 landscapes for population expansion, dispersal 

 (Connor and Rudolph 1991), and necessary 

 social interactions. 



Historically, the southern pine ecosystems, 

 contiguous across large areas and kept open with 

 recuiTing fire (Christensen 1981 ), provided ideal 

 conditions for a nearly continuous distribution 

 of RCWs throughout the South. Within this 

 extensive ecosystem red-cockaded woodpeckers 

 were the only species to excavate cavities in liv- 

 ing pine trees, thereby providing essential cavi- 

 ties for other cavity-nesting birds and mammals, 

 as well as some reptiles, amphibians, and inver- 

 tebrates (Kappes 1993). The loss of open pine 

 habitat since European settlement precipitated 

 dramatic declines in the bird's population and 

 led to its being listed as endangered in 1970 

 (Federal Register 35: 16047). 



We obtained historic RCW distribution data, 

 aiTanged by state and county, from published 

 sources (Jackson 1971; Hooper et al. 1980), and 

 interviews with various red-cockaded wood- 

 pecker experts. Current distribution and abun- 

 dance data were obtained from natural resource 

 agencies and knowledgeable biologists. Most 

 records were reported between January 1993 

 and March 1994. and most represent direct cen- 

 sus data. Specific references are available from 

 R.Costa (Table). 



Several terms are used to describe red-cock- 

 aded woodpecker abundance. "Group"" refers to 

 birds that cooperate to rear the young from a sin- 

 gle nest. It usually consists of a breeding male 

 and female, and zero to four helpers, usually the 

 group's male offspring from previous breeding 

 seasons. For reporting purposes, single bird 



■For iniormation on references, contact R Costa. 



Red-cockaded woodpecker {Picoiiles borealis). 



groups (usually male) are tallied. The collection 

 of cavity trees used by a group for nesting and 

 roosting is the "cluster."" Although single tree 

 clusters do occur, typically each cluster consists 

 of 2 to more than 15 cavity trees and may occu- 

 py 2 to more than 4 ha (5 to more than 10 acres). 

 Each group normally occupies and defends only 

 one cluster. "Population"" refers to the aggrega- 

 tion of groups that are more distant than 29 km 

 (18 mi) from the nearest group. A single isolat- 

 ed group may constitute a population. 



Historical Distribution and 

 Abundance 



The historical range of this species covered 

 southeast Virginia to east Texas and north to por- 

 tions of Tennessee. Kentucky, southeast 

 Missouri, and eastern Oklahoma (Figure). The 

 range included the entire longleaf pine ecosys- 

 tem, but the birds also inhabited open shortleaf. 

 loblolly, and Virginia pine forests, especially in 

 the Ozark-Ouachita Highlands and the southern 

 tip of the Appalachian Highlands. 



Red-cockaded woodpecker abundance was 

 described variously as fairly common (Woodruff 

 1907), locally common (Murphey 1939), com- 

 mon (Chapman 1895), or abundant (Audubon 

 1839). Occasional occurrences were noted for 

 New Jersey (Hausman 1928). Pennsylvania 

 (Gentry 1877). Maryland (Meanly 1943). and 

 Ohio (Dawson and Jones 1903). 



