INTRODUCTION 



Grassland and shrubsteppe birds have shown more consistent population declines over 

 the last 30 years than any other group of North American bird species (Saab and Rich 1997, 

 Paige and Ritter 1999, Peteijohn and Sauer 1999). Declines are largely attributable to a variety 

 of anthropogenic disturbances to grassland and shrubsteppe habitats, such as grazing, burning, 

 plowing, spraying and chaining, that lead to broad-scale habitat losses (Vickery et al. 1999). 

 The variety of bird species found in these habitats is less than in broadleaf and coniferous forests, 

 but several species (termed "obligates") are restricted largely to grassland and shrubsteppe 

 (Knoph 1994, Paige and Ritter 1999, Vickery et al. 1999), and their population trends are of 

 special concern to land management agencies responsible for the stewardship of rangelands. 



Montana Partners In Flight (PIF) recognizes five bird species' associated with sagebrush 

 shrubsteppe as of priority conservation concern: Sage Grouse (Level I), Loggerhead Shrike 

 (Level II), Sage Thrasher (Level II), Brewer's Sparrow (Level II), Lark Sparrow (Level III). 

 Level I species are those needing conservation action, Level II species are those requiring 

 additional monitoring and/or the design of conservation actions, and Level III species are those 

 of local concern that may serve as added criteria in the design and selection of conservation or 

 monitoring strategies (Casey 2000) Montana PIF also recognizes 13 bird species associated 

 with mixed-grass prairie that are of priority conservation concern; Ferruginous Hawk (Level II), 

 Northern Harrier (Level III), Mountain Plover (Level I), Long-billed Curlew (Level II), 

 Burrowing Owl (Level I), Short-eared Owl (Level III), Sprague's Pipit (Level I), Lark Bunting 

 (Level II), Grasshopper Sparrow (Level II), Baird's Sparrow (Level I), McCown's Longspur 

 (Level II), Chestnut-collared Longspur (Level II), and Bobolink (Level III). 



Many of the shrubsteppe and grassland species on the Montana PIF conservation priority 

 lists occur in central Montana (Ellis et al. 1996) and are likely to occupy lands administered by 

 the Lewistown Field Office of the Bureau of Land Management (BLM). Interest was expressed 

 by BLM personnel in a rapid inventory of grassland and shrubsteppe birds of the former Judith 

 Resource Area, for which it was felt there were few recent data on non-game birds. Of special 

 concern were BLM lands in a rectangle roughly defined south-north by Flatwillow Creek to 

 Charles M Russell National Wildlife Refuge and west-east by Grassrange to the Musselshell 

 River, and encompassing the various units of War Horse National Wildlife Reftjge in the 

 Winnett area. 



The roadside bird counts presented in this report are intended to 1 ) provide a snapshot of 

 bird relative abundance in the areas visited, 2) establish a baseline of relative bird abundance for 

 future avian monitoring efforts in this area, 3) provide a series of "permanent" roadside transects 

 than can be rerun in fliture breeding seasons for longitudinal study of bird community and 

 species-level dynamics, and 4) identify Montana PIF bird conservation targets occupying the 

 study area. The information gathered should aid land managers in their design of management 

 plans and land stewardship activities in the study area. 



' Standard common names follow the American Ornithologists' Union Checklist of North American Birds. se\entli 

 ediuon (A.O.U. 1998) and will be used without reference to Latm bmomials 



