The Wilson Journal of Ornithology 123( 1 ):65—75, 2011 
INTERSPECIFIC VARIATION IN HABITAT PREFERENCES OF 
GRASSLAND BIRDS WINTERING IN SOUTHERN PINE SAVANNAS 
MATTHEW E. BROOKS 1 ' 2 AND PHILIP C STOUFFER 1 
ABSTRACT.—We studied wintering grassland bird communities in De Soto National Forest in southern Mississippi, 
USA to assess differences in bird communities and vegetation structure among different stand types. We also examined 
which vegetation structure and plant species predicted occurrence of Bachman’s Sparrow ( Peucaea aestivalis ), Henslow’s 
Sparrow (Ammodramus henslowii ), and Sedge Wren ( Cistothorus platensis). Bachman’s Sparrows occurred only in uplands 
(x. = 0.5 birds/ha) and stands managed for Red-cockaded Woodpeckers ( Picoides borealis ; x = 0.9 birds/ha), Henslow’s 
Sparrows occurred only in bogs (x = 3.8 birds/ha) and stands managed for Red-cockaded Woodpeckers (x = 2.1 birds/ha), 
while Sedge Wrens occurred in all stand types (x = 0.1-0.3 birds/ha). There were no significant differences among stand 
types in total bird densities for all three species combined. Dense, spatially uniform herbaceous cover and cover of Scleria 
muhlenbergii , a preferred food item in bogs, best predicted Henslow’s Sparrow occurrence (39% s 2 explained). Increased 
woody understory vegetation and decreased tree density best predicted Sedge Wren occurrence (17% s 2 explained). 
Management for Henslow’s Sparrows should focus on small-scale herbaceous ground-layer restoration in bogs. Bachman’s 
Sparrows will respond more to thinning dense upland stands. Sedge Wrens and Bachman’s Sparrows benefit from Red- 
cockaded Woodpecker management, whereas Henslow’s Sparrow use of woodpecker stands is ephemeral. Received 6 
March 2010. Accepted 9 September 2010. 
Virtually all remaining longleaf pine ( Pinus 
palustris) savannas are subject to management for 
habitat improvement and sensitive species. Man¬ 
agement, such as that for Red-cockaded Wood¬ 
peckers ( Picoides borealis ; hereafter RCW), may 
alter portions of forest stands in ways that create 
distinct patches. Natural variation in local topog¬ 
raphy in pine savannas, combined with forest 
management, leads to a variety of localized 
habitat types that differ in plant species compo¬ 
sition and structure (Kirkman et al. 2001, Drewa 
et al. 2002a). These differences may also be 
reflected in grassland bird habitat preferences. 
Understanding these preferences is crucial for 
developing efficient species-specific conservation 
plans. 
The majority of pine savanna habitats in De 
Soto National Forest (DSNF) can be divided into 
three distinct types: (1) upland pine stands 
(“uplands”), (2) upland pine stands managed 
for RCWs (“RCW”), and (3) hillside seepage 
pitcher plant ( Sarracenia spp.) bogs (“bogs”). 
RCW clusters are an artificially designated stand 
type, whereas uplands and bogs are naturally 
occurring and well documented in the literature 
(Clewell 1986, Olson and Platt 1995). 
Concern over the impact of ecosystem man¬ 
agement on non-target species has sparked 
1 School of Renewable Natural Resources, 227 RNR 
Building, Louisiana State University and LSU Agriculture 
Center, Baton Rouge, LA 70803, USA. 
2 Corresponding author; e-mail: mattebrooks@gmail.com 
interest in the effects of RCW management on 
other organisms (Hunter et al. 1994, Brennan et 
al. 1995, Provencher et al. 2002). Several studies 
have shown stands managed for RCWs contain 
different bird communities than unmanaged 
stands and have higher densities of Bachman’s 
Sparrows (Peucaea aestivalis) (Conner et al. 
2002, Provencher et al. 2002, Wood et al. 2004). 
No published studies have documented RCW 
cluster use by Henslow’s Sparrow ( Ammodramus 
henslowii) or Sedge Wren ( Cistothorus platensis), 
common wintering grassland birds in pine savan¬ 
nas. 
Few studies have examined grassland bird 
preferences among habitat types in pine savannas. 
Some studies suggest Henslow’s Sparrows may 
prefer bogs over uplands (Plentovich et al. 1999, 
Tucker and Robinson 2003), while others have 
found birds in upland stands (Carrie et al. 2002, 
Johnson 2006, Palasz et al. 2010). Henslow’s 
Sparrows generally use both upland longleaf pine 
savannas and bogs, but may prefer bogs when 
both habitat types are in close proximity. Bach¬ 
man’s Sparrow habitat preferences across differ¬ 
ent stand types have rarely been studied in winter. 
Allen et al. (2006) found breeding Bachman’s 
Sparrows were more common in upland habitats 
compared to wetter pocosins, a type of bog, in 
North Carolina longleaf pine savannas. Bach¬ 
man’s Sparrows, as is also the case for Henslow’s 
Sparrows (Bechtoldt and Stouffer 2005), prefer to 
winter in grasslands that were burned in the 
previous growing season (Cox and Jones 2009). 
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