Geology Reports⌕ Search
Home/Archive/USGS

USGS · 70034173

Home range dynamics, habitat selection, and survival of Greater Roadrunners

S.W. Kelley·D. Ransom·J.A. Butcher·G.G. Schulz·B.W. Surber·W.E. Pinchak·C.A. Santamaria·L.A. Hurtado
View original source ↗Export metadata ↓

Abstract

Greater Roadrunners (Geococcyx californianus) are common, poorly studied birds of arid and semi-arid ecosystems in the southwestern United States. Conservation of this avian predator requires a detailed understanding of their movements and spatial requirements that is currently lacking. From 2006 to 2009, we quantified home-range and core area sizes and overlap, habitat selection, and survival of roadrunners (N= 14 males and 20 females) in north-central Texas using radio-telemetry and fixed kernel estimators. Median home-range and core-area sizes were 90.4 ha and 19.2 ha for males and 80.1 ha and 16.7 ha for females, respectively. The size of home range and core areas did not differ significantly by either sex or season. Our home range estimates were twice as large (x??= 108.9 ha) as earlier published estimates based on visual observations (x??= 28-50 ha). Mean percent overlap was 38.4% for home ranges and 13.7% for core areas. Male roadrunners preferred mesquite woodland and mesquite savanna cover types, and avoided the grass-forb cover type. Female roadrunners preferred mesquite savanna and riparian woodland cover types, and avoided grass-forb habitat. Kaplan-Meier annual survival probabilities for females (0.452 ?? 0.118[SE]) were twice that estimated for males (0.210 ?? 0.108), but this difference was not significant. Mortality rates of male roadrunners were higher than those of females during the spring when males call from elevated perches, court females, and chase competing males. Current land use practices that target woody-shrub removal to enhance livestock forage production could be detrimental to roadrunner populations by reducing availability of mesquite woodland and mesquite savanna habitat required for nesting and roosting and increasing the amount of grass-forb habitat that roadrunners avoid. ??2011 The Authors. Journal of Field Ornithology ??2011 Association of Field Ornithologists.

Explore related subjects

Journal of Field OrnithologyArticle

Keep this discovery

Explore connections, maps & timelines

BibTeXRIS

S.W. Kelley, D. Ransom, J.A. Butcher, G.G. Schulz, B.W. Surber, W.E. Pinchak, C.A. Santamaria, L.A. Hurtado. 2011-05-24. Home range dynamics, habitat selection, and survival of Greater Roadrunners. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1557-9263.2011.00319.x

Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.

KEEP EXPLORING

Related USGS reports

USGS2025

Effectiveness of stewardship and management strategies to conserve coastal bird populations in the northern Gulf of Mexico: A literature review

Shorebirds, seabirds, and wading birds (hereafter coastal birds) have experienced considerable losses over the last century and require proactive conservation management to stabilize or grow populations. Habitat loss and/or degradation and human disturbance are among the most urgent threats faced by coastal bird populations. Identifying effective conservation management techniques to mitigate these threats is of great interest in the northern Gulf of Mexico (nGoM), a region that provides important habitat during the entire life cycle of resident birds and an essential breeding, wintering, and stopover site for migratory birds. A suite of 35 coastal birds have been identified as priority species for multi-scale conservation monitoring in this region by the Gulf of Mexico Avian Monitoring Network (GoMAMN). This review focuses on impacts of human disturbance and anthropogenic habitat loss and/or degradation on coastal birds and effectiveness of the management strategies implemented to mitigate them, with the goal of informing nGoM management. Our review found that human disturbance was best alleviated by simultaneously deploying complementary stewardship techniques (e.g., signs, fencing, steward patrols, education and community involvement, and beach closures to humans, dogs, and vehicles). However, the relative efficacy of each individual technique is unclear given that only 13% of human disturbance management studies and 38% of habitat management studies have been conducted in the nGoM region. Given the nature of coastal bird habitat and associated risks from sea level rise and human development, most habitat management studies encouraged strategic applications of beach renourishment, limitations on beach raking, as well as site- and species-specific restoration strategies. Studies demonstrated that successful management of coastal birds in the nGoM combined these approaches, employing complementary and adaptive strategies over extended periods.

Journal of Field Ornithology↗
USGS2025

Population estimates and land cover use of wintering Mountain Plovers in Texas

Conservation of migratory birds throughout the full annual cycle requires a comprehensive understanding of abundance and distribution in interconnected breeding, migration, and wintering habitats. The Mountain Plover ( Anarhynchus montanus ) is a rare endemic breeder of the Rocky Mountain and Great Plains regions that migrates to wintering grounds in the southwestern USA and northern Mexico. Information regarding its wintering abundance and distribution, particularly in Texas, is limited. This study provides the first population estimate for Mountain Plovers wintering in Texas and examines factors influencing their land cover use. Through distance sampling surveys in six ecoregions of Texas, we estimated an annual wintering population of 3096 (95% CI 1464–6547) Mountain Plovers during 2019–2020, with the greatest abundances in the Southern Texas Plains and Western Gulf Coastal Plain ecoregions. The highest plover densities were in the Southern Texas Plains and Central Great Plains ecoregions. Most plovers were found in cultivated crops, particularly tilled fields and sod farms, and plovers preferentially selected crop fields without residual vegetation or stubble. Grass/hay fields were used less, perhaps because of tall vegetation. Our findings highlight the significance of Texas as a wintering area for Mountain Plovers and emphasize the importance of specific cropland habitats for this species. These results provide crucial insights for conservation and management efforts aimed at protecting Mountain Plovers throughout their annual cycle.

Texas↗
USGS2024

Contrasting migratory chronology and routes of Lesser Scaup: Implications of different migration strategies in a broadly distributed species

Migration allows birds to improve fitness by exploiting seasonal resource peaks and avoiding limitations. Migration strategies may differ among individuals within a species, but for all strategies, the benefit of increased fitness should outweigh the costs of migration. These costs can include increased mortality risk, time constraints in the annual cycle, and metabolic energy loss. We compared migratory chronology and routes of individuals from a broadly distributed species of waterfowl, the Lesser Scaup ( Aythya affinis ; hereafter Scaup), marked at the northern (66.51000° N, 145.98556° W) and southern (44.63778° N, 111.73694° W) extents of its breeding distribution in North America. Scaup breeding farther north in interior Alaska, USA migrated greater distances and had protracted migrations, especially in fall, compared to Scaup breeding farther south in southwest Montana, USA. During migration, Scaup breeding in Alaska used more staging and stopover areas compared to Scaup breeding in Montana. Scaup breeding in Alaska also spent less time at their breeding area and more time at their wintering areas compared to Scaup breeding in Montana. In addition, Scaup breeding in Alaska were largely absent from wintering areas in the Intermountain West that were used by Scaup breeding in Montana. These differences could have important effects on Scaup fitness and could contribute to differences in fecundity and recruitment observed across the Scaup’s broad latitudinal distribution. Understanding the fitness implications of intraspecific variation in migration strategies of broadly distributed species can assist resource managers by focusing conservation efforts on specific breeding populations, informing models of disease transmission, and improving projections of species’ responses to environmental change.

Journal of Field Ornithology↗