Grassland Ecosystem Management

Status of grasslands of the Central Hardwoods Bird Conservation Region and the birds that depend upon them

Jane Fitzgerald

Friday, October 17, 2008 - 2:00-2:30

Despite the moniker of Central Hardwoods, the Central Hardwoods Bird Conservation Region historically had many large landscapes dominated by open prairies, barrens, and savanna communities. These grassland-dominated habitat types typically occurred historically where the topography was flat to gently dissected, soils were relatively deep and fertile, and few barriers existed to prevent the spread of fire. Today, these landscapes have largely been converted to non-native pasture and cropland or are overgrown with woody vegetation as a result of decades of fire suppression. Numerous species of grass and grass-shrubland birds have declined in concert with the loss and degradation of these native ecosystems, and several have been identified by Partners in Flight as in need of management attention. We will describe methods used to assess the degree of grassland habitat loss from pre-settlement until present and the kinds of conservation strategies needed to improve habitat quality for the region’s grass and grass-shrubland birds of greatest conservation concern.

Keywords: CENTRAL HARDWOODS REGION, GRASSLAND BIRDS, PRAIRIES, BARRENS, SAVANNAS