Nesting habitat selection by sage grouse in south-central Washington
Issue Date
1998-05-01Keywords
grouseCentrocercus urophasianus
nesting
predation
habitat selection
ground cover
Washington
forbs
Artemisia tridentata
shrubs
plant litter
plant height
Metadata
Show full item recordCitation
Sveum, C. M., Edge, W. D., & Crawford, J. A. (1998). Nesting habitat selection by sage grouse in south-central Washington. Journal of Range Management, 51(3), 265-269.Publisher
Society for Range ManagementJournal
Journal of Range ManagementDOI
10.2307/4003409Additional Links
https://rangelands.org/Abstract
To characterize western sage grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus phaios Bonaparte) nesting habitat in sagebrush-steppe habitat in Washington, we initiated a study on the Yakima Training Center to determine nesting habitat characteristics and whether these characteristics differed between successful and depredated nests. Most nests (71%) were in big sagebrush (Artemesia tridentata Nutt.)/bunchgrass communities. Nest habitat was characterized by greater shrub cover, shrub height, vertical cover height, residual cover, and litter than at random locations. Successful 1-m2 nest sites within big sagebrush/bunchgrass in 1992 had less shrub cover (51%) and shrub height (64 cm) than depredated nest sites (70% and 90 cm, respectively). Successful 77-m2 nest areas in big sage-brush/bunchgrass in 1993 had more tall grass (greater than or equal to 18 cm) than depredated nest areas. Management that protects the big sage-brush/bunchgrass community is essential for maintaining nesting habitat for sage grouse.Type
textArticle
Language
enISSN
0022-409Xae974a485f413a2113503eed53cd6c53
10.2307/4003409