Texas Parks and Wildlife Department

Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) biologists working at Matador Wildlife Management Area (WMA) have been implementing mechanical, chemical, and prescribed burning treatments to manage and remove mesquite from the property for nearly 20 years, with the intent of improving conditions for grassland wildlife. In 2019, PLJV began collaborating with them to evaluate the effectiveness of the different mesquite control practices on grassland birds using the IMBCR program. Since the WMA staff know which treatments were applied in each pasture, pairing that information with the IMBCR data on bird populations helps them know if their strategies are working — and exactly how effective they are.

The study found that densities of several grassland birds were higher on Matador with the invasive mesquite removed than in areas outside the WMA. The value of this and other IMBCR data isn’t limited to Matador WMA. Texas Parks and Wildlife will be using it to help guide management of invasive woody plants in other areas of Texas as well. In 2022, PLJV will continue evaluating the effectiveness of the mesquite treatments and expand the study to other WMAs. View Report >>

Bureau of Land Management

The Roswell and Carlsbad Bureau of Land Management (BLM) field offices have been trying to remove mesquite on their lands, as well as surrounding state and private lands, using herbicides. The intent is to improve habitat for Lesser Prairie-Chickens, a species that is well known for avoiding tall woody vegetation, but BLM staff also want to know how this restoration work benefits other species of grassland birds.

To answer that, we are using targeted IMBCR sampling to help measure grassland bird response to shortgrass prairie and shinnery-oak habitat restoration at select project sites on BLM land in eastern New Mexico. The objective of this study is to evaluate how mesquite removal influences the abundance of grassland birds. This study is on-going and will be completed in 2022.

Bird Data for Rivers

PLJV has many birds that are of conservation concern that require woody vegetation often found along rivers in the region – birds such as Baltimore Oriole, Bullock’s Oriole, Bell’s Vireo, and Yellow-billed Cuckoo.

Sampling in habitats along rivers allows us to estimate bird densities which can be used as baseline data for understanding the effectiveness of conservation efforts in riparian areas. In these tables, you’ll see the estimated density of birds detected along rivers in the shortgrass and mixed-grass bird conservation regions (BCR 18 and 19) averaged from 2016 to 2020.

Please note, the estimates and standard deviations presented here are for illustrative purposes only. For density and occupancy estimates specific to your interests, visit the Rocky Mountain Avian Data Center where you can query the database (how to create a sample query).

Bird Data for Other Habitats

IMBCR grids can be found on all types of habitats in the PLJV region. While most grids tend to fall on grassland or cropland, due to the composition of our landscape, grids are also sampled on CRP fields, grasslands with invasive woody plants, and even urban areas. As you might expect, a wide variety of birds are detected, but we pay close attention to declining grassland songbirds such as Cassin’s Sparrow, Lark Bunting, Grasshopper Sparrow, and Eastern and Western Meadowlarks.

Sampling in all areas of our region allows us to track changes in estimated bird densities which can be used as baseline data for understanding the effectiveness of our conservation efforts. In these tables, you’ll see the estimated density of birds detected in the shortgrass and mixed-grass bird conservation regions (BCR 18 and 19) averaged from 2016 to 2020.

Please note, the estimates and standard deviations presented here are for illustrative purposes only. For density and occupancy estimates specific to your interests, visit the Rocky Mountain Avian Data Center where you can query the database (how to create a sample query).