Understanding habitat selection is an important step in creating a comprehensive management plan for any species. Minor differences in habitat features may alter patterns of species occurrence, as exemplified by woodpeckers (Family Picidae). We identified variables that most influence occupancy by three woodpecker species in scrub habitat: the northern flicker (Colaptes auratus), red-headed woodpecker (Melanerpes erythrocephalus), and red-bellied woodpecker (Melanerpes carolinus). Notably, C. auratus and M. erythrocephalus are Species of Greatest Conservation Need in Florida and occur in an intensively managed National Forest. Understanding the habitat needs of these imperiled species informs management strategies, and in turn, strengthens conservation efforts. We conducted point counts at 112 locations in scrub habitat across Ocala National Forest, Florida during the 2018 breeding season. The forest is heavily managed through clearcuts and prescribed burning. We estimated occupancy rates for woodpeckers using single-season occupancy models in the R package ‘unmarked.’ We ranked models utilizing AIC.
Results/Conclusions
We found variation in the environmental variables that accounted for differences in occupancy between sites for the three woodpecker species. The best ranked model for all three species included a positive association with snag count, as well as one additional covariate, which varied between the three species. The occupancy rate for C. auratus was 97.2%. There was a negative association between C. auratus occupancy and increasing stand age. M. erythrocephalus had a 53.3% occupancy rate and was negatively associated with increasing shrub height. M. carolinus had a 78.6% occupancy rate and was positively associated with increasing pine cover. While future study may identify additional factors influencing occupancy, these results confirm variation in habitat selection amongst the three species of woodpecker. Our results indicate that early-successional scrub habitat with more snags may increase occupancy probability for the two Species of Greatest Conservation Need, C. auratus and M. erythryocephalus. Future management practices should take these findings into consideration.