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Type: Conference Paper
Author(s): R. M. Perez; James F. Gallagher; Mike C. Frisbie
Editor(s): Stephan J. DeMaso; William P. Kuvlesky; Fidel Hernandez; M. E. Berger
Publication Date: 2002

Weather plays a substantial role in annual changes in populations of northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus) within and among ecological regions. Few studies have tested this relationship within the confines of specific sites. We examined the fine scale influence of annual (12 month), seasonal (6-month), and monthly Modified Palmer Drought Severity Indices (PMDI) and raw precipitation on abundance, breeding success, and harvest of northern bobwhites on 2 sites in south Texas. We used 18 years (1984-01) of roadside census, juvenile : adult ratios, and harvest records from the Chaparral Wildlife Management Area (CWMA) in La Salle County and 15 years (1984-99) of juvenile : adult ratios and harvest records from a private property in Brooks County (BDP) to examine relationships and trends with weather variables. Bobwhite abundance was correlated (r ³ 0.50, P £ 0.035) with 12- and 6-month sums of precipitation and PMDI. Breeding success was correlated (r ³ 0.53, P £ 0.023) with 12-month precipitation for both sites and was correlated (r = 0.53, P = 0.040) with 6-month precipitation for BCP only. Harvest variables for CWMA were correlated (r ³ 0.54, P £ 0.022) with 12- and 6-month PMDI, while BCP harvest/ha was correlated (r = 0.54, P = 0.027) with the 12-month precipitation sum. Monthly correlates with precipitation increased from spring to summer until July when they became negatively related to rainfall on both sites. Monthly PMDI corelates became increasingly important from spring through summer including July. Our findings account for at least part of the annual variation in northern bobwhite abundance in south Texas and provide information useful in understanding of the influence of weather at fine spatial scales. © 2002, Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. Abstract reproduced by permission.

Online Links
Citation: Perez, R. M., J. F. Gallagher, and M. C. Frisbie. 2002. Fine scale influence of weather on northern bobwhite abundance, breeding success, and harvest in south Texas, in DeMaso, S. J., Kuvlesky, W. P., Hernandez, F., and Berger, M. E., Quail V: Proceedings of the Fifth National Quail Symposium. Corpus Christi, TX. Texas Parks and Wildlife Department,Austin, TX. p. 106-110, http://www.whmi.nrcs.usda.gov/technical/quail5.html.

Cataloging Information

Topics:
Regions:
Keywords:
  • abundance
  • Breeding Success
  • chaparral
  • Colinus
  • Colinus virginianus
  • Colinus virginianus
  • conservation
  • droughts
  • fire dependent species
  • game birds
  • habits and behavior
  • harvest
  • Modified Palmer Drought Severity Index
  • northern bobwhite
  • population density
  • precipitation
  • precipitation
  • range management
  • rangelands
  • reproduction
  • south Texas
  • statistical analysis
  • Texas
  • wildlife
  • wildlife habitat management
  • wildlife management
Tall Timbers Record Number: 22161Location Status: In-fileAbstract Status: Fair use, Okay, Reproduced by permission
Record Last Modified:
Record Maintained By: FRAMES Staff (https://www.frames.gov/contact)
FRAMES Record Number: 46425

This bibliographic record was either created or modified by Tall Timbers and is provided without charge to promote research and education in Fire Ecology. The E.V. Komarek Fire Ecology Database is the intellectual property of Tall Timbers.