The Oak Woodland Bird Conservation Plan: A Strategy for Protecting and Managing Oak Woodland Habitats and Associated Birds in California

Abstract

Over 330 species of birds, mammals, reptiles, and amphibians depend on oak woodlands in California (fig. 1) at some stage in their life cycle (Barrett 1980; Verner 1980; Block and Morrison 1998). These woodlands are able to sustain such abundant wildlife primarily because they produce acorns, a high quality and frequently copious food supply. The birds of California?s oak woodlands are connected to this distinctive habitat mainly through acorns, the fruits of oaks that are eaten and stored by dozens of species. This ecological relationship is also reciprocal: species like Western Scrub-Jays (Aphelocoma californica), Steller?s Jays (Cyanocita stelleri), and Yellow-billed Magpies (Pica nuttalli) do not completely retrieve cached acorns and thus act as dispersers of oak seedlings across the landscape. Large oak trees also provide cavities for cavity dependent nesting birds and other wildlife, as well as caching sites for acorn woodpeckers, nuthatches, and other species. Additionally, Oaks commonly host mistletoe, the fruits of which are an important food for Western Bluebirds (Sialia mexicana), Phainopepla (Phainopepla nitens), and other species. The ties between oaks and birds are profound and diverse. Oaks also provide important shelter in the form of cavities for nesting. Moreover, oak woodlands are among the most highly prized of California?s landscapes, for both aesthetic reasons and utilitarian needs such as firewood collection and grazing.

Parent Publication

• Bird Conservation Implementation and Integration in the Americas: Proceedings of the Third International Partners in Flight Conference. 2002 March 20-24; Asilomar, California, Volume 1 and 2

Citation

Zack, Steve; Chase, Mary K.; Geupel, Geoffrey R.; Stralberg, Diana. 2005. The Oak Woodland Bird Conservation Plan: A Strategy for Protecting and Managing Oak Woodland Habitats and Associated Birds in California. In: Ralph, C. John; Rich, Terrell D., editors 2005. Bird Conservation Implementation and Integration in the Americas: Proceedings of the Third International Partners in Flight Conference. 2002 March 20-24; Asilomar, California, Volume 1 Gen. Tech. Rep. PSW-GTR-191. Albany, CA: U.S. Dept. of Agriculture, Forest Service, Pacific Southwest Research Station: p. 174-178