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The Conservation Reserve Program:
Habitat for Grassland Birds

Douglas H. Johnson & Michael D. Schwartz

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Abstract: The Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) has effected major changes to the landscape, especially in the northern Great Plains. Breeding birds have responded dramatically to habitat changes by colonizing CRP fields, often in large numbers. The vegetation in most CRP fields consists of introduced grasses and legumes, along with a variety of weedy species. This paper describes the bird populations found during three years of surveys on more than 300 CRP fields in western Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota, and eastern Montana. We relate densities of selected species to geographic location, annual effects, conservation practice adopted, and vegetation features.

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This resource is based on the following source (Northern Prairie Publication 0878):

Johnson, Douglas H., and Michael D. Schwartz.  1993.  The Conservation Reserve 
     Program: habitat for grassland birds.  Great Plains Research 3(2):273-295.

This resource should be cited as:

Johnson, Douglas H., and Michael D. Schwartz.  1993.  The Conservation Reserve 
     Program: habitat for grassland birds.  Great Plains Research 3(2):273-295.
     Jamestown, ND: Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center Online.  
     http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/birds/crphab/index.htm  
     (Version 31JAN2002).

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Table of Contents

• Introduction
• Study Areas and Methods
• General Results
• Models for the Individual Species
  • Lark Bunting
  • Grasshopper Sparrow
  • Red-winged Blackbird
  • Western Meadowlark
  • Horned Lark
  • Savannah Sparrow
  • Brown-headed Cowbird
  • Clay-colored Sparrow
  • Bobolink
  • Common Yellowthroat
  • Sedge Wren
  • Chestnut-collared Longspur
• Conclusion
• Acknowledgments
• References

Tables and Figures

• Table 1 -- Distribution of Conservation Reserve Program fields surveyed for birds.
  
• Table 2 -- Most common plants, and estimated areal coverage, in Conservation Reserve Program fields.
  
• Table 3 -- Estimated areal coverage of plants by life form and bare ground in Conservation Reserve Program fields.
  
• Table 4 -- Number of indicated pairs of most common bird species counted in Conservation Reserve Program fields.
  
• Table 5 -- Densities of selected species of birds in Conservation Reserve Program fields, by county and conservation practice.

• Figure 1 -- Map of counties selected for surveys of breeding birds in Conservation Reserve Program fields.

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Douglas H. Johnson and Michael D. Schwartz, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, Jamestown, ND 58401

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