Chapter 4 Habitats
Information about Carolina Northern Flying Squirrel can be found in Chapter 3, Section 3.7 of this document.
Spruce-Fir communities provide critical breeding habitat for many landbirds of conservation concern according to Partners in Flight (Brown Creeper, Northern Saw-whet Owl, Black-capped Chickadee) that are likely endemic to these high peaks ( Pashley et al. 2000;; Rich et al. 2004;; Johns 2004 ). Local relative abundance of many birds and mammals (e.g., the Red Crossbill, Brown Creeper, Pine Siskin, Black-capped Chickadee, Northern Saw-whet Owl, Northern Flying Squirrel) has decreased as the availability of Spruce-Fir habitats has declined. The fact that these habitats are so small and isolated from each other could have a negative impact upon genetic health of individual populations, as well as demographic effects upon populations. Many species using Spruce–Fir forests are flightless, including salamanders and eight species of ground beetles ( Trechus sp.). Weller’s Salamander is at the highest risk of being pushed off the top of the mountain because of climate change. As is generally true for “sky island” species, even those capable of flight (or ballooning in the possible case of the Spruce-Fir Moss Spider), they rarely disperse out of their habitat, if at all. Even a flighted species, the Black-capped Chickadee, has not recolonized some massifs following turn of the century logging, even as the forest has slowly recovered. All these species depend on cool, moist microclimates, but the Spruce–Fir Moss Spider, ground beetles, and salamanders are particularly susceptible to desiccation and are among the species most likely to be affected by climate change of any in the state. 4.4.3.6 Recommendations Most of the Spruce–Fir habitat in North Carolina is located on public land, or private lands with permanent conservation easements, with estimates of 90%-95% in conservation ownership in the southern Blue Ridge physiographic province (North Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia) ( Hunter et al. 1999;; SAMAB 1996a) . 4.4.3.6.1 Surveys Surveys are systematic and scientific methods of collecting information about the distribution, abundance, and ecology of wildlife or their habitats in a specific area at a specific time. A habitat survey is a method of gathering information about the ecology of a site. The results of a habitat survey provide basic ecological information that can be used for biodiversity conservation, planning and/or management, including targeting of more detailed botanical or zoological investigations (Smith et al. 2011) . Repeated surveys using the same methods can provide information about conditions and changes to species assemblages and habitat composition over time. Priorities for conducting distributional and status surveys need to focus on species believed to be declining or mainly dependent on at-risk or sensitive communities.
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2025 NC Wildlife Action Plan
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