BIRDS
Where is Wayne’s World? Continued Efforts to Detect the Wayne’s Black-throated Green Warbler in North Carolina’s Coastal Region by John Carpenter,Coastal Region Landbird Biologist and Silas Hernandez, Landbird Technician
B uilding on our recent genetic study that validated the status of the Wayne’s Black-throated Green Warbler as a distinct subspecies breeding along the Atlantic Coastal Plain from South Carolina to Virginia, we dedicated effort this quarter to compiling results from spring 2024 surveys aimed at locating additional breeding sites for this rare Species of Greatest Conserva- tion Need in North Carolina. We developed a habitat suitability model based on relationships between known Wayne’s Warbler locations and various ecological spa- tial data, such as canopy height and land cover classifi- cation. We conducted nearly 150 standardized point count surveys in March and April within areas pre- dicted to contain habitat features most associated with Wayne’s Warbler presence. Four singing males were found: two in Hyde County (New Lake on 10 April) and one in Tyrrell County (Alli- gator River Game Land on 9 April). The fourth individ- ual was detected opportunistically on 27 March at Petti- grew State Park while traveling between survey points. We attribute our low number of detections to the
GERRY LEBING
Above: A Black-throated Green Warbler.
assumption that this is truly a rare, declining species, but also acknowledge that our habitat models may be based on spatial data that are too broad or outdated to accurately predict or understand the species’ habitat selection at various scales. Looking forward, we plan to revise our models using additional spatial data, including sub-canopy structure LiDAR and NC Natural Heritage Program’s natural community themes. We will resume our surveys in spring 2025 with renewed con- fidence and hope that more Wayne’s Warblers are out there waiting to be observed and counted.
18 2024 Wildlife Diversity Program Annual Report
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