BIRDS
Growing Red-cockaded Woodpeckers, One Cluster at a Time by John Carpenter, Coastal Landbird Biologist
O n a clear November morning, I headed towards Craven County in search of the Bern Preserve, a 923-acre tract owned by the NC Coastal Land Trust (NCCLT) and situated between the northern boundary of the Croatan National Forest and Brice’s Creek. Several of the preserve’s dense pine stands were recently thinned in the hopes of enticing Red-cockaded Woodpeckers (RCW)—a federally threatened species that lives in family groups called clusters—to excavate a cavity and even- tually nest inside. However, it can take a woodpecker several years to do that laborious work manually, so NCCLT staff requested help from North Carolina Wildlife Resources Com- mission (NCWRC) biologists to install artificial cavity boxes. This process, which usually takes an hour or two, involves using Swedish tree ladders and a chainsaw to cut a rectangular slab out of the tree where the cavity box will be inserted. If all goes as planned, an interested woodpecker could move into its brand- new home that very night! At a designated meeting spot, I was greeted by former NCWRC eastern Wildlife Diversity Program supervisor David Allen (inventor of the RCW insert cavity technique), several NCCLT staff, and a surprisingly large assortment of volunteers and other folks all curious to learn about our plans for the day.
Dave and I quickly found suitable pine trees—ideally mature Longleaf Pines—and scaled the 20-ft. climbing ladders to begin our work. We eventually carved out three new cavities, and as if staged for our audience, a vocal RCW suddenly appeared in the stand! It avoided us and our loud equipment, but its presence was a hopeful sign that it or other RCWs might return to inspect our work once we were gone. The Croatan National Forest, along with Holly Shelter Game Land and Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune, collectively repre- sent the Coastal North Carolina Primary Core RCW Recovery Population, which has yet to reach its desired size as outlined in the federal RCW Recovery Plan. The proximity of these popula- tions to the coast and its increased hurricane activity, coupled with continued human population growth and associated devel- opment in southeastern NC, represent additional obstacles to reaching the specific goals for recovery. We will coordinate with NCCLT to access the Bern Pre- serve again during the next breeding season to determine if any RCWs did officially accept our artificial housing offer as their permanent residence. We are anxious to continue to work with other partners across the state to expedite RCW growth and recovery.
Left: An artificial cavity box ready to be installed. Center: The finished product - an inserted artificial cavity box camouflaged to look as natural as possible. Right: Retired eastern Wildlife Diversity Program supervisor, Dave Allen, high on a pine tree, carving out a cavity with a chainsaw.
21 2024 Wildlife Diversity Program Annual Report
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