Northern Bobwhite ( Colinus virginianus ) breeding season roost site selection in a working agricultural landscape in Clay County, Mississippi

Abstract

Appropriate habitat management may be one of the most important factors contributing to Northern Bobwhite (Colinus virginianus) population persistence, but biologists lack information on how individual bobwhite select roost sites during the breeding season. Therefore, we examined breeding season third-order roost site selection on B. Bryan Farms, Mississippi, from 2021 to 2022. We observed a quadratic relationship with average vegetation height, where roost site selection increased with increasing vegetation height to a point and then slightly decreased (β1 = 0.14084, 95% CI = 0.05, 0.24; β12 = -0.01005, 95% CI = -0.06, 0.04). However, uncertainty in the quadratic term was notable. Similarly, we observed a quadratic relationship with litter (β1 = 0.25479, 95% CI = 0.12, 0.39; β12 = -0.09606, 95% CI = -0.16, -0.04). We also found selection decreased linearly with increasing bare ground (β1 =-0.20938, 95% CI = -0.31, -0.11). Individual birds may require taller vegetation, greater visual obstruction, greater litter coverage, and lesser bare ground coverage for better concealment from nocturnal predators when they are roosting individually during the breeding season or are constrained by limited mobility (i.e., brooding). Understanding the vegetative composition, structure, and location of roost sites during the breeding season may provide land managers with a better understanding of the vegetative characteristics necessary during all phases of bobwhite life history. Our results provide the first information on bobwhite breeding season roost site selection, which will help to develop a more complete understanding of bobwhite habitat requirements and increase the effectiveness of habitat management and conservation efforts for this species of conservation concern.