The Christmas Bird Counts began in 1900 as an organized public survey of winter bird populations.

1. Summer’s Precipitation Levels Affect on Winter Population of Wild Turkey, Ring-Necked Pheasant, and Ruffed Grouse Josh Delvaux, Tyler Markowitz, Matt Miller, and Derek OlsenUW-Platteville, 1 University Plaza, Platteville, WI 53818 Conclusion Results Introduction • There was almost no correlation between the winter populations of Ruffed Grouse, Wild Turkey, Ring-Necked Pheasant and summer precipitation levels. • The p-values for each also show there is very little probability winter bird populations are affected by summer precipitation. • One reason for the lack of correlation between the Wild Turkey populations and summer precipitation levels may be pressure from hunters (Rolley et al. 1998). • Precipitation may have no affect on the activity of Ruffed Grouse ( Porath et al. 1972). This correlates with the data we obtained. • Past research from Wisconsin has shown that weather during pre-nesting is the biggest factor in year to year population fluctuation of Ring-Necked Pheasant (Hull et al. 2012). However, our data suggest this is not the case. • The Christmas Bird Counts began in 1900 as an organized public survey of winter bird populations. • Organizations use data from the CBCs to determine health of bird populations and how to guide conservation efforts. • Riveredge Nature Center near Saukville, WI has been performing CBCs since 1969. • Summer rainfall is positively correlated with the availability of seeds(Marone et al. 1998). • We hypothesize that the previous summer’s precipitation levels will affect the winter population of Wild Turkey (Meleagris gallopavo), Ring-Necked Pheasant (Phasianus colchicus, and Ruffed Grouse (Bonasa umbellus). • The correlation of Ruffed Grouse population and summer precipitation levels = -0.078 • The p-value = 0.617 Figure 1. Ruffed Grouse Winter Population • The correlation of Wild Turkey population and summer precipitation levels = 0.158 • The p-value = 0.313 Methods • The data for the winter populations of Wild Turkey, Ring- Necked Pheasant, and Ruffed Grouse was obtained from the Riveredge CBC data from 1969-2011. • The summer (May-September) precipitation data for 1969-2011 came from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration website. • The three species used were chosen because they come from the same order of birds, are present in winter, and are primarily ground-foraging birds. • The data will be analyzed using a linear regression line to determine correlation between summer precipitation and winter bird populations. References Figure 2. Wild Turkey Winter Population Marone, Luis, Rossi, Bertilde E., and Horno, Manuel E. “Timing and Spatial Patterning of Seed Dispersal and Redistribution in a South American Warm Desert.” Plant Ecology. Vol. 137. Page 143-150. 1998. Rolley, Robert E., Kubisiak, John F., Paisley, R. Neal, and Wright, Robert G. “Wild Turkey Population Dynamics in Southwestern Wisconsin.” The Journal of Wildlife Management. Vol. 62. Page 917-924. July 1998. Porath, Wayne R., and Vohs, Paul A. “Population Ecology of Ruffed Grouse in Northeastern Iowa.” The Journal of Wildlife Management. Vol. 36. Page 793-802. July 1972 Hull, Scott, Arntzen, Julianna, and Fandel, Sharon. “Spring Ring-Necked Pheasant Surveys 2010.” Spring Ring-Necked Pheasant Surveys 2010. Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, 13 July 2012. Web. All pictures from www.allaboutbirds.org Riveredge Nature Center, Amanda Zopp, for Christmas Bird Count Data • The correlation of Ring-Necked Pheasant population and summer precipitation levels = 0.143 • The p-value = 0.359 Figure 3. Ring-necked Pheasant Population