Integrated Monitoring in Bird Conservation Regions (IMBCR) is a breeding landbird monitoring program that spans the Great Plains to the Great Basin. A nested, probabilistic sampling design allows us to make inference about bird populations at multiple scales across public and private lands. Click here for more information about the program including the IMBCR vision and mission statement.

Mark your calendars for Jan. 19 & 20 for the annual IMBCR Partners meeting! The meeting will be virtual again this year from 9am to noon MST both days. We'll be discussing IMBCR communication needs and opportunities on the 19th and will have data application presentations on the 20th plus a funding and implementation update. Download the draft agenda here. You also need to register for both sessions separately. A registration link for the 19th is here and for the 20th is here.

Please join me in welcoming Jessie Reese to the IMBCR team! Jessie made the short migration from Bird Conservancy's stewardship team, where she served as a habitat coordinator, to our science team. She will be helping to implement the IMBCR program as an avian ecologist. Jessie has a wealth of experience studying birds and their habitats and we look forward to working with her! We also said good-bye to Christian Meny, who worked for Intermountain Bird Observatory to implement IMBCR surveys in Montana since 2015. Christian joined Montana Audubon and is their Conservation Ranching Manager. We hope to cross paths with Christian in the future!

Wildlife Program Manager

Valerie has been involved with the IMBCR program since 2010 on the Kaibab National Forest (KNF), although the KNF had already been partnering with Bird Conservancy of the Rockies (then Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory) since 2006 on Management Indicator Species (MIS) monitoring, a requirement of the Land and Resources Management Plan (forest plan). The KNF transitioned to IMBCR shortly after the program was conceived.

The KNF plan revision was completed in 2014. As part of that process, the KNF utilized IMBCR data to develop habitat suitability models (see figure to the right) as a way to cross validate the selection of MIS (now focal species) to assess the importance of specific vegetation conditions for the different bird species. The KNF also uses the IMBCR data in their Biennial Monitoring and Evaluation Report for forest plan level monitoring: to assess changes in trend and occupancy of three avian focal species, and to inform project design and analysis for focal species and other migratory birds. View the report here (see category 5).

Valerie is also working collaboratively with Rocky Mountain Research Station to develop integrated population models using IMBCR, eBird, and passive acoustical data to assess optimal sample design. The KNF is also in the process of designing overlay projects to assess effectiveness of management activities under their forest plan by comparing occupancy data in specific project areas with data across the entire forest. Future work includes a 10-year refresh of their focal species habitat use models. They plan to update the models with additional vegetation covariates (including treatment type and LiDAR) to compare the old model results (pre-forest plan implementation) to present (post-forest plan implementation). These analyses will also provide a foundation for the next forest plan revision.

The 2012 Planning Rule directs national forests and grasslands to monitor focal species representing desired conditions identified in forest plans that are difficult to measure directly. These habitat relationships are often based on the best available information, but are not always empirically tested. The Coconino National Forest monitors three focal songbird species representing desired ponderosa, pine-oak, and pinyon-juniper conditions. Using 10 years of IMBCR monitoring data, Quresh evaluated habitat conditions associated with each focal species and identified other species that could represent the desired conditions. Habitat relationships for the three focal species largely supported their habitat descriptions in the forest plan, but other species also exhibited habitat relationships described in the forest plan. For example, in addition to Grace's warbler, pygmy nuthatch could also serve as a focal species for open, mature stands of ponderosa pine. Read the full report here.

Forest managers expect restoration targeting vegetation structure to benefit ecological function, much of which concerns providing habitat for wildlife. Therefore, wildlife are often the focus of effectiveness monitoring. The Four-Forest Restoration Initiative leveraged 10 years of IMBCR monitoring data in the Coconino & Kaibab National Forests to inform predictions of potential treatment effects. Quresh applied Bayesian hierarchical models to estimate relationships of species occupancy, richness, abundance, and turnover with vegetation attributes relevant to forest restoration. Estimated habitat relationships with occupancy and abundance were consistent with most treatment effects hypotheses for 60 species, which can be used to inform management decisions. Read the full report here.

Visit this website for IMBCR-related resources, such as publications, annual reports, one-pagers, and a link to trend estimates by state.

Do you have an upcoming meeting for biologists within your office or agency? Let Jen know if you'd like a training for how to access, interpret, and apply IMBCR population estimates from the Rocky Mountain Avian Data Center. Trainings work best for a particular audience, so the examples are specific and relevant.

Contact Jen Timmer (jennifer.timmer@birdconservancy.org) with questions, example applications of IMBCR data, pictures, or any other contributing material for future IMBCR e-newsletters.