TRENDS IN COMMON RAVEN ABUNDANCE ACROSS TEMPERATE NORTH AMERICA OVER THE LAST 50 YEARS, WITH IMPLICATIONS FOR GREATER SAGE-GROUSE AND MOJAVE DESERT TORTOISES

Seth M Harju; Heron Ecological, LLC; seth@heronecological.com; Peter Coates, Seth Dettenmaier, Jonathan Dinkins, Pat Jackson, Michael Chenaille

Populations of common ravens (Corvus corax) have generally expanded across North America over the last 50 years, likely concomitant with anthropogenic expansion and development. Concurrently, ravens can have pronounced negative impacts on other species, for example by reducing nest success of greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) and juvenile survival of Mojave desert tortoises (Gopherus agassizii). We modeled trends in raven abundance using 53 years of Breeding Bird Survey data across all Level 1 and Level 2 ecoregions in the U.S. and Canada. Raven population growth was especially high in the western U.S., with average annual growth rates of 1.033 (95% CrI 1.025-1.042) and 1.065 (1.051-1.081) in the Cold Desert and Mediterranean California ecoregions, respectively. This resulted in there being 4.6 times (3.2-6.9) and 18.1 times (9.4-35.1) as many ravens in 2018 vs. 1966 in Cold Deserts and Mediterranean California, respectively. Raven abundance increased by a factor of 8.3 (7.0-9.9) and a factor of 6.7 (5.0-9.4) within the ranges of greater sage-grouse and Mojave desert tortoises, respectively, over this time frame. Raven abundances, and potential impacts on native prey populations, are significantly higher now than 50 years ago.

Habitat Use, Occupancy and Population Trends of Nevada Wildlife  InPerson Presentation