FEWER CAMPGROUND CRUMBS REDUCE JAY DENSITY BUT NOT RAVEN DENSITY

William C Webb; Nomad Ecology; williamwebb35@gmail.com; Portia Halbert

We compared corvid density at campgrounds versus control plots at Big Basin Redwoods State Park to gauge the effectiveness of corvid management in campgrounds. Steller’s Jays (Cyanocitta stelleri) and Common Ravens (Corvus corax) are predators of the federally threatened and state endangered Marbled Murrelet (Brachyramphus marmoratus). Most remaining murrelet nesting habitat at Big Basin occurs within campgrounds or within 1 km of campgrounds. Historically, campgrounds provide human food and other resources which attract corvids and contribute to corvid population growth. To address this, California State Parks installed wildlife-proof trash receptacles and initiated a visitor compliance and education program dubbed the “Crumb Clean Campaign”, beginning in 2005. Raven density did not change significantly between 2003 – 2017 in campgrounds nor in control plots. Jay density did not change in control plots but did decrease 87% in campgrounds. The large decrease in jay density at small spatial scales in campgrounds contrasted with only slightly decreasing trends at larger spatial scales based on regional abundance estimates. We hypothesized that management efforts were effective at the campground scale for reducing jay density but not raven density due to the differences in range size between these two species.

Poster Session  InPerson Presentation