Red-Headed Woodpecker Nest-Site Selection and Reproduction in Mixed Ponderosa Pine and Aspen Woodland Following Fire

Red-headed Woodpecker (Melanerpeserythrocephalus) populationsare declining at a continental scale, yet little isknown about their nest-site selection and reproductionwithin burned forests. We measured reproductiveparameters and nest-site characteristics at 17Red-headed Woodpecker nests and 17 random sitesbetween 2001 and 2004 in the Black Hills, SouthDakota. The average date the first egg was laid was 17June, and the average clutch size was 5.4 ±0.4. The daily nest survival rate averaged 0.98(overall nest success  = 47%), and predation was the major cause ofnest failure. Red-headed Woodpecker nests occurredfarther from grassland edges in large diameter snagswithin severely burned quaking aspen(Populustremuloides) stands.High-severity fire within these aspen stands resultedin a combination of snag and understorycharacteristics that differed from the surroundingpine forest matrix. Interactions between cover typeand burn severity may have important ecologicalconsequences for Red-headed Woodpeckers in a mixedconifer forest.