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Integrating GPS, GIS, and avian call-response surveys using Pocket PCs

Wildlife Society Bulletin 2004, 32(4):1309–1312 Peer edited Wildlife monitoring and research often require accurate estimates of population size or density. Since breeding birds advertise their territories through persistent vocalizations, their numbers can be determined using relatively easy and non-intrusive survey methods, at least for those species and seasons in which singing regularly occurs. Avian surveys designed for single bird species often employ a call–response (or tape-playback) methodology, in which recordings of vocalizations are broadcast to elicit responses from birds (Johnson et al. 1981). This technique has proven especially useful for detecting cryptic or elusive species that are poorly sampled by more passive methods; these species include marsh birds,owls,and other raptors (Marion et al. 1981, Gibbs and Melvin 1993, Mosher et al. 1999). Call–response also has been used where accurate population counts are of critical conservation concern, as in the official survey protocol for the endangered southwestern subspecies of the willow flycatcher (Empidonax traillii extimus; Sogge et al. 1997). As the alternate term “tape playback” suggests, the equipment normally used to conduct these surveys has been a cassette tape or CD player. Increasingly, wildlife monitoring and research also have incorporated the spatial arrangement of animals and their habitats, often at multiple spatial scales (Bissonette 1997). Locations recorded using Global Positioning System (GPS) equipment can be combined with existing spatial data, such as vegetation cover, hydrology, or elevation, in the form of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) layers. Spatial analyses can provide insights into landscapeand regional-level processes and facilitate greater communication between research and land management. Our goal was to conduct call–response surveys for cerulean warblers (Dendroica cerulea), a species of high conservation concern, in and around the Allegheny National Forest in northwestern Pennsylvania. We wished to combine our survey results with existing GIS layers of physiographic features and vegetation cover in order to develop a habitat model for this species. To do so, we needed GPS coordinates for all survey points. We also wished to record additional field information on habitat features and avian communities at each survey point. Typically, to simultaneously broadcast vocalizations for surveys, record GPS locations, and collect additional field data would require separate equipment for each task: a CD or cassette player, a handheld GPS unit, and field data sheets on a clipboard. We developed an efficient technique to accomplish all 3 tasks using newly available technology in the form of a single handheld Pocket PC computer with peripherals. In this paper we describe the technique and equipment used.