Arenas landscape features inside the black grouse habitat in the Belgian Hautes-Fagnes
2000
Keulen, C. | Houbart, S. | Ruwet, J.C. (Universite de Li`ge, Sart-Tilman (Belgium). Inst. de Zoologie. Lab. d'Ethologie et de Psychologie animale)
Lek sites are very important for black grouse life. The males (especially since their second civil year) are largely present on leks round the year and never move far away during the breeding season. The hens also will settle their summer quarters in the vicinity if they find their convenient conditions for nesting and rearing the chicks. Considering the importance of lek sites in black grouse life, we have though that habitat restoration must begin on and around the sites chosen for lekking behaviour. We have then investigated physical and physionomical features of these sites. In a first time, numerous vegetation readings (concerning purple grasses, Ericaceae and tree covers, essentially) were carried out within circle of 300 metres in diameter, that were centred on the preferred display place of the cocks inside the arena; vegetation maps were also drawn. Vegetation readings show that vegetation assemblage differed considerably between the different district areas, but consistent relationships were found between habitat structure and black grouse : the birds settled in greater numbers and display more frequently in open places with short cut vegetation than in any other places. In a second time, we have extend one's field of study and considered the landscape features within a 1,5 km radius of the lek sites. Factor analysis was used to investigate the relationship between the quality of black grouse arenas and their landscape characteristics. This analysis provide evidence that tree overgrowth, soil humidity and presence of deer's or wild boars have detrimental effect on black grouse presence. Whereas proximity of Ericaceae bushes are enhancing the quality of the arenas. Based on these results suggestions for a better management of habitat resources in the Belgian Hautes-Fagnes have been put forward.
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