Examining the role of management, forest structure, and prey abundance in driving Eastern Whip-poor-will habitat use in southern Illinois and the Missouri Ozarks
Advisors: Dr. Mike Ward and Dr. T.J. Benson
Zoom link: https://go.nres.illinois.edu/Coates
Once a familiar sound of Eastern U.S. summer nights, the Eastern Whip-poor-will (Antrostomus vociferus) is now in steep decline. As an aerial insectivore reliant on forests throughout its life, declining forest quantity and quality are suspected drivers of this trend. I surveyed 17 sites across southern Illinois and the Missouri Ozarks in 2023 and 2024, assessing Whip-poor-will counts across unmanaged and managed parcels. I paired these data with management histories, vegetation structure, and prey abundance. Whip-poor-will habitat selection was primarily driven by forest structure—reduced tree counts, dense underbrush, highly varied canopy cover, reduced herbaceous cover, deep litter, and younger forest stands—rather than prey abundance. Notably, prey abundances were higher in less-used, unmanaged forests. These results suggest that forest structure plays a greater role in Whip-poor-will habitat selection than prey abundance, offering specific targets for land managers and highlighting the complex interplay between forest structure and prey dynamics in shaping habitat use.
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