Effects of experimental land management on habitat use by Eurasian Stone?curlews

Effective conservation is often informed by focal species studies to identify beneficial land management interventions. For nocturnal or cryptic species, quantifying habitat use across individually marked animals can allow unbiased assessment of intervention efficacy and other important habitats. Here, using a landscape-scale experiment, we examine whether interventions intended create nesting for the largely Eurasian Stone-curlew Burhinus oedicnemus within semi-natural grassland also provide foraging habitat. GPS loggers were fitted five adult Stone-curlews during breeding season an extensive area (3850 ha, hereafter ‘grassland’), surrounded mosaic arable cropland (total study 118 600 ha). The closed-sward was diversified experimental ground-disturbance plots (the intervention) prior this study. We used fixes 1881 locations (510 1371 post-breeding) surrounding landscape. Most close nest-site period (90% 1 km) day-roost post-breeding 5 km), but birds travelled up 4.1 km from these sites 13 post-breeding. two- (by night) three-times day) more likely select disturbed-grassland over unmodified nesting, c. 15 times do so Spring-sown crops pig fields manure heaps selected foraging. Given that central place occurs in efforts promote attempts through should ensure suitable near nest (<1 km). Creating multiple areas disturbed-ground edge large blocks network habitats, while allowing access habitats on farmland. Similar may benefit disturbance associated waders.