Research

 
Katherine Strickler

Pursing a Ph.D Wildlife Resources  
University of Idaho 

"Streams and the aquatic songbird: Nesting ecology, habitat selection, and dispersal of American dippers in relation to environment conditions."

The American Dipper is unique among songbirds in its habit of foraging largely below the surface of flowing streams for invertebrates and fish. Although American dippers are closely associated with montane streams, the habitat requirements of the species in relation to water quality has not been studied. Changes in water temperature, chemistry, and sediment load, which have been found to occur in areas of timber harvest and road construction, may affect dipper populations by influencing prey populations and foraging habitat.

The objectives of my study are: to describe the relationship between American dipper distribution and stream water quality, structure, and productivity; to compare dipper nesting biology and prey use in wilderness and logged watersheds; and to describe American dipper dispersal patterns by comparing the genetic structure of dippers in adjacent watersheds relative to stream-distance between watersheds. I measured dipper densities, habitat use, and prey availability in the Frank Church Wilderness and 5 other wilderness areas and compared them with streams in areas of high road densities and timber harvest.

I conducted field data collection on American dippers, stream habitat, and stream macroinvertebrates in the Big Creek corridor from 1998-2000, and returned to monitor post-fire macroinvertebrate communities in 2002-2004.