@article{rose_simons_2016, title={Avian response to fire in pine–oak forests of Great Smoky Mountains National Park following decades of fire suppression}, volume={118}, ISSN={0010-5422 1938-5129}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1650/CONDOR-15-85.1}, DOI={10.1650/condor-15-85.1}, abstractNote={ABSTRACT Fire suppression in southern Appalachian pine–oak forests during the past century dramatically altered the bird community. Fire return intervals decreased, resulting in local extirpation or population declines of many bird species adapted to post-fire plant communities. Within Great Smoky Mountains National Park, declines have been strongest for birds inhabiting xeric pine–oak forests that depend on frequent fire. The buildup of fuels after decades of fire suppression led to changes in the 1996 Great Smoky Mountains Fire Management Plan. Although fire return intervals remain well below historic levels, management changes have helped increase the amount of fire within the park over the past 20 years, providing an opportunity to study patterns of fire severity, time since burn, and bird occurrence. We combined avian point counts in burned and unburned areas with remote sensing indices of fire severity to infer temporal changes in bird occurrence for up to 28 years following fire. Using hierarchical linear models that account for the possibility of a species presence at a site when no individuals are detected, we developed occurrence models for 24 species: 13 occurred more frequently in burned areas, 2 occurred less frequently, and 9 showed no significant difference between burned and unburned areas. Within burned areas, the top models for each species included fire severity, time since burn, or both, suggesting that fire influenced patterns of species occurrence for all 24 species. Our findings suggest that no single fire management strategy will suit all species. To capture peak occupancy for the entire bird community within xeric pine–oak forests, at least 3 fire regimes may be necessary; one applying frequent low severity fire, another using infrequent low severity fire, and a third using infrequently applied high severity fire.}, number={1}, journal={The Condor}, publisher={Oxford University Press (OUP)}, author={Rose, Eli T. and Simons, Theodore R.}, year={2016}, month={Feb}, pages={179–193} }
 @article{rose_simons_klein_mckerrow_2016, title={Normalized burn ratios link fire severity with patterns of avian occurrence}, volume={31}, ISSN={0921-2973 1572-9761}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10980-015-0334-x}, DOI={10.1007/s10980-015-0334-x}, number={7}, journal={Landscape Ecology}, publisher={Springer Science and Business Media LLC}, author={Rose, Eli T. and Simons, Theodore R. and Klein, Rob and McKerrow, Alexa J.}, year={2016}, month={Jan}, pages={1537–1550} }
 @article{borneman_rose_simons_2016, title={Off-road vehicles affect nesting behaviour and reproductive success of American Oystercatchers Haematopus palliatus}, volume={158}, ISSN={0019-1019}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/ibi.12358}, DOI={10.1111/ibi.12358}, abstractNote={As human populations and associated development increase, interactions between humans and wildlife are occurring with greater frequency. The effects of these interactions, particularly on species whose populations are declining, are of great interest to ecologists, conservationists, land managers and natural resource policy‐makers. The American Oystercatcher Haematopus palliatus, a species of conservation concern in the USA, nests on coastal beaches subject to various forms of anthropogenic disturbance, including aircraft overflights, off‐road vehicles and pedestrians. This study assessed the effects of these human disturbances on the incubation behaviour and reproductive success of nesting American Oystercatchers at Cape Lookout National Seashore, on the Atlantic coast of the USA. We expanded on‐going monitoring of Oystercatchers at Cape Lookout National Seashore by supplementing periodic visual observations with continuous 24‐h video and audio recording at nests. Aircraft overflights were not associated with changes in Oystercatcher incubation behaviour, and we found no evidence that aircraft overflights influenced Oystercatcher reproductive success. However, Oystercatchers were on their nests significantly less often during off‐road vehicle and pedestrian events than they were during control periods before the events, and an increase in the number of off‐road vehicles passing a nest during incubation was consistently associated with significant reductions in daily nest survival (6% decrease in daily nest survival for a one‐vehicle increase in the average number of vehicles passing a nest each day; odds ratio = 0.94; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.90, 0.98) and hatching success (12% decrease in hatching success for a one‐vehicle increase in the average number of vehicles passing a nest each day; odds ratio = 0.88; 95% CI 0.76, 0.97). Management of vehicles and pedestrians in areas of Oystercatcher breeding is important for the conservation of American Oystercatchers.}, number={2}, journal={Ibis}, publisher={Wiley}, author={Borneman, Tracy E. and Rose, Eli T. and Simons, Theodore R.}, year={2016}, month={Apr}, pages={261–278} }
 @article{borneman_rose_simons_2014, title={Minimal changes in heart rate of incubating American Oystercatchers (Haematopus palliatus) in response to human activity}, volume={116}, ISSN={["1938-5129"]}, DOI={10.1650/condor-14-48.1}, abstractNote={ABSTRACT An organism's heart rate is commonly used as an indicator of physiological stress due to environmental stimuli. We used heart rate to monitor the physiological response of American Oystercatchers (Haematopus palliatus) to human activity in their nesting environment. We placed artificial eggs with embedded microphones in 42 oystercatcher nests to record the heart rate of incubating oystercatchers continuously for up to 27 days. We used continuous video and audio recordings collected simultaneously at the nests to relate physiological response of birds (heart rate) to various types of human activity. We observed military and civilian aircraft, off-road vehicles, and pedestrians around nests. With the exception of high-speed, low-altitude military overflights, we found little evidence that oystercatcher heart rates were influenced by most types of human activity. The low-altitude flights were the only human activity to significantly increase average heart rates of incubating oystercatchers (12% above baseline). Although statistically significant, we do not consider the increase in heart rate during high-speed, low-altitude military overflights to be of biological significance. This noninvasive technique may be appropriate for other studies of stress in nesting birds.}, number={3}, journal={CONDOR}, author={Borneman, Tracy E. and Rose, Eli T. and Simons, Theodore R.}, year={2014}, month={Aug}, pages={493–503} }