Oak and prairie ecosystems support a unique suite of specialized birds. They are home to a handful of imperiled species such as Streaked Horned Lark and Oregon Vesper Sparrow. Prairies, dominated by native bunchgrasses and xeric wildflowers, provide ground nesting habitat for sparrows and larks. These dry, sweeping grasslands give way to oak savannas and woodlands. The iconic and majestic oaks with large spreading crowns are found here.
Oregon white oak trees provide acorns and invertebrates for birds, as well as micro-habitats such as the lichens and mosses found on the large limbs. Dead oak limbs provide critical real estate for cavity nesters like the Slender-billed Nuthatch and the American Kestrel.
Oak and prairie environments are also where people want to live and farm. Fire suppression and subsequent encroachment by Douglas-Fir trees have made oak and prairie habitats among the most imperiled in the Pacific Northwest.
Other Habitats Our Birds Need
Coastal Dunes and Beaches
Coastal dunes and beach communities face a dynamic, harsh environment that requires plants to have unique survival mechanisms.
Conifer Forest
Conifer forests, including our magnificent temperate rainforests, dominate the Pacific Northwest from California to southeast Alaska.
Estuaries
Estuaries occur where freshwater rivers meet the salt waters of the ocean. They are one of most biologically rich habitats on Earth, thanks to the mixing of nutrients from both the land and sea.
Freshwater Wetlands
Freshwater wetlands are the hallmark of the Pacific Americas Flyway. Wetlands are subject to periodic flooding and are further characterized by their soil type, hydrology and vegetation.
Hawaiian Wetlands
Hawaii’s freshwater wetlands support the Ae’o, or Hawaiian Stilt, and five other species of endemic, endangered waterbirds.
Intertidal Rocky Shorelines
Rocky shorelines along the North Pacific coastline occupy the region between high and low tide. They may be rocky cliffs, boulder rubble, wave-pounded shelves, or sheltered rocky shores.
Oak and Prairie
Oak and prairie ecosystems support a unique suite of specialized birds. They are home to a handful of imperiled species such as Streaked Horned Lark and Oregon Vesper Sparrow.
Pacific Atolls
An atoll is a coral reef island, or islets. They are are characteristically ring-shaped with a central lagoon, and sometimes a central island.
Pelagic
Pelagic habitats, one of many habitats in the marine environment, include the open ocean. Birds that spend time in the pelagic zone must be able to withstand the salt water, wind and waves–and some do for years at a time.