Endangered species management has been criticized as emphasizing a single-species approach to conservation and, in some cases, diverting resources from broad-based, land management objectives important for overall biodiversity maintenance. Herein we examine perceptions on management for an endangered species whose habitat requirements largely depend on frequent fire, the red-cockaded woodpecker (Leuconotopicus borealis Vieillot). In doing so, we consider the alignment between species-specific population recovery actions and broader ecosystem restoration goals. Through semi-structured interviews with natural resource professionals (n = 32) in the Southeast Coastal Plain of the United States, we examined manager perspectives on the evolution of recovery efforts and the potential alignment of recovery efforts with other management goals and objectives on public lands. Participants described an evolution of approaches to manage red-cockaded woodpeckers, from an initial emphasis on intensive management actions with a single-species focus to reduce extinction risk (e.g., artificial inserts and translocation of individual birds) to a broader focus on restoring forest conditions and the processes that maintain them (e.g., fire). Most participants considered red-cockaded woodpecker habitat management to be compatible with other resource management actions (e.g., prescribed fire, mechanical thinning). However, there were some notable exceptions as a smaller but substantive number of participants indicated that specific habitat management guidelines (basal area guidelines for foraging habitat) posed a barrier to implementing preferred ecosystem restoration actions (transitioning stands of fast-growing, short-lived pines to longleaf pine [Pinus palustris Mill.]). Overall, participants expected efforts to provide habitat for red-cockaded woodpeckers to continue regardless of its conservation status and that intensive, single-species management actions would likely decrease over time. Providing for the specific needs of specialist species that are in decline is often necessary to prevent their extinction in the near term. Our findings suggest that the ability to connect long-term management actions to recover endangered species to other agency priorities may promote the willingness of managers to prioritize and continue long-term management of their habitats.

中文翻译：

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使濒危物种管理与依赖火的生态系统恢复保持一致：管理者对红冠啄木鸟和长叶松树管理行动的看法

有人批评濒危物种管理强调单一物种的保护方法，在某些情况下，将资源从对整个生物多样性维护很重要的基础广泛的土地管理目标中转移出来。在本文中，我们研究了对濒危物种的管理管理观念，这些物种的栖息地需求主要取决于频繁发生的火灾，即红冠啄木鸟（Leuconotopicusboalis Vieillot）。在此过程中，我们考虑了特定物种的种群恢复行动与更广泛的生态系统恢复目标之间的一致性。通过对美国东南沿海平原地区自然资源专业人员（n = 32）的半结构化访谈，我们研究了管理者对恢复工作的演变以及恢复工作与公共土地上其他管理目标的潜在一致性的观点。参加者描述了管理红冠啄木鸟的方法的演变，从最初的强调集约化管理行动（单一物种着重于减少灭绝风险（例如人工插鸟和个体禽类的迁徙））到更着重于恢复森林状况。以及维护它们的过程（例如火灾）。大多数参与者认为，红啄木鸟栖息地管理与其他资源管理行动（例如，规定的火灾，机械间伐）兼容。然而，有一些显着的例外，即人数较少但数量众多的参与者表示，特定的栖息地管理指南（觅食栖息地的基本准则）对实施首选的生态系统恢复行动（将快速生长，短命的松树过渡到长叶过渡林）构成了障碍松树[Pinus palustris Mill。]）。总体而言，与会人员期望无论其保护状况如何，都应继续努力为赤背啄木鸟提供栖息地，而且随着时间的推移，密集的单一物种管理措施可能会减少。通常有必要提供正在下降的专业物种的特殊需求，以防止其在近期内灭绝。