Groupings

Fire followers: Species taking advantage of burned habitat

Species that colonized rapidly after the fire, then decreased

Mourning Dove
Northern Mockingbird
Lawrence’s Goldfinch
Lazuli Bunting (highlight parallelism between variation in bunting numbers and variation in rainfall)

Species whose numbers peaked one or two years after the fires, or increased, then leveled off

Rock Wren
Loggerhead Shrike
Black-chinned Sparrow
Costa’s and Anna’s Hummingbirds
Red-tailed Hawk
Mountain Quail
Rufous-crowned Sparrow
Western Meadowlark
American Kestrel
Phainopepla
Vesper and White-crowned Sparrows 
Spotted Towhee
California Towhee

Species still increasing as of 2007

California Quail
Sage Sparrow
House Finch
Violet-green Swallow

Species whose numbers varied with rainfall

Four winter-visiting sparrows: Savannah, Chipping, Brewer’s, Golden-crowned (last prefers unburned)
Lark Sparrow, Lesser Goldfinch, House Wren, and Yellow-rumped Warbler. Lincoln’s Sparrow (unique spike in 2005–06)
Dark-eyed Junco (pattern opposite that of other species)


No clear preference for burned or unburned habitat

No definite trend

Turkey Vulture, Ash-throated Flycatcher 
Purple Finch
Dusky Flycatcher, Yellow-rumped Warbler
Brown-headed Cowbird

Four cowbird hosts increasing or maintaining their numbers: Bullock’s Oriole, Bell’s Vireo, Blue-gray Gnatcatcher, Summer Tanager
Two winter visitors: Hermit Thrush and Fox Sparrow


Fire fugitives: Species preferring unburned habitat

Increasing species—cut back but recovering

Scott’s Oriole
Greater Roadrunner
Scrub Jay
Western Bluebird
White-breasted Nuthatch
Mountain Chickadee
Four other forest birds, increasing after a year’s delay: Western Wood Pewee, American Robin, Orange-crowned Warbler, Dark-eyed Junco

Species that lost ground initially, then began a recovery

Black-headed Grosbeak and Western Flycatcher
Steller’s Jay
Oak Titmouse
Western Tanager (deep dipping after 1st year)

Woodpeckers and Creeper

Hairy Woodpecker
Nuttall’s Woodpecker
Acorn Woodpecker
White-headed Woodpecker
Brown Creeper

Four adversely affected chaparral birds

Bewick’s Wren
Bushtit
Wrentit
California Thrasher

Drought effect on a winter visitor

Ruby-crowned Kinglet

Three desert-edge birds

Black-throated Sparrow
Cactus Wren (no clear recovery)
Ladder-backed Woodpecker (basically flat)

Worst affected

Cassin’s and Warbling Vireos
Hutton’s Vireo
Pygmy Nuthatch
Eliminated by the fire from the Cuyamaca Mts.: Red-breasted Nuthatch, Golden-crowned Kinglet

Nocturnal birds: Status unknown but possibly eliminated from severely burned forest

Spotted Owl
Northern Saw-whet Owl