Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Units Program: Florida
Education, Research and Technical Assistance for Managing Our Natural Resources

This project involves the development of a management strategy for oak (Quercus spp.) scrub that will maximize the long-term demographic performance of Florida scrub-jays (Aphelocoma coerulescens). The project focuses on the Happy Creek Scrub Reserve Unit of Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge, which is an area with an ecological legacy of fire suppression. The objective of this project is to determine how creation of bare ground by plowing could supplement prescribed burning to help maintain better habitat conditions for Florida scrub-jays.