stands 30 years old or older [13].  Good foraging habitat consists of pine stands with trees 9 inches (22.9 cm) d.b.h. and larger.  The hardwood midstory may be well developed.  Red-cockaded woodpeckers also forage in pole-size stands (4 to 9 inches [10-23 cm] d.b.h.), but little use is made of sapling stands (< 4 inches [10 cm] d.b.h.)  [14, 3].  Clans regularly forage on pines scattered through hardwood stands, but pure hardwood stands are seldom used [15, 3].  The size of foraging habitat needed by a clan varies with the quality of the habitat.  While 100 acres (40.5 ha) of mature pine is sufficient for some clans, clans commonly forage over several hundred acres where habitat conditions are not ideal [3, 7].

MANAGEMENT CONSIDERATIONS:

The range and population of the red-cockaded woodpecker has been drastically reduced through fragmentation and loss of habitat.  A large portion of the southern pine forests have been harvested and cleared for agriculture or other uses [3, 7].  Continued habitat loss and fragmentation will make the species more vulnerable to extinction as populations become increasingly smaller and more isolated [16].

A successful management plan for red-cockaded woodpeckers must do five things [3]:

1. Retain existing cavity trees
2. Provide trees for new cavities
3. Provide adequate foraging habitat
4. Control hardwoods in the colony site
5. Provide future colony sites

A high percentage of red-cockaded woodpecker cavities are found in pines infected with red heart rot.  This fungus weakens the heartwood and makes cavity excavation easier.  Some cavity trees apparently do not have red heart rot, but these trees may have softer than average heartwood.  It is not certain if the red-cockaded woodpecker needs red heart rot in order to make a cavity in the average pine [3, 8, 6].

Artificial cavities can be inserted into chainsaw-excavated live trees for red-cockaded woodpeckers [17, 18].  Of primary importance is the diameter of the tree at the height the cavity is to be constructed.  Diameter at cavity height must be at least 15 inches (38 cm).  Weakening of the tree as a result of excavating the cavity is a concern.  Whenever possible, healthy trees with large crowns should be selected to help assure that the tree will outlast the cavity.  Over 60 percent of the artificial cavities on the Francis Marion National Forest in South Carolina are now being used for nesting or roosting.  Despite a tornado and severe windstorms in the area, none of the trees have broken at cavity height [17].

The red-cockaded woodpecker recovery plan indicates that nesting habitat can be provided by lengthening rotations, leaving old-growth remnant trees scattered throughout younger stands, and perpetuating small patches of remnant old growth throughout the forest [19].  Colony sites should not be isolated from foraging areas [3].  Jackson [16] stated that "corridors of suitable habitat to link populations together through management of interstate highway rights-of-way is recommended.