Spatial drivers of breeding habitat selection in Eastern Population sandhill cranes

Canada’s eastern boreal forest provides important breeding and foraging habitat for many wildlife species, including sandhill cranes ( Antigone canadensis (Linnaeus, 1758)), a species of conservation concern. Following significant population declines in the early 20th century, sandhill crane populations have since rebounded and rapidly expanded their breeding ranges into the boreal forest, yet habitat selection in these newly occupied areas remains poorly understood. Using high-resolution satellite telemetry, we developed resource selection functions to assess how land cover and land use influence breeding habitat selection of 42 sandhill cranes in Ontario and Quebec, Canada. Within the home range (95% minimum convex polygon), sandhill cranes exhibited the strongest selection for wetlands, which were selected approximately twice as often as croplands, forest disturbances, and open water. Intact forests and urban areas were consistently avoided. These findings highlight wetlands as key predictors of habitat use, emphasing the need for targeted management strategies that prioritise wetland conservation. While current forestry practices do not appear to negatively impact breeding habitat selection in the boreal forest, their long-term effects on breeding success remain unknown, requiring further research to explore the detailed impacts of forestry development, industrial development, and urban expansion on breeding behaviour and success.