Contrasting Habitat Use at the Range Edge of an Endangered Grassland Specialist: Insights Into Plains‐Wanderer ( <scp> <i>Pedionomus torquatus</i> </scp> ) Habitat Use in a Periphery Population

Periphery populations can use habitat that differs significantly from core populations, as these regions often represent altered ecological pressures and resource availability. We assess the habitat use of the endangered Plains-wanderer (<i>Pedionomus torquatus</i>), a ground-dwelling bird, in the periphery of the species' known distribution. Grasslands are key habitats in the species' core range, but these habitats are largely absent at the periphery of their range. Between 2022 and 2024, 29 Plains-wanderers were tracked using VHF and GPS loggers to measure fine-scale habitat use in the western range periphery. Plains-wanderers used habitat primarily dominated by <i>Sclerolaena</i> species, averaging 55% of total cover and 11 cm in height, and the remainder was composed of 40% bare ground and 5% litter. The <i>Sclerolaena</i>-dominated vegetation community used by Plains-wanderers differed in overall composition compared to preferred habitat in the eastern core range, particularly in the absence of grasses, while the general habitat height structure and minimum required open ground remained similar to the core. This study identifies a novel vegetation association for the species, thereby extending the area of potential occupation to include a variety of open-plains vegetation associations at the range edge. Our findings show that periphery populations of Plains-wanderers exhibit greater ecological flexibility in habitat selection than previously recognised. As such, the long-held notion that Plains-wanderers are exclusively 'grassland specialists' should be broadened to incorporate the suitability of low forb-like Chenopod shrublands. Localised studies of individual animal movement reveal the vegetation characteristics critical to the persistence of this threatened species at the edge of their range.