| Summary: | Lesser Yellowlegs (Tringa flavipes) abundance has declined by approximately 75% across North America since 1970. Despite this dramatic decline, Lesser Yellowlegs are infrequently studied on their breeding grounds and have rarely been studied in the boreal forest of Alaska where population size is uncertain. We used a spatially balanced sampling design and surveyed 400 by 400 m plots in 2016 and 2017 to (1) estimate abundance and habitat use of Lesser Yellowlegs breeding on military lands in interior Alaska, and (2) test hypotheses about which habitat covariates best explain variation in plot abundances and habitat use. We predicted that boreal forest habitats on military lands in central Alaska supported a large percent of breeding Lesser Yellowlegs and that plots containing water and situated closer to wetlands would have the highest abundances compared to other habitat variables tested. We also predicted that increased presence of lowland habitat and associated vegetation covariates (e.g., percent low scrub canopy) increased probability of habitat use. In 2017, Lesser Yellowlegs abundance at the study site was 12,478 individuals, and habitat use was negatively associated with increasing elevation and percent canopy cover on plot. We estimate that military lands in interior Alaska support 8% of all Lesser Yellowlegs breeding in Alaska. Therefore, studies identifying important Lesser Yellowlegs breeding habitat and addressing conservation priorities in the boreal forest should be continued.
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