Gary R. Graves / Smithsonian Institution
These sections of pine plantations in the southeastern U.S. contain surprising new habitat for the Swainson’s warbler, which relies on dense understory vegetation and moist soils carpeted with leaf litter for breeding. In October 2014, National Museum of Natural History scientist Gary Graves published a new study compiling 20 years of research that suggests forests managed as short-rotation pine plantations could support the majority of Swainson’s warbler breeding populations by the end of the 21st century. (Photos by Gary R. Graves / Smithsonian Institution)
