ARE RESULTS OF ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING OF THE MIDDLE SPOTTED WOODPECKER (LEIOPICUS MEDIUS) INFLUENCED BY THE METHOD USED?

The Middle Spotted Woodpecker is listed among bird species of European importance (Annex I of the Birds Directive) for which Special Protection Areas (SPA) are designated in forest habitats of Europe as a part of the Natura 2000 network. In one of these areas, in SPA Litovelske Pomoravi, a study of abundance of the Middle Spotted Woodpecker in a floodplain forest during the breeding season was investigated. The number of individuals counted at the point transect, using the standard method of monitoring of this species in SPAs in the Czech Republic, was assessed. The results of the standard method were compared with those obtained by the special playback technique. The latter method has increased the number of recorded individuals of the Middle Spotted Woodpecker considerably: twice in 2007 and 2008 and even three times in 2010. Authors discuss the reactions of the Middle Spotted Woodpecker to the reproduced recordings of its calls and differences in vocalisation in the Great and Middle Spotted Woodpeckers. Differences in vocalisation of juveniles of the Great Spotted and Syrian Woodpeckers are also shortly discussed. The importance of application of a proper method for population monitoring of the Middle Spotted Woodpecker in SPAs is suggested in the context of management of its breeding habitats.