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Shearer DJ, Carter TC, O'Neal BJ. Canada geese (
Branta canadensis
) nesting on elevated structures in urban Indiana, USA. Ecol Evol 2022; 12:e8735. [PMID: 35342599 PMCID: PMC8933316 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.8735] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2021] [Revised: 02/17/2022] [Accepted: 02/25/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
The Canada goose (Branta canadensis) population has radically changed over the past 60 years—from once being extirpated in the state of Indiana to the current level of approximately 113,000. High urban densities have resulted in persistent human–wildlife conflicts and novel interactions between geese and their physical environment. Canada geese typically choose nest sites that are on the ground or slightly elevated sites such as muskrat lodge, but we report observations of Canada geese nesting on rooftops 2.6–12.2 m above ground level in central Indiana. These observations suggest that alternative, unpredicted nesting sites are being chosen over more traditional sites, in a likely attempt to reduce risks of disturbance and predation. This atypical nest‐site selection may pose new management challenges, but further research is needed.
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Bourne AR, Ridley AR, Spottiswoode CN, Cunningham SJ. Direct and indirect effects of high temperatures on fledging in a cooperatively breeding bird. Behav Ecol 2021. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arab087] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
High temperatures and low rainfall consistently constrain reproduction in arid-zone bird species. Understanding the mechanisms underlying this pattern is critical for predicting how climate change will influence population persistence and to inform conservation and management. In this study, we analyzed Southern Pied Babbler Turdoides bicolor nestling survival, daily growth rate and adult investment behavior during the nestling period over three austral summer breeding seasons. High temperatures were associated with lower body mass, shorter tarsi, and reduced daily growth rates of nestlings. Our piecewise structural equation models suggested that direct impacts of temperature had the strongest influence on nestling size and daily growth rates for both 5-day-old and 11-day-old nestlings, followed by temperature-related adjustments to provisioning rates by adults. Rainfall and group size influenced the behavior of provisioning adults but did not influence nestling growth or survival. Adjustments to adult provisioning strategies did not compensate for direct negative effects of high air temperatures on nestling size or daily growth rates. Detailed mechanistic data like these allow us to model the pathways by which high temperature causes nest failure. In turn, this could allow us to design targeted conservation action to effectively mitigate climate effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amanda R Bourne
- FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, DST-NRF Centre of Excellence, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa
| | - Amanda R Ridley
- FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, DST-NRF Centre of Excellence, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, Hackett Drive, Crawley, Perth WA, Australia
| | - Claire N Spottiswoode
- FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, DST-NRF Centre of Excellence, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Susan J Cunningham
- FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, DST-NRF Centre of Excellence, University of Cape Town, Rondebosch, South Africa
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3
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Oboikovitz P, Swanson DL. Seasonal metabolic flexibility is correlated with microclimate variation in horned larks and house sparrows. Curr Zool 2021; 68:199-210. [PMID: 35355948 PMCID: PMC8962734 DOI: 10.1093/cz/zoab037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2021] [Accepted: 04/28/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Maximum and minimum metabolic rates in birds are flexible traits and such flexibility can be advantageous in variable climates. The climatic variability hypothesis (CVH) posits that more variable climates should result in greater metabolic flexibility for geographically distinct populations. Whether the CVH applies to sympatric species occupying microclimates differing in variability is unknown. Microclimates of open habitats are likely more variable than those of sheltered habitats. If the CVH extends to microclimates, we expect birds from open habitats to show greater flexibility than those from sheltered habitats. To test this extension of the CVH, we compared seasonal variation in microclimates and metabolic rates for sympatric horned larks Eremophila alpestris, which occupy open habitats, and house sparrows Passer domesticus, which occupy sheltered habitats. We measured operative temperature (Te, an integrative measure of the thermal environment), summit metabolic rate (Msum, maximal cold-induced metabolic rate), and basal metabolic rate (BMR, minimal maintenance metabolic rate) in summer and winter. For both winter and summer, daily minimum Te was similar between open and sheltered habitats but maximum Te was higher for open habitats. Winter microclimates, however, were colder for open than for sheltered habitats after accounting for convective differences. Both species increased Msum in winter, but seasonal Msum flexibility was greater for larks (43%) than for sparrows (31%). Winter increases in BMR were 92.5% and 11% for larks and sparrows, respectively, with only the former attaining statistical significance. Moreover, species * season interactions in general linear models for whole-organism metabolic rates were significant for BMR and showed a similar, although not significant, pattern for Msum, with greater seasonal metabolic flexibility in horned larks than in house sparrows. These results suggest that extending the CVH to sympatric bird species occupying different microclimates may be valid.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paige Oboikovitz
- Department of Biology, University of South Dakota, Vermillion, SD 57069, USA
| | - David L Swanson
- Department of Biology, University of South Dakota, Vermillion, SD 57069, USA
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4
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Bourne AR, Cunningham SJ, Spottiswoode CN, Ridley AR. High temperatures drive offspring mortality in a cooperatively breeding bird. Proc Biol Sci 2020; 287:20201140. [PMID: 33043866 DOI: 10.1101/2020.05.31.126862] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/26/2023] Open
Abstract
An improved understanding of life-history responses to current environmental variability is required to predict species-specific responses to anthopogenic climate change. Previous research has suggested that cooperation in social groups may buffer individuals against some of the negative effects of unpredictable climates. We use a 15-year dataset on a cooperative breeding arid zone bird, the southern pied babbler Turdoides bicolor, to test (i) whether environmental conditions and group size correlate with survival of young during three development stages (egg, nestling, fledgling) and (ii) whether group size mitigates the impacts of adverse environmental conditions on survival of young. Exposure to high mean daily maximum temperatures (mean Tmax) during early development was associated with reduced survival probabilities of young in all three development stages. No young survived when mean Tmax > 38°C, across all group sizes. Low survival of young at high temperatures has broad implications for recruitment and population persistence in avian communities given the rapid pace of advancing climate change. Impacts of high temperatures on survival of young were not moderated by group size, suggesting that the availability of more helpers in a group is unlikely to buffer against compromised offspring survival as average and maximum temperatures increase with rapid anthropogenic climate change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amanda R Bourne
- FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, DST-NRF Centre of Excellence, University of Cape Town, Private Bag X3, Rondebosch 7701, South Africa
| | - Susan J Cunningham
- FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, DST-NRF Centre of Excellence, University of Cape Town, Private Bag X3, Rondebosch 7701, South Africa
| | - Claire N Spottiswoode
- FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, DST-NRF Centre of Excellence, University of Cape Town, Private Bag X3, Rondebosch 7701, South Africa
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3EJ, UK
| | - Amanda R Ridley
- FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, DST-NRF Centre of Excellence, University of Cape Town, Private Bag X3, Rondebosch 7701, South Africa
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, Crawley 6009, Australia
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5
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Bourne AR, Cunningham SJ, Spottiswoode CN, Ridley AR. High temperatures drive offspring mortality in a cooperatively breeding bird. Proc Biol Sci 2020; 287:20201140. [PMID: 33043866 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2020.1140] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
An improved understanding of life-history responses to current environmental variability is required to predict species-specific responses to anthopogenic climate change. Previous research has suggested that cooperation in social groups may buffer individuals against some of the negative effects of unpredictable climates. We use a 15-year dataset on a cooperative breeding arid zone bird, the southern pied babbler Turdoides bicolor, to test (i) whether environmental conditions and group size correlate with survival of young during three development stages (egg, nestling, fledgling) and (ii) whether group size mitigates the impacts of adverse environmental conditions on survival of young. Exposure to high mean daily maximum temperatures (mean Tmax) during early development was associated with reduced survival probabilities of young in all three development stages. No young survived when mean Tmax > 38°C, across all group sizes. Low survival of young at high temperatures has broad implications for recruitment and population persistence in avian communities given the rapid pace of advancing climate change. Impacts of high temperatures on survival of young were not moderated by group size, suggesting that the availability of more helpers in a group is unlikely to buffer against compromised offspring survival as average and maximum temperatures increase with rapid anthropogenic climate change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amanda R Bourne
- FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, DST-NRF Centre of Excellence, University of Cape Town, Private Bag X3, Rondebosch 7701, South Africa
| | - Susan J Cunningham
- FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, DST-NRF Centre of Excellence, University of Cape Town, Private Bag X3, Rondebosch 7701, South Africa
| | - Claire N Spottiswoode
- FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, DST-NRF Centre of Excellence, University of Cape Town, Private Bag X3, Rondebosch 7701, South Africa.,Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3EJ, UK
| | - Amanda R Ridley
- FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, DST-NRF Centre of Excellence, University of Cape Town, Private Bag X3, Rondebosch 7701, South Africa.,Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, Crawley 6009, Australia
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Newberry GN, Swanson DL. Common Nighthawks (Chordeiles minor) in the Western Corn Belt: Habitat Associations and Population Effects of Grassland and Rooftop Nesting Habitat Conversion. AMERICAN MIDLAND NATURALIST 2018. [DOI: 10.1674/0003-0031-180.2.216] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- G. N. Newberry
- Department of Biology, University of South Dakota, 414 East Clark Street, Vermillion, 57069
| | - D. L. Swanson
- Department of Biology, University of South Dakota, 414 East Clark Street, Vermillion, 57069
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