Effectiveness of using nest boxes as a form of bird protection after building modernization

AbstractModernization of urban buildings can decrease the availability of nesting sites in buildings, leading to sudden decreases in the density of avifauna. In this study, we investigated the use of nest boxes as a bird conservation measure after buildings were thermally modernized. In a 10 ha experimental area we mounted five types of nest boxes of different sizes and dimensions (a total of 132). Nest boxes were dedicated to species that lost access to their previous nesting sites. All species associated with the buildings significantly declined or disappeared. In the first year after the modernization, the House Sparrow (Passer domesticus) decreased by 66% compared with the period before the modernization, Eurasian Jackdaw (Corvus monedula) by 68%, Common Starling (Sturnus vulgaris) by 70%, and Common Swift (Apus apus) by 100%. In the first two years after the modernization, the birds nested only in nest boxes. Five years of monitoring showed that using nest boxes as compensation for bird nesting sites lost during the renovation of buildings can cause a population to recover to ca. 50% of its original level. To optimize deployments of nest boxes, wildlife managers should consider target species’ preferences for the dimensions and placement of boxes and limit the time boxes are used if a species prefers nesting outside nest-boxes, but in buildings (e. g. the House Sparrow) and does not require additional support.

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Nestling Of House Sparrow Passer Domesticus In Nest Boxes In Zielona Góra Preliminary Report

International Studies on Sparrows ◽

10.1515/isspar-2015-0028 ◽

2014 ◽

Vol 38 (1) ◽

pp. 25-26

Author(s):

Damian Markulak

Keyword(s):

Preliminary Report ◽

House Sparrow ◽

Passer Domesticus ◽

House Sparrows ◽

Nest Box ◽

European Cities ◽

Nest Sites ◽

Nest Boxes ◽

Nesting Sites

Abstract The population of House Sparrows in most of European cities declined in the end of the XX century (De Laet & Summers-Smith 2007). One of the presumable reasons of this decline is loss of nest sites. The House sparrow is a secondary hole-nester (Anderson 2006) and places its nest in holes of buildings, shrubs and nest boxes. The rate of nest box occupation depends on the location and competition with other species (Anderson T.R. 2006). The aim of this study was to investigate the rate of nest box occupation by House sparrows in Zielona Góra, Western Poland, which can provide information about the availability of nesting sites.

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The Use Of Nest-Boxes By Two Species Of Sparrows (Passer Domesticus And P. Montanus) With Opposite Trends Of Abundance – The Study In Warsaw

International Studies on Sparrows ◽

10.1515/isspar-2015-0011 ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 36 (1) ◽

pp. 18-29 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Andrzej Węgrzynowicz

Keyword(s):

House Sparrow ◽

Passer Domesticus ◽

Breeding Period ◽

Specific Rate ◽

Tree Sparrow ◽

Urbanization Gradient ◽

Nest Box ◽

Nest Sites ◽

Nest Boxes ◽

Housing Estates

Abstract The occupation of nest-boxes by House- and Tree Sparrow in Warsaw was investigated in 2005-2009 and in 2012. Riparian forests, younger and older parks in downtown, and housing estates were included in the study as 4 types of habitats corresponding to the urbanization gradient of Warsaw. 1035 inspections of nest-boxes suitable for both species (type A) were carried out during the breeding period and 345 nest-boxes of other types were inspected after the breeding period. In order to determine the importance of nest-boxes for both species on different plots, obtained data were analyzed using Nest-box Importance Coefficient (NIC). This coefficient describes species-specific rate of occupation of nest-boxes as well as the contribution of the pairs nesting in them. Tree Sparrow occupied a total of 33% of A-type nest-boxes, its densities were positively correlated with the number of nest-boxes, and seasonal differences in occupation rate were low for this species. The NIC and the rate of nest-box occupation for Tree Sparrow decreased along an urbanization gradient. House Sparrow used nest-boxes very rarely, only in older parks and some housing estates. Total rate of nest-box occupation for House Sparrow in studied plots was 4%, and NIC was relatively low. However, locally, installation of nest-boxes limited House Sparrow decline caused by reduced availability of its typical nest sites. Both species used only A-type nest boxes. The rate of nest-box occupation by House Sparrow decreased sharply since 1980s, and opposite trend was observed for Tree Sparrow. These alterations are consistent with the general changes in both species populations in Warsaw in recent decades: decrease in House Sparrow and increase in Tree Sparrow number. The presented results suggest that loss of nest sites may not be the main reason of decrease in House Sparrow population in Warsaw. Additionally, House Sparrow decline leads to increase in nest sites (including nest-boxes) available for Tree Sparrow, what may contribute to the expansion of the latter species.

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Protective Nest Design for Indian House Sparrow (Passer domesticus L.) - with Reference to Predation and Reuse

Agricultural Science Digest - A Research Journal ◽

10.18805/ag.d-5438 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Veera Mahesh ◽

Suseela Lanka

Keyword(s):

House Sparrow ◽

Bird Species ◽

Passer Domesticus ◽

Food Resources ◽

Rapid Decline ◽

House Sparrows ◽

Bird Population ◽

Nest Boxes ◽

Basic Model ◽

Nest Design

Background: The House Sparrow (Passer domesticus L.), is a human-commensal bird species, belonging to the order Passeriformes. The rapid changes in our lifestyle resulted in the decrease of this bird population during the past four decades. Among the various causes viz., lack of food resources, pollution pressure, indiscriminate usage of pesticides etc. Habitat loss is found to be one of the main threats for their rapid decline. Installation of artificial nest boxes was found to be the best alternatives for raising the bird population. Methods: Jangareddigudem of West Godavari district, Andhra Pradesh, India, was chosen as the study area. The nest boxes were designed by incorporating certain modifications to the basic model specified by British Trust of Ornithology. Installation of the nest boxes was initiated from an area with moderate food resources, located towards south-west edge of the town and was expanded in to other areas in a latitudinal wise towards north and south directions. Data was collected on a regular basis to study the occupancy of the nest boxes by the house sparrows. Result: The model designed was proved to be protective from predators and also well accepted by the public. Out of 570 nests that were installed in the study area, 550 nests were occupied and being used for breeding, that comes to around 97.6% occupancy indicating the suitability and protectiveness of this model. The sparrow population in the study area has been increased with a count of sparrows from few to 300+ sparrows at each roosting site (two roosting sites) by the end of 2020 by utilizing the nest boxes.

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Status survey and conservation of the House Sparrow Passer domesticus (Aves: Passeriformes: Passeridae) through public participation in Kannur, Kerala, India

Journal of Threatened Taxa ◽

10.11609/jott.3528.10.8.12098-12102 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 10 (8) ◽

pp. 12098

Author(s):

R. Roshnath ◽

C. P. Arjun ◽

J. Ashli ◽

D. Sethu ◽

P. Gokul

Keyword(s):

Public Participation ◽

Questionnaire Survey ◽

House Sparrow ◽

Passer Domesticus ◽

Forest Department ◽

House Sparrows ◽

The Public ◽

Nest Boxes ◽

The World ◽

Status Survey

House Sparrows Passer domesticus are one of the most widespread passerines in the world. A survey was conducted to find out their status in Kannur District, Kerala. The survey recorded 553 sparrows in 35 sites in the district. The perspectives of the public were recorded through a questionnaire survey and conservational inputs from the public were noted. Most of the respondents (47%) suggested the provision of nest boxes for the enhanced breeding of sparrows. Thus, our NGO along with the support of students, the public and the Kerala Forest Department, placed 100 nest boxes in various identified sparrow dwelling places in the district and it was found effective in the conservation of sparrows.

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Three hundred years of House Sparrow (Passer domesticus) persecution in Germany

Archives of Natural History ◽

10.3366/anh.2007.34.2.307 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 34 (2) ◽

pp. 307-317 ◽

Cited By ~ 3

Author(s):

J. SEITZ

Keyword(s):

Rural Areas ◽

House Sparrow ◽

Bird Species ◽

Passer Domesticus ◽

Second World War ◽

Population Increase ◽

World War ◽

Large Numbers ◽

Urban And Rural Areas ◽

Second World

Modernization of agriculture, economic development and population increase after the end of the Thirty Years' War caused authorities in many parts of Germany to decree the eradication of so-called pest animals, including the House Sparrow. Farmers were given targets, and had to deliver the heads of sparrows in proportion to the size of their farms or pay fines. At the end of the eighteenth century German ornithologists argued against the eradication of the sparrows. During the mid-nineteenth century, C. L. Gloger, the pioneer of bird protection in Germany, emphasized the value of the House Sparrow in controlling insect plagues. Many decrees were abolished because either they had not been obeyed, or had resulted in people protecting sparrows so that they always had enough for their “deliveries”. Surprisingly, various ornithologists, including Ernst Hartert and the most famous German bird conservationist Freiherr Berlepsch, joined in the war against sparrows at the beginning of the twentieth century, because sparrows were regarded as competitors of more useful bird species. After the Second World War, sparrows were poisoned in large numbers. Persecution of sparrows ended in Germany in the 1970s. The long period of persecution had a significant but not long-lasting impact on House Sparrow populations, and therefore cannot be regarded as a factor in the recent decline of this species in urban and rural areas of western and central Europe.

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House Sparrow (Passer domesticus)

10.2173/bna.houspa.02 ◽

2006 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Peter E. Lowther ◽

Calvin L. Cink

Keyword(s):

House Sparrow ◽

Passer Domesticus

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The Circadian Component in the Photoperiodic Mechanism of the House Sparrow, Passer domesticus

Physiological Zoology ◽

10.1086/physzool.50.4.30155730 ◽

1977 ◽

Vol 50 (4) ◽

pp. 247-268 ◽

Cited By ~ 37

Author(s):

Donald S. Farner ◽

Richard S. Donham ◽

Robert A. Lewis ◽

Philip W. Mattocks ◽

Thomas R. Darden ◽

...

Keyword(s):

House Sparrow ◽

Passer Domesticus

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Differences in Depredation by Small Predators Limit the Use of Plasticine and Zebra Finch Eggs in Artificial-Nest Studies

The Condor ◽

10.1093/condor/103.1.180 ◽

2001 ◽

Vol 103 (1) ◽

pp. 180-183 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Thomas J. Maier ◽

Richard M. Degraaf

Keyword(s):

Small Mammals ◽

Zebra Finch ◽

House Sparrow ◽

Peromyscus Leucopus ◽

Passer Domesticus ◽

Field Studies ◽

Taeniopygia Guttata ◽

Artificial Nest ◽

Neotropical Migrant ◽

Passerine Species

Abstract Small mammals, such as mice and voles, have been implicated as major egg predators of Neotropical migrant passerines by field studies using soft plasticine eggs or the very small eggs of Zebra Finch (Taeniopygia guttata). Nevertheless, the effort required to depredate these commonly used egg surrogates may be less than that required to depredate the larger, thicker-shelled eggs of most passerine species. To compare the depredation of these surrogates to that of the eggs of a mid-sized passerine by a ubiquitous small predator, we exposed dissimilar pairs of plasticine, Zebra Finch, and House Sparrow (Passer domesticus) eggs to captive white-footed mice (Peromyscus leucopus). Plasticine eggs were marked by mice more than either kind of real egg, and Zebra Finch eggs were breached more often than House Sparrow eggs. We conclude that the use of either plasticine or Zebra Finch eggs may lead to overestimation of the ability or proclivity of small mammals to actually depredate the eggs of most passerines.

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