Immigration stabilizes a population of threatened cavity-nesting raptors despite possibility of nest box imprinting

Many species of birds incorporate feathers into their nest as structural support and to insulate the eggs or offspring. Here, we investigated the novel idea that birds reduce the risk of nest usurpation by decorating it with feathers to trigger a fear response in their rivals. We let prospecting birds choose between a dyad of nest-boxes in the wild, both containing some nest materials, but where one had a few white feathers and the other had none. All three species of cavity-nesting birds studied, the pied flycatcher Ficedula hypoleuca , the blue tit Cyanistes caeruleus , and the tree swallow Tachycineta bicolor , hesitated to enter boxes with white feathers. A similar avoidance of white feathers was found when the alternative nest-box of a dyad held black feathers. However, the birds readily collected white feathers that we placed in front of their nest-box, showing the fear of such feathers was context-dependent. We suggest that naive prospecting birds may perceive feathers in nests as the result of a predation event, and that owners decorate nests with bright feathers that can be seen from the opening to deter others from entering.

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Effects of urbanization and nest box design on reproduction vary by species in three cavity-nesting passerines in the Okanagan Valley

Canadian Journal of Zoology ◽

10.1139/cjz-2020-0028 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Catherine Dale ◽

Matthew W Reudink ◽

Laurene M Ratcliffe ◽

Ann E McKellar

Keyword(s):

Tree Swallows ◽

Artificial Nest ◽

Nest Box ◽

Nest Boxes ◽

Cavity Nesting ◽

Conservation Actions ◽

Western Bluebirds ◽

Mountain Bluebirds ◽

Artificial Nest Boxes ◽

Okanagan Valley

Artificial nest boxes provide an important resource for secondary cavity-nesting passerines, whose populations may be limited by the availability of nesting sites. However, previous studies have demonstrated that the design and placement of boxes may affect the reproductive success of the birds that use them. In this study, we asked whether the habitat surrounding a nest box or the type of box influenced reproduction in three cavity-nesting passerines. We studied western bluebirds (Sialia mexicana Swainson, 1832), mountain bluebirds (S. currucoides Bechstein, 1798), and tree swallows (Tachycineta bicolor Vieillot, 1808) breeding in artificial nest boxes at sites across 70 km of the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia, Canada. Sites varied in their degree of urbanization, from relatively undisturbed ranchland, to cultivated vineyards, to frequently disturbed ‘suburban’ habitat, and boxes varied in type of entrance (slot or hole). Western bluebirds nested earlier in vineyards, and tree swallows produced significantly fewer fledglings in suburban habitat. In addition, tree swallows nested earlier and produced more fledglings in slot boxes. Our results suggest that conservation actions for cavity-nesting passerines may depend on the target species, which in turn should dictate the appropriate box type and habitat when erecting or replacing nest boxes.

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Nest Box Preference by Secondary Cavity-Nesting Birds in Forested Environments

Journal of Ecology and Environment ◽

10.5141/jefb.2007.30.1.049 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 30 (1) ◽

pp. 49-56 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Chang-Yong Choi ◽

Hyun-Young Nam ◽

Eun-Jae Lee ◽

Ok-Sik Chung ◽

Yong-Su Park ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Nest Box ◽

Cavity Nesting

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Egg covering in cavity nesting birds may prevent nest usurpation by other species

Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology ◽

10.1007/s00265-021-03045-w ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 75 (8) ◽

Author(s):

Tore Slagsvold ◽

Karen L. Wiebe

Keyword(s):

Nest Predation ◽

Parus Major ◽

Great Tit ◽

Egg Laying ◽

Nest Material ◽

Nest Box ◽

Nest Boxes ◽

Cavity Nesting ◽

Nest Usurpation ◽

New Hypothesis

Abstract Some birds cover their eggs with nest material when they leave to forage. It has been suggested that such egg-covering aids thermoregulation or prevents predation but here we present a new hypothesis, that secondary cavity-nesting species cover their eggs to prevent nest usurpation by other birds. When the bottom of the cavity is dark, as when eggs are covered by nest material, it may be difficult for a prospecting competitor to see whether a defending nest owner or a predator is hiding inside the cavity. Competitors may therefore hesitate to enter dark cavities. We filmed 21 great tit (Parus major) nests during the egg-laying period and found that the female spent bouts of highly variable length outside the nest box (range 0.3–250 min, n = 51), so prospecting small passerines would have difficulty predicting whether an aggressive tit owner was in the box or would soon return. We presented prospecting male pied flycatchers (Ficedula hypoleuca) with a dyad of boxes (n = 93), each containing a great tit nest but only one with visible eggs. Flycatchers hesitated more to enter a nest box with no visible tit eggs than a box with exposed eggs. This was most evident for nest boxes with dark versus light interior paint, supporting the idea that better interior illumination makes prospecting birds more confident about entering an unfamiliar cavity. The usurpation and predation hypotheses are not mutually exclusive because both competitors and small predators may hesitate to enter dark, enclosed spaces if visibility is low. Significance statement Some birds deposit a layer of material on top of the eggs when they leave the nest. Several hypotheses have been proposed for such egg covering, for example that it may insulate the eggs and reduce the risk of nest predation. We propose a new hypothesis, namely that secondary hole-nesting birds cover their eggs when they leave the nest to prevent usurpation of the cavity by other birds. Great tits that we filmed at the nest during the egg-laying period could be absent for long periods. To test the hypothesis, we presented male pied flycatchers, potential nest competitors, with a dyad of nest boxes, each containing a great tit nest but only one with visible tit eggs. In support of the prediction, prospecting flycatchers hesitated to enter dark cavities with dark floors relative to boxes with exposed, reflective eggs.

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The influence of weather and parental provisioning on fledging success depends on nest box type in a cavity-nesting passerine, the Mountain Bluebird (Sialia currucoides)

The Wilson Journal of Ornithology ◽

10.1676/17-084.1 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 130 (3) ◽

pp. 708-715

Author(s):

Sarah L. Leroux ◽

Ann E. McKellar ◽

Nancy J. Flood ◽

Mark J. Paetkau ◽

Jacob M. Bailey ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Nest Box ◽

Fledging Success ◽

Cavity Nesting ◽

Sialia Currucoides ◽

Mountain Bluebird ◽

Parental Provisioning

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Nest Box Use by Cavity-nesting Birds

The American Midland Naturalist ◽

10.2307/2425530 ◽

1983 ◽

Vol 109 (1) ◽

pp. 194 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

Gale R. Willner ◽

J. Edward Gates ◽

William J. Devlin

Keyword(s):

Nest Box ◽

Cavity Nesting

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A comparison of the breeding ecology of a secondary cavity nesting bird, the Tree Swallow (Tachycineta bicolor), in nest boxes and natural cavities

Canadian Journal of Zoology ◽

10.1139/z90-152 ◽

1990 ◽

Vol 68 (5) ◽

pp. 1046-1052 ◽

Cited By ~ 88

Author(s):

Raleigh J. Robertson ◽

Wallace B. Rendell

Keyword(s):

Interspecific Competition ◽

Nest Site ◽

Natural Populations ◽

Tree Swallow ◽

Life History Strategies ◽

Tree Swallows ◽

Nest Box ◽

Nest Boxes ◽

Cavity Nesting ◽

Second Year

Several studies concerned with mate choice, reproductive performance, and life history strategies have been conducted with secondary cavity nesting birds breeding in nest boxes. Although the need for comparative studies has been recognized, populations breeding in nest boxes often have not been compared with those breeding in natural cavities. We compared the ecology of Tree Swallows breeding in nest boxes and natural cavities to determine if nest box populations of Tree Swallows are accurate models of natural populations. Two nest site characteristics, nest site dispersion and cavity height, were similar for birds in both nesting environments. Greater cavity entrance area at natural cavities resulted in increased interspecific competition in natural populations, involving larger competitors, more species, and a greater abundance of each species. Clutch size was smaller in natural cavities compared with nest boxes, likely because floor area was smaller in natural cavities. Fledging success did not differ between populations. Disproportionately more after-second-year females bred in nest boxes, and more second-year females bred in natural cavities, as estimated by a model of Tree Swallow survivorship. Tree Swallows settle at nest boxes before natural cavities in our study area, perhaps as a result of the greater potential for reproductive success and reduced interspecific competition in the nest boxes as opposed to natural cavities. For some aspects of the ecology of secondary cavity nesters, nest boxes do not provide an accurate representation of natural populations. Therefore, evolutionary interpretations of nest box studies should be compared with observations of birds in natural environments.

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