Nest Predators, Nest-Site Selection, and Nesting Success of the Dusky Flycatcher in a Managed Ponderosa Pine Forest

Among hypotheses explaining nest-site selection, the potential-prey-site hypothesis predicts that birds place nests in areas with many potential nest sites, while the nest-concealment hypothesis predicts nest placement in sites with greater surrounding vegetation. We examined these hypotheses by comparing habitat attributes between Dusky Flycatcher (Empidonax oberholseri) nest sites and random sites, successful and unsuccessful nests, and nests depredated by birds versus mammals. Nesting success was 28% (n = 167), and predation was the most important cause of nest failure (96%) during the study (1998–2000) at our site in northeastern California. We identified 28 nest predators using surveillance cameras. Sciurid mammals were the most common predators (17 of 28, 61%), with Cooper's Hawks (Accipiter cooperii; 25%), small owls (11%), and Steller's Jays (Cyanocitta stelleri; 3%) accounting for the rest. Raptors preyed on nestlings more frequently than on eggs, while small mammals depredated nestlings and eggs in proportion to their availability. Dusky Flycatchers nested in larger shrub patches with greater shrub cover than at random sites, supporting the potential-prey-site hypothesis. Successful nests were in larger shrub patches surrounded by fewer seedlings and saplings compared to depredated nests, providing equivocal support for the potential-prey-site hypothesis. Nests depredated by birds were less concealed, located in smaller shrub patches, surrounded by fewer seedlings and saplings, and were closer to the shrub edge than nests depredated by mammals. Our results, strengthened by identification of nest predators, suggest that differences in search strategies among predators may constrain the ability of Dusky Flycatchers to optimize nest-site selection.Depredadores de Nidos, Selección de Sitios de Anidación y Éxito de Anidación de Empidonax oberholseri en un Bosque Manejado de Pino PonderosaResumen. Entre las hipótesis que explican la selección de sitios de anidación, la de “presa potencial” predice que las aves ubican sus nidos en lugares con muchos sitios de anidación, mientras que la de “ocultación del nido” predice la ubicación de nidos en sitios con mayor vegetación circundante. Nosotros examinamos estas hipótesis comparando características del hábitat entre sitios de anidación del mosquerito Empidonax oberholseri y sitios aleatorios, entre nidos exitosos y no exitosos, y entre nidos depredados por aves y por mamíferos. Entre 1998 y 2000 en un área del noreste de California, el éxito de anidación fue del 28% (n = 167) y la depredación fue la causa más importante del fracaso de los nidos (96%). Identificamos 28 depredadores de nidos utilizando cámaras. Los mamíferos sciúridos fueron los depredadores más comunes (17 de 28, 61%), mientras que los demás nidos fueron depredados por Accipter cooperii (25%), búhos pequeños (11%) y Cyanocitta stelleri (3%). Las aves rapaces se alimentaron con mayor frecuencia de pichones que de huevos, mientras que los mamíferos pequeños depredaron pichones y huevos en proporción a su disponibilidad. Los mosqueritos anidaron en parches con mayor cobertura de arbustos que sitios aleatorios, lo cual apoya la hipótesis de presa potencial. Los nidos exitosos se ubicaron en parches de arbustos más grandes rodeados por menos plántulas y renovales en comparación con los nidos depredados, lo que apoya equívocamente la hipótesis de presa potencial. Los nidos depredados por aves estuvieron menos ocultos, ubicados en parches de arbustos más pequeños, rodeados por menos plántulas y renovales, y estuvieron más cerca del borde del matorral que los nidos depredados por mamíferos. Nuestros resultados, fortalecidos por la identificación de los depredadores, sugieren que las diferencias en las estrategias de búsqueda entre depredadores pueden limitar la habilidad de los mosqueritos para optimizar la selección de sitios de anidación.

Nestling Growth and Thermoregulatory Development in Subalpine Dusky Flycatchers

The Dusky Flycatcher (Empidonax oberholseri), a small, open-nesting Neotropical migrant, is a relatively common summer inhabitant of subalpine environments in the western and southwestern United States. Nestling growth and development of thermoregulation were studied in a population at Tioga Pass (3,000 m) in the eastern Sierra Nevada of California. Despite the selective advantages that might be expected from accelerating rates of growth and thermoregulatory development, in an environment where the season was relatively short and cold temperatures and inclement weather were common, there was little evidence of adaptive modification in either of those parameters; growth rates were comparable to those of other tyrant flycatchers. Feather eruption began around day 5, brushing in dorsal and ventral tracts began two days later, and brushing of the flight feathers around day 9. Asymptotic body masses were attained around day 12, but nestlings did not fledge for another 4 to 5 days. The physiological development of endothermy was closely correlated with increases in body mass and accompanying decreases in surface-area-to-volume ratio and age, but was not significantly correlated with changes in plumage development, when mass and age were statistically controlled. On exposure to ambient temperatures between −3 and 5°C for 10 min (roughly twice as long as the average female bout of inattentiveness), individual nestlings were unable to prevent deep hypothermia until after day 7. Homeothermy, at 80% of adult levels, was not attained until after day 12, although broods of nestlings maintained relatively stable body temperatures as early as day 5. Whereas clutch sizes in this population generally ranged from two to four eggs, the most stable thermal environments were provided by broods of three or four chicks. Although broods of nestlings were generally able to maintain temperatures within 5°C of adult levels, temperature profiles during storms indicated a remarkable capacity for nestlings to tolerate temperatures in the nest as low as 15°C for periods as long as 4 h without apparent ill effect.