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Costs And Benefits Of Variable Nest Density In Burrowing Owls: Effects On Predation, Ectoparasites, Egg Yolk Hormones, And Productivity, Justin Lamar Welty
Costs And Benefits Of Variable Nest Density In Burrowing Owls: Effects On Predation, Ectoparasites, Egg Yolk Hormones, And Productivity, Justin Lamar Welty
Boise State University Theses and Dissertations
Nesting density in birds is influenced by a number of factors including food availability, predation, and breeding site availability. As a result of a species’ nesting density, individuals incur certain costs and benefits related to predation rates, parasite levels, and productivity. I evaluated hypotheses related to these costs and benefits in burrowing owls (Athene cunicularia hypugaea) that nested within the Morley Nelson Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area in southern Idaho. I calculated territory overlap, an index of nesting density, of actual nests by creating a 200m radius buffer around each nest and measuring the percentage …