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Nest Success And Nesting Habits Of Eastern Kingbirds And Other Flycatchers, Michael T. Murphy
Nest Success And Nesting Habits Of Eastern Kingbirds And Other Flycatchers, Michael T. Murphy
Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations
Patterns of nest placement and its relationship to nest success in the Eastern Kingbird (Tyrannus tyrannus) were studied in populations breeding in New York and Kansas. Data were augmented with information on nest placement in other open-nesting tyrannids in order to examine the hypothesis that these flycatchers place their nests chiefly so as to conceal them from predators. Nesting success was significantly greater in New York than in Kansas but was relatively high in both populations, as is apparently true of North American breeding flycatchers in general. Geographic variation in nest placement in the Eastern Kingbird was relatively small and …
Clutch Size In The Eastern Kingbird: Factors Affecting Nestling Survival, Michael T. Murphy
Clutch Size In The Eastern Kingbird: Factors Affecting Nestling Survival, Michael T. Murphy
Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations
Observational and experimental procedures were used to evaluate the potential importance of brood size and weather on the evolution of clutch size in the Eastern Kingbird. Modal clutch size was three eggs, yet broods of four were most productive. Nestling size varied inversely with brood size, so that "nestling quality" was lower in broods of four than in broods of three. Asymptotic weight of nestlings in broods of three was directly and significantly correlated with ambient air temperature, followed by hatch order. Because larger broods were being fed during a period of relatively cool and wet weather, the effects of …