Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Articles 1 - 1 of 1
Full-Text Articles in Animal Sciences
Nest-Site Selection And Nest Survival Of The Rusty Blackbird: Does Timber Management Adjacent To Wetlands Create Ecological Traps?, Luke L. Powell, Thomas P. Hodgman, William E. Glanz, James D. Osenton, Caleb M. Fisher
Nest-Site Selection And Nest Survival Of The Rusty Blackbird: Does Timber Management Adjacent To Wetlands Create Ecological Traps?, Luke L. Powell, Thomas P. Hodgman, William E. Glanz, James D. Osenton, Caleb M. Fisher
Biology and Ecology Faculty Scholarship
Animals are subject to ecological traps when anthropogenic changes create habitat that appears suitable but when selected results in decreased fitness. The Rusty Blackbird (Euphagus carolinus) breeds in boreal wetlands and has declined by 85–95% over the last half century. We studied nest-site selection and daily nest survival rate (DSR) of 43 Rusty Blackbird nests in northern New England and evaluated whether regenerating logged areas adjacent to wetlands created ecological traps. Although nesting adults avoided high-canopied forests and selected areas with dense balsam fir (Abies balasmea) 1 to 3 m high, those characteristics were not associated …