Habitat variety crucial for Jays as temperatures warm

14/04/2019

Researchers at the University of Southampton have shown that an even range of habitats – chiefly forests, fields and meadows – are needed in an area of around 200 m2 to 1 km2 in order for Jays to thrive.

The data, published recently in Methods in Ecology and Evolution, showed that the higher the temperature, the more important it it is for Jays to have a mix of different surroundings in a relatively small space, with an even spread of coniferous and broad-leaved forests also necessary.

The study shows how habitat management will become increasingly important as temperatures rise. Data from the BTO's Bird Atlas 2007-11 was studied by the researchers, who focused on Jay as it's a species known to frequent a variety of ecosystems. The Atlas was one of the most ambitious volunteer projects undertaken, with volunteer surveyors allocated squares of land around Britain in which they counted every bird during winter and in the breeding season.

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Penguins' calls are influenced by their habitat

Date:  November 1, 2017

Source:  American Ornithological Society Publications Office

Summary:

Birds use vocalizations to attract mates and defend territories. But while we know a lot about how variations in vocalizations play out in songbirds, it's far less clear how this variation affects birds such as penguins in which calls are inherited. A new study examines the calls of Little Penguins and finds that disparities in habitat, rather than geographic isolation, are the key driver of variation in the sounds these birds use to communicate.

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Songbird habitat affects reproduction, survival

Date: August 27, 2015

Source: The University of Montana

Summary: A professor who studies birds around the world has discovered trends in how the offspring grow, how parents care for the young and how well the young survive based on where they live.

A University of Montana professor who studies birds around the world has discovered trends in how the offspring grow, how parents care for the young and how well the young survive based on where they live. Now, his songbird research is hitting the right notes with the journal Science.

Thomas Martin, assistant leader of the U.S. Geological Survey Montana Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit at UM, set out to explain why tropical birds tend to have fewer offspring that seem to grow slower and live longer, slower lives than their northern counterparts. He found tropical songbirds grow their wings faster, aided by higher parental feeding rates for fewer offspring than temperate species. Those differences, Martin said, ultimately translate to how well the offspring escape predators both in the nest and after they leave it.

Martin's article, "Age-Related Mortality Explains Life History Strategies of Tropical and Temperate Songbirds," will be published Aug. 28 in the journal Science.

Read on ...

sland bird habitat being expanded in South Texas

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Dredging of a South Texas channel will pile up more habitat for birds.

The Corpus Christi Caller-Times (bit.ly/Sj58I3) reported Tuesday that the project is meant to benefit creatures that nest on Causeway Island in Nueces Bay.

About 40,000 cubic yards of dredge spoils from Rincon Channel will be spread over the 3-acre island. The center is being elevated to increase habitat for ground nesting birds.

Expansion of the island involves the Coastal Bend Bays & Estuaries Program, Cheniere Energy, the Port of Corpus Christi and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

Hundreds of colonial water birds already roost on the island between February and August. The estuary program has erected nesting platforms.


http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-505245_162-57519831/island-bird-habitat-being-expanded-in-south-texas/