Abstract
Riparian cottonwood (Populus angustifolia) forests provide avian habitats that are of high conservation value throughout western North America. We compared avian nest success, brood parasitism, species richness, and species abundance among 24 cottonwood forest patches representing a range of sizes and shapes. We randomly selected patches in 3 ranges of size, small (0.1-0.6 ha), medium (1.2-2.5 ha), and large (4.0-6.2 ha); and 2 ranges of shape, compact (1.00-1.83) and edgy (1.87-3.30). We measured pathch shape using the Patton Diversity Index. We monitored 313 nests of 20 species over 2 years. Only American robin (Turdus migratorius) nests exhibited a negative relationship between distance from edge and probability of daily nest survival. We found no relationship between the probability of nest parasitism and patch size, patch shape, or nest distance from edge. Point counts revealed that both richness and abundance of forest-interior bird species increased with patch size. Forest-interior species abundance also increased with decreasing Patton Diversity Index. Our results suggest that patch edginess has a negative effect on the abundance of forest-interior birds. Although our results do not show that patch edginess has a negative effect on nest success, they emphasize the importance of species autecology in relation to the effects of edge on avian nesting success.
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