Breeding Site Fidelity in Urban Common RedstartsPhoenicurus phoenicurus

Abstract

We investigated breeding patch fidelity and between-year territory movements in relation to breeding success and habitat characteristics in a colour-ringed urban population of the Common Redstart Phoenicurus phoenicurus. In 1996–2004, 111 marked adults (59 males and 52 females) produced 60 recapture events (41 in males and 19 in females) from 39 individuals (29 males and 10 females). Redstarts showed moderate between-year breeding patch fidelity of 46.3% males and 31.1% females returning. However, 56.1% of males and 47.4% of females shifted territory within the study area between consecutive seasons. Most of the Redstart males moved to an adjoining territory, whereas females on average moved further (197 vs. 331 m). We suggest that local experience is important for territory choice in males, whereas females use other cues, such as quality of nest cavities and mates, for dispersal decisions. We found no effect of breeding success (nest failure and number of fledglings) in the previous season on the probability of between-year territory shifts. However, Redstarts showed a tendency to switch territories towards areas with a higher proportion of tree cover and the latter could probably provide some advantage, e.g. supply of food and nest cavities, lower competition and predation rates.