Feeding Rates, Double Brooding, Nest Reuse, and Seasonal Fecundity of Eastern Wood-Pewees in the Missouri Ozarks

Abstract

Despite being widespread and abundant, little is known about the breeding ecology and natural history of the Eastern Wood-Pewee (Contopus virens), in part because nests are often high in the canopy, difficult to view, and adults are monomorphic. We monitored nests of Eastern Wood-Pewees and recorded the feeding rate of nestlings by adults as part of a larger study on breeding demography of Eastern Wood-Pewees across a gradient of savanna, woodland, and forest in the Missouri Ozarks in 2010–2011. We monitored 287 nests between 26 May and 22 August and conducted feeding rate observations for 54 nests with nestlings. There was an 88-day nesting season with peaks of nest activity on 24 June and 22 July. We recorded 19 cases of double brooding and nine cases of within-season nest reuse. Seasonal fecundity was 2.2 fledglings per territory. The frequency of parental feeding visits increased with nestling age. These are additional observations of nest reuse, nesting cycle lengths, and breeding season length for Eastern Wood-Pewees; future demographical research of marked individuals will continue to fill in gaps in breeding ecology for this common and widespread flycatcher.