Abstract
BackgroundInformation pertaining to nest-site fidelity and breeding dispersal over successive years can help to better our understanding of how birds respond to nest predation.MethodsBy using mist nets and tracking the color banded individuals, we investigated nest-site fidelity and breeding dispersal by Common Tailorbirds (Orthotomus sutorius) throughout a year and between successive years in 2017–2018.ResultsThe present study showed that Common Tailorbirds could produce up to four clutches per breeding season. When multiple broods were produced within a year, breeding pairs remained together, and the nest rebuilding rate was up to 92.2%, with only four cases (7.8%) in which birds reused their old nests. The dispersal distance between the nests during multiple breeding was found to be 10.0 ± 10.5 m, and nest-site fidelity within the same year was 90.0%. By the second year of breeding, 76.2% of individuals remained in the original breeding pairs, while for those that did switch partners, the females remained in the nest from the previous year and paired with new males. The dispersal distance between years was 26.5 ± 41.9 m, and nest-site fidelity between different years was 80.1%. There was no significant difference between within-year and between-year dispersal distances. Moreover, there was no significant difference in the dispersal distance of rebuilt nests between birds that had experienced nest predation and those that had not.ConclusionsOur findings suggest that Common Tailorbirds maintain a high degree of fidelity to mates and nest-sites, and nest predation had no significant effect on territorial changes or breeding dispersal distance between each breeding attempt.
Highlights
Information pertaining to nest-site fidelity and breeding dispersal over successive years can help to better our understanding of how birds respond to nest predation
Nest predation is a major cause for avian breeding failure (Lack 1966; Skutch 1985; Martin 1995) and parent birds adopt a series of anti-nest-predation strategies to increase the survival rate of offspring (Martin 1995; Lima 2009)
There was no significant difference between the within-year and between-year dispersal distances indicating high nest-site fidelity
Summary
Information pertaining to nest-site fidelity and breeding dispersal over successive years can help to better our understanding of how birds respond to nest predation. Nest predation exerts pressure on breeding birds that determines nest-site selection and fidelity (Martin and Roper 1988; Parejo and Avilés 2011). Male and female birds differ in their fidelity to nest-sites, and males show greater fidelity to previous nesting areas than females (Greenwood 1980; Friedrich et al 2015). This is possibly because males are unable to establish territories in occupied areas, or because females are more likely to find new areas with unmatched males (Greenwood and Harvey 1982)
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