Eurasian Tree Sparrow Passer Montanus Research Articles

How will climate change affect the potential distribution of Eurasian tree sparrows Passer montanus in North America?

Abstract Habitat suitability models have been used to predict the present and future potential distribution of a variety of species. Eurasian tree sparrows Passer montanus, native to Eurasia, have established populations in other parts of the world. In North America, their current distribution is limited to a relatively small region around its original introduction to St. Louis, Missouri. We combined data from the Global Biodiversity Information Facility with current and future climate data to create habitat suitability models using Maxent for this species. Under projected climate change scenarios, our models show that the distribution and range of the Eurasian tree sparrow could increase as far as the Pacific Northwest and Newfoundland. This is potentially important information for prioritizing the management and control of this non-native species.

Comparison of adrenocortical responses to acute stress in lowland and highland Eurasian tree sparrows (Passer montanus): similar patterns during the breeding, but different during the prebasic molt

Previous studies indicate most free-living avian species in both extreme and temperate environments seasonally modulate the adrenocortical responses to acute stress, and those breeding in harsh environments always express reduced adrenocortical responses, which may allow them to obtain maximal reproductive success. However, recent investigations showing a human commensal species, house sparrows (Passer domesticus), expressed similar corticosterone (CORT) responses in both benign and harsh environments. In this study, focusing on another human commensal species, Eurasian tree sparrows (P. montanus), we examined the adrenocortical response to acute stress in lowland populations, among the early and late breeding, the prebasic molt, and the wintering stages, and compared them with previously published data from populations on the Tibetan Plateau. Our results show: (1) similar to highland Eurasian tree sparrows, lowland populations show no differences in baseline CORT levels among life history stages, and the stress-induced CORT (maximal CORT, total and corrected integrated CORT) levels are lower during the early breeding and the prebasic molt stages than those in the late breeding and the wintering stages; (2) highland Eurasian tree sparrows show stronger adrenocortical responses during the prebasic molt stage than lowland populations, whereas there are no differences between the early and the breeding stages (except for maximal CORT). Our results suggest that Eurasian tree sparrows from both harsh and benign environments have similar patterns of adrenocortical responses in the breeding stage, whereas they are different in the prebasic molt stage. In highland birds, the increased maximal CORT levels during the late breeding and the small increases in adrenocortical responses during the prebasic molt are interesting but remain unexplained.

Changes in the Avifauna of the Hokkaido University Campus, Sapporo, Detected by a Long-Term Census

We report the results of a 15-year bird census conducted on the Hokkaido University campus in Sapporo city. A standardized route census was carried out monthly by the students of the Hokkaido University Birding Club (HUBC). Bird species were classified according to their migratory status as: long-distance migrants (LDM), short-distance migrants (SDM), winter visitors (WV) and residents (R), Of a total of 88 species of birds identified, 18 were Rs, 21 LDMs, 26 SDMs and 10 WVs. The overall bird abundance for the R group was greatest, however this was strongly affected by fluctuations in the Eurasian Tree Sparrow Passer montanus population, representing more than half of the total bird abundance. This species declined sharply in 2006, and has not recovered yet. LDMs declined in both species richness and bird abundance, whereas SDMs and WVs had fluctuated annually in their abundance. Three major tendencies were detected by comparing nationwide changes of bird communities with those of the study site. 1) Overall population declines in the wintering and stopover grounds, which were aggravated by habitat degradation in the breeding grounds of the study site (White-throated Needletail Hirundapus caudacutus, Blackfaced Bunting Emberiza spodocephala, Oriental Turtle Dove Streptopelia orientalis), 2) Nationwide population increase while the population declined in the study site due to intensified management of vegetation (Great Tit Parus major, Great Spotted Woodpecker Dendrocopos major), 3) Population increases in species adapted or adapting to human landscapes (Large-billed Crow Corvus macrorhynchos, Mallard Anas platyrhynchos, Slaty-backed Gull Larus schistisagus). In addition, the drastic decline of Eurasian Tree Sparrows in early 2006 was caused by a local die-off event apparently due to an infectious disease. General recognition of the academic and conservation importance of a long-term census is hoped to enhance motivation for and efforts towards a census in various areas.

Variation in inflammation as a correlate of range expansion in Kenyan house sparrows

Many introduced animals harbor fewer parasites than native ones. This "enemy release" can select for individuals that bias resources away from parasite resistance traits, including immune functions, and towards traits that enhance success in new areas. One vertebrate example that supports this hypothesis involves house sparrows (Passer domesticus) and Eurasian tree sparrows (Passer montanus) introduced to St. Louis, MO, USA, over 150years ago. Since ca. 1850, house sparrows have colonized most of North America whereas tree sparrows have expanded little from the area of introduction. The more successful house sparrows now exhibit weaker inflammatory responses than the less successful tree sparrows, which supports the possibility that diminished investments in immune defense may have been conducive to the initial colonization by the more successful species. The goal of the present study was to determine whether damped inflammation generally facilitates invasion by comparing inflammatory markers between house sparrows invading Kenya and a native congener. House sparrows arrived in Mombasa, Kenya, about 50years ago whereas rufous sparrows (Passer ruficinctus) are native but ecologically similar. We predicted that if inflammation mediated invasion success, Kenyan house sparrows would mount weaker inflammatory responses than the native species. Complete Freund's adjuvant (CFA), a strong inflammatory stimulus, increased body mass in house sparrows, a result unprecedented in any other vertebrate. Haptoglobin (Hp), a multi-functional acute phase protein, was elevated by CFA in both species but rufous sparrows maintained more Hp than house sparrows irrespective of treatment. Lysozyme, a broadly effective antimicrobial enzyme, was reduced by CFA in both species, but not differentially so. Corticosterone was unaffected by CFA in either species, but elevated in both relative to free-living individuals.

Using repeated winter surveys to estimate changes in abundance of seed‐eating passerines

Capsule Winter Atlas surveys of 16 species on lowland farmland revealed significant changes in count for four species. Aims To estimate changes in abundance between the early 1980s and late 1990s, of wintering seed‐eating passerines, in ‘core’ areas of lowland Scotland. Methods Ninety‐five Scottish 10‐km squares were selected that held high numbers of seed‐eating passerines in the 1981–84 Atlas of Wintering Birds in Britain and Ireland. The same survey methods were used to resurvey these in winters 1997/98 and 1998/99, and visits were matched as closely as possible for duration and date. Analyses compared counts between the two survey periods for 16 species of seed‐eating passerines and, for 12 of these, differences were also compared with national breeding population trend information for the same period. Results Mean Corn Bunting Emberiza calandra count per visit declined by 62% between the early 1980s and late 1990s, a difference which was statistically significant (P = 0.026). Significant increases were recorded for Yellowhammer Emberiza citrinella (up 62%), Common Linnet Carduelis cannabina (up 3.4‐fold) and European Goldfinch Carduelis carduelis (up 13‐fold). For 12 species for which national breeding population trend data were available, trends were weakly positively correlated (r s = 0.43, P = 0.08) with those from our results, but several species trends were more positive in our study. This difference was particularly marked for Eurasian Tree Sparrow Passer montanus, Goldfinch and Linnet. Conclusion Repeating Winter Atlas surveys offers a useful additional method for assessing population trends. They are particularly useful in a region with low observer coverage and for species that are poorly covered by long‐term bird monitoring data sets. It would be valuable to validate this approach at a regional level, especially in a region for which detailed long‐term bird monitoring data are available.

Seasonal acclimatization of metabolism in Eurasian tree sparrows ( Passer montanus)

Acclimatization to winter conditions is an essential prerequisite for survival of small passerines of the northern temperate zone. Changes in photoperiod, ambient temperature and food availability trigger seasonal acclimatization in physiology and behavior of many birds. In the present study, seasonal adjustments in several physiological, hormonal, and biochemical markers were examined in wild-captured Eurasian tree sparrows ( Passer montanus) from the Heilongjiang Province in China. In winter sparrows had higher body mass and basal metabolic rate (BMR). Consistently, the dry mass of liver, heart, gizzard, small intestine, large intestine and total digestive tract were higher in winter than in that in summer. The contents of mitochondrial protein in liver, and state-4 respiration and cytochrome c oxidase (COX) activity in liver and muscle increased significantly in winter. Circulating level of serum triiodothyronine (T 3) was significantly higher in winter than in summer. Together, these data suggest that tree sparrows mainly coped with cold by enhancing thermogenic capacities through increased organ masses and heightened activity of respiratory enzymes activities. The results support the view that prominent winter increases in BMR are manifestations of winter acclimatization in tree sparrows and that seasonal variation in metabolism in sparrows is similar to that in other small temperate-wintering birds.

Seasonal changes in adrenocortical responses to acute stress in Eurasian tree sparrow ( Passer montanus) on the Tibetan Plateau: Comparison with house sparrow ( P. domesticus) in North America and with the migratory P. domesticus in Qinghai Province

Seasonal modulation of the adrenocortical response to stress appears to be ubiquitous in arctic-breeding and temperate-zone-breeding birds, but has not been well investigated in alpine-breeding species at mid-latitude. We examined the adrenocortical response to acute stress (capture, handling and restraint) in populations of Eurasian tree sparrow ( Passer montanus) among seasons and migratory house sparrow ( P. domesticus bactrianus) in pre-breeding on the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau (the Tibetan Plateau). A population of house sparrow ( Passer domesticus domesticus) was also sampled in lowland Phoenix, Arizona during breeding and wintering stages. In Eurasian tree sparrows, baseline corticosterone (CORT) does not differ among life history stages, but stress-induced CORT level (maximal CORT, total and corrected integrated CORT) is significantly higher in late breeding stage than those in early breeding and prebasic molt stages. In house sparrows, stress-induced CORT level does not differ between sites and life history stages, but baseline CORT is significantly lower in pre-breeding from Qinghai compared with those in breeding and wintering stages from Phoenix. Interestingly, both baseline CORT and maximal CORT do not differ between the populations of Eurasian tree sparrow and house sparrow in early/pre-breeding stage although tree sparrow is resident species whereas house sparrow is migratory in Qinghai. Our results suggest that the extreme environment of the Tibetan Plateau does not have significant effects on adrenocortical responses to acute stress in Eurasian tree sparrows and house sparrows, which may be a result of masking by human activities. These invasive human commensals may have a unique HPA axis response to different environments because they can take advantage of human food sources and shelter (i.e. buildings).

Fugler i Norge 2004 – Rapport fra Norsk faunakomite for fugl (NFKF)

THE NORWEGIAN BIRD REPORT 2004 - a report on locally uncommon and scarce birds in Norway in 2004, by the Norwegian Birds Records Committee (NFKF)The basis of this report is the annual reports produced by the county rarities committees. For 2004 all the counties contributed to the report, although Finnmark, Troms, Sogn & Fjordane, Rogaland and Vest-Agder counties did not publish own county reports. We believe this report reflects fairly well observations from Norway in 2004. Readers should take care to note the geographical or time delimitation of the records stated for the different species, as stated in codes immediately after the scientific name of the species. The Norwegian Birds Records Committee (NFKF) has been publishing annual reports since 1991. The occurrence of Bewick’s Swan Cygnus columbianus was one of the poorest in NFKFs history, and the occurence of Lesser White-fronted Geese Anser erythropus at the traditional feeding and roosting site Valdakmyra, Porsanger (FI) continued to be very low. White-fronted Geese Anser albifrons was seen in good numbers. Mandarin Ducks Aix galericulata occurredin record high numbers. Gadwalls Anas strepera have occurred in steadily increasing numbers in Norway in recent years, and 2004 was the second best year to date for this species. Quails Coturnix coturnix occurred in good numbers for the third year in succession. Yellowbilled Divers Gavia adamsii experienced the second best year since 1991. Leach’s Storm Petrel Oceanodroma leucorhoa was seen in record high numbers in Rogaland in September. Many Common Kestrels Falco tinnunculus were seen during the winter months. The Eurasian Hobby Falco subbuteo is a raptor that has occurred in high numbers in recent years, and 2004 was the second best year ever. The occurrence of Avocets Recurvirostra avosetta was the best ever in NFKFs history. Several shorebirds, such as European Golden Plovers Pluvialis apricaria, Northern Lapwings Vanellus vanellus, Great Knots Calidris canutus, SanderlingsCalidris alba and Woodcocks Scolopax rusticola wintered in low numbers. The number of migrating Broad-billed Sandpipers Limicola falcinellus was the second best in NFKFs history. Migrating Pomarine Skuas Stercorarius pomarinus and Long-tailed Skuas Stercorarius longicaudus were seen in good numbers, and the occurrence of Little Gulls Larus minutus was the second best in NFKFs history. Compared to the last three years, Glaucous Gulls Larus hyperboreus occurred in considerable lower numbers in 2004. Also the occurrence of Snowy Owls Bubo scandiaca and Great Grey Owls Strix nebulosa were very poor. The negative trend related to migrating Horned Larks Eremophila alpestris continued in 2004, and the last five years represent the five poorest years for this species. The occurrence of Red-throated Pipits Anthus cervinus was one of the poorest in NFKFs history, while Yellow Wagtails Motacilla flava flavissima and Pied Wagtails Motacilla alba yarrellii occurredin near record numbers. Many breeding attempts of Waxwings Bombycilla garrulus were recorded, especially in Nordland county. Stonechats Saxicola torquata occurred in record high numbers, and nine confirmed breeding pairs were recorded. The number of singing Common Grasshopper Warblers Locustella naevia was the highest ever recorded, and the number of Marsh Warblers Acrocephalus palustris and Redbreasted Flycatchers Ficedula parva continued to be high. Many breeding attempts of Red-backed Shrikes Lanius collurio were recorded in Rogaland county, and Great Grey Shrikes Lanius excubitor had another good year throughout the country. The Eurasian Tree Sparrow Passer montanus still show a marked increase in the north of its distribution range, especially in Nord- Trøndelag county. In November, the southernmost parts of Norway experienced a major influx of Pine Grosbeaks Pinicola enucleator producing record numbers in the history of NFKF. In October, Norway also had a major influx of Bullfinches Pyrrhula pyrrhula. These Bullfinches probably came from other parts of Europe than Fennoscandia. The Ortolan Bunting Emberiza hortulana continued to occur in low numbers and the Rustic Bunting Emberiza rustica experienced the poorest year in NFKFs history. The occurrence of Little Buntings Emberiza pusilla was very good.

The thermal properties of some nests of the Eurasian Tree Sparrow Passer montanus

Using an electronic apparatus simulating a bird roosting in a nest at night, we examined the insulating qualities of Eurasian Tree Sparrow ( Passer montanus) nests built in nest boxes under winter conditions. Nests of different construction were compared with an empty box, and with roosting in open air. Energy savings in an empty box accounted for 18%, in boxes with incomplete nests for 23% and in boxes with complete nests up to 36%. The insulating value of nests mostly depended on their completeness and the proportion of feathers in the lining.

Natal dispersal and personalities in great tits (Parus major).

Dispersal is a major determinant of the dynamics and genetic structure of populations, and its consequences depend not only on average dispersal rates and distances, but also on the characteristics of dispersing and philopatric individuals. We investigated whether natal dispersal correlated with a predisposed behavioural trait: exploratory behaviour in novel environments. Wild great tits were caught in their natural habitat, tested the following morning in the laboratory using an open field test and released at the capture site. Natal dispersal correlated positively with parental and individual exploratory behaviour, using three independent datasets. First, fast-exploring parents had offspring that dispersed furthest. Second, immigrants were faster explorers than locally born birds. Third, post-fledging movements, comprising a major proportion of the variation in natal dispersal distances, were greater for fast females than for slow females. These findings suggest that parental behaviour influenced offspring natal dispersal either via parental behaviour per se (e.g. via post-fledging care) or by affecting the phenotype of their offspring (e.g. via their genes). Because this personality trait has a genetic basis, our results imply that genotypes differ in their dispersal distances. Therefore, the described patterns have profound consequences for the genetic composition of populations.

Occurrence and eradication of a small population of the Eurasian Tree Sparrow Passer montanus in Darwin

Occurrence and eradication of a small population of the Eurasian Tree Sparrow Passer montanus in Darwin

The price of eggs: increased investment in egg production reduces the offspring rearing capacity of parents

Understanding the selective pressures shaping the number of offspring per breeding event is a key area in the study of life-history strategies. However, in species with parental care, costs incurred in offspring production, rather than rearing, have been largely ignored in both theoretical and empirical studies until relatively recently. Furthermore, the few experimental studies that have manipulated production costs have not yet teased apart effects that operate via the parental phenotype from effects on the quality of the resulting young. To examine whether increased egg production influences parental brood rearing capacity independently of effects operating via egg quality, we experimentally increased egg production in gulls and then examined their capacity to rear a control clutch. We found that the capacity of parents to rear the control brood was substantially reduced solely as a consequence of having themselves produced one extra egg. The paradox that, in many species, parents apparently aim for fewer young per breeding event than the experimentally and theoretically demonstrated optimum, has partly arisen from the failure to take into account the constraints imposed by production costs.

Cultural Evolution in the Eurasian Tree Sparrow: Divergence between Introduced and Ancestral Populations

We investigated cultural evolution in the song of the introduced North Amer- ican population of the Eurasian Tree Sparrow (Passer montanus), derived from 12 pairs brought from Germany in 1870. These birds were liberated at St. Louis, Missouri, and spread into Illinois. Cultural evolution is described here in terms of the processes of population differentiation where the song meme was the unit of transmission. The distribution of song syllable memes in each meme pool fit a null hypothesis of a neutral model with an equilib- rium between mutation, migration, and drift, indicating that the memes are functionally equivalent. The introduced and ancestral (German) populations showed marked divergence in the level of meme sharing. The small size of the founding North American population, the loss of genetic diversity there, and the relative susceptibility of meme pools to founder effects suggest that much of the reduction in sharing of syllable types occurred during the founding event. Because memes also are susceptible to extinction due to drift, memes were probably lost in both populations as a result of random memetic drift. Meme diversity in Illinois was comparable with that in Germany, suggesting a large mutational input into the former population following its founding. Estimates of mutational divergence based on the frequencies of song memes in meme pools showed more population structure in Illinois than in Germany. There also was less meme flow among meme pools in Illinois than in Germany. These results suggest that there were a series of founding events during the colonization of North America.

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Urban expansion increases fragmentation of the landscape. In effect, fragmentation decreases connectivity, causes green space loss and impacts upon the ecology and function of green space. Restoration of the functionality of green space often requires restoring the ecological connectivity of this green space within the city matrix. However, identifying ecological corridors that integrate different structural and functional connectivity of green space remains vague. Assessing connectivity for developing an ecological network by using efficient models is essential to improve these networks under rapid urban expansion. This paper presents a novel methodological approach to assess and model connectivity for the Eurasian tree sparrow (Passer montanus) and Yellow-vented bulbul (Pycnonotus goiavier) in three cities (Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia; Jakarta, Indonesia and Metro Manila, Philippines). The approach identifies potential priority corridors for ecological connectivity networks. The study combined circuit models, connectivity analysis and least-cost models to identify potential corridors by integrating structure and function of green space patches to provide reliable ecological connectivity network models in the cities. Relevant parameters such as landscape resistance and green space structure (vegetation density, patch size and patch distance) were derived from an expert and literature-based approach based on the preference of bird behaviour. The integrated models allowed the assessment of connectivity for both species using different measures of green space structure revealing the potential corridors and least-cost pathways for both bird species at the patch sites. The implementation of improvements to the identified corridors could increase the connectivity of green space. This study provides examples of how combining models can contribute to the improvement of ecological networks in rapidly expanding cities and demonstrates the usefulness of such models for biodiversity conservation and urban planning.

Knemidocoptes sp. on wild passerines at the Mai Po Nature Reserve, Hong Kong.

Free-ranging passerine birds banded at the Mai Po Nature Reserve, Hong Kong, were affected with a skin disease characterized by crusty, proliferative lesions on legs, feet and beaks. Based on retrospective examination of 1990 to 1992 banding records, 83 of 16,353 birds and 5 of 161 species banded at Mai Po were identified as having these lesions. Eurasian tree sparrows (Passer montanus) were most commonly affected (58 of 411 birds) although 19 of 428 black-faced buntings (Emberiza pusilla), 3 of 92 spotted doves (Streptopelia chinensis), and 2 of 616 eastern great reed warblers (Acrocephalus orientalis) also had clinical signs of infestation. Adult Eurasian tree sparrows were affected more often than juveniles and males were affected more often than females. Lesions on juveniles usually were on the feet while on adults lesions also were found on legs and beak. The effects of this parasitic infestation on body weight of wild Eurasian tree sparrows was not significant.

Growth of the human crystalline lens in childhood

Organohalogen pollutants (OHPs), including dichlorodiphenyl trichloroethane and its metabolites (DDTs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), hexabromocyclododecanes (HBCDs), and dechlorane plus (DP), were determined in three raptor species, namely, the common kestrel (Falco tinnunculus), eagle owl (Bubo bubo), and little owl (Athene noctua), as well as in their primary prey items: Eurasian tree sparrow (Passer montanus) and brown rat (Rattus norvegicus). DDTs were the predominant pollutants in avian species followed by PBDEs and PCBs, then minimally contribution of HBCDs and DP. Inter-species differences in the PBDE congener profiles were observed between the owls and the common kestrels, with relatively high contributions of lower brominated congeners in the owls but highly brominated congeners in the kestrels. This result may partly be attributed to a possible greater in vivo biotransformation of highly brominated BDE congeners in owls than in kestrels. α-HBCD was the predominant diastereoisomer with a preferential enrichment of (−)-enantiomer in all the samples. No stereoselective bioaccumulation was found for DP isomers in the investigated species. Biomagnification factor (BMF) values were generally higher in the rat−owl food chain than in the sparrow−kestrel food chain. Despite this food chain-specific biomagnification, the relationships between the log BMF and log KOW of PCBs and PBDEs followed a similar function in the two food chains, except for BDE-47, -99, and -100 in the sparrow−kestrel feeding relationship.

Bird Diversity, Density and Foraging Activities in a University Campus Landscape in Sarawak

A total of 77 species from 34 families was recorded from 11,863 observations from November 2012 to April 2013 (six months) within Universiti Malaysia Sarawak (UNIMAS) campus using line transect method. This bird list is dominated by Asian Glossy Starling (Aplonis panayensis) with 4,917 observations (41.45%) followed by Eurasian Tree Sparrow (Passer montanus) with 867 observations (7.31%) and Yellow-vented Bulbul (Pycnonotus goiavier) with 752 observations (6.34%). This study reports higher diversity (H’ = 2.5) compared to previous studies. Density of bird was estimated at 6.24 individuals/ha. In order to explore the interspecific interactions between species, 19 bird species with (1,189 observations) most observations were subjected to bipartite network analysis. Based on the network analysis it appears that birds partition food resources spatially and by food type. The highest niche overlap occurs between foraging technique (0.61) while lower overlap was observed for height (0.44), types of food (0.42) and foraging substrate (0.42). This suggests that birds were exploiting similar resources but segregated spatially. Therefore birds are partitioning their niche to allow coexistence and to adapt to human modified landscape. This study has provided valuable information in characterising the assemblage and understanding the distribution of the birds in a campus landscape.