Predators on Red-winged Blackbird nests in eastern North Dakota

Authors

Richard S. Sawin, North Dakota State University, Fargo, Department of Biological Sciences
Mark W. Lutman, USDA/APHIS/WS National Wildlife Research CenterFollow
George M. Linz, USDA/APHIS/WS National Wildlife Research CenterFollow
William J. Bleier, North Dakota State University, Fargo, Department of Biological SciencesFollow

Date of this Version

July 2003

Comments

Published by J. Field Ornithol. 74(3):288–292, 2003.

Abstract

Predation has consistently been identified as the most common cause of nest failure for Red-winged Blackbirds (Agelaius phoeniceus). During May and June, 2000 and 2001, we used infrared-triggered camera systems to identify potential nest predators on artificially relocated Red-winged Blackbird nests in eastern North Dakota. For some of the species observed, these observations represent the first documentation of predation on Red-winged Blackbird nests in the northern Great Plains.