Use of radio-telemetry to reduce bias in nest searching Utillzaci6n de radiotransmisores para reducir el sesgo en la hiisqueda de nidos

Authors

Larkin A. Powell, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Jason Lang, Georgia Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit, D. B. Warnell School of Forest Resources and Institute of Ecology, University of Georgia
David Krementz, USGS, Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Warnell School of Forest Resources, University of Georgia
Michael J. Conroy, University of Georgia

Document Type

Article

Date of this Version

2005

Citation

Journal of Field Ornithology, Vol. 76, No. 3 (Summer, 2005), pp. 274-278

Comments

This article is a U.S. government work, and is not subject to copyright in the United States.

Abstract

We used traditional searching, as well as radio-telemetry, to find 125 Wood Thrush (Hylocichla mustelina) nests during 1994-1996 at the Piedmont National Wildlife Refuge in Georgia, USA. We compared daily nest survival rates for 66 nests of radio-marked birds with 59 nests of birds found through systematic searching. By using radio-telemetry, we found Wood Thrush nests in higher elevation pine habitats, in addition to the more usual hardwood forests with moist soils. We found nests of radio-marked birds farther from streams than nests found by systematic searching. Thirty-two percent of radio-marked birds' nests were found at the tops of slopes, compared to 15% of the nests found by traditional searching. In addition, radio-marked birds generally moved upslope for re-nesting attempts. Although the distribution of nests found with telemetry and searching varied, daily nest survival did not vary between the two groups. Radio-telemetty provided new information about Wood Thrush nesting habitats. We believe radio-telemetry can be a valuable addition to traditional searching techniques; it has the potential to provide a sample of nests free from a priori habitat biases.

Utilizamos la busqueda tradicional de nidos yel de aves equipadas con radiotransmisores para localizar 125 nidos de Hylocichla mustelina. EI estudio se llev6 a cabo en Piedmont National Wildlife Refuge en Georgia. Comparamos la tasa de supervivencia diaria de 66 nidos encontrados con radios y de 59 de la forma tradicional. La radiotelemetrfa nos permiti6 encontrar nidos del ave en wnas elevadas con arboles de pino, en vez del lugar mas usual como 10 son bosques de maderas duras con suelos humedos. Con los transmisores localizamos nidos a mayor distancia de cuerpos de agua, que con el metodo tradicional. Un 32% de las aves con transmisores, fueron encontradas anidando al tope de pendientes, comparado con un 15% usando el metodo tradicional. Tambien encontramos que las aves con los transmisores reutilizaban dichas pendientes para reanidar. Aunque la distribuci6n de nidos encontradas usando ambos metodos vari6 entre estos, no se encontr6 diferencia en la supervivencia diaria. La radiotelemetrfa permiti6 obtener informaci6n nueva sobre el habitat de anidamiento de la especie estudiada. Creemos que la radiotelemetrfa puede ser de gran valor para la busqueda de nidos y tiene el potencial de proveer informaci6n que podrfa traer como consecuencia sesgo en un estudio.