Nest site choice in relation to the presence of old nests and cavity depth in the starling Sturnus vulgaris
Nest site choice in relation to the presence of old nests and cavity depth in the starling Sturnus vulgaris
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DOI：
10.1080/08927014.2003.9522672
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发表时间：
2003-07
影响因子：
1.2
通讯作者：
T. Mazgajski
中科院分区：
文献类型：
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作者：
T. Mazgajski
洞穴筑巢的鸟类经常面临前几个繁殖季节的旧巢在它们的巢穴中的问题。许多研究调查了鸟类的选址偏好，但主要是与旧巢中出现的体外寄生虫的水平有关。但洞穴中旧的筑巢材料的存在也可能导致筑巢地点较浅，使蛋或雏鸟更容易受到捕食者的攻击。然而，洞穴中旧巢的存在可能会对场地安全起到提示作用。用4年的时间研究了八哥的巢址选择与洞穴深度和老巢的存在之间的关系。在野外试验中，使用了有或没有旧巢和不同深度的巢箱。这项研究发现，八哥更喜欢更深的巢箱和那些没有旧巢的鸟巢。由于体外寄生虫的存在或不适当的洞穴深度，使用旧巢材料的巢点本可以避免。看来，八哥并不会通过老巢的存在来评估场地的质量。然而，这项研究的结果并没有表明这些因素中哪一个更能反映鸟类对某个地点的偏好。讨论了老巢的存在和洞穴深度对八哥繁殖生态和行为学的影响。
Hole nesting birds are frequently faced with the problem of old nests from previous breeding seasons in their nest cavities. Many studies investigated birds' site selection preferences, but mostly in connection with the level of ectoparasites occurring in old nests. But the presence of old nest material in a cavity may also result in a shallower nest site, making the eggs or nestlings more vulnerable to predators. However, the presence of an old nest in a cavity may function as a cue for site safety. Nest site choice of the starling Sturnus vulgaris in relation to cavity depth and the presence of old nests was studied for four years. Nest boxes with or without old nests and of varying depths were used in field experiments. This study found that the starling prefers deeper nest boxes and those without old nests. Nest sites with old nest material could have been avoided either because of the presence of ectoparasites or inappropriate cavity depth. It seems that the starling does not assess site quality by the presence of an old nest. However, the results of this study did not show which of these factors was the stronger indicator for the birds' preference of a site. The presence of old nests and cavity depth on starlings' breeding ecology and ethology are discussed.