Response of Brown Creepers to Elevation and Forest Edges in the Southern Sierra Nevada, California

The condor

Kathryn L. Purcell¹ 

关键词: Brown Creeper;    Certhia americana;    contrast-weighted edge;    edge effects;    elevational gradient;    nest survival;    snags;   

DOI  :  10.1525/cond.2012.100181

学科分类：动物科学

来源: Central Ornithology Publication Office

【 摘 要 】

Abstract. We studied the responses of the Brown Creeper (Certhia americana) to forest edges in the southern Sierra Nevada, California. We censused birds and monitored nests in four forest types over an elevational gradient. We identified habitat patches homogeneous in terms of forest type, seral stage, and canopy cover and rated edges between adjoining patches as soft, moderate, or hard on the basis of relative differences in the suitability of adjacent patches. Brown Creepers were more abundant in sites with less high-contrast edge and more medium- and high-quality habitat. They avoided soft and moderate edges when selecting nest sites. Successful nests were in large-diameter trees and snags in forest with lower canopy closure and farther from moderate and hard edges than were unsuccessful nests. Clear negative responses to edge in terms of abundance, nest location, and nest survival were surprising because previous work has suggested that edge effects and the processes underlying them may differ in west...

【 授权许可】

CC BY