An inexpensive method for remotely monitoring nest activity

Abstract

ABSTRACT. In studies of avian nest success, investigators often face the difficult task of periodically checking nest status while at the same time limiting observer influence on nest survival. Remotely monitoring nests using temperature data loggers is one method that allows for continuous data capture regarding nest status (i.e., active vs. inactive) without the negative effects associated with repeated nest checks. We used small temperature data loggers (Thermochron iButtons) to remotely monitor nests of Long-billed Curlews (Numenius americanus) in northeastern Nevada. Data loggers programmed to record temperature at 10-min and 20-min intervals were placed in curlew nests. Data loggers were set to collect data throughout the nesting cycle to determine onset of incubation and timing of nest failure. On average, Long-billed Curlews began incubating approximately 3 d after the first egg was laid and onset of incubation coincided with the laying of the third egg. iButtons allowed us to determine when incubation was terminated in 17 of 23 unsuccessful Long-billed Curlew nests, including 13 of 17 depredated nests. The presence of iButtons in Long-billed Curlew nests did not affect daily survival rate, egg hatchability or rate of nest abandonment. iButtons are an efficient and practical means for remotely monitoring nests of large egg-laying birds, such as the Long-billed Curlew. SINOPSIS. Método de bajo costo para monitorear a remoto actividad en nidosEn estudios deéxito de anidamiento, los investigadores muchas veces se encuentran con la dificultad de examinar el nido, tratando de limitar la infuencia del observador en la sobrevivencia de las aves. Uno de los métodos de monitoreo remoto es el uso de bitácoras electrónicas de temperatura que permiten tomar datos de forma contínua en un nido (e.g., activo vs inactivo) sin los efectos negativos asociados con el examen periodico del mismo. Utilizamos bitácoras electrónicas de temperatura (Thermochron iButtons) para monitorear nidos de chorlo (Numenius americanus) en el norte de Nevada. El instrumento se programó para tomar la temperatura dentro del nido a intérvalos de 10 a 20 minutos. El instrumento se utilizó para tomar datos a través del ciclo de anidamiento del ave para determinar el comienzo de la incubación y el momento en que el nido fuera abandonado. En promedio los chorlos comienzan a incubar aproximadamente tres dias después de puesto el primer huevo, lo que coincide con la puesta del tercer huevo. iButtons permitió determinar el final del periodo de incubacion de 13 de 17 nidos depredados. La presencia del instrumento en los nidos de chorlo no afecto la tasa diaria de sobrevivencia, tampoco el eclosionamiento o la tasa de abandono. Las bitácoras utilizadas son eficientes y además una forma práctica de monitorear a remoto los nidos de aves grandes tales como el chorlo estudiado.

Influence of ground predators and water levels on Lapwing Vanellus vanellus breeding success in two continental wetlands

“…Nest temperature data loggers (Hartman and Oring 2006;Bolton et al 2007) were deployed at a subsample of nests from 1999 to 2002 in order to record the time of nest failure or hatching. DSR of 84 nests under temperature observation (0.935 ± 0.009) did not differ from the DSR of 52 control nests at the same sites and the same time (0.942 ± 0.009; test after Hensler and Nichols 1981:…”

Female-biased incubation and strong diel sex-roles in the Two-banded Plover Charadrius falklandicus

“…Temperature data-loggers were installed at 50 further nests using methods described by Hartman and Oring (2006) to record the diel timing of nest-predation events. Briefly, a temperature data-logger was buried in the centre of each nest-scrape, under approximately 5 mm of lining material; a control data-logger was similarly buried approximately 30 cm from the nest scrape.…”

“…We quantify the relative contributions of males and females to incubation, determine whether incubation is shared according to a diel schedule, and explore patterns in nest attentiveness over the course of the day. Because nest predation risk has the potential to explain much of the variation in incubation patterns (Ghalambor and Martin 2002), we also recorded the diel distribution of nest predations in the wider study population using temperature data-loggers (Hartman and Oring 2006).…”

Does waterproofing Thermochron iButton dataloggers influence temperature readings?

“…Additionally, they have been used to measure microhabitat temperatures of nests (Guillemette et al, 2009;Angilletta et al, 2009), burrows (Woodman, 2008), roosts (Dechmann et al, 2004), tree hollows (Isaac et al, 2008), and rock crevices (Pike et al, 2010), as well as environmental temperatures of air (Lundquist and Huggett, 2008), soil (Penman and Towerton, 2008), and water (Johnson et al, 2005). Some researchers even have placed miniature dataloggers in bird nests to study incubation patterns and nest status (Hartman and Oring, 2006;Zangmeister et al, 2009), and others have reconstructed miniature dataloggers to further reduce size and weight, allowing implantation or attachment to even smaller animals (Robert and Thompson, 2003;Lovegrove, 2009).…”