Breeding biology of House Crows (<i>Corvus splendens</i>) in Durban, South Africa

Allan, David G.; Davies, Greg B.

doi:10.2989/00306520509485469

Cited by 6 publications

(2 citation statements)

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“…The third most frequently mentioned factor influencing urban corvids is their high adaptability in behavior, physiology and breeding biology. Corvids’ responses to environmental change have been shown to be highly flexible, and it is suspected to be correlated with specific biological traits shared by corvid species [ 21 , 22 , 28 , 53 , 104 , 105 , 106 ]. For instance, breeding biology parameters of several corvid species were reported to differ between urban and non-urban populations in several corvid species, including the Eurasian Magpie, American Crow, Common Raven and Hooded Crow, and to a lesser extent, the Steller’s Jays ( Cyanocitta stelleri ) and Jackdaws.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For example, numerous wild animals have been observed to alter their breeding, nesting and foraging patterns, diet composition, as well as vigilant behavior and vocalization, in response to human-made environments [ 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 ]. While some studies have explored the effects of urbanization on wildlife species and the adaptations of synanthropic birds (free-ranging wildlife living close to humans and benefiting from them) to urban habitats [ 5 , 16 , 25 , 26 ], individual studies tend to have a restricted geographical scale of inquiry, a single-species approach and usually focus only on a single trait that predicts adaptation [ 27 , 28 , 29 , 30 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Corvids in Urban Environments: A Systematic Global Literature Review

Benmazouz

Jokimäki

Lengyel

et al. 2021

Animals

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Urbanization is one of the most prevalent drivers of biodiversity loss, yet few taxonomic groups are remarkably successful at adapting to urban environments. We systematically surveyed the global literature on the effects of urbanization on species of family Corvidae (crows, choughs, jackdaws, jays, magpies, nutcrackers, ravens, rooks, treepies) to assess the occurrence of corvids in urban environments and the factors affecting their success. We found a total of 424 primary research articles, and the number of articles has increased exponentially since the 1970s. Most studies were carried out in cities of Europe and North America (45.5% and 31.4%, respectively) and were directed on a single species (75.2). We found that 30 corvid species (23% of 133 total) regularly occur in urban environments. The majority (72%) of the studies reported positive effects of urbanization on corvids, with 85% of studies detecting population increases and 64% of studies detecting higher breeding success with urbanization. Of the factors proposed to explain corvids’ success (availability of nesting sites and food sources, low predation and persecution), food availability coupled with diet shifts emerged as the most important factors promoting Corvidae to live in urban settings. The breeding of corvids in urban environments was further associated with earlier nesting, similar or larger clutches, lower hatching but higher fledging success, reduced home range size and limited territoriality, increased tolerance towards humans and increasing frequency of conflicts with humans. Despite geographic and taxonomic biases in our literature sample, our review indicates that corvids show both flexibility in resource use and behavioral plasticity that enable them to exploit novel resources for nesting and feeding. Corvids can thus be urban exploiters of the large-scale modifications of ecosystems caused by urbanization.

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