Ground Nest Depredation by European Black-Billed Magpies<i>Pica pica</i>: An Experimental Study with Artificial Nests

Suvorov, Petr; Svobodová, Jana; Koubová, Martina; Dohnalová, Lucie

doi:10.3161/000164512x653926

Cited by 10 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 56 publications

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“…Tree plantations are known to act as sources of generalist predators of various types, including rodents, lagomorphs, feral cats, dogs and corvids (Suvorov et al 2012;Sánchez-Oliver et al 2014). Declines in the number of chicks fledged per nest could reflect a change in predator activity over the course of the breeding season (Peak 2007;Sperry et al 2008).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of location, orchard type, laying period and nest position on the reproductive performance of Turtle Doves (Streptopelia turtur) on intensively cultivated farmland

Hanane

2016

Avian Res

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Background: Until recently little was known about factors affecting reproductive parameters of the Turtle Dove (Streptopelia turtur) on intensively cultivated farmland in the Mediterranean area. In this study, the reproductive parameters of this game species were evaluated in relation to location, orchard type, laying period and nest position in central Morocco. Methods: A total of 317 nests were found and analyzed across five breeding seasons (2004-2008) in the Haouz and Tadla regions, over two major agro-ecosystems made up of olive and orange orchards. Nest position, laying period, clutch size and the number of chicks hatched and fledged per nest were determined on 120 study plots. I used Generalized Linear Models (GLMs) with a Poisson distribution and a log link function, including the logarithm of the number of eggs in each clutch as an offset to model the number of chicks hatched and fledged per nest. Results: Clutch-size was not affected by location, orchard type, laying period or nest position. The number of chicks hatched per nest differed between orchard types; they were greater in olive orchards (1.33 ± 0.06) than in orange ones (1.03 ± 0.08), whereas the number of chicks fledged per nest consistently differed with laying period and orchard type, which were higher in the early laying period (1.22 ± 0.07) than in the late period (0.93 ± 0.08) and higher in olive orchards (1.22 ± 0.06) than in orange orchards (0.90 ± 0.06). Neither location nor nest position were related to variation in the fledging success of the Turtle Dove. Conclusions: Olive orchards and the early laying period confer better nesting conditions than orange orchards and the late laying period. Although nest position could be different in each orchard type, it did not affect the breeding success of the Turtle Dove, suggesting that factors other than tree characteristics are influential. Further studies are needed to improve our understanding of the effects of anthropogenic disturbance, especially agricultural activities and hunting, on the productivity of Turtle Dove nests.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of location, orchard type, laying period and nest position on the reproductive performance of Turtle Doves (Streptopelia turtur) on intensively cultivated farmland

Hanane

2016

Avian Res

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“…This is probably because magpie behaviour during egg predation and ingestion varies with egg size. While smaller eggs are entirely swallowed, including the eggshell, larger ones are broken and only the egg content and small eggshell pieces are swallowed (Suvorov et al 2012), decreasing the likelihood of eggshell ingestion. Also, we do not know if nest predation intensity by Magpies varies with their breeding stage in our study area.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Also, we do not know if nest predation intensity by Magpies varies with their breeding stage in our study area. In this sense, Suvorov et al (2012) showed that Magpies predated dummy nests more frequently during incubation than during the nestling phase, probably because magpies preferentially feed invertebrates to nestlings (Martínez et al 1992). From this perspective, diet studies from different breeding stages may be biased and noncomparable, since detection probability of eggshells could be higher in the early breeding stage (incubation) than during later stages (nestling provisioning).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Feeding habits of Black-billed Magpie during the breeding season in Mediterranean Iberia: the role of birds and eggs

et al. 2015

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Capsule Feeding habits of the Black-billed Magpie are of interest for researchers, conservationists and hunters since magpies are considered as predators of eggs and chicks of both songbirds and gamebirds. Aims To characterize the feeding habits of magpies during their breeding season in agricultural environments of central Spain, and to assess the occurrence and incidence of birds and eggs in the magpie's diet. Methods Diet was determined by the analysis of gizzard contents from 118 culled magpies. The diet was described as the frequency of occurrence (FO) and the percentage of volume (VOL) of a certain food item and for each gizzard. Results Magpies presented a generalist diet, which included a wide range of foods. Arthropods and cereal seeds were the most frequently consumed food groups (FO > 60%). Eggs and birds were consumed only occasionally (FO < 6% and 17%, respectively; percentage of volume, VOL < 4%). Conclusion Our findings suggest that other birds and their eggs do not represent an important food for magpies in Mediterranean agricultural environments under the conditions found during this study. Nevertheless, more complex studies in different scenarios (i.e. different population sizes of magpies and prey), and over longer temporal scales, are still necessary to clarify this controversial issue.

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“…Breeding individuals may switch their prey preference in response to the nutritional needs of their young (Annett and Pierotti 1989). For example, predation of nests by corvids might be higher during particular stages of the corvids' own breeding season (Suvorov et al 2012).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Predation of artificial nests in UK farmland by magpies (Pica pica): interacting environmental, temporal, and social factors influence a nest’s risk

2019

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The recent decline in farmland songbirds in the UK has coincided with increases in the populations of many nest predators. However, studies which have removed nest predators and monitored the response of prey populations have found mixed results. One explanation for this ambiguity is that, within species, predators differ in how likely they are to predate nests and only the removal of particularly predatory individuals will improve the breeding success of prey populations. Predators could differ in the extent to which they take nests due to variation in the local environment and/or variation within the predator population, e.g. differences in breeding status. Additional to these broad factors, certain individuals may specialise on particular prey. We placed 460 artificial nests in a systematically balanced design in UK farmland to analyse these sources of variation in predation. Magpies (Pica pica) were the most common predators of our artificial nests and the vulnerability of our nests to magpie predation varied according to magpie breeding status (predation was higher inside breeding magpies' territories), but this effect varied temporally. More nests were predated inside of magpie territories late in the season, when magpies had dependent fledglings. More specifically, some nest locations were especially vulnerable independent of both magpie breeding status and time in breeding season. These nests may have been disproportionately predated by specific, particularly predatory, territorial magpies. Habitat management and/or predator removal may benefit songbird populations if targeted towards reducing the effect of particular individuals identified as more likely to predate songbird nests.

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Ground Nest Depredation by European Black-Billed MagpiesPica pica: An Experimental Study with Artificial Nests

Cited by 10 publications

References 56 publications

Effects of location, orchard type, laying period and nest position on the reproductive performance of Turtle Doves (Streptopelia turtur) on intensively cultivated farmland

Effects of location, orchard type, laying period and nest position on the reproductive performance of Turtle Doves (Streptopelia turtur) on intensively cultivated farmland

Feeding habits of Black-billed Magpie during the breeding season in Mediterranean Iberia: the role of birds and eggs

Predation of artificial nests in UK farmland by magpies (Pica pica): interacting environmental, temporal, and social factors influence a nest’s risk

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