Habitat selection and nest survival in two Great Plains shorebirds

Abstract

As breeding populations of many grassland bird species decline, assessments of breeding habitat selection and reproductive success can provide useful insight into breeding ecology to support conservation delivery. Here, we demonstrate the use of nest location and survival data collated from 20 data contributors across the Prairie Pothole Region of the United States and Canada over a half century to examine habitat selection and nest survival of Western Willets (Tringa semipalmata inornata) and Marbled Godwits (Limosa fedoa), hereafter "willets" and "godwits." Both willets and godwits selected territories with less variation in vegetation height and topography relative to available locations. Willets selected nest sites that were flatter, closer to wetlands, and had shorter vegetation than Marbled Godwits, while godwits selected territories with greater wetland cover and shorter vegetation. Despite differences in finescale habitat selection, willets and godwits experienced similar daily nest survival rates and ecological drivers of nest survival. Nest success for the entire nest exposure period was estimated to be 0.521 (95% credible interval: 0.39-0.65) for willets and 0.562 (95% credible interval: 0.42-0.70) for godwits. Nest survival for both species increased with nest age and distance from the nest to the nearest wetland edge, while nest survival of godwits declined with conspecific breeding density. These relationships, as well as a weaker positive effect of microtine rodent abundance on nest survival, resembled drivers of upland nesting waterfowl reproductive success in the same region, which we attribute to their shared nest predators. Nest survival analyses of our collaborative dataset required substantial consideration of biases emerging from different data collection methods, ultimately reaffirming the importance of nest aging techniques in proper nest fate assignment. Analysis of compiled datasets using emerging analysis methods will continue to grow our understanding of the ecology of data sparse species.

Satellite telemetry reveals habitat selection decisions by black oystercatchers across seasonal, diel, and tidal cycles

“…Habitat selection studies provide valuable insight into the requirements of individuals and populations, whether they are regarding the use of nest sites (Specht et al, 2020 ), overwintering sites (De La Cruz et al, 2014 ), migratory stopover sites (Belaire et al, 2014 ), foraging sites (Wilson, 1990 ), or roost sites (Peters & Otis, 2006 ). While habitat studies are often conducted at one study area or limited to a short period of time, technological advances have created new opportunities to study smaller animals for longer periods of time (Cagnacci et al, 2010 ).…”

“…Habitat selection decisions can also occur over finer temporal scales, such as day to night, in response to changes in predation risk and foraging conditions (Lima & Dill, 1990 ). Despite the spatiotemporal patterns of habitat use observed in many taxa, studies examining habitat selection decisions are frequently limited to one time period or season (Lunardi et al, 2012 ; Marra et al, 2015 ; Schooley, 1994 ; Specht et al, 2020 ). However, advances in tracking technology that allow smaller animals to be tracked for longer periods provide an opportunity to investigate individual movement and population‐level habitat selection decisions across the annual cycle (Cagnacci et al, 2010 ; Knight et al, 2021 ; Stanley et al, 2021 ).…”

Breeding populations of Marbled Godwits and Willets have high annual survival and strong site fidelity to managed wetlands

“…Marbled Godwits ( Limosa fedoa ) and Willets ( Tringa semipalmata ) are two species of large‐bodied shorebirds that breed in the Prairie Pothole Region of central Canada and the USA (Gratto‐Trevor, 2006 ; Specht et al, 2020 ). The biogeography of these species in North America is complex with three separate breeding populations of Marbled Godwits and two disjunct breeding populations of Willets (Gibson & Kessel, 1989 ; Martínez‐Curci et al, 2014 ; Oswald et al, 2016 ).…”

“…Thus, population growth rates are likely to be more sensitive to factors that affect adult survival and breeding site fidelity than components of reproduction (Hitchcock & Gratto‐Trevor, 1997; Koivula et al, 2008; Ottvall & Härdling, 2005). Previous population studies of Marbled Godwits and Willets have been limited but have provided basic information on migratory connectivity (Gratto‐Trevor, 2011; Haig et al, 2002; Olson et al, 2014), habitat preferences (Gratto‐Trevor, 2006; Ryan & Renken, 1987; Specht et al, 2020), nesting success (Garvey et al, 2013; Kantrud & Higgins, 1992), and return rates or longevity (Colwell et al, 1995; Howe, 1982; Kelly & Cogswell, 1979). No previous analyses of adult demography exist for the prairie populations of Marbled Godwits or Willets.…”

An artificial lakes system intended for human recreation supports a vital breeding population of Red-wattled Lapwing in the Arabian Desert

“…It is worthwhile exploring the reproductive success of birds that use artificial wetland habitats within desert recreation zones to reveal potential conflicts between breeding birds and public visitors. A detailed insight into reproductive success can lead to greatly improved site management by finding ways to combine conservation requirements with recreational potential (Hartman and Oring 2009, McIntyre and Heath, 2011, Saalfeld et al 2013, Specht et al 2020. Examples of wetland species naturally settled and benefiting from new habitats in a desert environment can inspire similar projects in the context of a globally changing climate threatened by extensive desertification of the subtropics and tropics (Andersson et al 2011, Spinoni et al 2015, Jackson and Prince 2016.…”