Locomotion and Other Behavior of the Dipper

Diet of DippersCinclus cinclusduring an early winter spate and the possible implications for Dipper populations subjected to climate change

“…They are adapted to feed in fast-flowing rivers (Goodge 1959, 1960, Murrish 1970a, 1970b, eating mainly benthic macroinvertebrates and fish (review in Tyler & Ormerod 1994). The Dipper Cinclus cinclus forages by wading and diving in shallow riffles and river margins, and by diving and swimming in deeper riffles and pools (review in Tyler & Ormerod 1994).…”

Polygyny as an Adaptive Alternative to Monogamy in Two Species of Dippers: Cinclus Mexicanus and Cinclus pallasii

“…Rankin and Rankin (1940) reported wing shivering in C. cinclus in which the wings were held half open and out from the body, and bowing, with the head raised and lowered while the wings were vibrated. Hewson (1967 citing Witherby, unpublished field notes) reported the same display, and Goodge (1959) reported wing fluttering accompanied by courtship feeding. Why there should be so much variation among courtship displays is a puzzle, but may be more a matter of difference in description and interpretation of what occurred than actual differences in displays.…”

“…Hann (1950) reported that the male fed the female as many as seven times in one incubation period. In the present study, the length of time the female C. mexicanus spent on the nest and away from it is shown in Table 3, along with a comparison of reports by Goodge (1959) and Hann (1950) for the same species. Goodge reported shorter periods of 32 to 34 minutes on the nest and 7 to 10 minutes off, whereas Hann reported much longer incubation periods of up to 80 minutes, with 12 to 21 minutes away from the nest.…”

“…Balat (1964) found that if the winter was mild, allowing nesting to begin early, it was likely that dippers would have a second brood, and Price and Bock (1973) reported seeing two successful broods; but other investigators reported no instances of second broods (Hann 1950, Goodge 1959. The elevation of the nest site, which correlates with the earliness of the spring season, probably affects conditions, such as ice cover on the river and availability of food, that determine whether the dippers can begin nesting early enough in the season to have time left after the first brood to raise a second one.…”

Plumage temperatures of dippersCinclus cincluson the roost and in the hand: Implications for handling small passerines

“…Between dives they bob to the surface, shedding water efficiently. Anatomical study has revealed that dippers have an unusually dense plumage, with the American Dipper Cinclus mexicanus having an individual mean contour feather count of 4,200 (Goodge 1959) compared with counts below 3,000 in a range of similar-sized passerines (Wetmore 1936). More importantly, dippers have a very dense down between the feather tracts, instead of naked skin as in most other birds (Murrish 1970a).…”