The effect of artificial lighting on the arrival time of birds using garden feeding stations in winter: A missed opportunity?

Clewley, Gary D.; Robinson, Robert A.; Simm, Clare H.; Toms, Mike P.

doi:10.1007/s11252-015-0516-y

Cited by 13 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 38 publications

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“…Moreover, birds start visiting feeding stations later in the morning in urban areas than in rural areas (Ockendon et al 2009a), probably due to the higher temperatures and the reliable presence of sufficient food in the city. However, urban birds also start foraging later in the morning at garden feeders in areas with more artificial lights (Clewley et al 2015), which seems counterintuitive considering the effects of light pollution on daily rhythms previously described. This result may again be explained by other factors that covary with light intensity, e.g.…”

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confidence: 67%

“…We found that residual temperature had strong effects on the timing of morning foraging but not on evening foraging. The three early foraging species advanced foraging when temperatures were colder than normal, most likely because they suffered higher mass loss on colder nights (Lima 1988, Gosler 1996, 2002, Chamberlain et al 2005, Macleod et al 2005a, Hatchwell et al 2009, Clewley et al 2015. Bird densities at feeders also increase with colder winter temperatures, which may lead to some individuals starting foraging earlier to secure more food (Chamberlain et al 2005).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…the feeder). This scenario is particularly relevant for urban areas where food is often provided reliably and all day long, which may counteract any advancing effect of artificial light and lead to a later onset of foraging, as argued by Ockendon et al (2009a) and Clewley et al (2015). The effect of artificial night lighting -if it exists -may then only appear during nights with the highest energy demands, i.e.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We further predicted that the experiment would alter the daily timing of foraging more strongly 2) in the more light-sensitive birds, i.e. those which generally forage at relatively low natural light levels , Ockendon et al 2009a, b, Clewley et al 2015, 3) during periods with lower temperatures or with otherwise inclement weather during the night (Gosler 1996, 2002, Chamberlain et al 2005, Macleod et al 2005a, Hatchwell et al 2009, Clewley et al 2015 and 4) during the first half of the experimental period, i.e. when days were shortest.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Effects of experimental night lighting on the daily timing of winter foraging in common European songbirds

Silva

Diez‐Méndez

Kempenaers

2017

Journal of Avian Biology

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The ecological effects of light pollution are becoming better understood, especially in birds. Recent studies have shown that several bird species can use street lighting to extend activity into the night during the breeding season. However, most of these studies are correlational and little is known about the effects of artificial night lighting on the timing of activities outside the breeding season. During winter, low temperatures and short days may limit foraging opportunities and can negatively affect survival of resident birds. However, night lighting may allow them to expand the time niche available for foraging. Here, we report on a study where we repeatedly manipulated the amount of night lighting during early winter at automated feeding stations in a natural forest. We used video-recordings at the feeders to determine the time of the first (at dawn) and last (at dusk) foraging visits for six songbird species. We predicted that all species, and in particular the naturally early-foraging species, would advance their daily onset of foraging during the mornings with night lighting, but would show minimal or no delays in their daily cessation of foraging during the lighted evenings. We found that two early-foraging species, the blue tit and the great tit, started foraging earlier during the experimentally lighted mornings. However, in great tits, this effect was weak and restricted to nights with inclement weather. The light treatment did not have any effect on the start of foraging in the willow/marsh tit, the nuthatch, the European jay, and the blackbird. Artificial night lighting did not cause later foraging at dusk in any of the six species. Overall, our results suggest that artificial light during winter has only small effects on timing of foraging. We discuss these findings and the importance of temperature and winter weather in shaping the observed foraging patterns.

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confidence: 67%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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confidence: 99%

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Effects of experimental night lighting on the daily timing of winter foraging in common European songbirds

Silva

Diez‐Méndez

Kempenaers

2017

Journal of Avian Biology

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“…In contrast, the effect of artificial lights on the timing of behaviours during winter has received relatively little attention. Although birds exposed to light in the night show earlier onset of activity in the morning (Dominoni et al 2014;Da Silva et al 2014), some studies suggest that artificial light at night is not an important driver of the timing of foraging behaviour in winter period (Clewley et al 2015). However, other results indicate that species are able to extend their activity period by utilising artificial light during the winter (Byrkjedal et al 2012) and typically diurnal birds are capable of foraging at night under artificial illumination (Lebbin et al 2007).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Habitat type, food resources, noise and light pollution explain the species composition, abundance and stability of a winter bird assemblage in an urban environment

2016

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At present, urban areas cover almost 3% of the Earth's terrestrial area, and this proportion is constantly increasing. Although urbanization leads to a decline in biodiversity, at the same time it creates extensive habitats that are exploited by an assemblage of organisms, including birds. The species composition and density of birds nesting in towns and cities are determined by the types of buildings, the structure and maturity of urban greenery, and habitat diversity. In contrast, the habitat traits shaping the community of birds wintering in urban areas are not known. The aim of this work was to assess the influence of habitat structure, food resources and the urban effects (pollution, noise, artificial light) on an assemblage of birds overwintering in an urban area. It was carried out in 2014 and 2015 in the city of Kraków (southern Poland), on 56 randomly chosen sample plots, in which the composition, density and interseasonal similarity of bird assemblage were assessed with line transect method. A total of 64 bird species (mean = 17.7 ± 4.9 SD species/plot) was recorded. The mean density was 89.6 ind./km ±63.3 SD. The most numerous species were Great Tit Parus major, Magpie Pica pica, Blackbird Turdus merula, Blue Tit Cyanistes caeruleus, Rook Corvus frugilegus, Fieldfare Turdus pilaris and House Sparrow Passer domesticus. Noise adversely affected species numbers and density, but artificial light acted positively on the density of birds and their interseasonal stability. The species richness and density of birds were also determined by the number of food sources available (e.g. bird-feeders). In addition, the greater the proportion of open areas, the fewer species were recorded. In contrast, the more urban greenery there was, the greater the density of the entire bird assemblage. Urban infrastructure (buildings, roads, refuse tips) had a positive effect on the interseasonal stabilization of the species composition of wintering birds. The results of this work indicate that the urban effect, i.e. noise and light pollution, apart from purely habitat factors, provide a good explanation for the species richness, density and stability of bird assemblage wintering in urban areas.

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Citizen-science data identifies the daily movement patterns and habitat associations of a nocturnal urban-invading bird species (Corvus frugilegus)

Yun,

Shin,

Kim

et al. 2024

Urban Ecosyst

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Rooks (Corvus frugilegus) are an invasive bird species in South Korea that are deemed harmful due to nocturnal urban invasions and agricultural damage. Employing citizen science data, we document the daily movement patterns and habitat associations of nocturnal urban-invading rooks in Suwon, South Korea. We collected 4,522 geolocated observations from December 2021 to March 2022, categorized by the timings of sunrise and sunset and segmented into 3-h intervals. Using the MaxENT (Maximum Entropy Model) and k-fold cross-validation (k = 10) with a 25% random test sample, we analyzed daily movement patterns and habitat preferences. Our results show that rooks forage in agricultural areas shortly after sunrise and roost in urban environments after sunset. Urban roosts tend to occur in areas near buildings of medium height (6–20 stories) that are illuminated by artificial light and contain utility poles. The variables with the highest percent contribution to rooks’ presence after sunset were buildings of medium height (20.7%), land use type (19.4%), elevation (29%), and utility pole (14.5%). Our findings emphasize the potential of citizen science initiatives to generate insights into the ecology of invasive bird species within large urban environments.

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The effect of artificial lighting on the arrival time of birds using garden feeding stations in winter: A missed opportunity?

Cited by 13 publications

References 38 publications

Effects of experimental night lighting on the daily timing of winter foraging in common European songbirds

Effects of experimental night lighting on the daily timing of winter foraging in common European songbirds

Habitat type, food resources, noise and light pollution explain the species composition, abundance and stability of a winter bird assemblage in an urban environment

Citizen-science data identifies the daily movement patterns and habitat associations of a nocturnal urban-invading bird species (Corvus frugilegus)

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