Aggressive competition for critical resources among migratory birds in the Neotropics

Greenberg, Russell; Ortíz, Julián M.; Caballero, Claudia

doi:10.1017/s0959270900002719

Cited by 21 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 30 publications

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“…Beyond intersexual dominance, these aggression data also emphasize the role of interspecific aggressive interactions in mediating habitat use, and support the assertion of Greenberg et al (1994) that interspecific territoriality may be a regular feature of some species such as the Cape May Warbler. These data support the notion that interspecific defense focuses on keystone resources (Terborgh 1986) and patchy resources such as nectar and fruit (Greenberg et al 1994) or honeydew (Greenberg et al 1993, Latta et al 2001) that may be especially important for maintaining migratory bird populations in particular habitats.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 75%

Demographic and Population Responses of Cape May Warblers Wintering in Multiple Habitats

Latta

Faaborg

2002

Ecology

109

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Wintering Cape May Warblers (Dendroica tigrina) were studied in three habitats along an altitudinal gradient in the Dominican Republic. Results of this study are some of the first to link both population responses and individual condition of nonbreeding birds to prevailing ecological conditions across divergent habitats. Our data suggest that Cape May Warblers are habitat generalists and generally unspecialized resource opportunists, but that differences in food resources result in competitive interactions, sex and age class segregation, and differences in site fidelity and physiological condition among habitats. Diet of the Cape May Warbler varied between habitats: in desert, Cape Mays were primarily insectivores; in dry forest, they foraged primarily on homopteran honeydew; in pine forest, they were principally frugivores. Abundance of warblers as measured by mist‐net captures was highest in pine forest sites. Males were more common than females in pine habitat, whereas there was a female‐biased sex ratio in other sites. Adult birds were more common in the desert and the pine forest, but there was a bias toward immature birds in dry forest habitat. Overwinter site persistence was 76% in pine, but only 28% and 33% in dry forest and desert, respectively. Annual return rate averaged 57% and did not vary significantly among habitats. Adjusted body mass of site‐persistent birds was highest in pine and dry forest and lowest in desert. Pectoral muscle mass scores increased in the pine forest throughout the sampling period, whereas muscle mass scores decreased in the desert. These data suggest that, among the habitats sampled, pine was preferred. It is likely that stability and predictability of resources, particularly fruiting Trema trees and nectar sources, attracted dominant Cape May Warblers to pine forests and kept them as site‐persistent individuals in good body condition. In contrast, dry forest may have been suboptimal, unless an individual was able to hold and defend a tree with honeydew‐producing homopteran scale insects. Desert thorn scrub was seemingly suboptimal because resources were consistently scarce, and conditions became increasingly difficult during the late‐winter dry period.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 75%

Demographic and Population Responses of Cape May Warblers Wintering in Multiple Habitats

Latta

Faaborg

2002

Ecology

109

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“…point in shaded cacao (Van Bael et al 2007) and 0.6 birds per point in shaded coffee (Petit et al 1999). These values for migratory species are equal to or greater than any of the landscapes in our study (Figure 1c), emphasizing the importance of shaded agroforestry systems for migratory bird species (Greenberg et al 1994;Wunderle & Latta 1996;Greenberg et al 1997;Van Bael et al 2007). Our measurements of species richness are likely underestimated.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 46%

Bird communities in forested and human-modified landscapes of Central Panama: a baseline survey for a native species reforestation treatment

Bael

Zambrano

Hall

2013

International Journal of Biodiversity Science, Ecosystem Servic

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While deforestation continues to be a threat to species diversity in the tropics, reforestation either by natural succession or human tree planting is also occurring. Very little is known about how bird communities respond to human-mediated reforestation schemes in tropical areas. We surveyed bird communities in Central Panama to compare their abundance and richness in mature forest, young natural succession (fallow pastures), active cattle pastures, and native species reforestation areas. We found the greatest abundance of birds in mature forest, while natural succession areas had slightly greater species richness relative to mature forest. Bird communities were most similar in forest and natural succession areas, and were distinct from bird communities in cattle pastures and reforestation areas. Migratory bird species were most abundant in the young natural succession areas. Reforestation areas that were closer to mature forest had a greater abundance of birds relative to areas further from forests. Our study provides a baseline for future studies at this site that will allow assessment of the speed at which reforestation efforts with tree plantations will support a more diverse and abundant bird community. Moreover, our finding of the greatest species richness and migratory bird abundance in a natural succession habitat supports previous bird community studies in agroforestry and successional habitats.

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“…Above 50°N, most communities are composed primarily by migratory species (>50%), which therefore have a major influence on community dynamics (e.g. intra-specific competition [36]) and ecosystem function (e.g., long-distance dispersal of seeds [37] and of pathogens [38]). …”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mapping Global Diversity Patterns for Migratory Birds

et al. 2013

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Nearly one in five bird species has separate breeding and overwintering distributions, and the regular migrations of these species cause a substantial seasonal redistribution of avian diversity across the world. However, despite its ecological importance, bird migration has been largely ignored in studies of global avian biodiversity, with few studies having addressed it from a macroecological perspective. Here, we analyse a dataset on the global distribution of the world’s birds in order to examine global spatial patterns in the diversity of migratory species, including: the seasonal variation in overall species diversity due to migration; the contribution of migratory birds to local bird diversity; and the distribution of narrow-range and threatened migratory birds. Our analyses reveal a striking asymmetry between the Northern and Southern hemispheres, evident in all of the patterns investigated. The highest migratory bird diversity was found in the Northern Hemisphere, with high inter-continental turnover in species composition between breeding and non-breeding seasons, and extensive regions (at high latitudes) where migratory birds constitute the majority of the local avifauna. Threatened migratory birds are concentrated mainly in Central and Southern Asia, whereas narrow-range migratory species are mainly found in Central America, the Himalayas and Patagonia. Overall, global patterns in the diversity of migratory birds indicate that bird migration is mainly a Northern Hemisphere phenomenon. The asymmetry between the Northern and Southern hemispheres could not have easily been predicted from the combined results of regional scale studies, highlighting the importance of a global perspective.

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Aggressive competition for critical resources among migratory birds in the Neotropics

Cited by 21 publications

References 30 publications

Demographic and Population Responses of Cape May Warblers Wintering in Multiple Habitats

Demographic and Population Responses of Cape May Warblers Wintering in Multiple Habitats

Bird communities in forested and human-modified landscapes of Central Panama: a baseline survey for a native species reforestation treatment

Mapping Global Diversity Patterns for Migratory Birds

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