Effect of human disturbance on long-term habitat use and breeding success of the European Nightjar, Caprimulgus europaeus

Abstract

ABSTRACT. Land managers often respond to declining numbers of target species by creating additional areas of habitat. If these habitats are also subject to human disturbance, then their efforts may be wasted. The European Nightjar (Caprimulgus europaeus) is a ground-nesting bird that is listed as a species of European Conservation Concern. It appears to be susceptible to human disturbance during the breeding season. We examined habitat use and reproductive success over 10 years in a breeding population on 1335 ha of managed land in Nottinghamshire, England. The study site was divided into a heavily disturbed section and a less disturbed section of equal habitat availability, forming a natural long-term experiment.The site is open to the public, and visitor numbers approximately doubled during the study. We found that overall Nightjar density was significantly lower and there were significantly fewer breeding pairs in the heavily disturbed habitat compared with the less disturbed habitat. However, average breeding success per pair, in terms of eggs and fledglings produced, was not significantly different between the two sections across years. Our findings suggest that human recreational disturbance may drastically alter settlement patterns and nest site selection of arriving females in some migratory groundnesting species and may reduce the utility of apparently suitable patches of remnant and created habitat. Land managers should bear this in mind when creating new areas of habitat that will also be accessible to the public. Our study also highlights the value of longterm population monitoring, which can detect trends that short-term studies may miss. Effet des perturbations d'origine anthropique sur l'utilisation de l'habitat et le succès de reproduction à long terme de l'Engoulevent d'Europe, Caprimulgus europaeusRÉSUMÉ. Afin de contrer le déclin d'espèces prioritaires, les gestionnaires de territoires ont souvent recours à la création de nouveaux habitats. Si ces milieux créés font l'objet de perturbations d'origine anthropique, les mesures de conservation entreprises par les gestionnaires peuvent alors être vouées à l'échec. L'Engoulevent d'Europe (Caprimulgus europaeus), un oiseau qui niche au sol, a été désigné « préoccupant » en Europe. On pense que cette espèce est sensible à la perturbation humaine au moment de la nidification. Nous avons examiné l'utilisation de l'habitat et le succès de reproduction d'une population nicheuse durant dix ans sur un territoire aménagé de 1335 ha dans le Nottinghamshire, en Angleterre. Le site d'étude présentait deux sections dans lesquelles la disponibilité de l'habitat était égale, l'une qui était fortement perturbée, l'autre moins perturbée, l'ensemble formant un contexte d'expérimentation naturelle à long terme. Ce site est ouvert au public et le nombre de visiteurs a pratiquement doublé au cours de l'étude. Nous avons trouvé que la densité d'engoulevents était significativement plus faible et qu'il y avait significativement moins de couples nicheurs dans les milieux ...

Study on the foraging behaviour of the European nightjar Caprimulgus europaeus reveals the need for a change in conservation strategy in Belgium

“…We captured nightjars from 2010 until 2014 using ultra fine mist‐nets (Ecotone, 12 × 3 m) and tape lures (Lowe et al ). We attempted to capture nightjars within known territories and then fitted a Biotrack Ltd. AG393 VHF tail‐mount tag on the central tail‐feather using Superglue gel (Bison International) (Kenward ).…”

The impact of disturbance from photographers on the Blue-crowned Laughingthrush (Garrulax courtoisi)

“…The decline of many species has been directly or indirectly linked to human disturbance (Reijnen et al 1996, Brawn et al 2001, Beebee and Griffiths 2005, Reed and Merenlender 2011. Indeed, human activities in an area can appear to be neutral or even benign in their effect on wildlife, but may ultimately cause populations to decline over time (Lowe et al 2014). …”

“…Many authors have investigated the responses of breeding birds to human disturbance, such as the energy costs of earlier flight initiation and vigilance (e.g., González et al 2006, Poudel et al 2015, changes in habitat use (e.g., Lafferty 2001, Fernández-Juricic et al 2002, Markovchick-Nicholls et al 2008, Lowe et al 2014, reduced parental care (e.g., Burger 1994, Verhulst et al 2001, Bautista et al 2004, Yasué and Dearden 2006, and decreased reproductive success (Safina andBurger 1983, Bailly et al 2016). Behavioral responses to human disturbance vary among species (Blumstein et al 2005), with, e.g., group-living species more likely to suffer from injuries during panic behavior (Carney and Sydeman 1999).…”

Fragmented Riverine Habitats in Taiwan Have Spatio-Temporal Consequences, Re-Distributing Caprimulgus affinis into Urban Areas Leading to a Human–Wildlife Conflict

“…There are no significant differences between the nightjars currently living in the city and those from rural areas. That is both have "high-decibel tweets" according to Sharps et al and Lowe et al [8,9]. Caprimulgus affinis originally occupied low-altitude open grasslands, rocky soil, wheat fields, sugar cane plantations, and around streams and rivers in forests.…”