Factors Influencing Behavior and Success of Foraging Reddish Egrets (<i>Egretta rufescens</i>)

Bates, Elizabeth M.; Ballard, Bart M.

doi:10.1675/063.037.0213

Cited by 15 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…Our findings are similar to those of Rodgers (1983) and Bates and Ballard (2014). We demonstrated that during the cold pre-nesting period, which extends from early December to late February, all three studied species reduced their feeding activity by employing the "standing and wait" and "walking slowly" techniques more frequently.…”

Section: Grey Heron Great Egret Little Egretsupporting

confidence: 87%

“…However, high wind velocity promoted an active hunting behavior, potentially due to the significant agitation of the muddy and shallow lake bottom (90 to 120 cm) and the increased turbidity of the water due to the increased wind velocity. Environmental variables clearly influence the foraging behavior of wading birds (Rodgers 1983;Stolen et al 2012;Bates and Ballard 2014). Our results confirmed this relationship.…”

Section: Grey Heron Great Egret Little Egretsupporting

confidence: 86%

“…The hunting behavior is influenced by several environmental factors. For example, rising water depth promotes the use of active foraging behavior (Bates and Ballard 2014). Great and Little egrets varied their technique according to the depth of water.…”

Section: Grey Heron Great Egret Little Egretmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The most important environmental conditions influencing the type of foraging behavior employed are those associated with weather, such as temperature, rainfall and wind speed (Elkins 1983). These types of weather conditions indirectly affect Ardeid foraging behavior either by altering an individual's ability to detect and capture prey or by causing a change in the distribution and/or behavior of the prey species (Dunn 1975;Bates and Ballard 2014).…”

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confidence: 99%

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Environmental Factors Affecting the Foraging Behavior of Herons in Ichkeul National Park, Tunisia

Nefla¹,

Nouira²

2016

Waterbirds

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Section: Grey Heron Great Egret Little Egretsupporting

confidence: 87%

Section: Grey Heron Great Egret Little Egretsupporting

confidence: 86%

Section: Grey Heron Great Egret Little Egretmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

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Environmental Factors Affecting the Foraging Behavior of Herons in Ichkeul National Park, Tunisia

Nefla¹,

Nouira²

2016

Waterbirds

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“…Dense seagrass also provides cover for prey, making them less detectable to actively foraging egrets. Bates and Ballard (2014) found that the rate of successful strikes by foraging Reddish Egrets decreased with increasing seagrass coverage. Foraging in areas with little seagrass cover may also reduce competition with other herons that employ a "sit and wait" foraging strategy in areas of dense seagrass.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 96%

Breeding ecology and habitat use of North America’s rarest Ardeidae: the Reddish Egret Egretta rufescens

Koczur¹,

Ballard²,

Green³

et al. 2018

ACE

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The Reddish Egret (Egretta rufescens) remains underrepresented in waterbird research despite its status as the rarest heron in North America and a near-threatened species. The Reddish Egret is also a habitat specialist, and is restricted to shallow, coastal wetlands throughout its range. We utilized GPS-equipped platform terminal transmitters to examine the breeding ecology of Reddish Egrets (n = 28) in Texas. Although individuals exhibited varying degrees of fidelity to specific colonies, there was fidelity to particular areas within the Laguna Madre, Texas, across years. Reddish Egrets also exhibited fidelity to foraging areas across years and selected nonvegetated tidal flats as foraging habitat. Long-distance migrants began the breeding season two weeks later than residents on average; however, the timing of breeding did not appear to influence nest success. We also found that the amount of available foraging habitat within 15 km of the colony was associated with the abundance of Reddish Egret breeding pairs at colonies. Écologie de reproduction et utilisation d'habitat de l'Ardéidé le plus rare d'Amérique du Nord : l'Aigrette roussâtre Egretta rufescensRÉSUMÉ. L'Aigrette roussâtre (Egretta rufescens) demeure sous-représentée dans les recherches sur les oiseaux aquatiques malgré son statut de héron le plus rare d'Amérique du Nord et d'espèce quasi menacée. L'Aigrette roussâtre est aussi une spécialiste d'habitat et fréquente uniquement les milieux humides côtiers peu profonds dans l'ensemble de son aire de répartition. Nous avons utilisé des émetteurs balises équipés de GPS pour examiner l'écologie de reproduction d'Aigrettes roussâtres (n = 28) au Texas. Bien que les individus aient montré un degré de fidélité variable aux colonies elles-mêmes, ils ont été fidèles à des endroits particuliers dans la Laguna Madre, Texas, d'une année à l'autre. Les aigrettes ont aussi été fidèles aux aires d'alimentation au fil des ans, des zones intertidales sans végétation. Les individus migrateurs de longue distance ont commencé leur saison de reproduction deux semaines plus tard que les individus résidents en moyenne; toutefois, la phénologie de nidification n'a pas semblé avoir un effet sur le succès de nidification. Nous avons également observé que la superficie d'aires d'alimentation dans un rayon de 15 km d'une colonie était associée au nombre de couples nicheurs d'Aigrettes roussâtres qui s'y trouvaient.

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Habitat selection and influence on hunting success in female Australian fur seals

Bartes,

Monk,

Jenkins

et al. 2024

Sci Rep

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Determining the factors influencing habitat selection and hunting success in top predators is crucial for understanding how these species may respond to environmental changes. For marine top predators, such factors have been documented in pelagic foragers, with habitat use and hunting success being linked to chlorophyll-a concentrations, sea surface temperature and light conditions. In contrast, little is known about the determinants of benthic marine predators. The Australian fur seal (Arctocephalus pusillus doriferus) is a benthic-diving forager that has a breeding and foraging distribution largely restricted to Bass Strait, the shallow (max. depth 80 m) continental shelf region between the Australian mainland and Tasmania. The species forages mostly on benthic prey and represents the greatest resident marine predator biomass in south-eastern Australia. The region is also one of the world’s fastest-warming marine areas and oceanographic changes are influencing shifts in prey distribution and abundance. In the present study, GPS-derived locations of benthic dives (n = 288,449) and dive behaviour metrics were used to determine seafloor habitat selection and factors influencing hunting success in 113 lactating adult females from Kanowna Island during the winters of 2006–2021. Individuals non-randomly selected foraging habitats comprised of deeper, steeper sloped, muddy-sandy areas with less gravel and highly disturbed regions (P < 0.01). Hunting success was greatest in shallower rocky reefs (< 30 m) and deep areas (> 40 m) characterised by moderate presence of gravel (25–50%) and substantial rock composition (50–75%) on the seabed. These findings suggest that habitat use and hunting success in adult female Australian fur seals could be impacted by predicted oceanographic changes, such as rising temperature, altered currents and waves which may modify seafloor characteristics and benthic communities.

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Factors Influencing Behavior and Success of Foraging Reddish Egrets (Egretta rufescens)

Cited by 15 publications

References 29 publications

Environmental Factors Affecting the Foraging Behavior of Herons in Ichkeul National Park, Tunisia

Environmental Factors Affecting the Foraging Behavior of Herons in Ichkeul National Park, Tunisia

Breeding ecology and habitat use of North America’s rarest Ardeidae: the Reddish Egret Egretta rufescens

Habitat selection and influence on hunting success in female Australian fur seals

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Factors Influencing Behavior and Success of Foraging Reddish Egrets (Egretta rufescens)

Cited by 15 publications

References 29 publications

Environmental Factors Affecting the Foraging Behavior of Herons in Ichkeul National Park, Tunisia

Environmental Factors Affecting the Foraging Behavior of Herons in Ichkeul National Park, Tunisia

Breeding ecology and habitat use of North America&#8217;s rarest Ardeidae: the Reddish Egret Egretta rufescens

Habitat selection and influence on hunting success in female Australian fur seals

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Breeding ecology and habitat use of North America’s rarest Ardeidae: the Reddish Egret Egretta rufescens