Nestling Diets and Provisioning Rates of Sympatric Golden-fronted and Ladder-backed Woodpeckers

Schroeder, Evonne L.; Boal, Clint W.; Glasscock, Selma N.

doi:10.1676/12-041.1

Cited by 8 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 9 publications

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“…In the absence of prey abundance data, an indirect way to evaluate food availability in the environment may be to assess foraging yields (the number of individual prey animals caught per unit time of hunting, e.g. Simmons 2000, Terraube et al 2011 or prey provisioning rates at nests by direct observations (Amar et al 2003, Leckie et al 2008 or using automated cameras at nests (Z arybnick a et al 2012, Schroeder et al 2013, Robinson et al 2016.…”

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confidence: 99%

Regional and temporal variation in diet and provisioning rates suggest weather limits prey availability for an endangered raptor

García-Heras

Mougeot

Simmons

et al. 2017

Ibis

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Understanding variation in food requirements of wild animals is of central importance in population ecology and conservation, as it helps to identify where and when food may be limiting. Studies on diet variation or prey provisioning rates may give useful insights when direct information on prey availability is lacking. We assess spatial and temporal variation in the diet of an endangered predator, the Black Harrier Circus maurus. This raptor is endemic to southern Africa and specializes on small mammals but also feeds on birds and reptiles as alternative prey. Using data on 1679 prey identified in 953 pellets collected in inland and coastal regions from 2006 to 2015, we show that diet composition changed little throughout the breeding season in the coastal region, whereas there was a marked seasonal decline in the occurrence of small mammal prey in the inland region, with a concomitant increase in alternative prey. The proportion of small mammals in the diet declined with increasing maximum temperature, the latter being highest at the inland region late in the breeding season. Using camera recordings at nests in 2014, we further analysed daily patterns of prey provisioning to nestlings. A marked reduction in small mammal provisioning rates occurred during the middle of the day in the hotter inland region but not in the cooler coastal region. Reduced availability of the primary prey, small mammals, in hotter conditions, through a reduction in activity or overall abundance, could explain these patterns. Finally, we show a positive relationship between winter rainfall and interannual differences in the proportion of small mammals in the diet of Black Harriers breeding in the coastal region, suggesting relationships between diet and prey abundance that are mediated through rainfall. We discuss the need to consider spatial variation in food availability in conservation strategies.

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confidence: 99%

Regional and temporal variation in diet and provisioning rates suggest weather limits prey availability for an endangered raptor

García-Heras

Mougeot

Simmons

et al. 2017

Ibis

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“…The Golden-fronted woodpecker (Melanerpes aurifrons), hereafter referred to as "woodpecker," is a poorly studied, medium-sized bird, whose range extends from Central America to Texas (Schroeder et al, 2013;Wetmore, 1948). Cavities are typically constructed to be deep (31 cm) and to have small openings, approximately 5 cm wide (Skutch, 1969).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Most woodpeckers have specialized diets, often corresponding with their ability to excavate wood of varying density or competition with other local woodpecker species (Hanson & North, 2008 ; Torok, 1990 ). However, some are more omnivorous, like the Golden‐fronted woodpecker ( Melanerpes aurifrons ), whose diet consists heavily of wood‐boring and bark‐dwelling beetles, but also commonly forages for ants (Hymenoptera), grasshoppers (Orthopteta), small vertebrates, cactus fruits, and nuts (Kujawa, 1984 ; Oberholser and Kincaid, 1974 ; Schroeder et al, 2013 ). In terms of food availability, an increase in population size of one insect taxa can sometimes be mirrored by similar increases in other insect taxa, usually correlating with changing environmental conditions and available resources (Brooks et al., 2012 ; Koivula, 2011 ; Lehnert et al, 2013 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Secondhand homes: The multilayered influence of woodpeckers as ecosystem engineers

Hardin

Leivers

Grace

et al. 2021

Ecology and Evolution

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“…The Golden-fronted woodpecker (GFWO, Melanerpes aurifrons), is a poorly studied, medium sized bird, whose range extends from Central America to Texas (Wetmore, 1948;Sauer, Link, Failon, Pardieck, & Ziolkowski, 2013;Schroeder, Boal, & Glasscock, 2013). GFWO numbers are in decline across their Texas distribution, and are considered a species of concern in the Texas Wildlife Action Plan (Bender, 2007).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Secondhand homes: Woodpecker cavity location and structure influences secondary nester’s success

Hardin

Leivers

Grace

et al. 2020

Preprint

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Understanding how ecosystem engineers influence other organisms has long been a goal of ecologists. Woodpeckers select nesting sites with high food availability and will excavate and then abandon multiple cavities through their lifetime. These cavities are crucial to secondary cavity nesting birds (SCB) that are otherwise limited by the availability of naturally occurring cavities. Our study examined the role food resources have on the nest site location and home range size of woodpeckers, and the respective influence woodpeckers and the construction of cavities have on the nesting success of SCB. Using five years of avian point count data to locate golden-fronted woodpeckers (GFWO: Melanerpes aurifrons), we correlated insect availability with GFWO home range size and determined differences in insect availability between GFWO occupied and unoccupied sites, while recording nesting success (success: ≥ 1 fledgling) for the GFWO and common SCB in south Texas: Black-crested Titmouse (Baeolophus atricristatus), Ash-throated Flycatcher (Myiarchus cinerascens), Brown-crested Flycatcher (Myiarchus tyrannulus), and Bewick's Wren (Thryomanes bewickii). We used model averaging to fit species-specific logistic regression models to predict nest success based on cavity metrics across all species. Sites occupied by GFWO had a higher biomass of insects in orders Coleoptera, Hymenoptera, and Orthoptera than unoccupied sites, and there was a negative correlation between the availability of these insect orders and home-range size. GFWO had increased nest success in trees with increased vegetation cover and lower levels of decay, while SCB had higher levels of nesting success in abandoned GFWO cavities opposed to naturally occurring ones, and in trees with low decay. Our results suggest that SCB may be drawn to nest in abandoned woodpecker cavities where they have higher rates of nest success compared to natural cavities. Additionally, the prevalence for GFWO to excavate cavities in trees with lower levels of decay contradicts previous literature and may indicate a novel temperature trade-off, with live trees requiring more energy to excavate, but providing more protection from high breeding season temperatures in arid and semi-arid areas.

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Nestling Diets and Provisioning Rates of Sympatric Golden-fronted and Ladder-backed Woodpeckers

Cited by 8 publications

References 9 publications

Regional and temporal variation in diet and provisioning rates suggest weather limits prey availability for an endangered raptor

Regional and temporal variation in diet and provisioning rates suggest weather limits prey availability for an endangered raptor

Secondhand homes: The multilayered influence of woodpeckers as ecosystem engineers

Secondhand homes: Woodpecker cavity location and structure influences secondary nester’s success

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