Translocation of Threatened New Zealand Falcons to Vineyards Increases Nest Attendance, Brooding and Feeding Rates

Abstract

Anthropogenic landscapes can be rich in resources, and may in some cases provide potential habitat for species whose natural habitat has declined. We used remote videography to assess whether reintroducing individuals of the threatened New Zealand falcon Falco novaeseelandiae into a highly modified agricultural habitat affected the feeding rates of breeding falcons or related breeding behavior such as nest attendance and brooding rates. Over 2,800 recording hours of footage were used to compare the behavior of falcons living in six natural nests (in unmanaged, hilly terrain between 4 km and 20 km from the nearest vineyard), with that of four breeding falcon pairs that had been transported into vineyards and nested within 500 m of the nearest vineyard. Falcons in vineyard nests had higher feeding rates, higher nest attendance, and higher brooding rates. As chick age increased, parents in vineyard nests fed chicks a greater amount of total prey and larger prey items on average than did parents in hill nests. Parents with larger broods brought in larger prey items and a greater total sum of prey biomass. Nevertheless, chicks in nests containing siblings received less daily biomass per individual than single chicks. Some of these results can be attributed to the supplementary feeding of falcons in vineyards. However, even after removing supplementary food from our analysis, falcons in vineyards still fed larger prey items to chicks than did parents in hill nests, suggesting that the anthropogenic habitat may be a viable source of quality food. Although agricultural regions globally are rarely associated with raptor conservation, these results suggest that translocating New Zealand falcons into vineyards has potential for the conservation of this species.

Physiological stress and behavioural responses of European Rollers and Eurasian Scops Owls to human disturbance differ in farming habitats in the south of Spain

“…Previous studies have shown that parents of different bird species (Zanette et al 2011), including the Roller (Expósito-Granados et al 2016), may increase their feeding rates when stressed by natural threats and human activities (e.g. Kross et al 2012, Blas et al 2016, but see Fernández and Azkona 1993). On the other hand, for Scops Owls, we found that nestlings raised in highly human-altered areas by infrastructures showed high levels of stress-induced CORT.…”

Factors influencing the behavioural development of juvenile New Zealand Falcons (Falco novaeseelandiae)

“…Released individuals that go on to breed have been shown to provide their chicks with higher nest attendance rates, more food, and a similar diet compared to wild-reared falcons (Kross et al 2012;Kross et al In Press), supporting the idea that released individuals can develop the hunting and social skills needed to reproduce successfully.…”

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“…data). The increase of male raptors' presence at the nest in the later stages (Warnke et al 2002, Booms and Fuller 2003, Kross et al 2012, as well as diminished overall parental presence at the nest, is widespread and attributed to a combination of homeothermy among the chicks, potentially decreased susceptibility to predators, and increased demand for food (Newton 1979). While such factors may help drive these changes, the time the male spent at the nest we observed may have depended more on the simple fact that the female was absent from the vicinity of the nest once she began hunting, leaving opportunity for the male to be more directly involved.…”

“…Technological advances in cameras, power sources, and recording/broadcasting devices have greatly enhanced the opportunities for generating detailed, high-quality data linked to Volume 53, Number 1, 2022 parental care while reducing disturbance below the level possible with direct observation of raptors from blinds (Reif and Tornberg 2006). This improved capacity reflects progress from the initial time-lapse camera work of Temple (1972) to the highly effective and more affordable digital video surveillance that is becoming commonplace (e.g., Kross et al 2012, Sonerud et al 2014, Miller et al 2020.…”