Raptor abundance and northern bobwhite survival and habitat use
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Abstract
Predation risk has a profound influence on prey behavior and habitat use. The Rio Grande Plains ecoregion of Texas, USA, provides a unique opportunity to investigate changes in prey behavior because the ecoregion experiences a high influx of raptors every year during autumn migration. We used an 8-year data set (2000–2008) of radiocollared northern bobwhites (Colinus virginianus) and raptor abundance to test the hypothesis that bobwhites responded to increased raptor abundance via changes in woody-cover use at the home-range scale. Bobwhite survival was negatively correlated with raptor abundance, with red-tailed hawks (Buteo jamaicensis), and northern harriers (Circus cyaneus) accounting for 51% of the variability in bobwhite survival (P < 0.010). However, we documented no change in the amount of woody cover used by bobwhites in their home range between the raptor migration (6.6% ± 0.5%; n = 73 bobwhites) and non-migration periods (7.1% ± 0.4%; n = 105 bobwhites; P = 0.490). In addition, bobwhites that survived the raptor migration period used similar amounts of woody cover within their home range (6.3% ± 0.6%, n = 58 bobwhites) compared with those dying during the migration period (6.8% ± 0.4%, n = 100 bobwhites; P = 0.530). Our data suggest that bobwhites do not alter their use of woody cover at the home-range scale in response to increasing raptor abundance, but this does not preclude increased use of woody cover at the point-of-use scale.
Study Area
| Publication type | Article |
|---|---|
| Publication Subtype | Journal Article |
| Title | Raptor abundance and northern bobwhite survival and habitat use |
| Series title | Wildlife Society Bulletin |
| DOI | 10.1002/wsb.476 |
| Volume | 38 |
| Issue | 4 |
| Year Published | 2014 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | Wildlife Society |
| Publisher location | Washington, D.C. |
| Contributing office(s) | Coop Res Unit Atlanta |
| Description | 8 p. |
| First page | 689 |
| Last page | 696 |
| Country | United States |
| State | Texas |
| Other Geospatial | Rio Grande Plains |
| Online Only (Y/N) | N |
| Additional Online Files (Y/N) | N |