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Choices and Consequences of Habitat Occupancy and Nest Site Selection in Sage Sparrows

2000; Wiley; Volume: 81; Issue: 10 Linguagem: Inglês

10.2307/177349

1939-9170

Michael D. Misenhelter, John T. Rotenberry,

Turfgrass Adaptation and Management

EcologyVolume 81, Issue 10 p. 2892-2901 Article CHOICES AND CONSEQUENCES OF HABITAT OCCUPANCY AND NEST SITE SELECTION IN SAGE SPARROWS Michael D. Misenhelter, Michael D. Misenhelter Department of Biology, University of California, Riverside, California 92521 USASearch for more papers by this authorJohn T. Rotenberry, John T. Rotenberry Department of Biology, University of California, Riverside, California 92521 USA Center for Conservation Biology, University of California, Riverside, California 92521 USA Author to whom correspondence should be addressed, at Department of Biology, University of California, Riverside, California 92521 USA. E-mail: [email protected]Search for more papers by this author Michael D. Misenhelter, Michael D. Misenhelter Department of Biology, University of California, Riverside, California 92521 USASearch for more papers by this authorJohn T. Rotenberry, John T. Rotenberry Department of Biology, University of California, Riverside, California 92521 USA Center for Conservation Biology, University of California, Riverside, California 92521 USA Author to whom correspondence should be addressed, at Department of Biology, University of California, Riverside, California 92521 USA. E-mail: [email protected]Search for more papers by this author First published: 01 October 2000 https://doi.org/10.1890/0012-9658(2000)081[2892:CACOHO]2.0.CO;2Citations: 123 Read the full textAboutPDF ToolsRequest permissionExport citationAdd to favoritesTrack citation ShareShare Give accessShare full text accessShare full-text accessPlease review our Terms and Conditions of Use and check box below to share full-text version of article.I have read and accept the Wiley Online Library Terms and Conditions of UseShareable LinkUse the link below to share a full-text version of this article with your friends and colleagues. Learn more.Copy URL Share a linkShare onEmailFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditWechat Abstract If habitat selection is adaptive, habitat choice by individuals should be directly associated with reproductive success. With that expectation in mind, we examined consequences of habitat choice in Sage Sparrows (Amphispiza belli) in southern California. Habitat selection in Sage Sparrows was pronounced, with vegetation measurements within territories differing significantly from those of interspersed unoccupied areas. Likewise, sites where sparrows placed their nests were significantly different from random sites within territories. Both successful territories (those containing a nest that fledged at least one young) and successful nest sites differed significantly in habitat from those that were unsuccessful. However, there was an inverse relationship between choice and its consequences; the mean score of unsuccessful territories on a discriminant function describing the habitat gradient from unoccupied to occupied areas (i.e., choice) was significantly higher than the mean for successful ones. In other words, birds preferred to settle in areas in which they did worse. Thus, attractiveness of habitat has become inversely related to its suitability, and the study site now serves as an "ecological trap." Because predation accounted for 80–90% of nest loss, we speculate that decoupling of habitat attractiveness from suitability has been produced by redistribution of predators (mainly snakes) due to anthropogenic landscape-level changes in the region. Literature Cited Barton, N. H., and M. C. Whitlock . 1997. The evolution of metapopulations. Pages 183–210 in I. A. Hanski and M. E. Gilpin, editors. Metapopulation biology. Academic Press, San Diego, California, USA. Google Scholar Best, L. 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