Do birds of a feather flock together? Comparing habitat preferences of piscivorous waterbirds in a lowland river catchment
Authors: Wood, K.A. and Stillman, R.A.
Journal: Hydrobiologia
eISSN: 1573-5117
ISSN: 0018-8158
DOI: 10.1007/s10750-014-1921-6
Abstract:Waterbirds can move into and exploit new areas of suitable habitat outside of their native range. One such example is the little egret (Egretta garzetta), a piscivorous bird which has colonised southern Britain within the last 30 years. Yet, habitat use by little egrets within Britain, and how such patterns of habitat exploitation compare with native piscivores, remains unknown. We examine overlap in habitat preferences within a river catchment between the little egret and two native species, the grey heron (Ardea cinerea) and great cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo). All species showed strong preferences for river habitat in all seasons, with other habitat types used as auxiliary feeding areas. Seasonal use of multiple habitat types is consistent with egret habitat use within its native range. We found strong egret preference for aquatic habitats, in particular freshwaters, compared with pasture and arable agricultural habitat. Egrets showed greater shared habitat preferences with herons, the native species to which egrets are most morphologically and functionally similar. This is the first study to quantify little egret habitat preferences outside of its native range. © 2014 Springer International Publishing Switzerland.
https://eprints.bournemouth.ac.uk/21364/
Source: Scopus
Preferred by: Richard Stillman
Do birds of a feather flock together? Comparing habitat preferences of piscivorous waterbirds in a lowland river catchment
Authors: Wood, K.A. and Stillman, R.A.
Journal: HYDROBIOLOGIA
Volume: 738
Issue: 1
Pages: 87-95
eISSN: 1573-5117
ISSN: 0018-8158
DOI: 10.1007/s10750-014-1921-6
https://eprints.bournemouth.ac.uk/21364/
Source: Web of Science (Lite)
Do birds of a feather flock together? Comparing habitat preferences of piscivorous waterbirds in a lowland river catchment
Authors: Wood, K.A. and Stillman, R.A.
Journal: Hydrobiologia
ISSN: 0018-8158
Abstract:Waterbirds can move into and exploit new areas of suitable habitat outside of their native range. One such example is the little egret (Egretta garzetta), a piscivorous bird which has colonised southern Britain within the last 30 years. Yet, habitat use by little egrets within Britain, and how such patterns of habitat exploitation compare with native piscivores, remains unknown. We examine overlap in habitat preferences within a river catchment between the little egret and two native species, the grey heron (Ardea cinerea) and great cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo). All species showed strong preferences for river habitat in all seasons, with other habitat types used as auxiliary feeding areas. Seasonal use of multiple habitat types is consistent with egret habitat use within its native range. We found strong egret preference for aquatic habitats, in particular freshwaters, compared with pasture and arable agricultural habitat. Egrets showed greater shared habitat preferences with herons, the native species to which egrets are most morphologically and functionally similar. This is the first study to quantify little egret habitat preferences outside of its native range.
https://eprints.bournemouth.ac.uk/21364/
Source: BURO EPrints