Vocalization activity of breeding shorebirds: documentation of its seasonal decline and applications for breeding bird surveys

We documented vocalization activity of breeding shorebirds at two sites in northern and western Alaska, on the Colville River Delta and on the Yukon – Kuskokwim Delta. At both sites, number of calling individuals decreased throughout the season. Variation in vocalization activity was significantly h...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Canadian Journal of Zoology
Main Authors: Nebel, Silke, McCaffery, Brian J
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Canadian Science Publishing 2003
Subjects:
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1139/z03-171
http://www.nrcresearchpress.com/doi/pdf/10.1139/z03-171
Description
Summary:We documented vocalization activity of breeding shorebirds at two sites in northern and western Alaska, on the Colville River Delta and on the Yukon – Kuskokwim Delta. At both sites, number of calling individuals decreased throughout the season. Variation in vocalization activity was significantly higher at the Colville River Delta towards the end of the season, while weather variables affected vocalization activity only on the Yukon – Kuskokwim Delta. Our results highlight the importance of timing, weather, and site-specific attributes on number of birds detected. We discuss our findings in the context of different methods to monitor breeding shorebirds.