Unattended nests in French bearded vultures

A 2006 article in Biological Conservation by Beatriz Arroyo and Martine Razin showed that the frequency and distance of human activities such as helicopters, hiking, and hunting influence nesting behaviors in French Pyrannes bearded vultures (Gypaetus barbatus). These activities cause birds to leave the nest which can prove fatal for the developing embryo or young chic during critical periods of incubation or brooding. Given that the these threatened birds already have lower fledgling success than their cousins in the Alps, understanding the role of disturbance is important since competition with other raptors, weather, and food availability are also challenges facing the species.

Arroyo, B. and M. Razin. 2006. Effect of human activities in bearded vulture behavior and breeding success in the French Pyranees. Biological Conservation, 128, 276-284. Find pdf here.

Project records birdsong across landscape

A 2008 article in WIRED Magazine, A listening party for nature covers a new project by Michigan researcher Stuart Gaged to recourd birdsong across a landscape to learn more about biodiversity, interspecies birdsong timing, habitat disturbance, and communications issues. To learn more about Gage's work and hear some of the landscape recourdings, go to the Remote Environmental Assesment Laboratory (REAL).

Image: proposed sensor grid in the Muskegon River watershed, courtesy of Stuart Gage, via WIRED

Article - Wood & Yezerinac, 2006

Wood, W. E. & S. M. Yezerinac. 2006. Song Sparrow (Melospiza melodia) song varies with urban noise. The Auk, 123, 650-659.

Bibliography - Light

Witherington, B. E. and K. A Bjorndal. 1991. Influences of artificial lighting on the seaward orientation of hatchling logger head turtles (Caretta caretta). Biological Conservation, 55, 139-149.

Article - Witherington & Bjorndal, 1991

Witherington, B. E. and K. A Bjorndal. 1991. Influences of artificial lighting on the seaward orientation of hatchling logger head turtles (Caretta caretta). Biological Conservation, 55, 139-149.

Article - Miller, 2006

Miller, M. W. 2006. Apparent effects of light pollution on singing behavior of American robins. Condor 108, 130-139.

Article - Ditchkoff et al., 2006

Ditchkoff, S. S, S. T. Saalfeld, C.J. Gibson. 2006. Animal behavior in urban ecosystems: modifications due to human-induced stress. Urban Ecosystems 9, 5-12.

Article - Mrosovsky et al., 1995

Mrosovsky, N., C. Lavin, and M.H. Godfrey. 1995. Thermal effects of condominiums on a turtle beach in Florida. Conservation Biology 74, 151-156.