13. Host Selection in the Forest Interior: Cowbirds Target Ground-nesting Species

Chapters in this book

1. Frontmatter i
2. Contents v
3. Foreword vii
4. General Introduction 1
5. Part I. Population Trends of Cowbirds and Hosts and Relevant Methodology
6. 1. Introduction 13
7. 2. Temporal and Geographic Patterns in Population Trends of Brown-headed Cowbirds 21
8. 3. Cowbird Population Changes and Their Relationship to Changes in Some Host Species 35
9. 4. The Spread of Shiny and Brown-headed Cowbirds into the Florida Region 47
10. 5. Brown-headed Cowbird Population Trends at a Large Winter Roost in Southwest Louisiana, 1974-1992 58
11. 6. An Evaluation of Point Counts and Playbacks as Techniques for Censusing Brown-headed Cowbirds 63
12. 7. The Structure and Function of Cowbird Vocalizations and the Use of Playbacks to Enhance Cowbird Detectability: Relations to Potential Censusing Biases 69
13. Part II. Cowbird Spacing Behavior, Host Selection, and Negative Consequences of Parasitism for Commonly Used Hosts
14. 8. Introduction 83
15. 9. Spatial Patterns of Breeding Female Brown-headed Cowbirds on an Illinois Site 87
16. 10. Differences in Movements, Home Range, and Habitat Preferences of Female Brown-headed Cowbirds in Three Midwestern Landscapes 100
17. 11. The Effects of Host Numbers on Cowbird Parasitism of Red-winged Blackbirds 110
18. 12. Cowbird Brood Parasitism on a Little-Used Host: The Yellow-headed Blackbird 115
19. 13. Host Selection in the Forest Interior: Cowbirds Target Ground-nesting Species 120
20. 14. Reproductive Interactions between and Plumbeous vireos in Colorado 128
21. 15. Effects of Multiple Parasitism on Cowbird and Wood Thrush Nesting Success 135
22. 16. Comparing the Relative Effects of Brood Parasitism and Nest Predation on Seasonal Fecundity in Passerine Birds 145
23. Part III. Host-Cowbird Behavioral Interactions
24. 17. Introduction 159
25. 18. Morning Nest Arrivals in Cowbird Hosts: Their Role in Aggression, Cowbird Recognition, and Host Response to Parasitism 161
26. 19. Yellow Warbler Nest Attentiveness before Sunrise: Antiparasite Strategy or Onset of Incubation? 169
27. 20. The Ecology of Egg-puncture Behavior by the Shiny Cowbird in Southwestern Puerto Rico 178
28. 21. Why Do Female Brown-headed Cowbirds Remove Host Eggs? A Test of the Incubation Efficiency Hypothesis 187
29. Part IV. Environmental Correlates of Cowbird Parasitism at Multiple Spatial Scales
30. 22. Introduction 195
31. 23. The Role of Vegetation in Cowbird Parasitism of Yellow Warblers 200
32. 24. Association of Cowbird Parasitism and Vegetative Cover in Territories of Southwestern Willow Flycatchers 204
33. 25. Interhabitat Differences in Parasitism Frequencies by Brown-headed Cowbirds in the Okanagan Valley, British Columbia 210
34. 26. Cowbird Parasitism and Nest Predation in Fragmented Grasslands of Southwestern Manitoba 220
35. 27. Cowbird Parasitism in Grassland and Cropland in the Northern Great Plains 229
36. 28. Distribution and Habitat Associations of Brown-headed Cowbirds in the Green Mountains of Vermont 236
37. 29. Impacts of Cowbird Parasitism on Wood Thrushes and Other Neotropical Migrants in Suburban Maryland Forests 244
38. 30. Cowbird Distribution at Different Scales of Fragmentation: Trade-offs between Breeding and Feeding Opportunities 255
39. 31. Brown-headed Cowbird Parasitism of Migratory Birds: Effects of Forest Area and Surrounding Landscape 265
40. 32. Biogeographic, Landscape, and Local Factors Affecting Cowbird Abundance and Host Parasitism Levels 271
41. 33. Cowbird Parasitism in a Fragmented Landscape: Effects of Tract Size, Habitat, and Abundance of Cowbirds and Hosts 280
42. 34. Within-landscape Variation in Patterns of Cowbird Parasitism in the Forests of South-central Indiana 298
43. 35. Effects of Land-use and Management Practices on the Presence of Brown-headed Cowbirds in the White Mountains of New Hampshire and Maine 311
44. Part V. Cowbird Management, Host Population Limitation, and Efforts to Save Endangered Species
45. 36. Introduction 323
46. 37. Brown-headed Cowbird Control on Kirtland's Warbler Nesting Areas in Michigan, 1972-1995 333
47. 38. Cowbird Control and the Endangered Least Bell's Vireo: A Management Success Story 342
48. 39. Cowbird Control Program at Fort Hood, Texas: Lessons for Mitigation of Cowbird Parasitism on a Landscape Scale 357
49. 40. Results of a Brown-headed Cowbird Control Program for the Southwestern Willow Flycatcher 371
50. Contributors 379
51. Index 381