Radio-transmitters have no impact on survival of pre-fledged American Woodcocks

Journal of Field Ornithology
By: , and 

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Abstract

American Woodcocks (Scolopax minor) are a high priority species of conservation need across most of their breeding range due to long-term population declines. Survival of juveniles may be key to understanding these population declines, but there have been few direct estimates of juvenile woodcock survival rates, and no recent assessment of the possible effect of radio-tagging on juvenile survival. In 2011 and 2012, we radio-tagged 73 juvenile American Woodcocks in west-central Minnesota and compared survival rates of radio-tagged (N = 58) and non-radio-tagged (N = 82) juveniles during the period from hatching to fledging. We compared survival rates of juveniles with known fates and used logistic-exposure models to assess the potential impact of radio-transmitters on survival. We evaluated variables related to juvenile survival including age, hatch date, maximum and minimum temperature, precipitation, and year to assess the possible effects of radio-transmitters. The best-supported model of survival rate of juvenile American Woodcocks included the interaction of age and year and a negative effect of precipitation (β = −0.76, 85% CI: −1.08 to −0.43), but did not include a negative effect of transmitters. Our results suggest that radio-transmitters did not impact survival of juvenile American Woodcocks and that transmitters are a reliable tool for studying survival of juvenile American Woodcocks, and perhaps other precocial shorebirds.

Publication type Article
Publication Subtype Journal Article
Title Radio-transmitters have no impact on survival of pre-fledged American Woodcocks
Series title Journal of Field Ornithology
DOI 10.1656/058.012.0107
Volume 86
Issue 4
Year Published 2015
Language English
Publisher Wiley
Contributing office(s) Coop Res Unit Leetown
Description 7 p.
First page 345
Last page 351
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