LE3 .A278 2013

2013

Taylor, Phil

Acadia University

Bachelor of Science

Honours

Biology

Biology

The importance of non-coastal habitats for migratory passerines is poorly understood. Counts of birds on the ground are frequently used to measure habitat use by migrating birds but this is time-consuming. The objective of this study was to develop a method to assess the use of habitat by migratory passerines during stopover. I used marine radar to sample the airspace above a site in the Gaspereau Valley with a variety of different underlying habitats. From data collected between September and November 2011 I extracted data from four nights with intense migration. From each night I then further extracted 20 minute time periods corresponding to times when passerines were likely arriving and departing: immediately before and after sunrise, immediately before and after sunset, and 80 minutes after sunrise. 20 minutes post civil dawn and 20 minutes post civil twilight had the most intense activity and parameter estimates of fitted models show that houses and hedgerows were associated with the highest bird densities. I then selected the lowest altitude targets from multiple detections of individuals and showed that the relationship between these targets and habitat varied depending on the time period. Using radar for assessing habitat use by migratory passerines shows promise for land managers to remotely assess site importance.

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https://scholar.acadiau.ca/islandora/object/theses:1047