Linking avian vocal behaviors and resource selection using a novel broadcast transmitter technology
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2019-12
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Abstract
Most studies that explore the environmental factors that influence the distribution and abundance of species do not incorporate social behaviour into their habitat selection models. Resource selection by individuals is multifaceted and can reflect the intensity of space use in an ecosystem. For nine ʻōmaʻo (Myadestes obscurus), a species of thrush endemic to Hawaiʻi island, I combined movement data, habitat structure features collected by an airborne light detection and ranging (lidar) system, and vocalisation data recorded with a novel broadcast transmitter to link where different types of vocalisations (i.e. song, call, whisper song) most frequently occur across the landscape with the underlying habitat features. At the population-level, I found the presence of song was highly variable across a landscape, while the likelihood of calls increased in the open lava matrix and whisper songs were associated with the dense interior areas of the kīpuka (i.e. forest fragments). In contrast, the rate of ʻōmaʻo vocalisations decreased in the open lava matrix, suggesting that ʻōmaʻo may be selecting the matrix for foraging rather than vocalising. For individuals, I found similar patterns for songs and whisper songs, but there was high intra-specific variation. The results revealed context-specific uses of vocalisations across birds’ home ranges as each vocalisation type is associated with different behaviours, including courtship, aggression, and social interactions between individuals. Moreover, the novel methodologies used to document the relationship between behaviour and resource selection can be applied to many taxa across different ecological landscapes.
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Ecology, Biology, Wildlife conservation, bioacoustics, conservation, habitat use, Hawaii, lidar, Myadestes
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54 pages
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