Habitat Selection and Breeding Success in a Forest-nesting Alcid, the Marbled Murrelet, in Two Landscapes with Different Degrees of Forest Fragmentation |
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Authors: | Yuri Zharikov David B Lank Falk Huettmann Russell W Bradley Nadine Parker Peggy P -W Yen Laura A Mcfarlane-Tranquilla Fred Cooke |
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Institution: | (1) Centre for Wildlife Ecology, Department of Biological Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, B.C., V5A 1S6, Canada;(2) School of Integrative Biology, University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, 4072, Australia;(3) Department of Biology and Wildlife, Institute of Arctic Biology, University of Alaska Fairbanks, AK 99775, USA;(4) PRBO Conservation Science, 4990 Shoreline Highway, Stinson Beach, CA 94970, USA;(5) Larkin’s Cottage, 6 Lynn Road, Castle Rising, Norfolk, PE31 6AB, UK |
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Abstract: | We studied habitat selection and breeding success in marked populations of a protected seabird (family Alcidae), the marbled
murrelet (Brachyramphus marmoratus), in a relatively intact and a heavily logged old-growth forest landscape in south-western Canada. Murrelets used old-growth
fragments either proportionately to their size frequency distribution (intact) or they tended to nest in disproportionately
smaller fragments (logged). Multiple regression modelling showed that murrelet distribution could be explained by proximity
of nests to landscape features producing biotic and abiotic edge effects. Streams, steeper slopes and lower elevations were
selected in both landscapes, probably due to good nesting habitat conditions and easier access to nest sites. In the logged
landscape, the murrelets nested closer to recent clearcuts than would be expected. Proximity to the ocean was favoured in
the intact area. The models of habitat selection had satisfactory discriminatory ability in both landscapes. Breeding success
(probability of nest survival to the middle of the chick rearing period), inferred from nest attendance patterns by radio-tagged
parents, was modelled in the logged landscape. Survivorship was greater in areas with recent clearcuts and lower in areas
with much regrowth, i.e. it was positively correlated with recent habitat fragmentation. We conclude that marbled murrelets
can successfully breed in old-growth forests fragmented by logging. |
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Keywords: | Conservation Edge effect Euclidean distance GIS Landscape ecology Old-growth forest Radio-telemetry |
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