Potential misuse of avian density as a conservation metric

Product Type: Journal Article

Year: 2011

Author(s): Skagen, S.K. and A.A. Yackel Adams

Suggested Citation:
Skagen, S.K. and A.A. Yackel Adams. 2011. Potential misuse of avian density as a conservation metric. Conservation Biology 25(1): 48-55.

Abstract

Effective conservation metrics are needed to evaluate the success of management in a rapidly changing world. Reproductive rates and densities of breeding birds (as a surrogate for reproductive rate) have been used to indicate the quality of avian breeding habitat, but the underlying assumptions of these metrics rarely have been examined. When birds are attracted to breeding areas in part by the presence of conspecifics and when breeding in groups influences predation rates, the effectiveness of density and reproductive rate as indicators of habitat quality is reduced. It is beneficial to clearly distinguish between individual- and population-level processes when evaluating habitat quality...