Title | Winter population dynamics of three species of mast-eating birds in the eastern United States |
Publication Type | Journal Article |
Year of Publication | 1986 |
Authors | Smith, KG |
Journal | The Wilson Bulletin |
Volume | 98 |
Pagination | 407 -418 |
Accession Number | KNZ00127 |
Keywords | bird, population |
Abstract | All three species store and consume mast. Red-headed Woodpecker populations were most variable and Blue Jay populations were more variable than those of Black-capped Chickadees. Year-to- year comparisons show that Red-headed Woodpeckers are relatively nomadic in winter; that Blue Jays make movements between New England and the Mid-Atlantic coast with some regularity; and that Black-capped Chickadees may make relatively short population movements between central and southern New England. Movements of the 3 species were independent of mean January temperatures at the count areas examined. Results presented here are consistent with the hypothesis that increased dependence on mast as a winter food source is correlated with increased variability in winter population dynamics. In particular, the nearly periodic nature of the east-west shift of Red-headed Woodpecker high counts among years is strikingly similar to the periodic pattern of boreal seed-eating birds discovered by Bok asnd Lepthien (1976a) |
DOI |