10.5061/DRYAD.7SQV9S4PK
Gonzalez, Ana M.
0000-0002-9291-5560
University of Saskatchewan
Wilson, Scott
Environment Canada
Bayly, Nicholas J.
0000-0001-9326-1936
Asociación para la Conservación de la Cuenca Amazónica
Hobson, Keith A.
0000-0002-2525-1178
Environment Canada
Contrasting the suitability of shade coffee agriculture and native forest
as overwinter habitat for Canada Warbler (Cardellina canadensis) in the
Colombian Andes.
Dryad
dataset
2020
2020-08-20T00:00:00Z
2020-08-20T00:00:00Z
en
60716 bytes
3
CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication
In the Neotropics, coffee production occurs on a large scale in some of
the planet’s most biodiverse regions: tropical mountains. Coffee
production systems involving shade trees are considered to have a lower
impact on biodiversity than alternative sun coffee. To date, the majority
of evidence for the value of shade coffee plantations has not taken into
account the relative quality of this habitat compared to the native
forests they replaced. We determined the suitability of shade coffee and
forest as winter habitat for Canada Warbler (Cardellina canadensis) by
comparing variation in the likelihood of capturing individuals, seasonal
changes in body condition, and estimates of annual survival between the
two habitats. We also determined the effect of the strong 2015-2016 El
Niño event on survival. Males were relatively more likely to be captured
in forest than females and this likelihood increased during drier years.
Body condition change over the winter and apparent annual survival were
very similar for individuals that used forest and coffee. However,
condition and survival decreased in both habitats during the El Niño year.
Apparent survival was also lower for individuals carrying a radiotag or
geolocator. Our findings suggest that shade coffee with high canopy cover
and height offers similar benefits to forest in terms of body condition
and survival. Landscape conservation approaches, promoting diverse
matrices of structurally complex shade coffee and forest might best ensure
long-term survival in Neotropical migrants like Canada Warbler.
Data were collected from December to March over five field seasons
(2013-2014, 2014-2015, 2015-2016, 2016-2017, and 2017-2018) in three
study sites located on the western slope of the Eastern Andes in Colombia:
“Hacienda La Fragua” (shade coffee 1400 m asl, forest 1500 m asl), “Los
Vientos” (shade coffee and forest 1350 m asl); and “La Vuelta” (shade
coffee 1400, forest 1700 m asl). We carried out constant-effort mist
netting at fixed banding stations from 1 December to 30 March during eight
days a month in each habitat. Weather permitting, 12-15 mist nets (30 mm
mesh) were operated from 06:00 to 11:00 h and from 15:00 to 17:30 h. All
captured birds were fitted with a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service numbered
aluminium band and processed and released at the capture site. We
determined age and sex, and recorded body mass (±0.1 g, using an
electronic balance) for each bird at first capture and for all birds
recaptured.