SummaryHuman activities are altering ecosystems and threatening the well-being of wildlife. The study of the stressful effects of human disturbances on animal distribution, physiology and behaviour can provide fundamental insights for wildlife conservation. Here, we assess how two declining birds, the European Roller Coracias garrulus and the European Scops Owl Otus scops, cope with alteration by human activities in farming habitats of the south of Spain. We studied nest distribution, quantified nestling physiology (corticosterone levels in plasma and feathers and body weight close to fledgling) and parental behaviour (feeding rates) of both species along a human alteration gradient. Rollers and Scops Owls used the same type of habitat and their spatial distribution was not determined by individual quality. In Rollers, nestlings raised in scrubland areas had high stress-induced corticosterone levels, possibly due to high predation risk in this habitat. In addition, Rollers and Scops Owls showed opposite relationships with farming activity and human disturbance. Nestling Rollers showed the highest corticosterone levels in feathers, weight and parental feeding rates in areas with intense farming activity. These results suggest that despite the disturbance produced by farming activities, inducing a higher stress in these areas, cultivated areas may, simultaneously, provide parents with a higher abundance of prey which would trigger increased feeding rates and, hence, higher nestling weights. Furthermore, nestling Scops Owls showed the highest stress-induced corticosterone levels in areas close to roads, suggesting that they would be affected by human disturbance due to infrastructures that disturb also at night when Scops Owls are active. Therefore, susceptibility to human disturbance may vary between species, probably due to variation in the daily pattern of human activities and the species’ activity rhythm, buffering or exacerbating the effects, which should be considered in future studies on human alterations and birds.

中文翻译：

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欧洲鸮和欧亚角鸮对人类干扰的生理压力和行为反应在西班牙南部的农业栖息地不同

摘要人类活动正在改变生态系统并威胁野生动物的福祉。研究人类干扰对动物分布、生理和行为的压力影响可以为野生动物保护提供基本见解。在这里，我们评估了两种衰落的鸟类，欧洲滚子鲫鱼和欧洲角鸮Otus scops,应对人类活动对西班牙南部农业栖息地的改变。我们研究了巢分布、量化的雏鸟生理学（血浆和羽毛中的皮质酮水平以及接近雏鸟的体重）和两个物种沿人类变化梯度的父母行为（摄食率）。Rollers 和 Scops Owls 使用相同类型的栖息地，它们的空间分布不是由个体质量决定的。在罗尔斯，在灌木丛地区饲养的雏鸟具有高压力诱导的皮质酮水平，可能是由于该栖息地的高捕食风险。此外，Rollers 和 Scops Owls 与农业活动和人类干扰表现出相反的关系。在农业活动密集的地区，Nestling Rollers 在羽毛、体重和父母喂养率方面表现出最高的皮质酮水平。这些结果表明，尽管农业活动产生了干扰，在这些地区引起了更高的压力，但耕地可能同时为父母提供更多丰富的猎物，这将引发增加的摄食率，从而增加雏鸟的重量。此外，雏鸟在靠近道路的区域中表现出最高的压力诱导的皮质酮水平，这表明它们会受到人类干扰的影响，因为基础设施也会在夜间活动时受到干扰。因此，对人类干扰的敏感性可能因物种而异，可能是由于人类活动的日常模式和物种的活动节奏的变化，缓冲或加剧了影响，这应该在未来关于人类改变和鸟类的研究中加以考虑。