We report detailed information about relatedness and parental investment in a communal nest in the Barn Owl Tyto alba. Two unrelated females laid their eggs in a single nest cup and successfully raised 4 nestlings out of 11 laid eggs. Apparently, the yearling female did not incubate the eggs and only occasionally hunted for the brood, in contrast to the older female which invested more effort in parental

Population estimates of male Western Capercaillies Tetrao urogallus were carried out during the mating season using two methods: counts of singing males and non-invasive genetic analysis. Estimates of male numbers were 50% lower using the singing counts compared to the estimates obtained through genetic analysis, and underestimates were greatest when the number of Capercaillies was lowest.

The orientation of the nest entrances of 464 nests of the Rufous Hornero Furnarius rufus were explored in relation to vegetation cover along an altitudinal gradient in Argentina. There was no correlation between altitude and orientation for covered nests, since they were well protected from direct solar radiation, however, uncovered nests were orientated more towards the north with increasing altitude

Capsule: The introduced Red-billed Leiothrix Leiothrix lutea can greatly expand its range in Italy, with many regions being at high risk of invasion due to their high habitat suitability. Aims: To assess the environmental variables affecting the distribution of the Red-billed Leiothrix during the invasion process, and to predict the potential distribution of the species in Italy. Methods: We retrieved

Capsule: Voles predated by Long-eared Owls Asio otus were more likely to be female and smaller than the voles in the available population. Aims: Our study aimed to estimate the size and sex of prey in the diet of Long-eared Owls and compare them with the size and sex of prey in the field. Methods: The study was carried out in 2016 and 2017 at Moscow Region, Russia. Prey remains were extracted from

Capsule: We used data from different sources, developed and applied several estimation methods, and confronted the resulting estimates with species experts to achieve breeding size population estimates for all bird species currently breeding in Switzerland. Aims: Population size estimates of birds have a wide range of practical conservation uses. As part of the Swiss Breeding Bird Atlas 2013–2016,

ABSTRACT Capsule: We developed a protocol for efficient monitoring of potential Common Swift Apus apus nest sites which considers variation in nest visit frequency across the breeding season and in relation to time of day and weather. Aims: To investigate patterns of nest visit frequency in Common Swifts in order to improve the efficiency and reliability of the monitoring of nest sites threatened by

Capsule: Wintering Water Rails Rallus aquaticus prefer small and narrow rivers, with large patches of wet emergent vegetation, and showed active response to playback, especially when they occurred in pairs. Aims: To investigate the habitat preferences and behaviour of Water Rails wintering in riverine ecosystems in eastern Poland. Methods: The study assessed factors driving the occurrence of Water

Capsule There were no statistically significant differences in digit ratio between male and female chicks of the White Stork Ciconia ciconia. Aims To test the hypothesis that the ratio of digit lengths was related to sex in White Stork nestlings, and to explore the relationship between digit ratio and other biometrics. Methods We examined 101 White Stork chicks from a breeding population in western

Capsule Black Grouse Lyrurus tetrix in southern Scotland are in severe decline, with remaining birds associated with large contiguous patches of moorland. Aims To inform Black Grouse conservation programmes in southern Scotland we quantified recent trends in numbers, assessed habitat composition within lek ranges and evaluated the size of suitable habitat patches. Methods We explored trends in numbers

Capsule: A ten-year study of the causes of mortality in birds brought to a wildlife rehabilitation centre in Portugal, reveals that most deaths were due to trauma. Aims: This study aims to identify the main causes of morbidity and mortality in wild birds admitted to a wildlife rehabilitation centre in Northern Portugal, from 2008 to 2017. Methods: A total of 6058 records of admittance and necropsy

Capsule Within the UK’s largest lowland Eurasian Curlew Numenius arquata population, curlew preferentially nested on physically disturbed (treated) than undisturbed (control) grassland, and low nest survival rates were primarily attributable to predation by Red Fox Vulpes vulpes. Aims To inform conservation interventions for Curlew within semi-natural lowland dry-grassland landscapes. Methods Across

(2019). Anthropogenic pressures within the breeding range of the Hen Harrier Circus cyaneus in Ireland. Bird Study: Vol. 66, No. 4, pp. 461-470.

Capsule: Nest site selection of Black-bellied Sandgrouse Pterocles orientalis in an Algerian arid environment is dictated by a combination of topography, human presence, landscape and space. Aims: To disentangle the drivers affecting Black-bellied Sandgrouse nest habitat use in an Algerian arid environment. Methods: We used data on a series of topographic, anthropogenic, landscape and space variables

Capsule: In comparison to other regions, the Common Snipe Gallinago gallinago in the Azores starts to display earlier and for a longer part of the year, but the laying period, although it starts earlier, does not seem to differ much from that observed elsewhere. Nesting success seems similar to that observed in other populations. Aims: This study aimed to infer the breeding phenology, characterize

(2019). Offshore refuges support higher densities and show slower population declines of wintering Ruddy Turnstones Arenaria interpres. Bird Study: Vol. 66, No. 4, pp. 431-440.

Pellets of indigestible material regurgitated by Herring Gulls Larus argentatus breeding on Lady Isle, Firth of Clyde, Scotland, were collected in 2018 and 2019 and examined for earthworm chaetae. Nearly two-thirds (65.6%) of the 314 pellets came from gulls that had consumed one or more earthworms. Significantly fewer pellets (57.6%) contained chaetae in 2018, a relatively dry May to July, than in

Capsule: Black-tailed Godwits Limosa limosa show sexual size dimorphism and size differences between the subspecies. The shape varies slightly between the subspecies, but not between the sexes. Aims: To investigate whether and how the three subspecies of Black-tailed Godwits, and the sexes of these subspecies, differ in size and shape. Methods: We collected body dimensions (lengths of the bill, total

Capsule: Scottish-breeding Greenshanks Tringa nebularia migrate largely to Ireland. Aims: To describe the migration timings and determine the non-breeding areas (staging and wintering areas) of Scottish-breeding Greenshanks. Methods: Breeding adult Greenshanks were marked with geolocators and/or unique permutations of colour-rings in Sutherland, northern Scotland. Sightings of the colour-ringed birds

Capsule: The movements and spatial ecology of non-breeding Eurasian Griffon Vultures Gyps fulvus in northern Italy, Croatia and Austria do not seem to be affected by feeding station use. Aims: The purpose of this study was to assess how the creation of a feeding station at the Riserva Naturale Regionale del Lago di Cornino (Forgaria nel Friuli, northeast Italy) during the 1980s might have affected

We report nine cases of brood parasitism in the endangered Jankowski’s Bunting Emberiza jankowskii by cuckoos in Inner Mongolia Province, China in 2018 and 2019. DNA-based and morphological evidence suggested that five chicks and four eggs of brood parasites were all Common Cuckoo Cuculus canorus, for which the Jankowski’s Bunting is a regular host.

Capsule: Differences in parental investment between sexes and stage of the breeding period were found in Bonelli’s Eagles Aquila fasciata. Aims: To describe the sexual differences in parental behaviour of Bonelli’s Eagles and to assess the sex-specific pattern of variation in parental investment in relation to the breeding period. Methods: Between 2006 and 2016, we monitored the parental behaviour

Capsule: Parent body colouration and nesting habitat may influence nest predation risk and, therefore, influence parental decisions on offspring care. Aims: To investigate the adaptiveness of bird colouration under two different habitat and light conditions. Methods: We used painted polyurethane dummies to simulate parental presence near nests, where some dummies were red, and others were cryptic brown

Capsule: A combination of several biometric measures enables the reliable sexing of the European Bee-eater Merops apiaster, a species with subtle sex differences in plumage and morphometry. Aims: To explore variation in biometrics and their suitability to discriminate sex in adult European Bee-eaters Merops apiaster. Methods: We sampled populations of a long-distance migratory species with low sexual

Capsule: Different methods of comparing bill morphology between woodpecker species show different, but not contradictory results. Aims: Differences among similar, closely related species which co-occur are still highly debated. In such a scenario, species should diverge morphologically to reduce competition. We studied this phenomenon, in three closely related woodpecker species that co-occur in eastern