Spatial behaviour and food choice of the Garden Warbler Sylvia borin during its non-breeding season
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Date
2017
Authors
Iwajomo, Soladoye B.
Ottosson, Ulf
Thorup, Kasper
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Ostrich
Abstract
Information regarding the spatial behaviour of migratory bird species on their wintering ground is important in
understanding the factors that can influence breeding success and population size. The Garden Warbler Sylvia
borin is a migratory species that has been well studied in West Africa. However, information regarding its spatial
behaviour during the non-breeding season in sub-Saharan Africa is still limited. Consequently, we investigated
the 50% and 95% kernel density home-range size and overlap as well as food choice of 10 radio-tracked Garden
Warblers at Amurum, central Nigeria and Obudu, south-eastern Nigeria. Home-range overlap was estimated using
the kernelUD function within the package adehabitat in R. The mean home-range was 7.0 ha and 3.3 ha at Amurum
and Obudu, respectively, whereas the core of the home-range was on average 1.5 ha and 0.7 ha, respectively. Mean
home-ranges were larger than the average territory of individuals on the temperate breeding grounds. Home-range
overlap ranged between 19% and 57% at Amurum and 39% and 71% at Obudu, suggesting that Garden Warblers are
not territorial during the non-breeding season in Nigeria. The diet of the Garden Warblers at both sites comprised of
berries and insects and several individuals were often observed foraging together.
Description
Keywords
diet, Garden Warbler, home-range, home range overlap, kernel density, spatial behaviour, utilisation distribution
Citation
Soladoye B Iwajomo, Ulf Ottosson & Kasper Thorup (2017) Spatial behaviour and food choice of the Garden Warbler Sylvia borin during the non-breeding season, Ostrich, 88:1, 19-25, DOI: 10.2989/00306525.2016.1221477