Nest-site selection by sage thrashers in southeastern Idaho. [Oreoscoptes montanus]
- Monmouth College, IL (United States)
- Iowa State Univ., Ames (United States)
Nest sites selected by Sage Thrashers (Oreoscoptes montanus) were characterized and compared with available habitat. The study area, consisting of 25 ha of sagebrush shrubsteppe on the upper Snake River plain 11 km south of Howe, Idaho, is administered by the U.S. Department of Energy as part of the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory (INEL). Microhabitats within 5 m of nests had taller and more aggregated shrubs and less bare ground than the study area in general. Big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata wyomingensis) plants used for nesting were taller than average available shrubs, had greater foliage density, were more often living, and more frequently had branches and foliage within 30 cm of the ground. Nest placement was specific with respect to relative nest height and distance from the top and perimeter of the support shrub. Sage Thrashers disproportionately used easterly exposures and underused westerly exposures for their nests.
- OSTI ID:
- 6918146
- Journal Information:
- Great Basin Naturalist; (United States), Vol. 51:3; ISSN 0017-3614
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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