Mist Netting Birds

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Mist Netting Birds
Population size and characteristics of birds mist
netted during the winter field ecology course in
Mekrijärvi, Feb. 2004
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Materials and Methods

• 6 x 2 m nets stretched 0.5m from the ground
  between two trees next to feeding site

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Captured birds were ringed and their species,
age, wing length, sex, weight, and fat index were
recorded.
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Results
Total bird captures, 2004
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(No Transcript)
6
Parus montanus
Parus major
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Dominant Captured Species
Pyrrhula pyrrhula
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Parus major
9
Parus montanus
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Conclusion and Discussion

• During the winter birds are faced with added
  stresses
• The cold temperatures require higher energy
  output and low food resources make foraging
  difficult

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• A solution is winter fattening eating heavily
  throughout the day to provide energy through the
  night.
• The lower fat indexes in the morning show
  depleted energy stores, which are replaced by the
  afternoon

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• While increased fat stores provide needed
  energy, increased weight makes birds more
  vulnerable to predation during flight and the
  amount of time spent exposed, searching for food.