Avian conservation practices strengthen ecosystem services in California vineyards.
Insectivorous Western Bluebirds (Sialia mexicana) occupy vineyard nest boxes established by California winegrape growers who want to encourage avian conservation. Experimentally, the provision of available nest sites serves as an alternative to exclosure methods for isolating the potential ecosystem...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Public Library of Science (PLoS)
2011-01-01
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| Series: | PLoS ONE |
| Online Access: | http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC3212556?pdf=render |
| _version_ | 1818136446077239296 |
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| author | Julie A Jedlicka Russell Greenberg Deborah K Letourneau |
| author_facet | Julie A Jedlicka Russell Greenberg Deborah K Letourneau |
| author_sort | Julie A Jedlicka |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Insectivorous Western Bluebirds (Sialia mexicana) occupy vineyard nest boxes established by California winegrape growers who want to encourage avian conservation. Experimentally, the provision of available nest sites serves as an alternative to exclosure methods for isolating the potential ecosystem services provided by foraging birds. We compared the abundance and species richness of avian foragers and removal rates of sentinel prey in treatments with songbird nest boxes and controls without nest boxes. The average species richness of avian insectivores increased by over 50 percent compared to controls. Insectivorous bird density nearly quadrupled, primarily due to a tenfold increase in Western Bluebird abundance. In contrast, there was no significant difference in the abundance of omnivorous or granivorous bird species some of which opportunistically forage on grapes. In a sentinel prey experiment, 2.4 times more live beet armyworms (Spodoptera exigua) were removed in the nest box treatment than in the control. As an estimate of the maximum foraging services provided by insectivorous birds, we found that larval removal rates measured immediately below occupied boxes averaged 3.5 times greater than in the control. Consequently the presence of Western Bluebirds in vineyard nest boxes strengthened ecosystem services to winegrape growers, illustrating a benefit of agroecological conservation practices. Predator addition and sentinel prey experiments lack some disadvantages of predator exclusion experiments and were robust methodologies for detecting ecosystem services. |
| first_indexed | 2024-12-11T09:40:32Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-f72296a9a8b5455aa794f79d93ed2371 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 1932-6203 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-12-11T09:40:32Z |
| publishDate | 2011-01-01 |
| publisher | Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
| record_format | Article |
| series | PLoS ONE |
| spelling | doaj.art-f72296a9a8b5455aa794f79d93ed23712022-12-22T01:12:41ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032011-01-01611e2734710.1371/journal.pone.0027347Avian conservation practices strengthen ecosystem services in California vineyards.Julie A JedlickaRussell GreenbergDeborah K LetourneauInsectivorous Western Bluebirds (Sialia mexicana) occupy vineyard nest boxes established by California winegrape growers who want to encourage avian conservation. Experimentally, the provision of available nest sites serves as an alternative to exclosure methods for isolating the potential ecosystem services provided by foraging birds. We compared the abundance and species richness of avian foragers and removal rates of sentinel prey in treatments with songbird nest boxes and controls without nest boxes. The average species richness of avian insectivores increased by over 50 percent compared to controls. Insectivorous bird density nearly quadrupled, primarily due to a tenfold increase in Western Bluebird abundance. In contrast, there was no significant difference in the abundance of omnivorous or granivorous bird species some of which opportunistically forage on grapes. In a sentinel prey experiment, 2.4 times more live beet armyworms (Spodoptera exigua) were removed in the nest box treatment than in the control. As an estimate of the maximum foraging services provided by insectivorous birds, we found that larval removal rates measured immediately below occupied boxes averaged 3.5 times greater than in the control. Consequently the presence of Western Bluebirds in vineyard nest boxes strengthened ecosystem services to winegrape growers, illustrating a benefit of agroecological conservation practices. Predator addition and sentinel prey experiments lack some disadvantages of predator exclusion experiments and were robust methodologies for detecting ecosystem services.http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC3212556?pdf=render |
| spellingShingle | Julie A Jedlicka Russell Greenberg Deborah K Letourneau Avian conservation practices strengthen ecosystem services in California vineyards. PLoS ONE |
| title | Avian conservation practices strengthen ecosystem services in California vineyards. |
| title_full | Avian conservation practices strengthen ecosystem services in California vineyards. |
| title_fullStr | Avian conservation practices strengthen ecosystem services in California vineyards. |
| title_full_unstemmed | Avian conservation practices strengthen ecosystem services in California vineyards. |
| title_short | Avian conservation practices strengthen ecosystem services in California vineyards. |
| title_sort | avian conservation practices strengthen ecosystem services in california vineyards |
| url | http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC3212556?pdf=render |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT julieajedlicka avianconservationpracticesstrengthenecosystemservicesincaliforniavineyards AT russellgreenberg avianconservationpracticesstrengthenecosystemservicesincaliforniavineyards AT deborahkletourneau avianconservationpracticesstrengthenecosystemservicesincaliforniavineyards |