Thermal variation poses a problem for nesting birds and can result in reduced offspring growth rates and survival. To increase the thermal stability of the nest, females can adjust nest characteristics and nest attendance in response to changes in environmental conditions. However, it is unclear how and to what extent females modify parental behaviors during various stages of offspring development. We tested the hypothesis that females adjust nest characteristics and brooding patterns in response to thermal variation during the nest-building and nestling stages, respectively. We examined elevational variation in nest location, nest construction, and brooding patterns in the migratory Black-throated Blue Warbler (Setophaga caerulescens) across a 28C gradient at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest, New Hampshire, USA. Density of woody stems at nest sites and nest wall thickness increased from low to high elevation, corresponding to decreasing temperatures, but we found no relationship between weather during nest building and nest characteristics. However, weather during the nestling stage was associated with female brooding patterns: at lower temperatures and with higher rainfall, females spent more time off the nest, which was associated with lower nestling mass near fledging. These results suggest that thermal cues during nest building may be unreliable as predictors of future conditions for developing nestlings and also that females might favor their own self-maintenance and compromise nestling growth under adverse thermal conditions.
Data for ANOVAs of nest characteristics across study plots
Data table for analyses of variance (ANOVAs) examining stem density and nest wall thickness across study plots (Figure 1 of published article). Column headings: Year: year of nest construction; Plot: low, mid, or high elevation study plot; Nest: unique nest identifier; Density: number of woody stems per square m within 1-m radius of nest; Thickness: nest wall thickness in cm. Missing data are indicated by “NA.”
Data were collected from a breeding population of the migratory Black-throated Blue Warbler at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest (HBEF), Woodstock, New Hampshire, USA (43.93N, 71.75W), from 2010-2013.
ANOVAs--DensityAndThickness.csv
Data for ANOVAs of brooding patterns across study plots
Data table for analyses of variance (ANOVAs) examining brooding patterns across study plots (Figure 1 of published article). Column headings: Year: year of nest construction; Plot: low, mid, or high elevation study plot; Nest: unique nest identifier; DayOffboutDuration: mean brooding off-bout duration in s over days 3-5 of the nestling stage; DayOffboutFrequency: brooding off-bout frequency per h over days 3-5 of the nestling stage; DayPercentTimeOff: proportion of time female was off the nest over days 3-5 of the nestling stage.
Data were collected from a breeding population of the migratory Black-throated Blue Warbler at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest (HBEF), Woodstock, New Hampshire, USA (43.93N, 71.75W), from 2010-2013.
ANOVAs--BroodingPatterns.csv
Data for nest characteristics models
Data table for linear mixed models (LMMs) examining whether nest-building temperature and rainfall predicted stem density around the nest or nest wall thickness (Tables 1 & 2 of published article). Column headings: Year: year of nest construction; Plot: low, mid, or high elevation study plot; Female: unique female identifier; Nest: unique nest identifier; Elevation: elevation of nest site in m; Density: number of woody stems per square m within 1-m radius of nest; Thickness: nest wall thickness in cm; BuildingMeanMaxTemp: mean of maximum daily temperatures in degrees C recorded in the 5 days prior to clutch initiation; RainfallDuringBuilding: total rainfall in mm recorded in the 5 days prior to clutch initiation; Fledge: whether nest fledged young (1) or not (0); BuildingStart: date female initiated nest building; JDBuildingStart: Julian date that female initiated nest building.
Data were collected from a breeding population of the migratory Black-throated Blue Warbler at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest (HBEF), Woodstock, New Hampshire, USA (43.93N, 71.75W), from 2010-2013.
NestCharacteristicsModels.csv
Data for brooding patterns models during the early nestling stage
Data table for linear mixed models (LMMs) examining whether nestling-stage temperature and rainfall and nest characteristics predicted brooding patterns over the early nestling stage (Tables 1 & 2 of published article). Column headings: Year: year of nest construction; Plot: low, mid, or high elevation study plot; Female: unique female identifier; Nest: unique nest identifier; Elevation: elevation of nest site in m; DayOffboutDuration: mean brooding off-bout duration in s over days 3-5 of the nestling stage; DayOffboutFrequency: brooding off-bout frequency per h over days 3-5 of the nestling stage; DayPercentTimeOff: proportion of time female was off the nest over days 3-5 of the nestling stage; DayAmbMaxTemp: mean of maximum daily temperatures in degrees C recorded over days 3-5 of the nestling stage; RainfallDuringNestlingStage: total rainfall in mm recorded over days 3-5 of the nestling stage; Density: number of woody stems per square m within 1-m radius of nest; Thickness: nest wall thickness in cm; BroodSize: mean number of nestlings in the nest over days 3-5 of the nestling stage; Fledge: whether nest fledged young (1) or not (0); Hatch: date nestlings hatched; JDHatch: Julian date that nestlings hatched.
Data were collected from a breeding population of the migratory Black-throated Blue Warbler at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest (HBEF), Woodstock, New Hampshire, USA (43.93N, 71.75W), from 2010-2013.
BroodingPatternsModels--NestlingStage.csv
Data for bihourly brooding patterns models
Data table for linear mixed models (LMMs) examining whether nestling-stage temperature and nest characteristics predicted bihourly brooding patterns (Tables 1 & 2 of published article). Column headings: Year: year of nest construction; Plot: low, mid, or high elevation study plot; Female: unique female identifier; Nest: unique nest identifier; Window: identity of 2-h window over which measurements were averaged; Elevation: elevation of nest site in m; MeanOffboutDuration: mean brooding off-bout duration in s over 2-h window; OffboutFrequency: brooding off-bout frequency per h over 2-h window; PercentTimeOff: proportion of time female was off the nest over 2-h window; MeanAmbTemp: mean temperature in degrees C recorded over 2-h window; BroodSize: mean number of nestlings in the nest over days 3-5 of the nestling stage; Fledge: whether nest fledged young (1) or not (0); Hatch: date nestlings hatched; JDHatch: Julian date that nestlings hatched.
Data were collected from a breeding population of the migratory Black-throated Blue Warbler at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest (HBEF), Woodstock, New Hampshire, USA (43.93N, 71.75W), from 2010-2013.
BroodingPatternsModels--Bihourly.csv
Data for nestling mass model with weather and brooding
Data table for linear mixed model (LMM) examining whether nestling-stage temperature and rainfall and brooding patterns predicted nestling mass near fledging (Tables 1 & 2 of published article). Column headings: Year: year of nest construction; Plot: low, mid, or high elevation study plot; Female: unique female identifier; Nest: unique nest identifier; MeanNestlingMass: mean nestling mass in g for nest on day 6 of the nestling stage; DayAmbMaxTemp: mean of maximum daily temperatures in degrees C recorded over days 3-5 of the nestling stage; RainfallDuringNestlingStage: total rainfall in mm recorded over days 3-5 of the nestling stage; DayPercentTimeOff: proportion of time female was off the nest over days 3-5 of the nestling stage; BroodSize: mean number of nestlings in the nest over days 3-5 of the nestling stage; Fledge: whether nest fledged young (1) or not (0); Hatch: date nestlings hatched; JDHatch: Julian date that nestlings hatched.
Data were collected from a breeding population of the migratory Black-throated Blue Warbler at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest (HBEF), Woodstock, New Hampshire, USA (43.93N, 71.75W), from 2010-2013.
NestlingMassModel--WeatherAndBrooding.csv
Data for nestling mass model with nest location and construction
Data table for linear mixed model (LMM) examining whether stem density at the nest site and nest wall thickness predicted nestling mass near fledging (Tables 1 & 2 of published article). Column headings: Year: year of nest construction; Plot: low, mid, or high elevation study plot; Female: unique female identifier; Nest: unique nest identifier; MeanNestlingMass: mean nestling mass in g for nest on day 6 of the nestling stage; Density: number of woody stems per square m within 1-m radius of nest; Thickness: nest wall thickness in cm; BroodSize: mean number of nestlings in the nest over days 3-5 of the nestling stage; Fledge: whether nest fledged young (1) or not (0); Hatch: date nestlings hatched; JDHatch: Julian date that nestlings hatched.
Data were collected from a breeding population of the migratory Black-throated Blue Warbler at the Hubbard Brook Experimental Forest (HBEF), Woodstock, New Hampshire, USA (43.93N, 71.75W), from 2010-2013.
NestlingMassModel--NestLocationAndConstruction.csv