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Water depth influences survival and predator-specific patterns of nest loss in three secretive marsh bird species

Cite this dataset

Schmidt, Stephanie M.; Fournier, Auriel M. V.; Osborn, Joshua M.; Benson, Thomas J. (2024). Water depth influences survival and predator-specific patterns of nest loss in three secretive marsh bird species [Dataset]. Dryad. https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.0zpc8673j

Abstract

Wetlands have become increasingly rare in the United States, negatively influencing wetland-dependent birds, and many remaining wetlands are intensively managed through seasonal dewatering mimicking historic flood pulses during spring and summer. However, water around nests may provide protection from terrestrial predators, and lowering water levels during the breeding season of wetland birds may increase predation risk and exacerbate marsh bird population declines. Understanding interactions between water depth, nesting marsh birds, and nest predators is critical to aid managers in developing a multi-species management approach in emergent wetlands. During the 2020 and 2021 breeding seasons, we examined nest survival of 148 marsh bird nests (American Coot, Fulica americanan = 1; Common Gallinule, Gallinula galeatan = 64; and Least Bittern; Ixobrychus exilisn = 83) and installed cameras at 78 nests to identify predators at a large, restored floodplain wetland in Illinois where the primary management technique is seasonal water removal to stimulate germination of moist soil plants. We found nest predation of, and abandonment by, Least Bittern and Common Gallinule were related to shallower water, and early season, high volume dewatering. Least Bitterns nested more commonly along wetland edges and nests farther from the shore were more likely to survive. Similarly, we found mammalian depredation of nests and nest abandonment decreased when deeper water was present around nests. Alternatively, snake predation was observed earlier in the year prior to water removal from inundated emergent vegetation. Our results demonstrate water depth may be an important deterrent of nest predators, especially mammals, during the breeding season. Further, we recommend managers delay dewatering until after the nesting season at sites where management for conservation-priority marsh birds is a focus.

README

This README file was generated on 2024-01-06 by Stephanie M Schmidt.
[Access this dataset on Dryad] (https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.0zpc8673j)

GENERAL INFORMATION

  1. Title: WETLAND DEWATERING INFLUENCES PREDATOR-SPECIFIC PATTERNS OF NEST LOSS IN THREE SECRETIVE MARSH BIRD SPECIES

  2. Author Information:
    Principal Investigator Contact Information
    Name: Stephanie M Schmidt
    Institution: University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
    Address: Champaign, IL, USA
    Email: schmiste001@gmail.com

  3. Date of data collection (single date, range, approximate date): 2020-2021

  4. Geographic location of data collection: Emiquon Preserve, Havana, Illinois, USA

  5. Information about funding sources that supported the collection of the data:
    Illinois Department of Natural Resources (Award: T-122-R)
    United States Fish and Wildlife Service
    Illinois Ornithological Society
    American Ornithological Society

SHARING/ACCESS INFORMATION

  1. Licenses/restrictions placed on the data: CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain

  2. Links to publications that cite or use the data:
    Schmidt SM, Fournier AMV, Osborn JM, Benson TJ. Water depth influences survival and predator-specific patterns of nest loss in three secretive marsh bird species.
    Ecol Evol. 2023 Dec 11;13(12):e10823. doi: 10.1002/ece3.10823. PMID: 38089901; PMCID: PMC10714062.

  3. Links to other publicly accessible locations of the data: None

  4. Links/relationships to ancillary data sets: None

  5. Was data derived from another source? No
    A. If yes, list source(s): NA

  6. Recommended citation for this dataset:
    Schmidt, Stephanie M.; Fournier, Auriel M. V.; Osborn, Joshua M.; Benson, Thomas J. (2023). Water depth influences survival and predator-specific patterns of nest loss in three secretive marsh bird species [Dataset].
    Dryad. https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.0zpc8673j

DATA & FILE OVERVIEW

  1. File List:

A) 2021-data---Marsh-Birds.md
-R code for analyses of habitat variables and Common Gallinule and Least Bittern nest survival in 2021 only
B) COGA-data---Marsh-Birds.md
-R code for analyses of habitat variables and Common Gallinule nest survival in 2020 and 2021 only
C) LEBI-data---Marsh-Birds.md
-R code for analyses of habitat variables and Least Bittern nest survival in 2020 and 2021 only
D) Multinomial-data---Marsh-Birds.md
-R code for analyses of habitat variables, predator identity, and Common Gallinule, Least Bittern, and American Coot nest survival in 2020 and 2021 only
E) Data_EcoandEv_.xlsx
-2021 only: habitat variables and Common Gallinule and Least Bittern nest survival in 2021 only
-COGA: habitat variables and Common Gallinule nest survival in 2020 and 2021 only
-LEBI: habitat variables and Least Bittern nest survival in 2020 and 2021 only
-Multinomial: habitat variables, predator identity, and Common Gallinule, Least Bittern, and American Coot nest survival in 2020 and 2021 only

  1. Relationship between files, if important: .md files serve as R code for analysis with .xlsx file tabs

  2. Additional related data collected that was not included in the current data package: None

  3. Are there multiple versions of the dataset? No
    A. If yes, name of file(s) that was updated: NA
    i. Why was the file updated? NA
    ii. When was the file updated? NA

#########################################################################

DATA-SPECIFIC INFORMATION FOR: Data_EcoandEv_.xlsx, tab: 2021 only

  1. Number of variables: 34

  2. Number of cases/rows: 669

  3. Variable List:

    *Nest_Name: Name for each nest at Emiquon Preserve

    *Species: 4-letter code for each nesting species (LEBI, COGA)

    *Species_num: number assigned to species at Emiquon Preserve, 3=COGA, 4=LEBI

    *Year: Year study was conducted (2021)

    *Year_Factor: Year as a factor, 2021=B

    *Start_Date: Date of previous nest visit/data collection (video daily) - julien date

    *End_Date: Date of current nest visit/data collection (video daily) - julien date

    *Day_of_Year: Date of previous nest visit/data collection (video daily) - julien date

    *Days: number of days from start date to end date

    *Visit_Freq: categorized as 3 days between visits or 5 days between visits. Nests with a 3 day visit frequency = short, 5 day visit frequency=long

    *Camera: Y/N, was a camera up at the nest

    *Nest_Stage: category I=incubating, H=hatched

    *Nest_Stage_num: category as numeric, 0=incubating, 1=hatched

    *Fate: category of fate, I=incubating, H=hatched, A=abandoned, D=dead (predator)

    *Pred: Y/N, was a nest predated/lost

    *Predator_Class: predator class, Avian=Avian, Mammal=Mammal, Other=Other, N/A=no predation event recorded

    *Predator_Species: predator species detected (Abandoned, Common Gallinule, Marsh Wren, Unknown, Weather, N/A = no predation/loss event recorded)

    *Fate_Binomial: 1/0, 1=alive, 0=fail

    *Fate_Factor: one/zero, one=alive, zero=fail

    *Total_Nest_Height_cm: total nest height from substrate to bottom of nest (cm)

    *Water_Depth_cm: total water depth from below the nest, substrate to surface (cm)

    *Dist_Shore_m: distance from continuous shoreline to nest (m)

    *Dist_Shore_hm: distance from continuous shoreline to nest (hm)

    *Emergent_Veg_Height_cm: average height of tallest and shortest emergent veg (root to tip) within 1m of the nest (cm)

    *Avg_Stem: average number of stems within a 30cmx30cm sqaure next to the nest at 2 randomly selected carinal directions 0.5m from the nest

    *Vis: % visibility above the nest

    *Vis_cat: category of % visbility above the nest 1=0-34%, 2=35-74%, 3-75%-100%

    *Dom_Veg: dominant vegetation at nest site, PEM=persistent emergent, FL=floating leaved

    *Habitat_Type: habitat type at nest site, OW=open water, hemi=hemi marsh, dense=dense emergent vegetation

    *Habitat_Type_cat: category of habitat type, 1=OW, 2=hemi, 3=dense

    *Age: age of nest in days

    *Clutch_Size: number of eggs in clutch

    *Avg_Clutch: average clutch size for species, LEBI = 5, COGA = 7

    *Dev_Avg_Clutch: difference of clutch_size - avg_clutch

  4. Missing data codes: N/A, nests without predation events have N/A in predator class and species categories

  5. Specialized formats or other abbreviations used: described in variable list

#########################################################################

DATA-SPECIFIC INFORMATION FOR: Data_EcoandEv_.xlsx, tab: COGA

  1. Number of variables: 26

  2. Number of cases/rows: 396

  3. Variable List:

    *Nest_Name: Name for each nest at Emiquon Preserve

    *Species: 4-letter code for each nesting species (COGA)

    *Species_num: number assigned to species at Emiquon Preserve, 3=COGA

    *Year: Year study was conducted (2020, 2021)

    *Year_Factor: Year as a factor, 2020=A, 2021=B

    *Start_Date: Date of previous nest visit/data collection (video daily) - julien date

    *End_Date: Date of current nest visit/data collection (video daily) - julien date

    *Day_of_Year: Date of previous nest visit/data collection (video daily) - julien date

    *Days: number of days from start date to end date

    *Camera: Y/N, was a camera up at the nest

    *Nest_Stage: category I=incubating, H=hatched

    *Nest_Stage_num: category as numeric, 0=incubating, 1=hatched

    *Fate: category of fate, I=incubating, H=hatched, A=abandoned, D=dead (predator)

    *Pred: Y/N, was a nest predated/lost

    *Predator_Class: predator class, Avian=Avian, Mammal=Mammal, Other=Other, N/A=no predation event recorded

    *Predator_Species: predator species detected (Abandoned, Brown-headed Cowbird, Common Gallinule, Fox Snake, Raccoon, Unknown, N/A = no predation/loss event recorded)

    *Fate_Binomial: 1/0, 1=alive, 0=fail

    *Fate_Factor: one/zero, one=alive, zero=fail

    *Total_Nest_Height_cm: total nest height from substrate to bottom of nest (cm)

    *Water_Depth_cm: total water depth from below the nest, substrate to surface (cm)

    *Dist_Shore_m: distance from continuous shoreline to nest (m)

    *Emergent_Veg_Height_cm: average height of tallest and shortest emergent veg (root to tip) within 1m of the nest (cm)

    *Age: age of nest in days

    *Clutch_Size: number of eggs in clutch

    *Avg_Clutch: average clutch size for species, COGA = 7

    *Dev_Avg_Clutch: difference of clutch_size - avg_clutch

  4. Missing data codes: N/A, nests without predation events have N/A in predator class and species categories

  5. Specialized formats or other abbreviations used: described in variable list

#########################################################################

DATA-SPECIFIC INFORMATION FOR: Data_EcoandEv_.xlsx, tab: LEBI

  1. Number of variables: 27

  2. Number of cases/rows: 819

  3. Variable List:

    *Nest_Name: Name for each nest at Emiquon Preserve

    *Species: 4-letter code for each nesting species (LEBI)

    *Species_num: number assigned to species at Emiquon Preserve, 4=LEBI

    *Year: Year study was conducted (2020, 2021)

    *Year_Factor: Year as a factor, 2020=A, 2021=B

    *Start_Date: Date of previous nest visit/data collection (video daily) - julien date

    *End_Date: Date of current nest visit/data collection (video daily) - julien date

    *Day_of_Year: Date of previous nest visit/data collection (video daily) - julien date

    *Days: number of days from start date to end date

    *Visit_Freq: categorized as 3 days between visits or 5 days between visits. Nests with a 3 day visit frequency = short, 5 day visit frequency=long

    *Camera: Y/N, was a camera up at the nest

    *Nest_Stage: category I=incubating, H=hatched

    *Nest_Stage_num: category as numeric, 0=incubating, 1=hatched

    *Fate: category of fate, I=incubating, H=hatched, A=abandoned, D=dead (predator)

    *Pred: Y/N, was a nest predated/lost

    *Predator_Class: predator class, Avian=Avian, Mammal=Mammal, Other=Other, N/A=no predation event recorded

    *Predator_Species: predator species detected (Abandoned, Fox Snake, Marsh Wren, Mink, Racoon, Unknown, Weather, N/A = no predation/loss event recorded)

    *Fate_Binomial: 1/0, 1=alive, 0=fail

    *Total_Nest_Height_cm: total nest height from substrate to bottom of nest (cm)

    *Water_Depth_cm: total water depth from below the nest, substrate to surface (cm)

    *Dist_Shore_m: distance from continuous shoreline to nest (m)

    *Dist_Shore_hm: distance from continuous shoreline to nest (hm)

    *Emergent_Veg_Height_cm: average height of tallest and shortest emergent veg (root to tip) within 1m of the nest (cm)

    *Age: age of nest in days

    *Clutch_Size: number of eggs in clutch

    *Avg_Clutch: average clutch size for species, LEBI = 5

    *Dev_Avg_Clutch: difference of clutch_size - avg_clutch

  4. Missing data codes: N/A, nests without predation events have N/A in predator class and species categories

  5. Specialized formats or other abbreviations used: described in variable list

#########################################################################

DATA-SPECIFIC INFORMATION FOR: Data_EcoandEv_.xlsx, tab: Multinomial

  1. Number of variables: 27

  2. Number of cases/rows: 929

  3. Variable List:

    *Nest_Name: Name for each nest at Emiquon Preserve

    *Species: 4-letter code for each nesting species (COGA, AMCO, LEBI)

    *Species_num: number assigned to species at Emiquon Preserve, 3=COGA, AMCO=1, LEBI=4

    *Year: Year study was conducted (2020, 2021)

    *Year_Factor: Year as a factor, 2020=A, 2021=B

    *Start_Date: Date of previous nest visit/data collection (video daily) - julien date

    *End_Date: Date of current nest visit/data collection (video daily) - julien date

    *Day_of_Year: Date of previous nest visit/data collection (video daily) - julien date

    *Days: number of days from start date to end date

    *Camera: Y/N, was a camera up at the nest

    *Nest_Stage: category I=incubating, H=hatched

    *Nest_Stage_num: category as numeric, 0=incubating, 1=hatched

    *Fate: category of fate, I=incubating, H=hatched, A=abandoned, D=dead (predator)

    *Pred: Y/N, was a nest predated/lost

    *Predator_Class: predator class, Avian=Avian, Mammal=Mammal, Other=Other, N/A=no predation event recorded

    *Predator_Species: predator species detected (Abandoned, Brown-headed Cowbird, Common Gallinule, Fox Snake, Marsh Wren, Mink, Raccoon, Unknown, Weather, N/A = no predation/loss event recorded)

    *Fate_Binomial: 1/0, 1=alive, 0=fail

    *Fate_Code: Survive=Survive, Avian=Avian Predator, Mammal=Mammal Predator, Reptile=Reptile Predator, Other=Other (abandoned, unknown)

    *Total_Nest_Height_cm: total nest height from substrate to bottom of nest (cm)

    *Water_Depth_cm: total water depth from below the nest, substrate to surface (cm)

    *Dist_Shore_m: distance from continuous shoreline to nest (m)

    *Dist_Shore_hm: distance from continuous shoreline to nest (hm)

    *Emergent_Veg_Height_cm: average height of tallest and shortest emergent veg (root to tip) within 1m of the nest (cm)

    *Age: age of nest in days

    *Clutch_Size: number of eggs in clutch

    *Avg_Clutch: average clutch size for species, COGA = 7, LEBI = 5, AMCO = 7

    *Dev_Avg_Clutch: difference of clutch_size - avg_clutch

  4. Missing data codes: N/A, nests without predation events have N/A in predator class and species categories

  5. Specialized formats or other abbreviations used: described in variable list

The data for this study was collected through measurements and video data at marsh bird nests located at Emiquon Preserve, IL in 2020 and 2021. We used ArcGIS to locate nests and collect measurements to continuous shoreline and analyses were completed in R.

Description of the data and file structure
The data are presented in excel files and organized by species of nesting bird (Least Bittern - LEBI and Common Gallinule - GOGA) as well as by year (2021 only data) and by predator class (Multinomial data).

Sharing/Access information
Contact the corresponding author for additional data information.

Code/Software
All analyses were completed in R and the code is included as a markdown file (.md).

Methods

The data was collected through measurements and video data at marsh bird nests located at Emiquon Preserve, IL in 2020 and 2021. We used ArcGIS to locate nests and collect measurements to continuous shoreline and analyses were completed in R. 

Funding

Illinois Department of Natural Resources, Award: T-122-R

United States Fish and Wildlife Service

Illinois Ornithological Society

American Ornithological Society