01489nas a2200133 4500008004100000245007700041210006900118300001300187490000700200520103500207100001601242700002001258856007701278 2011 eng d00aDesign and effectiveness of a novel trap for capturing nesting songbirds0 aDesign and effectiveness of a novel trap for capturing nesting s a425 -4290 v823 a
Capturing songbirds at their nests can be challenging and time consuming. Although traps designed for capturing songbirds at their nests have been described in the literature, few are effective for capturing species with open-cup nests. We describe a cylindrical trap designed to capture songbirds at nests up to 2 m above ground in grasses, forbs, shrubs, and small saplings. The nest trap is constructed using a rigid hoop, two pieces of mist net, three stakes, and twist ties. We used this trap to capture female Dickcissels (Spiza americana) and female Indigo Buntings (Passerina cyanea) at their nests, with success rates of 85% (N= 196) and 60–73% (N= 16), respectively. Trapping success was comparable to that using other passerine nest trap designs. Nest abandonment after trapping attempts was rare and similar to that reported in previous studies. Our nest trap is lightweight, easy to make, versatile enough to use in a variety of grassland and shrub habitats, and easily carried and deployed in the field.
1 aSousa, B.F.1 aStewart, S.L.M. uhttps://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1557-9263.2011.00346.x