Regional and local factors interact to shape colonization and extinction dynamics of invasive in a patchy landscape.

Understanding the response of species to global change requires disentangling the drivers of their distributions across landscapes. Colonization and extinction processes, shaped by the interplay of landscape-level and local patch-level factors, are key determinants of these distributions. However, disentangling the influence of these factors, when larger-scale processes manifest at local scales, remains a challenge.

The effect of climate change on avian offspring production: A global meta-analysis.

Climate change affects timing of reproduction in many bird species, but few studies have investigated its influence on annual reproductive output. Here, we assess changes in the annual production of young by female breeders in 201 populations of 104 bird species (N = 745,962 clutches) covering all continents between 1970 and 2019. Overall, average offspring production has declined in recent decades, but considerable differences were found among species and populations.

The Complete Genome Sequence of the Prothonotary Warbler.

The Prothonotary Warbler () is a nearctic-neotropical migratory songbird that breeds in forested swamps and riparian areas in the eastern-central United States and southern Ontario. It is the sole eastern North American wood-warbler that nests in cavities, the only species in the genus , and is one of the few hole-nesting hosts of the Brown-headed Cowbird (), an obligate brood parasite. We present the whole genome sequence of this wood-warbler species.

Bergmann's rule is followed at multiple stages of postembryonic development in a long-distance migratory songbird.

Bergmann's rule is a well-established, ecogeographical principle that states that body size varies positively with latitude, reflecting the thermoregulatory benefits of larger bodies as temperatures decline. However, this principle does not seem to easily apply to migratory species that are able to avoid the extreme temperatures during winter at higher latitudes. Further, little is known about the ontogeny of this relationship across life stages or how it is influenced by ongoing global climate change.

Habitat-dependent occupancy and movement in a migrant songbird highlights the importance of mangroves and forested lagoons in Panama and Colombia.

Climate change is predicted to impact tropical mangrove forests due to decreased rainfall, sea-level rise, and increased seasonality of flooding. Such changes are likely to influence habitat quality for migratory songbirds occupying mangrove wetlands during the tropical dry season. Overwintering habitat quality is known to be associated with fitness in migratory songbirds, yet studies have focused primarily on territorial species.

Population trends in warblers are linked to strong migratory connectivity.

Migratory species can experience limiting factors at different locations and during different periods of their annual cycle. In migratory birds, these factors may even occur in different hemispheres. Therefore, identifying the distribution of populations throughout their annual cycle (i.

Prothonotary warbler nestling growth and condition in response to variation in aquatic and terrestrial prey availability.

Aquatic prey subsidies entering terrestrial habitats are well documented, but little is known about the degree to which these resources provide fitness benefits to riparian consumers. Riparian species take advantage of seasonal pulses of both terrestrial and aquatic prey, although aquatic resources are often overlooked in studies of how diet influences the reproductive ecology of these organisms. Ideally, the timing of resource pulses should occur at the time of highest reproductive demand.

Biotransport of Algal Toxins to Riparian Food Webs.

The occurrence of harmful algal blooms has resulted in growing worldwide concern about threats to aquatic life and human health. Microcystin (MC), a cyanotoxin, is the most widely reported algal toxin in freshwaters. Prior studies have documented its presence in aquatic food webs including commercially important fish and shellfish.

Vector contact rates on Eastern bluebird nestlings do not indicate West Nile virus transmission in Henrico County, Virginia, USA.

Sensitive indicators of spatial and temporal variation in vector-host contact rates are critical to understanding the transmission and eventual prevention of arboviruses such as West Nile virus (WNV). Monitoring vector contact rates on particularly susceptible and perhaps more exposed avian nestlings may provide an advanced indication of local WNV amplification. To test this hypothesis we monitored WNV infection and vector contact rates among nestlings occupying nest boxes (primarily Eastern bluebirds; Sialia sialis, Turdidae) across Henrico County, Virginia, USA, from May to August 2012.

Nesting bird "host funnel" increases mosquito-bird contact rate.

Increases in vector-host contact rates can enhance arbovirus transmission intensity. We investigated weekly fluctuations in contact rates between mosquitoes and nesting birds using the recently described Nest Mosquito Trap (NMT). The number of mosquitoes per nestling increased from < 1 mosquito per trap night to 36.

Nest Mosquito Trap quantifies contact rates between nesting birds and mosquitoes.

Accurate estimates of host-vector contact rates are required for precise determination of arbovirus transmission intensity. We designed and tested a novel mosquito collection device, the Nest Mosquito Trap (NMT), to collect mosquitoes as they attempt to feed on unrestrained nesting birds in artificial nest boxes. In the laboratory, the NMT collected nearly one-third of the mosquitoes introduced to the nest boxes.