Selection and habitat use by five Iberian Blackcap (Sylvia atricapilla) populations

Full article

Published:

Volume 45(1), June 1998. Pages 1-10.

Language:

Spanish

Original title:

Selección y uso del hábitat por cinco poblaciones ibéricas de Curruca Capirotada (Sylvia atricapilla)

Keywords:

habitat use, habitat selection, Iberian Peninsula, regional distribution, Sylvia atricapilla.

Abstract:

This paper studies five populations of Blackcaps (Sylvia atricapilla) distributed from north to south along the Iberian Peninsula. We analyse whether these Blackcap populations showed a similar pattern of habitat selection and whether habitat selection determine similar patterns of habitat use along the study gradient. Results show that all the study populations preferred forest tracts with well developed tree canopies and a dense shrub layer of plant species associated to wet substrates (e.g. blackberries Rubus spp.). The correlation between Blackcap abundance and cover of blackberries might be associated with higher food resource availability since moist grounds may attenuate the effects of the Mediterranean summer drought. In addition, it may be related to other specific requirements of the species (e.g. nesting sites). Habitat use by blackcaps differed, however, among populations since they showed site-specific adjustments to the structure of local habitats.