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RESEARCH ARTICLE
Contents Vol 104(4)

Breeding ecology of Richard’s Pipit (Anthus novaeseelandiae) in the Snowy Mountains

C. J. Norment A C and K. Green B
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A Department of Environmental Science and Biology, SUNY Brockport, Brockport, NY 14420, USA.

B National Parks and Wildlife Service, Snowy Mountains Region, PO Box 2228, Jindabyne, NSW 2627, Australia.

C Corresponding author. Email: cnorment@brockport.edu

Emu 104(4) 327-336 https://doi.org/10.1071/MU04006
Submitted: 27 January 2004  Accepted: 22 June 2004   Published: 16 December 2004

Abstract

We studied the breeding biology of Richard’s Pipit (Anthus novaeseelandiae) in the Snowy Mountains during 1979–2003; intensive field work occurred in 2000–01. In this region Richard’s Pipit is an altitudinal migrant, and its nesting cycle was affected by patterns of snowmelt and arthropod abundance. Date of first observation above winter snowline was positively related to date of last snowcover. Adults arrived in the main study area in October, and began nesting in early November, when the ground was ~50% snow-free. Many pipits apparently were double-brooded; young of first and second broods fledged when arthropod abundance was near maximum levels. Post-breeding flocking began in mid-February. Most nests were placed below shrubs ≤30 cm in height; orientation was non-random, with nest entrances 100–200° from prevailing cold fronts. Clutch size for pipits in the Snowy Mountains was 2.91 ± 0.34 (s.d.), significantly greater than for clutch size data from the Birds Australia Nest Record Scheme. In 2000–01, 54.1% of the nests (n = 41) fledged at least one young; nest survival probability was 0.636. The major cause of nesting mortality was predation (70.6% of losses). Nest success increased with increasing vegetation cover within 1 m of the nest. Differences in the breeding biology of Richard’s Pipit, compared with the alpine-breeding American Pipit (Anthus rubescens), include smaller clutch size, smaller clutch mass as a percentage of female mass, and high frequency of double-brooding. These differences may be due to the shorter duration of snowcover and the longer growing season in the alpine zone of the Snowy Mountains compared with the North American alpine, which allows for multiple breeding attempts in a single season. Given possible decreases in snow cover and duration due to predicted warming in Australian mountain areas, Richard’s Pipit represents a ‘model organism’ that could be used for a long-term study on effects of climate change on high-altitude ecosystems in the region.


Acknowledgments

The NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service provided permission to study pipits in Kosciuszko National Park. Pipits were banded under Australian Bird and Bat Banding Scheme Banding Authority No. 2408, Environment Australia. Logistical support was provided by NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service, and Billy and Marilyn James. Financial support was provided by the State University College of New York at Brockport. Pipit clutch-size data from the Birds Australia Nest Records Scheme were furnished by Rory Poulter, Birds Australia. Robert Palmer provided access to pipit specimens in the Australian National Wildlife Collection, Canberra. Thanks to Snowy Hydro for Spencers Creek snowcourse data. David Little supplied several nest records. Nancy Fitzsimmons and Tony Tucker helped in the field, while Melissa Norment assisted in many ways. Paul Hendricks and two anonymous reviewers commented on a draft of the manuscript.


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