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SACAD: Scholarly Activities

Abstract

Road infrastructure has multifaceted effects on bird populations, influencing various aspects of their ecology and behaviour. I investigated the impact of road infrastructure, particularly highways, on the reproductive success of House Wrens (Troglodytes aedon) in a rural area. I compared the reproductive success of House Wrens in sites close to a major highway (Sternberg Museum Nature Trail) with sites located farther away (along Big Creek) in Hays, KS. I hypothesized that House Wrens near highways would exhibit lower reproductive success. I recorded metrics of reproductive success, traffic volumes, and noise levels. House wrens at the Big Creek site had higher reproductive success, suggesting that this site offers more favourable environmental conditions, such as better food availability, lower disturbance, and higher quality habitat compared to the Sternberg Museum site. At the Sternberg site, there was only one successful nest by house wrens during the breeding season. Within the Big Creek site, as noise levels increased, House Wren reproductive success slightly increased (r = 0.131). Conversely, as traffic volume increased, reproductive success decreased (r = -0.755). Overall, nests that were farther from major highways exhibited higher reproductive success than sites near the highway due to increased traffic volumes. Further research on how predation and climate change may affect the reproductive success of House Wrens and other songbirds along road infrastructure could provide valuable insights into the impact of anthropogenic structures on avian reproductive success.

Faculty Advisor

Medhavi Ambardar

Department/Program

Biology

Submission Type

in-person poster

Date

3-31-2025

Rights

Copyright the Author(s)

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