Master's Theses

Department

Biology

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Abstract

Environmental stressors such as drought and roadways can strongly affect breeding birds. Cliff Swallows (Petrochelidon Pyrrhonota) are aerial insectivores that experience mortality from car collisions, because they often nest and hunt under bridges and road culverts. Individual traits that may convey social information, such as body condition, or feather coloration, might be associated with better coping around cars and other environmental stressors. Few studies have investigated relationships between coloration and other environmental stressors, such as water loss due to drought near the colony and foraging areas. Colony size can be heavily affected by various environmental factors such as water level and human activity. Larger colonies might provide benefits to Cliff Swallows that affect their individual characteristics such as mass and body condition. I determined if environmental stressors, including road type and water level, were related to colony size, wing length, body condition, and body mass. I also determined if colony size was related to wing length, body condition, or body mass. I determined if feather coloration was related to body condition, mass, colony size, or water level. This study took place in Barton and Ellis Counties, Kansas. This area was experiencing drought conditions at the time of data collection. I counted the number of active nests and captured adult Cliff Swallows with mist nets at our colony sites. I measured un-flattened wing chord length, body mass, tarsus length, and tail length. I collected feather samples from the back, the rump, and two areas on the breast for coloration measurement using a spectrometer. I took body condition measurements using the residuals of a regression of mass on tarsus length. I also assessed the visible water level in the colony area, and whether the colony is located near a paved or gravel road. My results indicate that water level influences colony size, but not body condition, mass, or wing length. There was no significant relationship between these individual characteristics and road type or colony size. There were relationships between feather coloration and colony size, but not feather coloration and water level. There were correlations between feather coloration and mass, but no relationships were observed between feather coloration and body condition. Because Cliff Swallows are common and widespread in North America, they could be helpful ecosystem indicators, especially because this research indicates they could be influenced by drought conditions.

Keywords

Cliff Swallows, Aerial insectivores, Feather coloration, Ornithology, Natural selection, Drought

Advisor

Dr. Medhavi Ambardar

Date of Award

Spring 2024

Document Type

Thesis

Rights

© The Author

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