The breeding biology and nest-site selection of American crows (Corvus brachrhynchos) was studied in 2 areas of aspen parkland habitat in Saskatchewan in 1987 and 1988. / Overall, density of nests at St. Denis averaged twice that found at Elstow and clutches were initiated earlier at St. Denis than at Elstow. Clutch size and hatching success did not differ between years or areas, but in 1987, nests at St. Denis produced nearly twice as many young as at Elstow. / Crows nested in willow, aspen, and other trees. Nest trees were larger than randomly-selected trees in both years and areas. At St. Denis, the area near active crow nests had, on average, more permanent wetlands, a greater proportion of pasture and wetland, and less area of cultivation than areas adjacent to random sites. At St. Denis, successful nests were closer to permanent water and had more permanent wetlands nearby than depredated nests, but discriminant function analysis could not correctly distinguish successful nests in either area. Selection of nest characteristics to evade predators does not appear to provide predictable advantages to breeding crows.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:LACETR/oai:collectionscanada.gc.ca:QMM.60454 |
| Date | January 1991 |
| Creators | Ignatiuk, Jordan B. (Jordan Blake) |
| Publisher | McGill University |
| Source Sets | Library and Archives Canada ETDs Repository / Centre d'archives des thèses électroniques de Bibliothèque et Archives Canada |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Format | application/pdf |
| Coverage | Master of Science (Department of Renewable Resources.) |
| Rights | All items in eScholarship@McGill are protected by copyright with all rights reserved unless otherwise indicated. |
| Relation | alephsysno: 001221856, proquestno: AAIMM67620, Theses scanned by UMI/ProQuest. |
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