Study

An experiment testing whether condition and survival are limited by food supply in a reintroduced hihi population

  • Published source details Armstrong D.P. & Perrott J.K. (2000) An experiment testing whether condition and survival are limited by food supply in a reintroduced hihi population. Conservation Biology, 14, 1171-1181.

Actions

This study is summarised as evidence for the following.

Action Category

Provide supplementary food for nectar-feeding songbirds to increase adult survival

Action Link
Bird Conservation
  1. Provide supplementary food for nectar-feeding songbirds to increase adult survival

    A controlled before-and-after study on Mokoia Island, Lake Rotoruais, North Island, New Zealand (Armstrong & Perrot 2000), found that stitchbirds (hihi) Notiomystis cincta used feeders providing 20% by weight sugar solution frequently and when feeders were present they spent more time foraging for insects and less time foraging for fruit and nectar. However, there were no differences in weight gain or loss or survival rates when feeders were present, compared to when they were not. Feeders were present for 16 days at a time and then removed for 12 days. This alternation continued between January and November 1995. Annual survival in the population was low (38%) and the population appeared likely to decline despite feeding.

     

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