Feeding Habitat Use by Colonially-Breeding Herons, Egrets, and Ibises in North Carolina

Nine species of herons, egrets, and ibises were followed by airplane from a nesting colony near Beaufort, North Carolina to their feeding sites. Except for Cattle Egrets, which flew exclusively to fields and dumps, the birds flew mainly to saltmarsh habitat. The selection of feeding habitats by Grea...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Auk 1978-10, Vol.95 (4), p.733-743
Main Authors: Custer, Thomas W., Osborn, Ronald G.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Bird nesting
Birds
Food
Fresh water
Landing sites
Mud flats
Storks
Tidal interaction
Vehicular flight
Wildlife habitats
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
cited_by
cites
container_end_page 743
container_issue 4
container_start_page 733
container_title The Auk
container_volume 95
creator Custer, Thomas W.
Osborn, Ronald G.
description Nine species of herons, egrets, and ibises were followed by airplane from a nesting colony near Beaufort, North Carolina to their feeding sites. Except for Cattle Egrets, which flew exclusively to fields and dumps, the birds flew mainly to saltmarsh habitat. The selection of feeding habitats by Great Egrets and Louisiana Herons was directly related to tidal depth. The Great Egret was the only species that effectively used eelgrass beds, and its use of this habitat was restricted to between 1.5 h before and after low tide. We suspect that shorter-legged herons did not use eelgrass regularly because the water was too deep. Most Great Egrets, White Ibises, Louisiana Herons, and Snowy Egrets used areas near the colony (
format article
fullrecord <record><control><sourceid>jstor</sourceid><recordid>TN_cdi_jstor_primary_4085359</recordid><sourceformat>XML</sourceformat><sourcesystem>PC</sourcesystem><jstor_id>4085359</jstor_id><sourcerecordid>4085359</sourcerecordid><originalsourceid>FETCH-LOGICAL-j106t-65eacff479aaf046167c1507b6fbd744bb9f87624ff8fa9a061a0f97366a32b03</originalsourceid><addsrcrecordid>eNo1jM1KAzEYAIMouFbfwEMewMC3m_-jLq0tlHqxeCxfuknNsm4kyaVvb0E9DQPDXJGmtdww0UlxTRoAEMwAN7fkrpTxohKMbcjHyvshzie6RhcrVrovnroz7dOU5ojTdGYv-T_xOc3liS5P2dcLcR7oxsXiC40z3aVcP2mPOU1xxntyE3Aq_uGPC7JfLd_7Ndu-vW765y0bW1CVKenxGILQFjGAUK3Sx1aCdiq4QQvhnA1Gq06EYAJaBNUiBKu5Usg7B3xBHn-_Y6kpH75z_MJ8PggwkkvLfwC7g0sh</addsrcrecordid><sourcetype>Publisher</sourcetype><iscdi>true</iscdi><recordtype>article</recordtype></control><display><type>article</type><title>Feeding Habitat Use by Colonially-Breeding Herons, Egrets, and Ibises in North Carolina</title><source>JSTOR Archival Journals and Primary Sources Collection</source><creator>Custer, Thomas W. ; Osborn, Ronald G.</creator><creatorcontrib>Custer, Thomas W. ; Osborn, Ronald G.</creatorcontrib><description>Nine species of herons, egrets, and ibises were followed by airplane from a nesting colony near Beaufort, North Carolina to their feeding sites. Except for Cattle Egrets, which flew exclusively to fields and dumps, the birds flew mainly to saltmarsh habitat. The selection of feeding habitats by Great Egrets and Louisiana Herons was directly related to tidal depth. The Great Egret was the only species that effectively used eelgrass beds, and its use of this habitat was restricted to between 1.5 h before and after low tide. We suspect that shorter-legged herons did not use eelgrass regularly because the water was too deep. Most Great Egrets, White Ibises, Louisiana Herons, and Snowy Egrets used areas near the colony (&lt;4 km). Great Egrets, Black-crowned Night Herons, and White Ibises flew farther from the colony at high than at low tide. Great Egrets traveled farther from the colony when they used thermals; rate of travel to feeding sites was the same, however, whether or not they used thermals. Aggressive encounters were observed at the landing sites of Great Egrets, Louisiana Herons, Snowy Egrets, and Black-crowned Night Herons. In contrast to the other species studied, Cattle Egrets and White Ibises often flew in groups to feeding sites. Indirect evidence supports the hypothesis that colonies can act as "information centres," wherein unsuccessful birds follow successful ones to better feeding locations.</description><identifier>ISSN: 0004-8038</identifier><identifier>EISSN: 1938-4254</identifier><language>eng</language><publisher>The American Ornithologists' Union</publisher><subject>Bird nesting ; Birds ; Food ; Fresh water ; Landing sites ; Mud flats ; Storks ; Tidal interaction ; Vehicular flight ; Wildlife habitats</subject><ispartof>The Auk, 1978-10, Vol.95 (4), p.733-743</ispartof><rights>Copyright 1978 The American Ornithologists' Union</rights><lds50>peer_reviewed</lds50><woscitedreferencessubscribed>false</woscitedreferencessubscribed></display><links><openurl>$$Topenurl_article</openurl><openurlfulltext>$$Topenurlfull_article</openurlfulltext><thumbnail>$$Tsyndetics_thumb_exl</thumbnail><linktopdf>$$Uhttps://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/4085359$$EPDF$$P50$$Gjstor$$H</linktopdf><linktohtml>$$Uhttps://www.jstor.org/stable/4085359$$EHTML$$P50$$Gjstor$$H</linktohtml><link.rule.ids>314,776,780,58213,58446</link.rule.ids></links><search><creatorcontrib>Custer, Thomas W.</creatorcontrib><creatorcontrib>Osborn, Ronald G.</creatorcontrib><title>Feeding Habitat Use by Colonially-Breeding Herons, Egrets, and Ibises in North Carolina</title><title>The Auk</title><description>Nine species of herons, egrets, and ibises were followed by airplane from a nesting colony near Beaufort, North Carolina to their feeding sites. Except for Cattle Egrets, which flew exclusively to fields and dumps, the birds flew mainly to saltmarsh habitat. The selection of feeding habitats by Great Egrets and Louisiana Herons was directly related to tidal depth. The Great Egret was the only species that effectively used eelgrass beds, and its use of this habitat was restricted to between 1.5 h before and after low tide. We suspect that shorter-legged herons did not use eelgrass regularly because the water was too deep. Most Great Egrets, White Ibises, Louisiana Herons, and Snowy Egrets used areas near the colony (&lt;4 km). Great Egrets, Black-crowned Night Herons, and White Ibises flew farther from the colony at high than at low tide. Great Egrets traveled farther from the colony when they used thermals; rate of travel to feeding sites was the same, however, whether or not they used thermals. Aggressive encounters were observed at the landing sites of Great Egrets, Louisiana Herons, Snowy Egrets, and Black-crowned Night Herons. In contrast to the other species studied, Cattle Egrets and White Ibises often flew in groups to feeding sites. Indirect evidence supports the hypothesis that colonies can act as "information centres," wherein unsuccessful birds follow successful ones to better feeding locations.</description><subject>Bird nesting</subject><subject>Birds</subject><subject>Food</subject><subject>Fresh water</subject><subject>Landing sites</subject><subject>Mud flats</subject><subject>Storks</subject><subject>Tidal interaction</subject><subject>Vehicular flight</subject><subject>Wildlife habitats</subject><issn>0004-8038</issn><issn>1938-4254</issn><fulltext>true</fulltext><rsrctype>article</rsrctype><creationdate>1978</creationdate><recordtype>article</recordtype><sourceid/><recordid>eNo1jM1KAzEYAIMouFbfwEMewMC3m_-jLq0tlHqxeCxfuknNsm4kyaVvb0E9DQPDXJGmtdww0UlxTRoAEMwAN7fkrpTxohKMbcjHyvshzie6RhcrVrovnroz7dOU5ojTdGYv-T_xOc3liS5P2dcLcR7oxsXiC40z3aVcP2mPOU1xxntyE3Aq_uGPC7JfLd_7Ndu-vW765y0bW1CVKenxGILQFjGAUK3Sx1aCdiq4QQvhnA1Gq06EYAJaBNUiBKu5Usg7B3xBHn-_Y6kpH75z_MJ8PggwkkvLfwC7g0sh</recordid><startdate>19781001</startdate><enddate>19781001</enddate><creator>Custer, Thomas W.</creator><creator>Osborn, Ronald G.</creator><general>The American Ornithologists' Union</general><scope/></search><sort><creationdate>19781001</creationdate><title>Feeding Habitat Use by Colonially-Breeding Herons, Egrets, and Ibises in North Carolina</title><author>Custer, Thomas W. ; Osborn, Ronald G.</author></sort><facets><frbrtype>5</frbrtype><frbrgroupid>cdi_FETCH-LOGICAL-j106t-65eacff479aaf046167c1507b6fbd744bb9f87624ff8fa9a061a0f97366a32b03</frbrgroupid><rsrctype>articles</rsrctype><prefilter>articles</prefilter><language>eng</language><creationdate>1978</creationdate><topic>Bird nesting</topic><topic>Birds</topic><topic>Food</topic><topic>Fresh water</topic><topic>Landing sites</topic><topic>Mud flats</topic><topic>Storks</topic><topic>Tidal interaction</topic><topic>Vehicular flight</topic><topic>Wildlife habitats</topic><toplevel>peer_reviewed</toplevel><toplevel>online_resources</toplevel><creatorcontrib>Custer, Thomas W.</creatorcontrib><creatorcontrib>Osborn, Ronald G.</creatorcontrib><jtitle>The Auk</jtitle></facets><delivery><delcategory>Remote Search Resource</delcategory><fulltext>fulltext</fulltext></delivery><addata><au>Custer, Thomas W.</au><au>Osborn, Ronald G.</au><format>journal</format><genre>article</genre><ristype>JOUR</ristype><atitle>Feeding Habitat Use by Colonially-Breeding Herons, Egrets, and Ibises in North Carolina</atitle><jtitle>The Auk</jtitle><date>1978-10-01</date><risdate>1978</risdate><volume>95</volume><issue>4</issue><spage>733</spage><epage>743</epage><pages>733-743</pages><issn>0004-8038</issn><eissn>1938-4254</eissn><abstract>Nine species of herons, egrets, and ibises were followed by airplane from a nesting colony near Beaufort, North Carolina to their feeding sites. Except for Cattle Egrets, which flew exclusively to fields and dumps, the birds flew mainly to saltmarsh habitat. The selection of feeding habitats by Great Egrets and Louisiana Herons was directly related to tidal depth. The Great Egret was the only species that effectively used eelgrass beds, and its use of this habitat was restricted to between 1.5 h before and after low tide. We suspect that shorter-legged herons did not use eelgrass regularly because the water was too deep. Most Great Egrets, White Ibises, Louisiana Herons, and Snowy Egrets used areas near the colony (&lt;4 km). Great Egrets, Black-crowned Night Herons, and White Ibises flew farther from the colony at high than at low tide. Great Egrets traveled farther from the colony when they used thermals; rate of travel to feeding sites was the same, however, whether or not they used thermals. Aggressive encounters were observed at the landing sites of Great Egrets, Louisiana Herons, Snowy Egrets, and Black-crowned Night Herons. In contrast to the other species studied, Cattle Egrets and White Ibises often flew in groups to feeding sites. Indirect evidence supports the hypothesis that colonies can act as "information centres," wherein unsuccessful birds follow successful ones to better feeding locations.</abstract><pub>The American Ornithologists' Union</pub><tpages>11</tpages></addata></record>
fulltext fulltext
identifier ISSN: 0004-8038
ispartof The Auk, 1978-10, Vol.95 (4), p.733-743
issn 0004-8038
1938-4254
language eng
recordid cdi_jstor_primary_4085359
source JSTOR Archival Journals and Primary Sources Collection
subjects Bird nesting
Birds
Food
Fresh water
Landing sites
Mud flats
Storks
Tidal interaction
Vehicular flight
Wildlife habitats
title Feeding Habitat Use by Colonially-Breeding Herons, Egrets, and Ibises in North Carolina
url http://sfxeu10.hosted.exlibrisgroup.com/loughborough?ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&ctx_enc=info:ofi/enc:UTF-8&ctx_tim=2025-02-01T01%3A12%3A53IST&url_ver=Z39.88-2004&url_ctx_fmt=infofi/fmt:kev:mtx:ctx&rfr_id=info:sid/primo.exlibrisgroup.com:primo3-Article-jstor&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:journal&rft.genre=article&rft.atitle=Feeding%20Habitat%20Use%20by%20Colonially-Breeding%20Herons,%20Egrets,%20and%20Ibises%20in%20North%20Carolina&rft.jtitle=The%20Auk&rft.au=Custer,%20Thomas%20W.&rft.date=1978-10-01&rft.volume=95&rft.issue=4&rft.spage=733&rft.epage=743&rft.pages=733-743&rft.issn=0004-8038&rft.eissn=1938-4254&rft_id=info:doi/&rft_dat=%3Cjstor%3E4085359%3C/jstor%3E%3Cgrp_id%3Ecdi_FETCH-LOGICAL-j106t-65eacff479aaf046167c1507b6fbd744bb9f87624ff8fa9a061a0f97366a32b03%3C/grp_id%3E%3Coa%3E%3C/oa%3E%3Curl%3E%3C/url%3E&rft_id=info:oai/&rft_id=info:pmid/&rft_jstor_id=4085359&rfr_iscdi=true