Habitat and nest site preferences of Sylvia atricapilla and S. melanocephala in Majorca

Blackcap (Sylvia atricapilla) Science Article 3

abstract

Sylvia melanocephala (S. m.) and S. atricapilla (S. a.) are common in woody habitats of the western Mediterranean. Nevertheless, detailed information on habitat and particularly nest site preferences is scarce. Within its western Pal arctic distribution, S. m. breeds in the Mediterranean zone, mainly in dry coastal regions and on islands (Snow & Perrins, 1998). Blackcap is distributed over all middle latitudesin Europe to the Ural Mountains, including temperate, boreal and Mediterranean climates. Habitat and nest site preferences of these two species were examined, one in the centre, the other almost at the edge of its range. Two coastal pine forests on the Balearic Island of Mallorca were chosen, where both species breed sympatric in high densities (Avella et al., 1997). We expected that both species would cover their entire spectrum of suitable habitats and possibly meet in the ecotone between maquis and coastal pine forest vegetation (Cody & Walter, 1976). […].

Thomas Schafer & Andreas Barkow, Ardeola 51(2), 2004, 445-450

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