Nightjars may adjust breeding phenology to compensate for mismatches between moths and moonlight.

ABSTRACT: Phenology match-mismatch usually refers to the extent of an organism's ability to match reproduction with peaks in food availability, but when mismatch occurs, it may indicate a response to another selective pressure. We assess the value of matching reproductive timing to multiple selective pressures for a migratory lunarphilic aerial insectivore bird, the whip-poor-will (Antrostomus vociferus). We hypothesize that a whip-poor-will's response to shifts in local phenology may be constrained by long annual migrations and a foraging mode that is dependent on both benign weather and the availability of moonlight. To test this, we monitored daily nest survival and overall reproductive success relative to food availability and moon phase in the northern part of whip-poor-will's breeding r

SUBMITTER: English PA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6010731 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature