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Something to Howl About Cornell Nest Box Network breaks the 500 mark As I worked at my desk enjoying a little peace and quiet in our cramped and usually noisy office, Margaret Barker entered the room, shattering the silence with a vocalization that would best be described as having the excitement of a howler monkey and the happy, sing-song quality of a wren. "What’s going on, Margaret?" I inquired. "Do you feel all right?" "Yes, yes," she replied. "We just hit 500!" I knew instantly what she meant. We had just reached our first year’s goal of having 500 participants enrolled in the Cornell Nest Box Network (CNBN). During the previous two months, Margaret, the recruitment specialist for the project, had worked diligently to get out the word about CNBN and to sign up as many participants as possible. She wrote press releases and contacted newspapers, radio stations, and television stations throughout the country. For Margaret, breaking the 500 mark was like finally seeing a long-sought life bird. CNBN is an organized network of individuals and groups (for example, 4-H Clubs, bird clubs, and school groups) from throughout North America who are monitoring the behavior and nesting biology of cavity-nesting birds—such as bluebirds and Tree Swallows—that are using nest boxes (see Birdscope, Spring 1997). The project seeks to find answers to five scientific questions: 1) Does clutch size within a given cavity-nesting species vary with latitude? 2) Do bluebirds and Tree Swallows select nest boxes containing nests from a previous season more frequently than boxes that have been cleaned out? 3) Is the number of feathers used by Tree Swallows in their nests related to nesting success or location? 4) Do cavity-nesting birds use differing amounts of supplementary calcium (eggshells) in different regions of the country, and does their consumption of calcium influence their nesting success? 5) After the young birds have left their nests, dispersed, and then returned as adults, where do they set up their own nesting territories? Ornithologists have been wrestling with several of these questions for years, but they’ve been unable to find definitive answers, because the data are insufficient and for the most part were collected from restricted geographic areas. By starting a network that will eventually include thousands of participants throughout North America, Lab scientists hope to gain the large and geographically varied sample sizes needed to answer these questions. The Cornell Nest Box Network operates in a similar way to the Lab’s other citizen-science projects, such as Project FeederWatch, Project PigeonWatch, and Birds in Forested Landscapes. Participants sign up for the project and subsequently receive a research kit that includes instructions, reference materials, educational aids, and data forms. They then conduct the research, fill in the data forms, and return them to the Lab, where the forms are processed and the data are analyzed. Within a few weeks of hitting the 500 mark, as the breeding season commenced, the project seemed to switch gears on its own and the questions and comments from our participants began to trickle and then pour in via e-mail and telephone. The CNBN staff donned new hats and began servicing our newest battalion of citizen scientists. We knew there would undoubtedly be many questions from participants about various aspects of the project. CNBN research coordinator Pixie Senesac and Lab biologist Tracey Kast have been answering these questions and helping participants via telephone and a computer listserv—which automatically sends e-mail messages through the Internet to everyone who subscribes to the listserv. Through the listserv, participants can post questions and comments to each other or the project staff. This has turned out to be a great way to resolve questions quickly and provide participants with a way to network and support each other. Here are some excerpts from CNBN participant-staff exchanges we’ve had on the listserv so far. "Our pair of nesting bluebirds completed their five-egg clutch on April 30. We went on a 10-day vacation starting the 13th of May; there was no evidence of any nestlings at that time. We feed the birds mealworms, and on our first day back it was obvious the parents were gathering the worms for the nestlings. We checked the box and there were five nestlings. Yesterday (May 24) we observed House Sparrows hassling the nest box and when I checked the box today the baby bluebirds were completely gone. There is no evidence of them at all; the nest remains but I see no signs of the young ones. I gave the adults some midday worms to see what they would do with them; they gathered them in their beaks—which made me hopeful they were still feeding the young—but then they flew off a short distance and ate the worms themselves. My conclusion is that the House Sparrows caused them to fledge before they were ready." — Mary Jane Thomas "I don’t think you’ll ever know for sure what happened, unless you see the fledglings. It’s possible the House Sparrows had nothing to do with the birds fledging. I hate to say this, but it’s also possible they didn’t fledge and instead became a meal. Look around the birds’ territory over the next few days—you might find them. I hope you do. Keep me posted." — Brenda Best "Your chicks seem much too young to have fledged, if we estimated the hatch date accurately. Our experience is that House Sparrows leave a mess of eggshells and dead chicks. Raccoons really mess up the nest and may take everything in it. Snakes may leave the nest undisturbed but empty. Those are common problems we have. Good luck with your active nests." — Phyllis and David Smith "First of all, my compliments to the staff for putting together a very nice project with clear instructions and goals. I’m pleased to be a participant and eagerly await the results of the study. Now to the subject, one of my Tree Swallow pairs jumped the gun on me. They already had four eggs when I first checked their box. Therefore, I can’t count feathers in their nest while they are building their nest. Will it still be useful to pick up with the second part, counting feathers within three days of clutch completion, or should I just skip this box for Part One of the Feather Study?" — Katherine Wilson "You can still count feathers during the second and third phases of the nesting cycle—in other words, around clutch completion and when the female is incubating. In the comment section of the data form for this nesting attempt, you should write that you missed the first count because the birds began earlier than you expected. We will then be able to take that into consideration when we analyze the data. Each count is valuable to us." — Tracey Kast, CNBN staff biologist "How should I prepare eggshells for the supplemental calcium experiment?" — Several CNBN participants "Eggshells should be baked in the oven for 20 minutes at 250 (degrees) F. This preparation is necessary to kill bacteria such as salmonella, which is found in the membrane of domestic chicken eggs and is harmful to wild birds." — Tracey Kast, CNBN staff biologist The Cornell Nest Box Network is currently moving full speed ahead with its 500 participants. In the future, however, we anticipate having to service thousands of participants over a much broader area. This will require a less centralized approach. This past April, the Lab held its first CNBN ambassador training workshop (see sidebar, at left). CNBN "ambassadors" will serve as mentors for the project and will help individuals and youth groups to get CNBN off the ground in their communities. CNBN is a powerful educational, scientific, and conservation tool that almost anyone can take part in. You can choose to participate in only one or in all five of the scientific experiments, which enables you to tailor the project to your own level of experience and time constraints. By becoming part of the CNBN team, you’ll learn a tremendous amount about ornithology while contributing to the study and conservation of these beautiful and intriguing cavity-nesting birds. For more information or to sign up for CNBN, please send e-mail to <birdeducation @cornell.edu> or call (800) 843-BIRD (2473). n |
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