Msc research project internship Breeding ecology

 Msc research project

Breeding ecology of northern lapwings (Vanellus vanellus) in Alsace, France

Place:

Équipe Adaptation des VErtébrés marins aux Changements environnementaux (AVEC)

Département Écologie, Physiologie, Éthologie (DEPE)

Institut Pluridisciplinaire Hubert Curien (IPHC)

UMR7178 CNRS/Université de Strasbourg

23,  Rue du Loess – 67200 Strasbourg, France

Fieldwork in Alsace, focused on Bas-Rhin (67) and the northern part of Haut-Rhin (68)

Supervisors:

Reinier van den Berg (PhD Candidate, IPHC-DEPE & Faunastats)

Celine Le Bohec (PhD co-director, IPHC-DEPE)

Anna Nesterova (PhD co-supervisor, Faunastats)

Period:

February 2022 - July 2022 (6 months)

Field period:

March 2022 - Early July 2022 (4.5 months)

Keywords:

Northern lapwing, camera trap, hatching, breeding, fieldwork, behaviour

Background:

The northern lapwing is a meadow bird that can be found breeding across Europe, and in France north of the line Bordeaux - Lyon (Deceuninck 2001). Despite being found in so many places and in significant numbers, the population of lapwings has been on a steady decline both in Europe as well as in France (Birdlife International 2017, Deceuninck 2001), with an estimated decline of 15% for breeding pairs in France between 2001 and 2019 (Fontaine et al. 2020). Reasons for this decline include predation, habitat loss, and agricultural intensification (Leyrer et al., 2018).

While these factors remain important throughout the reproductive range of the species, the degree to which each may affect breeding outcomes can vary between locations and over time (Seymour 2003). Additionally, the type of threat may be different between locations as well: Depending on habitat there can be different principal nest predators for ground-nesting birds (Holopainen et al. 2021) and we might expect that nests in France may be vulnerable to predation by wild boar (Darinot, 2014). 

Increasingly, nest predation is assessed by placing cameras near active nests. This can provide an accurate image of the principal nest predators in an area while being minimally disruptive (Teunissen et al. 2008, Laidlaw et al. 2020). 

As part of a larger project investigating northern lapwings in France, this project will follow nests of breeding northern lapwings with nest cameras until after hatching, to investigate the following questions:

• What is the hatching success for northern lapwings breeding in Alsace? 

• Is predation the main driver of hatching success, or are different factors more impactful in Alsace?

• Do chicks stay around the nest longer based on environmental conditions? (If time is available)

Student responsibilities:

The successful master student will be expected to perform varied tasks during the field season, as well as (part of) the analysis of the data they collect. These tasks include:

Searching for breeding lapwing pairs at sites known to be attractive to breeding lapwings, locating the nests of these pairs, placing and maintaining nest cameras at the nests, documenting the direct environment of the nest, organizing and storing data collected by the cameras. These responsibilities will be spread throughout the study area, and the student will be driving her/himself between sites.

Analysing footage collected by the cameras to determine nest fate, analysing the footage for the time of hatching and subsequent behaviour of chicks around the nest, statistical analysis of the data obtained (both for the project and for the internship report).

Required Qualities:

Drivers’ License B (car)

Good organisational skills

Passion for ecology and/or animal behaviour

Desired qualities:

Spoken and written English, 

Previous field experience

Previous experience with animal observation

Familiarity with R / Rstudio

Experience observing birds

Acquired Competences and Skills:

Fieldwork experience

Behavioural observations

Data analysis

Data management

Data cleaning

Reimbursement:

Standard stipend for a Msc internship of over 2 months in France (591,51€ / month)

Travel costs on the field reimbursed

Co-authorship may be involved for papers produced through the work performed during this internship following scientific-ethical guidelines.

Application process:

Please send your CV and a letter of motivation to:

Reinier van den Berg (rvandenb@iphc.cnrs.fr) 

Bibliography

BirdLife International. (2017). European birds of conservation concern: populations, trends and national responsibilities. https://www.birdlife.org/sites/default/files/attachments/European Birds of Conservation Concern_Low.pdf

Darinot, F. (2014). Impact du sanglier (Sus scrofa) et de la corneille noire (Corvus corone) sur les prairies et l’avifaune nicheuse de la Réserve naturelle nationale du Marais de Lavours (Ain). Bulletin Mensuel de La Société Linnéenne de Lyon, 3(1), 260–270. https://doi.org/10.3406/linly.2014.13881

Deceuninck, B. (2001). Breeding waders in France: populations, trends and distributions: 1984-1996. Wader Study Group Bull., 95, 45–50.

Fontaine B., Moussy C., Chiffard Carricaburu J., Dupuis J., C. E., & Schmaltz L., Lorrillière R., Loïs G., G. C. (2020). Suivi des oiseaux communs en France 1989-2019 : 30 ans de suivis participatifs. MNHN- Centre d’Ecologie et des Sciences de la Conservation, LPO BirdLife France - Service Connaissance, Ministère de la Transition écologique et solidaire. 46 pp.

Holopainen, S., Väänänen, V. M., Vehkaoja, M., & Fox, A. D. (2021). Do alien predators pose a particular risk to duck nests in Northern Europe? Results from an artificial nest experiment. Biological Invasions, 2. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10530-021-02608-2

Laidlaw, R. A., Gunnarsson, T. G., Méndez, V., Carneiro, C., Þórisson, B., Wentworth, A., Gill, J. A., & Alves, J. A. (2020). Vegetation structure influences predation rates of early nests in subarctic breeding waders. Ibis. https://doi.org/10.1111/ibi.12827

Leyrer, J., Brown, D., Gerritsen, G., Hötker, H., & Ottvall, R. (2018). International Multi- species Action Plan for the Conservation of Breeding Waders in Wet Grassland Habitats in Europe (2018-2028). Report of Action A13 under the framework of Project LIFE EuroSAP (LIFE14 PRE/UK/002). NABU, RSPB, VBN and SOF. 1–75.

Seymour, A. S., Harris, S., Ralston, C., & White, P. C. L. (2003). Factors influencing the nesting success of Lapwings Vanellus vanellus and behaviour of Red Fox Vulpes vulpes in Lapwing nesting sites. Bird Study, 50(1), 39–46. https://doi.org/10.1080/00063650309461288

Teunissen, W., Schekkerman, H., Willems, F., & Majoor, F. (2008). Identifying predators of eggs and chicks of Lapwing Vanellus vanellus and Black-tailed Godwit Limosa limosa in the Netherlands and the importance of predation on wader reproductive output. Ibis, 150(SUPPL.1), 74–85. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1474-919X.2008.00861.x