Seasonal space use and territory size of resident sparrows in the central Monte Desert, Argentina

M. C. SAGARIO; CUETO, V.R.

ARDEOLA

SOC ESPANOLA ORNITOLGIA

Año: 2014 vol. 61 p. 153 - 159

0570-7358

Knowledge of space use and territoriality of New World birds come from studies in temperate North America and the tropics, while it remains poorly studied in temperate South America, particularly in arid environments. Here we studied the seasonal space use and territory size among resident individuals of three sparrows in a temperate semi-desert of Argentina: ringed warbling-finch Poospiza torquata, rufous collared sparrow Zonotrichia capensis, and many-colored Chaco-finch Saltatricula multicolor. Both territorial behavior and use of space of the three species showed seasonal changes. The ringed warbling-finch and the rufous-collared sparrow used larger areas during the non-breeding season than during the breeding season, while the many-colored Chaco-finch showed similar sized areas in the two periods. Defense activities were absent for all three species during the non breeding season. During the breeding season, every species defended territories which were smaller for the rufous collared sparrow (0.79 ± 0.04 ha) than for the ringed warbling-finch (1.35 ± 0.04 ha) and the many-colored Chaco-finch (1.21 ± 0.07 ha). Seasonal territoriality and territory size reported for resident individuals were similar to those reported for North-temperate sparrows in xeric environments.