Street-wise : does prey abundance buffer black sparrowhawks (Accipiter melanoleucus) from the negative health impacts of urbanisation?

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dc.contributor.advisorAmar, Arjunen_ZA
dc.contributor.advisorSumasgutner, Petraen_ZA
dc.contributor.advisorHellard, Eléonoreen_ZA
dc.contributor.authorSuri, Jessleenaen_ZA
dc.date.accessioned2016-07-21T11:02:33Z
dc.date.available2016-07-21T11:02:33Z
dc.date.issued2016en_ZA
dc.description.abstractAs trends in urbanisation continue globally, there is a growing need to understand the impacts of urban development on wildlife. Whilst urban impacts on patterns of diversity and abundance of species have been well-studied, there remains a distinct lack of understanding around the impacts on ecological interactions. Different species have different levels of tolerance to urban disturbance, some species even appear to thrive in urban areas and make use of human-subsidised resources; but the physiological costs and trade-offs faced by urban-dwelling species are poorly understood. Given that their range in South Africa has only recently expanded into the human-dominated landscapes of the Western Cape, the Black Sparrowhawk (Accipiter melanoleucus) provides an excellent opportunity to explore some of these questions. In this study we explored how urbanisation may affect the health of this raptor on the Cape Peninsula, South Africa. If the health of this species is negatively influenced by levels of urbanisation, this might be driven by differences in diet and prey availability across the urban spectrum. Thus, we explored this potential mechanism by examining diet composition and assessing prey abundance within different territories and habitat types. The health of nestling Black Sparrowhawks was evaluated through their immune response (Heterophil/Lymphocyte ratio in white blood cell counts), body condition (based on morphometric measurements) and blood parasite infection (presence and abundance of Haemoproteus and Leucocytozoon). Trends in diet composition along a gradient of urban cover were determined through the analysis of prey remains collected in the immediate nest surroundings and differences in prey abundance were determined through point counts in different habitat types.en_ZA
dc.identifier.apacitationSuri, J. (2016). <i>Street-wise : does prey abundance buffer black sparrowhawks (Accipiter melanoleucus) from the negative health impacts of urbanisation?</i>. (Thesis). University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Science ,Percy FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology. Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/11427/20558en_ZA
dc.identifier.chicagocitationSuri, Jessleena. <i>"Street-wise : does prey abundance buffer black sparrowhawks (Accipiter melanoleucus) from the negative health impacts of urbanisation?."</i> Thesis., University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Science ,Percy FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, 2016. http://hdl.handle.net/11427/20558en_ZA
dc.identifier.citationSuri, J. 2016. Street-wise : does prey abundance buffer black sparrowhawks (Accipiter melanoleucus) from the negative health impacts of urbanisation?. University of Cape Town.en_ZA
dc.identifier.ris TY - Thesis / Dissertation AU - Suri, Jessleena AB - As trends in urbanisation continue globally, there is a growing need to understand the impacts of urban development on wildlife. Whilst urban impacts on patterns of diversity and abundance of species have been well-studied, there remains a distinct lack of understanding around the impacts on ecological interactions. Different species have different levels of tolerance to urban disturbance, some species even appear to thrive in urban areas and make use of human-subsidised resources; but the physiological costs and trade-offs faced by urban-dwelling species are poorly understood. Given that their range in South Africa has only recently expanded into the human-dominated landscapes of the Western Cape, the Black Sparrowhawk (Accipiter melanoleucus) provides an excellent opportunity to explore some of these questions. In this study we explored how urbanisation may affect the health of this raptor on the Cape Peninsula, South Africa. If the health of this species is negatively influenced by levels of urbanisation, this might be driven by differences in diet and prey availability across the urban spectrum. Thus, we explored this potential mechanism by examining diet composition and assessing prey abundance within different territories and habitat types. The health of nestling Black Sparrowhawks was evaluated through their immune response (Heterophil/Lymphocyte ratio in white blood cell counts), body condition (based on morphometric measurements) and blood parasite infection (presence and abundance of Haemoproteus and Leucocytozoon). Trends in diet composition along a gradient of urban cover were determined through the analysis of prey remains collected in the immediate nest surroundings and differences in prey abundance were determined through point counts in different habitat types. DA - 2016 DB - OpenUCT DP - University of Cape Town LK - https://open.uct.ac.za PB - University of Cape Town PY - 2016 T1 - Street-wise : does prey abundance buffer black sparrowhawks (Accipiter melanoleucus) from the negative health impacts of urbanisation? TI - Street-wise : does prey abundance buffer black sparrowhawks (Accipiter melanoleucus) from the negative health impacts of urbanisation? UR - http://hdl.handle.net/11427/20558 ER - en_ZA
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/11427/20558
dc.identifier.vancouvercitationSuri J. Street-wise : does prey abundance buffer black sparrowhawks (Accipiter melanoleucus) from the negative health impacts of urbanisation?. [Thesis]. University of Cape Town ,Faculty of Science ,Percy FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, 2016 [cited yyyy month dd]. Available from: http://hdl.handle.net/11427/20558en_ZA
dc.language.isoengen_ZA
dc.publisher.departmentPercy FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithologyen_ZA
dc.publisher.facultyFaculty of Scienceen_ZA
dc.publisher.institutionUniversity of Cape Town
dc.subject.otherBiological Conservationen_ZA
dc.subject.otherOrnithologyen_ZA
dc.titleStreet-wise : does prey abundance buffer black sparrowhawks (Accipiter melanoleucus) from the negative health impacts of urbanisation?en_ZA
dc.typeMaster Thesis
dc.type.qualificationlevelMasters
dc.type.qualificationnameMScen_ZA
uct.type.filetypeText
uct.type.filetypeImage
uct.type.publicationResearchen_ZA
uct.type.resourceThesisen_ZA
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