American kestrels, small colorful falcons often seen perched along roadways, are abundant in urban and agricultural areas. Shorter grass makes insects, snakes, mice and other prey more visible, and signposts, fences and telephone poles provide excellent perches. However a new study from scientists at Boise State University shows that even species considered “tolerant” of human activity may be adversely impacted by human disturbance; Kestrels nesting in close proximity to roads and developed areas had elevated stress hormones and high rates of nest abandonment. The apparently favorable location, then, becomes an ecological trap.

The peer-reviewed paper “Reproductive failure of a human-tolerant species, the American kestrel, is associated with stress and human disturbance,” was published in the British Ecological Society’s Journal of Applied Ecology (May 10, 2013). Boise State graduate student Erin Strasser, now with the Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory, and Julie Heath, a professor in the Boise State Department of Biological Sciences and Raptor Research Center, conducted the research. (more…)