Competition and climate change combine to threaten Bicknell's thrush
Wednesday, December 23, 2015 - 18:10
in Earth & Climate
Bicknell's Thrush (Catharus bicknelli) is a songbird that breeds in New England mountaintop forests threatened by climate change. Research forthcoming in The Condor: Ornithological Applications shows that this threat could be exacerbated by competition from related birds living downslope. Climate change may cause Bicknell's Thrushes' preferred habitat of spruce-fir forests to shift to even higher elevations, constricting their range, and new data suggests that aggression from related Swainson's Thrushes (Catharus ustulatus) could drive them uphill even faster.