Nest-boxes increase fledging success in the declining rifleman Acanthisitta chloris, New Zealand

SUMMARY The provision of nest-boxes was tested as a low cost method to increase fledging success in the rifleman Acanthisitta chloris, a declining endemic New Zealand species that is at risk from introduced mammalian predators. Nest success of riflemen in nest-boxes (80%) was five times higher than those in natural nest sites (16%). This difference was due to a reduction in the rate of predation in nest-boxes. However, aluminium nest guards did not further increase nest success in nest-boxes (82%). This outcome indicates that nest-boxes can provide a low cost and non-lethal method to protect rifleman nests from predators and increase fledging productivity.

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