Nest-site selection by Levaillant’s Woodpecker Picus vaillantii in the Aurès Mountains of northeastern Algeria
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Date
2023
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NISC (Pty) Ltd and Informa UK Limited (trading as Taylor & Francis Group)
Abstract
We investigated ecological factors that influence the presence of nests of Levaillant’s Woodpecker Picus vaillantii
in the Aurès Mountains of northeastern Algeria. Surveys carried out during the breeding season in 2018 and 2019,
using point counts combined with extensive nest searching around each point at 72 random stations, allowed us to
detect 44 nests against 28 unoccupied points. Using data on trees, deadwood, snags, canopy cover at the nest site,
and elevation, we developed models reflecting landscape structure and forest composition. The results indicate
that P. vaillantii prefers nesting in high-altitude forests and in dense canopies with high elevation. This reflects the
importance of the forest composition, which is related to altitude, and the landscape structure, represented by the
canopy cover, for the breeding of this species.