The pairing success of male Black-and-white Warblers, Mniotilta varia, in forest fragments and a continuous forest

Abstract

We compared the pairing success of male Black-and-white Warblers (Mniotilta varia) in forest fragments (2.0-140 ha) dominated by mature Trembling Aspens (Populus tremuloides) and in a similar continuous forest (>1000 ha) in central Alberta, Canada. Of 18 males in forest fragments, 10 were paired. Four out of five males were paired in continuous forest. We failed to detect a significant difference in the pairing success of males in forest fragments versus those in continuous forest (P = 0.36). However, the power of our statistical test was low (0.37). Due to small sample sizes, our results failed to statistically determine whether the pairing success of male Black-and-white Warblers is severely affected by forest fragmentation in the study area.