Record behavioral interactions

FeederWatch participants are invited to report two types of interactive behaviors they might observe between birds, a bird and a mammal, or mammals at their feeders: displacement and predation (defined below). If you observe either of the behaviors, note the species attempting to displace or depredate another bird or mammal and the species that was targeted. They could be the same species or different species. Also record whether or not the behavior was successful, e.g. did the Blue Jay successfully take a perch from a chickadee? Did the Cooper’s Hawk fail to catch the Mourning Dove? When reporting your interaction, be sure to click the “Save interaction” button to submit the report. The report will display below the submission fields, which will clear, allowing you to report additional interactions.

Displacement

Displacement is when one bird or mammal tries to take over a resource (usually food, but sometimes a perch) occupied by another bird or mammal. A displacement event is successful if the animal initiating the interaction dislodges the animal targeted by the interaction from a perch or feeder. The individual initiating the interaction needs to be purposefully attempting to take the perch of the targeted individual, rather than landing on a spot as the target individual was about to leave on its own accord. Displacement behavior does not include when a bird flies away to escape a predator or when a group of birds mob another bird. Sometimes large birds, such as Blue Jays or Red-bellied Woodpeckers, can arrive suddenly at a feeder and cause other birds to scatter. Or sometimes a flock of birds, such as Bushtits, can arrive and cause other birds to leave. Such instances are difficult to interpret so we ask that you only report clear examples of one individual attempting to displace another individual.

Predation

Predation events are when one bird or mammal attempts to capture or kill another bird or mammal. Predation events often happen quickly and can be difficult to see. If you are confident that the individual initiating the interaction killed the individual targeted by the interaction, then report the predation event as successful (it is successful from the predator’s perspective). When an event is unsuccessful, such as when a Cooper’s Hawk flies at a bird feeder and comes up empty, it may not be possible to identify the target individual. Only record observations where you are certain about the identity of both species.

A note about terms: The verbs “predate” and “depredate” are both used by biologists to mean “to prey upon.” As “predate” can also mean “to come before,” we use the verb “depredate” to describe the behavior seen in a predation event.”