Control of invasive predators improves breeding success of an endangered alpine passerine

Birds living in alpine environments are becoming increasingly impacted by human‐induced threats. We investigated the impacts of introduced mammalian predators on an endangered alpine species, the New Zealand Rockwren Xenicus gilviventris, and assessed whether predator control improved its breeding success. Nest monitoring revealed that the primary cause of nest failure was predation by invasive mammals, primarily Stoats Mustela erminea and House Mice Mus musculus. Daily survival rates (DSR) decreased with nest age, and nests were at their most vulnerable to predators just prior to fledging. DSR, egg‐hatching and fledgling rates were all improved by predator trapping, demonstrating the significant impacts that even low numbers of invasive predators can have on sensitive alpine and upland species.     

Nest predation is little affected by parental behaviour and nest site in two African Sylvia warblers

Parental behaviour and nest site are supposed to affect nest predation in birds. Few nest visits and high nest attentiveness are assumed to lead to low predation rates. Poorly concealed nests are thought to be more likely to be preyed upon than well concealed nests. Studies on the relationship between parental behaviour, nest site, and nest predation are rare and none have, so far, been conducted in the Afrotropics. We studied the effect of nest site, nest visitation rate, and nest attentiveness on the nest predation rate of the two tropical warblers Sylvia boehmi and Sylvia lugens in Kenya. Parental behaviour and predation on nests of 13 breeding pairs of both species were observed daily in two consecutive breeding seasons. In both species, parental activity at the nest was low [0.9 trips to the nest in 30 min during incubation, maximum 4.6 (S. boehmi) and 5.8 (S. lugens) trips to the nest in the nestling stage]. Predation rates in both species were high (Mayfield nest success 19.4 and 33.2%). Our analysis revealed only weak evidence for an effect of nest site, nest visitation rate, and nest attentiveness on the predation rate. It is suggested that smaller clutches of tropical in comparison to northern temperate birds result from lower feeding rates in tropical ecosystems with high predation rates (Skutchs hypothesis). The underlying mechanism could not be proven in this study.     

4. ONE YEAR'S CENSUS AND STUDY OF BIRDS IN 2½ ACRES OF ALEANY BUSHVELD. (Part 2.) April, 1945, to March, 1946

Hooded Vultures Necrosyrtes monachus are critically endangered but little is known of their year-round use of nests or whether other species usurp Hooded Vulture nest sites. We investigated visitation rates by Hooded Vultures and other species (including potential nest predators and usurpers) to examine their effect on Hooded Vulture breeding success. We present observations of 33 species recorded by camera traps at 12 Hooded Vulture nests over a total of 93 nest-months (2 095 nest-days). Several pairs of Hooded Vultures visited their nests regularly during the non-breeding season, some adding nesting material, highlighting that pairs visited their nest(s) year round. Egyptian Geese Alopochen aegyptiaca, potential usurpers of raptor nests, were present at occupied and unoccupied Hooded Vulture nests, but we recorded no usurpation of nests by Egyptian Geese and they had no impact on vulture breeding success. Hooded Vulture breeding failure was linked to two species only: camera-trap imagery recorded one case of predation of a vulture egg by a Chacma Baboon Papio ursinus, and one case of a Martial Eagle Polemaetus bellicosus predating a vulture nestling. We recommend expanding the Hooded Vulture nest monitoring programme to include more pairs.     

Nest predation and habitat change interact to influence Siberian jay numbers

We studied Siberian jays, breeding in northern Sweden, to examine the potential for interactions between nest predation and reduced vegetation heterogeneity around nest sites to cause a decrease in jay numbers. Parent behaviour and nests are highly cryptic in the species. Our 12-year data showed, however, that nests had a probability of only 0.46 to be successful and produce at least one nestling. Nest predation was intense and a main cause of nest failure. All predators that could be identified were visually oriented hunters, mostly other corvids able to colonize taiga forest only close to human settlements. Consistent with the idea that predators used visual cues, nest predation increased with parental activity, which suggests that predators used parental provisioning trips to locate nests. Furthermore, a reduction in daily nest survival rates with decreasing amount of nesting cover was more pronounced in areas with high corvid activity as predicted when cover mediates the hunting efficiency of visual oriented predators. Declining temperatures interacted with the effects of habitat characteristics to further reduce daily nest survival rates suggesting that parents were not able to increase nest visitation rates to satisfy the higher energy demands of their nestlings without endangering the nest. Our results identify a mechanism through which predation and human-induced reduction in nesting cover on a larger scale may interact to cause a reduction in Siberian jay numbers larger than expected from habitat loss alone.     

Nest visit synchrony is high and correlates with reproductive success in the wild Zebra finch Taeniopygia guttata

Nest visit synchrony, whereby adults coordinate their visits to the nest, has been documented in several species of cooperative breeders. Visit synchrony may reduce nest predation rate or sibling competition, or instead follow from synchronisation of other behaviours, such as foraging. However, nest visit synchrony has rarely been considered in species with bi‐parental care, even though it could conceivably bring similar fitness benefits to that seen in cooperative breeders. In addition, in species with bi‐parental care, we might expect nest visit synchrony to reflect the quality of the pair or the overall coordination of breeding activity between partners. Here, we tested whether nest visit synchrony occurs in a classic avian model for the study of bi‐parental care, the zebra finch Taeniopygia guttata. We found that in the wild, both zebra finch parents visited the nest very infrequently during nestling provisioning, with only one visit per hour, and that nest visits were highly synchronised with parents visiting the nest together on 78% of the visits. In addition, we found that nest visit synchrony was correlated with hatching rate, brood size at hatching and the number of offspring in the nest a few days prior to fledging. Our results suggest that, while more work is required to understand the benefits of nest visit synchrony in this species, considering behavioural synchrony and cooperation between mated partners may offer new insight into the study of parental investment, including in species with bi‐parental care.     

Drivers of low breeding success in the Lesser Spotted Woodpecker Dendrocopos minor in England: testing hypotheses for the decline

Capsule The breeding success of Lesser Spotted Woodpeckers Dendrocopos minor is now lower in England than previously reported and also lower than found in studies elsewhere in Europe.

Aims To quantify the breeding success and identify the causes of nest failure. To test the hypotheses that breeding success is related to aspects of food limitation and parental care, and inclement weather during the nesting period, or to interactions with Great Spotted Woodpeckers.

Methods Nests were monitored in three regions of England, recording survival and causes of failure. We measured aspects of food limitation and parental care, rainfall and Great Spotted Woodpecker interactions at nests, to explore whether there was any evidence that these factors were related to breeding success. We compared results to other studies from the UK and continental Europe.

Results Nest survival was 52%. The average number of chicks produced from successful nests was 2.8. Chick-stage daily nest survival was positively related to provisioning rates, indicating that food supply may be limiting. The most common cause of nest failure was presumed starvation of chicks after the disappearance of an adult. Some females ceased visiting nests, leaving provisioning solely to the male. This behaviour has been reported elsewhere in Europe, but in the present study males were unable to compensate fully by increasing their provisioning rates, leading to poor nest survival. Provisioning rates and chick-stage daily nest survival were negatively associated with rainfall. Nest predation by Great Spotted Woodpeckers occurred but was a less frequent cause of failure. Aggressive interactions were recorded between the two woodpecker species but these were unrelated to breeding parameters.

Conclusions Low breeding success is most probably related to food shortages in the breeding period. Simple population modelling using parameters from the present study and from published work shows that if the low productivity that we have observed is replicated throughout Britain, it would be sufficient to account for the observed population decline. However, the possibility that survival rates are also low cannot be ruled out.     

Effects of nest-site characteristics and parental activity on cowbird parasitism and nest predation in Brown-and-yellow Marshbirds

ABSTRACT Nest‐site selection and nest defense are strategies for reducing the costs of brood parasitism and nest predation, two selective forces that can influence avian nesting success and fitness. During 2001–2002, we analyzed the effect of nest‐site characteristics, nesting pattern, and parental activity on nest predation and brood parasitism by cowbirds (Molothrus spp.) in a population of Brown‐and‐yellow Marshbirds (Pseudoleistes virescens) in the Buenos Aires province, Argentina. We examined the possible effects of nest detectability, nest accessibility, and nest defense on rates of parasitism and nest predation. We also compared rates of parasitism and nest predation and nest survival time of marshbird nests during the egg stage (active nests) with those of the same nests artificially baited with passerine eggs after young fledged or nests failed (experimental nests). Most nests (45 of 48, or 94%) found during the building or laying stages were parasitized, and 79% suffered at least one egg‐predation event. Cowbirds were responsible for most egg predation, with 82 of 107 (77%) egg‐predation events corresponding to eggs punctured by cowbirds. Nests built in thistles had higher rates of parasitism and egg predation than nests in other plant, probably because cowbirds were most active in the area where thistles were almost the only available nesting substrate. Parasitism rates also tended to increase as the distance to conspecific nests increased, possibly due to cooperative mobbing and parental defense by marshbirds. The proportion of nests discovered by cowbirds was higher for active (95%) than for experimental (29%) nests, suggesting that cowbirds used host parental activity to locate nests. Despite active nest defense, parental activity did not affect either predation rates or nest‐survival time. Thus, although nest defense by Brown‐and‐yellow Marshbirds appears to be based on cooperative group defense, such behavior did not reduce the impact of brood parasites and predators.     

Correlation between two components of parental investment: nest defence intensity and nestling provisioning effort of willow tits

Nest defence intensity and nestling provisioning effort of female willow tits (Parus montanus) were significantly correlated at the end of nestling period: well-fed young were defended most intensely. Increased effort was rewarded, since broods with the highest female per-offspring provisioning rates were the most likely to produce local recruits. This suggests that the feeding ability is an important cue for parental investment decisions, at least in a species like the willow tit which has adopted the clutch adjustment strategy. Thus, the most valuable broods would not necessarily be the largest ones, but the ones in which the original number of young could be fed most adequately. However, no associations were found between the level of parental effort and offspring weight, size or condition, nor did the broods producing recruits differ from other broods in timing of breeding or number and size of offspring. The female behaviour may suggest that they invest the most time, energy and risk in the young whose chances of joining the winter flock are the best. The first well-fed young also gain an advantage of prior residency in joining the flock. The first to join normally obtain higher social status, and hence better winter survival, than latecomers. The corresponding patterns in male parental investment behaviour were weak or absent, which suggested that the male effort was affected by the female behaviour. Males seemed to invest in nestling provisioning in such a way as to supplement the female effort. During nest defence action males also seemed to invest in protection of females against predation.     

Nest predation of grassland bird species increases with parental activity at the nest

Alexander Skutch predicted that nest predation will increase with activity at nests, and that predation should be greatest during the nestling stage when parents are feeding young. We tested this hypothesis using three ecologically similar grassland bird species nesting on the high altitude grasslands of Wakkerstroom, South Africa. Parental activity, measured as adult arrival and departure frequency from the nest, was greater during the nestling than incubation stage. Nest predation, however, did not increase with parental activity between these stages in all three study species. However, nest site effects could have confounded this result. We therefore conducted an experiment that controlled for parental activity (by reusing natural nests of the study species with artificial clutches) in order to test for nest site effects. Nests that had a high rate of predation when used by active parents had a correspondingly high rate of depredation when the same nests were reused with artificial clutches (i.e. after controlling for parental activity). This result supports the notion that variation in nest site quality is the primary factor affecting nest predation rate. We also tested whether high predation during incubation is related to nest site effects. Nest predation rates of experimental clutches placed in reused nests that had been originally (when active parents were present) depredated during incubation stage were significantly higher than those that were originally depredated during the nestling stage. Finally, once nest site effects were accounted for, nest predation showed a positive increase with parental activity during the nestling stage across species.     

Contrast in edge vegetation structure modifies the predation risk of natural ground nests in an agricultural landscape

Nest predation risk generally increases nearer forest-field edges in agricultural landscapes. However, few studies test whether differences in edge contrast (i.e. hard versus soft edges based on vegetation structure and height) affect edge-related predation patterns and if such patterns are related to changes in nest conspicuousness between incubation and nestling feeding. Using data on 923 nesting attempts we analyse factors influencing nest predation risk at different edge types in an agricultural landscape of a ground-cavity breeding bird species, the Northern Wheatear (Oenanthe oenanthe). As for many other bird species, nest predation is a major determinant of reproductive success in this migratory passerine. Nest predation risk was higher closer to woodland and crop field edges, but only when these were hard edges in terms of ground vegetation structure (clear contrast between tall vs short ground vegetation). No such edge effect was observed at soft edges where adjacent habitats had tall ground vegetation (crop, ungrazed grassland). This edge effect on nest predation risk was evident during the incubation stage but not the nestling feeding stage. Since wheatear nests are depredated by ground-living animals our results demonstrate: (i) that edge effects depend on edge contrast, (ii) that edge-related nest predation patterns vary across the breeding period probably resulting from changes in parental activity at the nest between the incubation and nestling feeding stage. Edge effects should be put in the context of the nest predator community as illustrated by the elevated nest predation risk at hard but not soft habitat edges when an edge is defined in terms of ground vegetation. These results thus can potentially explain previously observed variations in edge-related nest predation risk.     

Handicapped females receive more feedings during incubation from their mates: support for the female nutrition hypothesis

The female nutrition hypothesis posits that provisioning intensity of incubating females by their mates may depend on female needs and ensure proper incubation and a corresponding high hatching and breeding success of breeding pairs. Here, we have handicapped female pied flycatchers Ficedula hypoleuca at the beginning of incubation by clipping two primaries on each wing and filmed nests during incubation and later nestling provisioning to estimate male involvement in incubation feeding at the nest and in offspring care. Incubation feeding was more frequent at late nests. Correcting for this seasonal effect, incubation feeding was significantly affected by treatment and twice as high at experimental as at control nests. There was no effect of the experiment on female incubation attendance. The handicap did not result in any effect on hatching and breeding success, nestling growth and male or female provisioning and mass at the end of the nestling period. Males adjust their incubation feeding activity at the nest to female energetic requirements during incubation.     

Testing hypotheses about the function of repeated nest abandonment as a life history strategy in a passerine bird

Nest structures are essential for successful reproduction in most bird species. Nest construction costs time and energy, and most bird species typically build one nest per breeding attempt. Some species, however, build more than one nest, and the reason for this behaviour is often unclear. In the Grey Fantail Rhipidura albiscapa, nest abandonment before egg‐laying is very common. Fantails will build up to seven nests within a breeding season, and pairs abandon up to 71% of their nests before egg‐laying. We describe multiple nest‐building behaviour in the Grey Fantail and test four hypotheses explaining nest abandonment in this species: cryptic depredation, destruction of nests during storm events, and two anti‐predatory responses (construction of decoy nests to confuse predators, and increasing concealment to ‘hide’ nests more effectively). We found support for only one hypothesis – that abandonment is related to nest concealment. Abandoned nests were significantly less concealed than nests that received eggs. Most abandoned nests were not completely built and none received eggs, thus ruling out cryptic predation. Nests were not more likely to be abandoned following storm events. The decoy nest hypothesis was refuted as abandoned nests were constructed at any point during the breeding season and some nests were dismantled and the material used to build the subsequent nest. Thus, Grey Fantails are flexible about nest‐site locations during the nest‐building phase and readily abandon nest locations if they are found to have deficient security.     

Factors affecting nesting success of a bird assembly in the central Monte Desert, Argentina

We estimated nesting success of a breeding bird assemblage in the central Monte Desert in four breeding seasons (1995–1999). We analyzed the effect of year, period within the breeding season, nest type, and nest location on daily survival rates (DSR). Averaged nesting success of passeriforms in natural habitats was very low (<20% on average, n=12 species). DSR tended to be lower during the egg-laying stage in Furnariidae, Rhinocryptidae, Mimidae, and Emberizidae. Tyrannidae had the highest DSR for all nesting stages and Emberizidae the lowest. Predation was the main cause of nest failure (>90% on average, n=12 species). DSR differed among years, being higher in the driest year (1995) and lower in the most humid year (1997). Nests initiated in the first half of the breeding season had higher DSR than those initiated in the second half. Closed nests had similar survival rates to open nests. DSR differed according to species of plant that supported the nest. Nest predation in the central Monte Desert may be an important selective pressure in birds' life history, which is in accordance with other results for South American temperate birds.     

Mortality of Wood Warbler Phylloscopus sibilatrix nests in Welsh Oakwoods: predation rates and the identification of nest predators using miniature nest cameras

Capsule Predation was the main cause of nest failure, but predation rates have remained unchanged since the 1980s. Eurasian Jays Garrullus glandarius were the most common predator.

Aims To quantify, and compare, nest predation rates for 1982–84 and 2009–11, and to identify predators of Wood Warbler Phylloscopus sibilatrix nests in Welsh oakwoods.

Methods During 2009–11, 167 Wood Warbler nests were monitored and purpose-built miniature nest cameras deployed at 73 of them. Nest predation rates were compared with 67 nests monitored during 1982–84.

Results Of 167 nests monitored from 2009 to 2011, 62 failed due to predation (32/73 camera nests, 30/94 non-camera nests), giving an overall Daily Survival Rate (DSR?±?se) of 0.979?±?0.003. This was not significantly different from the rate during 1982–84 (0.967?±?0.006). In 2009–11, the DSR of nests declined temporally during the season at both the egg and chick stages. For chick stage nests, DSR varied annually and nonlinearly with age of nestlings. There was no evidence for an effect of cameras at either stage. Of 32 camera nests lost to predation, the predator was identified from 28, resulting in 30 predators being identified. There was one case of multiple predators at a single nest. The majority of nest predation was carried out by birds (28/30), predominantly Eurasian Jays (18/28), but also Common Buzzards Buteo buteo (5/28), Great Spotted Woodpeckers Dendrocopos major (3/28) and Eurasian Sparrowhawks Accipiter nisus (2/28). There was one predation by both a Eurasian Badger Meles meles and a Red Fox Vulpes vulpes. There were no records of Grey Squirrels Sciurus carolinensis depredating nests.

Conclusions Nest predation rates were similar in both periods, suggesting that increased rates of nest predation have not been driving the decline of the Wood Warbler population in Wales. Deployment of nest cameras did not affect nest survival rates and were successful in identifying nest predators, the majority of which were avian, especially Eurasian Jays. Knowledge of the identity of nest predators can aid the development of conservation measures.     

Foraging behaviour of nest predators at open-cup nests of woodland passerines

Nest predation patterns and processes cannot be understood without studying the behaviour of predators. I videotaped the behaviour of 22 species of predators at 171 depredated nests of 13 passerine species, in woodland in the Czech Republic. About 32% (60/187) of all events occurred during the night; mammals accounted for 95% (57/60) and 22% (28/127) of nocturnal and diurnal predation, respectively. About 67% (57/85) of mammalian predation, but only 3% (3/102) of avian predation, occurred during night. Multiple predations by the same species were detected in at least 7% (6/82) and 42% (37/88) of nests depredated by mammals and birds, respectively. Martens Martes martes/foina took nest content mostly all at once; birds (mainly Jay Garrulus glandarius) revisited partially depredated nest during 1–4 consecutive days. Martens stayed at the depredated nest about five times longer than Jays. Martens spent similar time at nests with eggs and nestling, while Jays stayed about twice longer at nests with eggs. Mammals consumed eggs always at the nest (23/23), but took nestlings away in at least 48% (31/64) cases. Birds took the eggs and nestling away in at least 31% (18/58) and 76% (71/94) cases, respectively. Predator visits to active nests without taking the content, repeated partial predation and revisitation of previously depredated nests suggest an effect of memory on predator’s foraging behaviour.     

Determining productivity of Maui Parrotbills,an endangered Hawaiian honeycreeper

ABSTRACT Maui Parrotbills (Pseudonestor xanthophrys), critically endangered Hawaiian honeycreepers endemic to the island of Maui, are restricted to a single population of ～500 individuals located in remote, mountainous terrain. From January to June 2006–2011, we located nests and fledglings in the Hanawi Natural Area Reserve (NAR) in east Maui, Hawaii, to document nest success and annual reproductive success. Nest success is a commonly used measure of productivity and is a central component of many demographic studies. Annual reproductive success is less frequently documented because greater effort is required to monitor the reproductive success of breeding pairs through time. However, for species whose nests are difficult to locate or access, such as Maui Parrotbills, the presence or absence of fledged young may provide a more accurate measure of breeding success than monitoring nests. During our study, we located and determined the outcome of 30 nests to document nest success, and monitored 106 territories for the presence or absence of fledglings to calculate annual reproductive success. Nest success probability was 19% (N= 30) and seasonal nest success was 46%. During our monitoring efforts, 49 of 106 breeding pairs produced a single fledged young. Because parrotbills typically have single egg clutches and only re‐nest after nests fail, the presence or absence of a fledgling is an indication of a pair's overall reproductive success for a breeding season. Based on the number of fledglings per pair, our estimate of annual reproductive success was 46%, confirming our initial productivity estimate from nests. Thus, our results indicate that the two methods, determining annual reproductive success by monitoring fledglings and calculating nest success, provide similar estimates of annual productivity for Maui Parrotbills. Based on our estimates, the parrotbill population appears to be demographically stable. However, our productivity estimate was based only on the population at Hanawi, an area representing just 3% of the total range of parrotbills. Thus, our results may not accurately reflect the status of parrotbills over their entire range.     

Sex‐Specific Parental Care in Response to Predation Risk in the European Roller,Coracias garrulus

Sublethal effects of predation constitute an important part of predation effects, which may modulate prey population and community dynamics. In birds, the risk of nest predation may cause a reduction in parental activity in the care of offspring to reduce the chance of being detected by predators. In addition, parents may modify their parental food allocation preferences within the brood in response to predation risk. Our aim in this study was to evaluate the effects of risk of nest predation on parental care and within‐nest food allocation in the European Roller (Coracias garrulus), an asynchronously hatching bird. We manipulated brood predation risk by placing a snake model near the nests that simulates the most common nest predator in the Mediterranean region. Our results show that males but not females increased their provisioning rate when they were exposed to the model and that despite this, nestlings’ body mass decreased in response to this temporary increase in predation risk. We did not find evidence that parents changed their food allocation strategy towards senior or junior nestlings in their nests in response to predation risk. These results show that the European roller modifies parental care in response to their perception of predation risk in the nest and a sex‐specific sensitivity to the threat, which suggests a different perception of offspring reproductive value by parents. Finally, our results show that changes in parental behaviour in response to nest predation risk might have consequences for nestling fitness prospects.     

Male parental care promotes early fledging in an open-nester, the Willow Warbler Phylloscopus trochilus

The importance of male parental care to female reproductive success was investigated in the monogamous Willow Warbler Phylloscopus trochilus by removing the male parent at two different stages of the breeding cycle. Females that were widowed at the start of egg-laying continued breeding and managed to raise their brood on their own with no apparent reductions in numbers fledged or fledgling body-mass. The widowed females compensated for the loss of male assistance by increasing their own food provisioning rate as compared with control females. However, widows spent less time brooding the small young, and the growth rate of nestlings was reduced. In nests where the male parent was removed 7 days after the eggs hatched, the subsequent growth rate of nestlings was still affected, which suggests that male care is influential throughout the nestling period. On average, broods reared by widows fledged 2 days later than did broods of control females. An extension of the nestling period may appreciably affect reproductive success, since 68% of nests failed due to predation, mostly during the nestling period. We suggest that the main role of male parental care in the Willow Warbler is to assure a high growth rate of nestlings, which leads to early fledging and hence a reduced risk of nest predation.     

Birds nesting survival in disturbed and protected Neotropical savannas

Fragmentation and other habitat disturbances are long known to negatively affect birds, in large part by decreasing nest success due to high nest predation rates. The factors, however, that cause this decrease in nest success are still poorly understood and may vary among regions or species. Here, we show that nest survival is also lower in a disturbed landscape versus a protected cerrado (savanna-like) Neotropical landscape. Also, we tested the importance of garbage in the nest, brood parasitism, microhabitat and bird family in nest survival, controlling for temporal effects. We monitored 144 birds’ nests in a disturbed landscape and 150 nests in a natural reserve of cerrado vegetation in central Brazil, between September and December 2006. We used Program MARK to estimate nest survival probabilities and evaluate the effect of covariates in nest success in the disturbed area. Nest daily survival rate (DSR) was higher in the reserve (survival probability = 29.4%) than in the disturbed landscape (survival probability = 16.6%). Nest daily survival rate (DSR) was smaller in nests with garbage (survival probability = 9.3%) than in nests without garbage (survival probability = 19.5%) in the disturbed landscape. Effects of habitat disturbance on nest survival differed among bird families, with finches and tanagers being more affected mostly due to high nest predation rates. Conservation and management of birds in disturbed landscapes should include actions to decrease nest predation. In poor rural or suburban areas in developing countries, such as Brazil, actions like better garbage treatment may help conserve birds in disturbed landscapes.     

Sexual pigmentation and parental risk‐taking in yellow warblers Setophaga petechia

Adult‐directed predation risk imposes important behavioral constraints on parents and might thus alter relationships between costly sexual ornaments and parental performance. For instance, under low predation risk, highly ornamented individuals might display better parental performance than others, as predicted by ‘good parent’ models of sexual selection. However, under high risk of predation, highly ornamented individuals might abandon parental effort if conspicuous to predators, or if social partners are more willing to take parental risks when paired with highly ornamented mates. We experimentally elevated perceived adult‐directed predation risk near nests to explore how carotenoid‐ and phaeomelanin‐based pigmentation in both sexes relate to parental risk‐taking for offspring in the yellow warbler Setophaga petechia. Compared to other males, males with more intense carotenoid‐based pigmentation maintained higher levels of paternal effort under predation risk at highly concealed nests, but reduced nestling provisioning rate more at exposed nests. Further, when faced with predation risk, females with more phaeomelanin‐based pigmentation reduced nestling provisioning rate less than other females, regardless of nest concealment. Females displayed higher parental effort across treatments when paired to males with more colorful carotenoid pigmentation. However, birds did not reduce parental effort under risk less when paired to a highly ornamented mate, suggesting that predation risk did not accentuate differential allocation. Males did not take fewer parental risks than females. Results indicate that nest concealment modifies parental risk‐taking by males with colorful carotenoid‐based pigmentation, and suggest that female melanin‐based pigmentation may indicate boldness and greater a propensity to take parental risks.