Keywords
birds
electromechanical setup
mammals
Mendoza
nest predators
predator identification
Abstract
We describe an inexpensive electromechanical setup for identifying egg predators by photography at artificial nests. The setup consists of three main components: a trigger mechanism at nest, a mechanism that press the camera shutter, and a system to disconnect the setup. Advantages of this setup are its low cost, the use of a common battery, and that the electric circuit included is easy to assemble. With this setup we identified five species of egg predators (four birds and one mammal) in the central Monte desert, including Upucerthia certhioides, a species not previously observed predating nests. Some precautions to use the setup in the field and to get pictures of good quality are provided.
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