Importance of Structural Stability to Success of Mourning Dove Nests

The authors report results of an investigation designed to determine whether or not structural stability is associated with the probability of nesting success in Mourning Doves. A sample was recorded of dove nests and recorded whether they succeeded or failed. An independent measure of structural stability was obtained and each nest was classified into one of two groups based on this measure. Finally, daily survival probabilities were estimated for nests in each group and these estimates used to test the null hypothesis that nest success was independent of the structural stability measure.