Nest site characteristics of Chinese pond-herons in Fuyang

From 2009 to 2013,nest site characteristics of Ardeola bacchus were studied by collecting samples from two heronries in Fuyang.Eleven nest-site variables,i.e.,nest tree species,minimum distance between nests,nest height,height of nest tree,under-branch height,diameter of nest tree at breast height,crown diameter of nest tree,coverage within 1m around the nest,coverage above the nest,distance of nest from tree center,distance of nest to heronry edge,were measured.Nest site characteristics of Ardeola bacchus were analyzed with the methods of one-way analysis of variance and principal component analysis.The results showed that four components describing sampled nest habitats are nest tree,height,disturbance and protection,and the contribution rate of them is 30.527%,19.456%,15.307%,9.657%,respectively.