Avian Nest-Site Selection Under Electromagnetic Stress: Evidence from Semi-Urban Ecosystems

Avian Nest-Site Selection Under Electromagnetic Stress: Evidence from Semi-Urban Ecosystems | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Research Article Avian Nest-Site Selection Under Electromagnetic Stress: Evidence from Semi-Urban Ecosystems Siraj Uddin Mazumder, Afifullah Khan, Mirza Salim Beg, Athar Ali Khan, and 1 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-8025404/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Urbanizing landscapes increasingly expose wildlife to electromagnetic fields (EMFs) generated by telecommunication infrastructure, yet their ecological implications remain poorly understood. We investigated whether EMF exposure influences avian nest-site selection in three semi-urban ecosystems differing in land-use composition. Habitat utilization was first assessed relative to availability, followed by Bayesian logistic regression to evaluate the combined effects of landscape structure and EMF intensity across four frequency bands (900, 1800, 2100, and 2400 MHz). Birds did not select nesting habitats in proportion to their availability, indicating that habitat abundance alone does not determine nest placement. Instead, nest-site selection was associated with specific EMF variables and landscape features, with the influential EMF bands varying among sites. Negative relationships with nest occurrence were observed for EMF_900 and EMF_2400 in one landscape, and for EMF_1800 in another, while in the third area EMF_900 showed a negative association and EMF_1800 a positive one. These patterns likely reflect differences in local exposure thresholds and species-specific sensitivities within the breeding community. Our findings provide empirical evidence that existing EMF levels can shape avian nesting patterns in human-modified environments. Recognizing EMF exposure as an ecological factor is essential for urban planning and for managing biodiversity conservation in increasingly networked landscapes. Electromagnetic fields (EMF) Nest-site selection mobile phone towers Urban and semi-urban ecosystems Habitat use and availability Bayesian logistic regression Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-8025404","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Research Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":539605730,"identity":"d63be838-c71c-4062-8b62-d2f766108d47","order_by":0,"name":"Siraj Uddin Mazumder","email":"data:image/png;base64,iVBORw0KGgoAAAANSUhEUgAAAZAAAAAyAQMAAABI0h/eAAAABlBMVEX///8AAABVwtN+AAAACXBIWXMAAA7EAAAOxAGVKw4bAAAA2ElEQVRIiWNgGAWjYDACZiCWYLBg4AdxEgqI1yLBINkA0mJAvF0SDAYHQDQxWuTbeR9+sGyTsDc+vzrxwwMDBnl+sQP4tRgcZjeWkGyTSNx24+1mCaDDDGfOTiCghZmNQUJym0SC2Y2zG0BaEgxuE9Ai38zG/AOoxd54xtnNP4jSwnCYjQ1kC+MG/t5txNliANRiIflPInHGDd5tFgkGEoT9It9/jPm2xBkbe/7+s5tv/qiwkeeXJuQwIGCWAJESYJUShJWDAOMHEMl/gDjVo2AUjIJRMPIAAH6+PLPaprvgAAAAAElFTkSuQmCC","orcid":"","institution":"Aligarh Muslim University","correspondingAuthor":true,"prefix":"","firstName":"Siraj","middleName":"Uddin","lastName":"Mazumder","suffix":""},{"id":539605732,"identity":"1b21103d-f30c-45e4-b0b5-68d6ee93ece9","order_by":1,"name":"Afifullah Khan","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Aligarh Muslim University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Afifullah","middleName":"","lastName":"Khan","suffix":""},{"id":539605733,"identity":"cae7bdd8-f769-4113-a56a-97e1785ab282","order_by":2,"name":"Mirza Salim Beg","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Aligarh Muslim University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Mirza","middleName":"Salim","lastName":"Beg","suffix":""},{"id":539605734,"identity":"8e3e2a75-4ad6-45a7-9bbd-d13be39e65fb","order_by":3,"name":"Athar Ali Khan","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Aligarh Muslim University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Athar","middleName":"Ali","lastName":"Khan","suffix":""},{"id":539605736,"identity":"74c79d1e-a8f4-47c4-8f08-8f18949b0e81","order_by":4,"name":"Shazia Farhin","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"Aligarh Muslim University","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Shazia","middleName":"","lastName":"Farhin","suffix":""}],"badges":[],"createdAt":"2025-11-04 06:53:33","currentVersionCode":1,"declarations":{"humanSubjects":false,"vertebrateSubjects":false,"conflictsOfInterestStatement":false,"humanSubjectEthicalGuidelines":false,"humanSubjectConsent":false,"humanSubjectClinicalTrial":false,"humanSubjectCaseReport":false,"vertebrateSubjectEthicalGuidelines":false},"doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-8025404/v1","doiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-8025404/v1","draftVersion":[],"editorialEvents":[],"editorialNote":"","failedWorkflow":false,"files":[{"id":95605751,"identity":"d7f29655-f85e-4479-8ac9-2072d5ff80d2","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-11 07:06:01","extension":"docx","order_by":0,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":813043,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"EMFNest.docx","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8025404/v1/e42895053d3658f9cb071c72.docx"},{"id":95655927,"identity":"4a8df64b-c6e9-46ea-a251-661443614e07","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-11 16:17:18","extension":"json","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":6472,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"76b309a55d2e45c2804964badfe280dd.json","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8025404/v1/90149488240e3b3c8c0bc62e.json"},{"id":95605754,"identity":"17d276e8-1f98-421b-a239-aa149cf33d48","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-11 07:06:01","extension":"xml","order_by":2,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":101962,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"76b309a55d2e45c2804964badfe280dd1enriched.xml","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8025404/v1/75419f20c3e2e0b6a34ce6ec.xml"},{"id":95656897,"identity":"83190452-fcb3-4bba-874b-760cb561a9bb","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-11 16:19:41","extension":"jpeg","order_by":3,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":361611,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"floatimage1.jpeg","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8025404/v1/ec49a897d8ef391644389b9a.jpeg"},{"id":95605757,"identity":"8d866a31-426c-43ca-b362-d74df5c77c5f","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-11 07:06:01","extension":"jpeg","order_by":4,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":140141,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"floatimage2.jpeg","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8025404/v1/07098415b7a6bb2574c7088a.jpeg"},{"id":95605758,"identity":"5eda6f30-324b-4b2d-938f-9a83caca4ba6","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-11 07:06:01","extension":"jpeg","order_by":5,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":459739,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"floatimage3.jpeg","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8025404/v1/d3592603360e518ec42c94cb.jpeg"},{"id":95605750,"identity":"b1a02c6d-2d27-4ba0-88ee-fc296aa790b0","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-11 07:06:01","extension":"jpeg","order_by":6,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":406845,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"floatimage4.jpeg","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8025404/v1/0954f20a82f7c3d9342dd609.jpeg"},{"id":95657609,"identity":"17e223c2-8fb9-4a79-8440-d8a14c43b92b","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-11 16:21:21","extension":"jpeg","order_by":7,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":411443,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"floatimage5.jpeg","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8025404/v1/96308cfb384add1246a30931.jpeg"},{"id":95656654,"identity":"02f6b269-fafd-4a6e-a8bd-125c752f962f","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-11 16:19:15","extension":"jpeg","order_by":8,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":431431,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"floatimage6.jpeg","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8025404/v1/d6a0ac27257b91e18cb534a0.jpeg"},{"id":95657137,"identity":"d1d21748-ed96-49cf-9e44-bd0e114575fc","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-11 16:20:10","extension":"jpeg","order_by":9,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":436480,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"floatimage7.jpeg","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8025404/v1/335a7dfff547776fb23a79a6.jpeg"},{"id":95656643,"identity":"1f87f937-b045-4c85-8604-9b9fb1923dfe","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-11 16:19:14","extension":"jpeg","order_by":10,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":403098,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"floatimage8.jpeg","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8025404/v1/7554c765bfa35c01a3230de6.jpeg"},{"id":95605760,"identity":"1962b91f-6cc5-4f07-a9d6-82c707881af2","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-11 07:06:01","extension":"png","order_by":11,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":143771,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"Onlinefloatimage1.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8025404/v1/a2d916b51fba26afa12d564f.png"},{"id":95657277,"identity":"ea23b159-546c-479e-ae12-cc6d1f7c64bf","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-11 16:20:27","extension":"png","order_by":12,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":44031,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"Onlinefloatimage2.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8025404/v1/cfbef50ee19a9b3db359ae72.png"},{"id":95656061,"identity":"9d4f4a3f-122f-4c7d-915a-7fc7f189eceb","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-11 16:17:42","extension":"png","order_by":13,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":71605,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"Onlinefloatimage3.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8025404/v1/6243aba5c15c19cbde9a7e68.png"},{"id":95605762,"identity":"958faa9d-43a7-4bba-9234-63a8e572fe30","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-11 07:06:02","extension":"png","order_by":14,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":61208,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"Onlinefloatimage4.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8025404/v1/39639996a9adb3b74dae1f07.png"},{"id":95657335,"identity":"bcd27759-1c52-462c-9432-6007dfed41d9","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-11 16:20:34","extension":"png","order_by":15,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":58137,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"Onlinefloatimage5.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8025404/v1/e68598595f680338053c82eb.png"},{"id":95657614,"identity":"44ab6e67-706c-4f7d-ae90-29deca945668","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-11 16:21:23","extension":"png","order_by":16,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":60994,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"Onlinefloatimage6.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8025404/v1/20c828872061c1a1fa3473e5.png"},{"id":95656529,"identity":"03b98bc9-2020-4f02-9434-189b101801ad","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-11 16:18:56","extension":"png","order_by":17,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":63734,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"Onlinefloatimage7.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8025404/v1/c1ed64b55fbc450d9d203a2f.png"},{"id":95605767,"identity":"d24205ee-beba-485c-ba15-932e9a3f70a6","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-11 07:06:02","extension":"png","order_by":18,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":56593,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"Onlinefloatimage8.png","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8025404/v1/34f3cb7903ed2c739192e428.png"},{"id":95605769,"identity":"082fd9bd-8086-420c-82cb-55ef101af6eb","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-11 07:06:02","extension":"xml","order_by":19,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":99975,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"76b309a55d2e45c2804964badfe280dd1structuring.xml","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8025404/v1/974c7bccc7179b27a3799308.xml"},{"id":95605770,"identity":"b3399248-f784-4f47-b28b-ab488ce21a31","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-11 07:06:02","extension":"html","order_by":20,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"acdc-reference","size":110679,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"earlyproof.html","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8025404/v1/97d8a89c2e39758b38993fde.html"},{"id":96244390,"identity":"a0d7e208-b5ad-426e-97dd-5bc80e2bc0de","added_by":"auto","created_at":"2025-11-19 07:18:20","extension":"pdf","order_by":1,"title":"","display":"","copyAsset":false,"role":"manuscript-pdf","size":640921,"visible":true,"origin":"","legend":"","description":"","filename":"EMFNest.pdf","url":"https://assets-eu.researchsquare.com/files/rs-8025404/v1_covered_86965755-a069-4b0b-aa10-fc3e398d1db0.pdf"}],"financialInterests":"No competing interests reported.","formattedTitle":"Avian Nest-Site Selection Under Electromagnetic Stress: Evidence from Semi-Urban Ecosystems","fulltext":[],"fulltextSource":"","fullText":"","funders":[],"hasAdminPriorityOnWorkflow":false,"hasManuscriptDocX":false,"hasOptedInToPreprint":true,"hasPassedJournalQc":"","hasAnyPriority":true,"hideJournal":true,"highlight":"","institution":"","isAcceptedByJournal":false,"isAuthorSuppliedPdf":true,"isDeskRejected":"","isHiddenFromSearch":false,"isInQc":false,"isInWorkflow":true,"isPdf":true,"isPdfUpToDate":true,"isWithdrawnOrRetracted":false,"journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true},"keywords":"Electromagnetic fields (EMF), Nest-site selection, mobile phone towers, Urban and semi-urban ecosystems, Habitat use and availability, Bayesian logistic regression","lastPublishedDoi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-8025404/v1","lastPublishedDoiUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-8025404/v1","license":{"name":"CC BY 4.0","url":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/"},"manuscriptAbstract":"\u003cp\u003eUrbanizing landscapes increasingly expose wildlife to electromagnetic fields (EMFs) generated by telecommunication infrastructure, yet their ecological implications remain poorly understood. We investigated whether EMF exposure influences avian nest-site selection in three semi-urban ecosystems differing in land-use composition. Habitat utilization was first assessed relative to availability, followed by Bayesian logistic regression to evaluate the combined effects of landscape structure and EMF intensity across four frequency bands (900, 1800, 2100, and 2400 MHz). Birds did not select nesting habitats in proportion to their availability, indicating that habitat abundance alone does not determine nest placement. Instead, nest-site selection was associated with specific EMF variables and landscape features, with the influential EMF bands varying among sites. Negative relationships with nest occurrence were observed for EMF_900 and EMF_2400 in one landscape, and for EMF_1800 in another, while in the third area EMF_900 showed a negative association and EMF_1800 a positive one. These patterns likely reflect differences in local exposure thresholds and species-specific sensitivities within the breeding community. Our findings provide empirical evidence that existing EMF levels can shape avian nesting patterns in human-modified environments. Recognizing EMF exposure as an ecological factor is essential for urban planning and for managing biodiversity conservation in increasingly networked landscapes.\u003c/p\u003e","manuscriptTitle":"Avian Nest-Site Selection Under Electromagnetic Stress: Evidence from Semi-Urban Ecosystems","msid":"","msnumber":"","nonDraftVersions":[{"code":1,"date":"2025-11-11 07:05:57","doi":"10.21203/rs.3.rs-8025404/v1","editorialEvents":[{"type":"communityComments","content":0}],"status":"published","journal":{"display":true,"email":"[email protected]","identity":"researchsquare","isNatureJournal":false,"hasQc":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"externalIdentity":"","sideBox":"","snPcode":"","submissionUrl":"/submission","title":"Research Square","twitterHandle":"researchsquare","acdcEnabled":true,"dfaEnabled":false,"editorialSystem":"","reportingPortfolio":"","inReviewEnabled":false,"inReviewRevisionsEnabled":true}}],"origin":"","ownerIdentity":"10cec6f9-b554-46cf-9b89-bd03959a633b","owner":[],"postedDate":"November 11th, 2025","published":true,"recentEditorialEvents":[],"rejectedJournal":[],"revision":"","amendment":"","status":"posted","subjectAreas":[],"tags":[],"updatedAt":"2025-11-15T03:53:15+00:00","versionOfRecord":[],"versionCreatedAt":"2025-11-11 07:05:57","video":"","vorDoi":"","vorDoiUrl":"","workflowStages":[]},"version":"v1","identity":"rs-8025404","journalConfig":"researchsquare"},"__N_SSP":true},"page":"/article/[identity]/[[...version]]","query":{"redirect":"/article/rs-8025404","identity":"rs-8025404","version":["v1"]},"buildId":"8U1c8b4HqxoKbykW_rLl7","isFallback":false,"isExperimentalCompile":false,"dynamicIds":[84888],"gssp":true,"scriptLoader":[]}