Effects of pesticide spraying on chick growth, behavior, and parental care in tree swallows (Tachycineta bicolor) nesting in an apple orchard in Ontario, Canada

Abstract The objective of this study was to investigate the consequences of the use of cholinesterase (ChE)-inhibiting insecticides in an apple orchard on behavior and growth of tree swallows (Tachycineta bicolor). In a sprayed apple orchard and two nonsprayed sites in southern Ontario, Canada, in 1996 through 1997, hunger signaling and growth of chicks, feeding activities of adults, and aerial invertebrate abundance were studied before and …