MF magnitude does not affect body condition, pro-oxidants and anti-oxidants in Eurasian kestrel (Falco tinnunculus) nestlings

Pylons of utility lines are commonly used by breeding birds as structures for supporting their nests. Nesting near power lines, however, exposes adult birds and their offspring to the electric and magnetic fields (EMFs) produced by the current. Therefore, we searched for possible relationships between the magnetic field (MF) magnitude experienced by wild kestrel (Falco tinnunculus) nestlings grown on pylons and different health-related variables: body condition, serum concentration of carotenoids, reactive oxygen metabolites (ROMs; marker of early oxidative damage), serum anti-oxidant capacity (OXY), and the ratio between ROMs and OXY (index of oxidative stress). No significant relationships were found between the MF magnitude or squared MFs and any of the variables considered. Comparisons with values recorded in nestlings from non-exposed nests seem to confirm the absence of any effect of exposure to MFs produced by power lines on the variables considered.