Washington, Aug 13 - If a lush, protected forest with a winding stream is considered luxury accommodation for a migratory bird, a new study shows that they would be just as happy with the equivalent of a cheap roadside motel.

John Dunning, associate professor of forestry and natural resources at Purdue University, found that migrating birds are just as likely to stop in small woodlots in the middle of an agricultural field for the night as long as there is adequate protection and food.

Dunning said the finding suggests that conservation efforts should extend to smaller forested lands to help stabilize declining migratory bird populations.

'There are strategies for conserving forests for migratory birds, but those strategies emphasize the largest patches of forest,' Dunning said.

'We found that even very small woodlots were filled with migratory birds at times. It makes us believe we also need to conserve the little patches of forest, not just the big ones.'

Dunning and graduate student Diane Packett observed woodlots at three distances from Indiana's Wabash River and its tributaries - within half a km, between one and five km and at about 20 km.