| 1. |
- Appelgren, A., et al.
(författare)
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Relative fitness of a generalist parasite on two alternative hosts : a cross-infestation experiment to test host specialization of the hen flea Ceratophyllus gallinae (Schrank)
- 2016
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Ingår i: Journal of Evolutionary Biology. - : Wiley. - 1010-061X .- 1420-9101. ; 29:5, s. 1091-1101
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Host range is a key element of a parasite's ecology and evolution and can vary greatly depending on spatial scale. Generalist parasites frequently show local population structure in relation to alternative sympatric hosts (i.e. host races) and may thus be specialists at local scales. Here, we investigated local population specialization of a common avian nest-based parasite, the hen flea Ceratophyllus gallinae (Schrank), exploiting two abundant host species that share the same breeding sites, the great tit Parus major (Linnaeus) and the collared flycatcher Ficedula albicollis (Temminck). We performed a cross-infestation experiment of fleas between the two host species in two distinct study areas during a single breeding season and recorded the reproductive success of both hosts and parasites. In the following year, hosts were monitored again to assess the long-term impact of cross-infestation. Our results partly support the local specialization hypothesis: in great tit nests, tit fleas caused higher damage to their hosts than flycatcher fleas, and in collared flycatcher nests, flycatcher fleas had a faster larval development rates than tit fleas. However, these results were significant in only one of the two studied areas, suggesting that the location and history of the host population can modulate the specialization process. Caution is therefore called for when interpreting single location studies. More generally, our results emphasize the need to explicitly account for host diversity in order to understand the population ecology and evolutionary trajectory of generalist parasites.
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| 2. |
- Appelgren, Anais S. C., et al.
(författare)
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Gene flow and adaptive potential in a generalist ectoparasite
- 2018
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Ingår i: BMC Evolutionary Biology. - : BMC. - 1471-2148. ; 18
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: In host-parasite systems, relative dispersal rates condition genetic novelty within populations and thus their adaptive potential. Knowledge of host and parasite dispersal rates can therefore help us to understand current interaction patterns in wild populations and why these patterns shift over time and space. For generalist parasites however, estimates of dispersal rates depend on both host range and the considered spatial scale. Here, we assess the relative contribution of these factors by studying the population genetic structure of a common avian ectoparasite, the hen flea Ceratophyllus gallinae, exploiting two hosts that are sympatric in our study population, the great tit Paws major and the collared flycatcher Ficedula albicollis. Previous experimental studies have indicated that the hen flea is both locally maladapted to great tit populations and composed of subpopulations specialized on the two host species, suggesting limited parasite dispersal in space and among hosts, and a potential interaction between these two structuring factors. Results: C gallinae fleas were sampled from old nests of the two passerine species in three replicate wood patches and were genotyped at microsatellite markers to assess population genetic structure at different scales (among individuals within a nest among nests and between host species within a patch and among patches). As expected, significant structure was found at all spatial scales and between host species, supporting the hypothesis of limited dispersal in this parasite. Clustering analyses and estimates of relatedness further suggested that inbreeding regularly occurs within nests. Patterns of isolation by distance within wood patches indicated that flea dispersal likely occurs in a stepwise manner among neighboring nests. From these data, we estimated that gene flow in the hen flea is approximately half that previously described for its great tit hosts. Conclusion: Our results fall in line with predictions based on observed patterns of adaptation in this host-parasite system, suggesting that parasite dispersal is limited and impacts its adaptive potential with respect to its hosts. More generally, this study sheds light on the complex interaction between parasite gene flow, local adaptation and host specialization within a single host-parasite system.
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| 3. |
- Bailey, Liam D., et al.
(författare)
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Bird populations most exposed to climate change are less sensitive to climatic variation
- 2022
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Ingår i: Nature Communications. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2041-1723. ; 13:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The phenology of many species shows strong sensitivity to climate change; however, with few large scale intra-specific studies it is unclear how such sensitivity varies over a species’ range. We document large intra-specific variation in phenological sensitivity to temperature using laying date information from 67 populations of two co-familial European songbirds, the great tit (Parus major) and blue tit (Cyanistes caeruleus), covering a large part of their breeding range. Populations inhabiting deciduous habitats showed stronger phenological sensitivity than those in evergreen and mixed habitats. However, populations with higher sensitivity tended to have experienced less rapid change in climate over the past decades, such that populations with high phenological sensitivity will not necessarily exhibit the strongest phenological advancement. Our results show that to effectively assess the impact of climate change on phenology across a species’ range it will be necessary to account for intra-specific variation in phenological sensitivity, climate change exposure, and the ecological characteristics of a population.
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| 4. |
- Bize, Pierre, et al.
(författare)
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Negative phenotypic and genetic correlation between natal dispersal propensity and nest-defence behaviour in a wild bird
- 2017
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Ingår i: Biology Letters. - : ROYAL SOCIETY. - 1744-9561 .- 1744-957X. ; 13:7
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Natural selection is expected to favour the integration of dispersal and phenotypic traits allowing individuals to reduce dispersal costs. Accordingly, associations have been found between dispersal and personality traits such as aggressiveness and exploration, which may facilitate settlement in a novel environment. However, the determinism of these associations has only rarely been explored. Here, we highlight the functional integration of individual personality in nest-defence behaviour and natal dispersal propensity in a long-lived colonial bird, the Alpine swift (Alms melba), providing insights into genetic constraints shaping the coevolution of these two traits. We report a negative association between natal dispersal and nest-defence (i.e. risk taking) behaviour at both the phenotypic and genetic level. This negative association may result from direct selection if risk-averseness benefits natal dispersers by reducing the costs of settlement in an unfamiliar environment, or from indirect selection if individuals with lower levels of nest defence also show lower levels of aggressiveness, reducing costs of settlement among unfamiliar neighbours in a colony. In both cases, these results highlight that risk taking is an important behavioural trait to consider in the study of dispersal evolution.
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| 5. |
- Boucaud, Ingrid C. A., et al.
(författare)
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Interactive vocal communication at the nest by parent Great Tits Parus major
- 2016
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Ingår i: Ibis. - : Wiley. - 0019-1019 .- 1474-919X. ; 158:3, s. 630-644
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Although most bird species show monogamous pair bonds and bi-parental care, little is known of how mated birds coordinate their activities. Whether or not partners communicate with each other to adjust their behaviour remains an open question. During incubation and the first days after hatching, one parent - generally the female - stays in the nest for extended periods, and might depend on acoustic communication to exchange information with its mate outside. The Great Tit Parus major is an interesting study system to investigate intra-pair communication at the nest because males address songs to their mate while she is in the nest cavity, and females answer the male from the cavity with calls. However, the function of this communication remains unknown. In this study, we recorded the vocalizations and observed the resulting behaviour of Great Tit pairs around the nest at different breeding stages (laying, incubation and chick-rearing). We observed vocal exchanges (vocalization bouts, alternated on the same tempo, between the female inside the nest and her male outside) in three contexts with different outcomes: (1) the female left the nest, (2) the male entered the box with food, and the female then used specific call types, (3) mates stopped calling but did not leave or enter the nest. The structure of vocal exchanges was globally stable between contexts, but females used calls with an up-shifted spectrum during exchanges, at the end of which they left the nest or the male entered the nest. Birds vocalized more and at higher tempo during exchanges that ended up in feeding inside the nest. Birds also vocalized more during exchanges taking place during laying - a period of active mate guarding - than during incubation. We conclude that vocal exchanges could signal the females' need for food and the males' mate guarding behaviour, and discuss other possible functions of this communication.
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| 6. |
- Cauchard, Laure, et al.
(författare)
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An Experimental Test of a Causal Link between Problem-Solving Performance and Reproductive Success in Wild Great Tits
- 2017
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Ingår i: Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution. - : FRONTIERS MEDIA SA. - 2296-701X. ; 5
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Recent studies have uncovered relationships between measures of various cognitive performances and proxies of fitness such as reproductive success in non-human animals. However, to better understand the evolution of cognition in the wild, we still have to determine the causality of these relationships and the underlying mechanisms. The cognitive ability of an individual may directly influence its ability to raise many and/or high quality young through for example its provisioning ability. Conversely, large and/or high quality broods may lead to high parental motivation to solve problems related to their care. To answer this question, we manipulated reproductive success through brood size and measured subsequent problem-solving performance in wild great tit parents. Our results show that brood size manipulation did not affect the probability to solve the task. Moreover, solver pairs fledged more young than non-solver pairs independently of brood size treatment in one of the two experimental years and they showed higher nestling provisioning rate in both years. Overall, it shows that problem-solving performance was not driven by motivation and suggest that problem-solvers may achieve higher fledging success through higher provisioning rates. Our study constitutes a first key step toward a mechanistic understanding of the consequences of innovation ability for individual fitness in the wild.
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| 7. |
- Cauchard, Laure, et al.
(författare)
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Effect of an anti-malaria drug on behavioural performance on a problem-solving task : An experiment in wild great tits
- 2016
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Ingår i: Behavioural Processes. - : Elsevier BV. - 0376-6357 .- 1872-8308. ; 133, s. 24-30
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Malaria parasites have been shown to decrease host fitness in several species in the wild and their detrimental effects on host cognitive ability are well established in humans. However, experimental demonstrations of detrimental effects on non-human host behaviour are currently limited. In this study, we experimentally tested whether injections of an anti-malaria drug affected short-term behavioural responses to a problem-solving task during breeding in a wild population of great tits (Parus major) naturally infected with malaria. Adult females treated against malaria were more active than control females, even though they were not more likely to solve the task or learn how to do so, suggesting that energetic constraints could shape differences in some behaviours while changes in cognitive performances might require more time for the neural system to recover or may depend mainly on infection at the developmental stage. Alternatively, parasite load might be a consequence, rather than a cause, of inter individual variation in cognitive performance. These results also suggest that inter-individual as well as inter-population differences in some behavioural traits may be linked to blood parasite load.
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| 8. |
- Cauchard, Laure, et al.
(författare)
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How to solve novel problems : the role of associative learning in problem-solving performance in wild great tits Parus major
- 2024
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Ingår i: Animal Cognition. - : Springer. - 1435-9448 .- 1435-9456. ; 27
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Although problem-solving tasks are frequently used to assess innovative ability, the extent to which problem-solving performance reflects variation in cognitive skills has been rarely formally investigated. Using wild breeding great tits facing a new non-food motivated problem-solving task, we investigated the role of associative learning in finding the solution, compared to multiple other non-cognitive factors. We first examined the role of accuracy (the proportion of contacts made with the opening part of a string-pulling task), neophobia, exploration, activity, age, sex, body condition and participation time on the ability to solve the task. To highlight the effect of associative learning, we then compared accuracy between solvers and non-solvers, before and after the first cue to the solution (i.e., the first time they pulled the string opening the door). We finally compared accuracy over consecutive entrances for solvers. Using 884 observations from 788 great tits tested from 2010 to 2015, we showed that, prior to initial successful entrance, solvers were more accurate and more explorative than non-solvers, and that females were more likely to solve the task than males. The accuracy of solvers, but not of non-solvers, increased significantly after they had the opportunity to associate string pulling with the movement of the door, giving them a first cue to the task solution. The accuracy of solvers also increased over successive entrances. Our results demonstrate that variations in problem-solving performance primarily reflect inherent individual differences in associative learning, and are also to a lesser extent shaped by sex and exploratory behaviour.
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| 9. |
- Cauchard, Laure, et al.
(författare)
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Inter-individual variation in provisioning rate, prey size and number, and links to total prey biomass delivered to nestlings in the Collared Flycatcher (Ficedula albicollis)
- 2021
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Ingår i: Avian Research. - : BioMed Central (BMC). - 2053-7166. ; 12
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: In bird species where offspring growth and survival rely on parents' food provisioning, parents can maximise their fitness by increasing the quantity and/or the quality of preys delivered to their offspring. Many studies have focused on inter-individual variation in feeding rate, yet this measure may not accurately reflect the total amount of food (i.e. energy) provided by parents if there is large variation in the quantity and quality of preys at each feeding. Here, we explored the relative role of individual (sex, age, body condition), breeding (hatching date, brood size) and environmental (temperature) factors on feeding rate, prey number, size and quality, and their contribution to total prey biomass delivered to the nestlings of 164 Collared Flycatcher (Ficedula albicollis) parents in 98 nests.Results: Preys delivered to the nest were mainly larvae (53.6%) and flying insects (45.6%). Feeding rate increased with brood size and age, and was higher in males than females. Mean prey number decreased, but mean prey size increased, as the season progressed and parents feeding their brood with primary larvae brought more preys per visit. Relationships between feeding rate, mean prey number and size remained when taking into account the provisioning quality: parents brought either a large number of small prey or a small number of larger items, and the force of the trade-offs between feeding rate and mean prey number and size depended on the quality of the provisioning of the parents. Whatever the percentage of larvae among preys in the provisioning, the variance in total prey biomass was foremost explained by feeding rate (65.1% to 76.6%) compared to mean prey number (16.4% to 26%) and prey size (2.7% to 4%).Conclusions: Our study shows that variation in feeding rate, prey number, size, but not quality (i.e. percentage of larvae), were influenced by individual factors (sex and age) and breeding decisions (brood size and timing of breeding) and that, whatever the provisioning strategy adopted, feeding rate was the best proxy of the total biomass delivered to the nestlings.
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| 10. |
- Cauchard, Laure, et al.
(författare)
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Problem-solving performance is correlated with reproductive success in a wild bird population
- 2013
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Ingår i: Animal Behaviour. - : Elsevier BV. - 0003-3472 .- 1095-8282. ; 85:1, s. 19-26
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Although interindividual variation in problem-solving ability is well documented, its relation to variation in fitness in the wild remains unclear. We investigated the relationship between performance on a problem-solving task and measures of reproductive success in a wild population of great tits, Parus major. We presented breeding pairs during the nestling provisioning period with a novel string-pulling task requiring the parents to remove an obstacle with their leg that temporarily blocked access to their nestbox. We found that nests where at least one parent solved the task had higher nestling survival until fledging than nests where both parents were nonsolvers. Furthermore, clutch size, hatching success and fledgling number were positively correlated with speed in solving the task. Our study suggests that natural selection may directly act on interindividual variation in problem-solving performance. In light of these results, the mechanisms maintaining between-individual variation in problem-solving performance in natural populations need further investigation.
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| 11. |
- Cauchard, Laure, et al.
(författare)
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The relationship between plumage colouration, problem-solving and learning performance in great tits Parus major
- 2017
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Ingår i: Journal of Avian Biology. - : Wiley. - 0908-8857 .- 1600-048X. ; 48:9, s. 1246-1253
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Recent studies suggest that individuals with better problem-solving and/or learning performance have greater reproductive success, and that individuals may thus benefit from choosing mates based on these performances. However, directly assessing these performances in candidate mates could be difficult. Instead, the use of indirect cues related to problem-solving and/or learning performance, such as condition-dependent phenotypic traits, might be favored. We investigated whether problem-solving and learning performance on a novel non-foraging task correlated with sexually selected plumage colouration in a natural population of great tits Parus major. We found that males successful in solving the task had darker blue-black crowns than non-solvers, and that males solving the task more rapidly over multiple attempts (i.e. learners) exhibited blue-black crowns with higher UV chroma and shorter-wavelength hues than non-learners. In contrast, we found no link between behavioural performance on the task and the yellow breast colouration in either sex. Our findings suggest that blue-black crown colouration could serve as a signal of problem-solving and learning performance in wild great tit males. Further research remains necessary to determine whether different sexually selected traits are used to signal cognitive performance for mate choice, either directly (i.e. cognitive performance influencing individual's health and ornamentation through diet for example) or indirectly (i.e. due to a correlation with a third factor such as individual quality or condition).
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| 12. |
- Choquet, Remi, et al.
(författare)
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Estimating demographic parameters from capturerecapture data with dependence among individuals within clusters
- 2013
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Ingår i: Methods in Ecology and Evolution. - 2041-210X. ; 4:5, s. 474-482
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Two-level data, in which level-1 units or individuals are nested within level-2 units or clusters, are very common in natural populations. However, very few multilevel analyses are conducted for data with imperfect detection of individuals. Multilevel analyses are important to quantify the variability at each level of the data. In this study, we present two-level analyses for estimating demographic parameters from data with imperfect detection of individuals and with a source of individual variability that is nested within a source of cluster variability. This method allows separating and quantifying the phenotypic plasticity or facultative behavioural responses from the evolutionary responses. We illustrate our approach using data from studies of a long-lived perennially monogamous seabird, the Cory's shearwater (Calonectris diomedea) and a patchy population of collared flycatchers (Ficedula albicollis). We demonstrate the existence of dependence in recapture probability between paired individuals in the Cory's shearwater. In addition, we show that family structure has no influence on parentoffspring resemblance in collared flycatchers dispersal. The new method is implemented in program e-surge which is freely available from the internet.
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| 13. |
- Culina, Antica, et al.
(författare)
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Connecting the data landscape of long-term ecological studies : The SPI-Birds data hub
- 2021
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Ingår i: Journal of Animal Ecology. - : John Wiley & Sons. - 0021-8790 .- 1365-2656. ; 90:9, s. 2147-2160
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The integration and synthesis of the data in different areas of science is drastically slowed and hindered by a lack of standards and networking programmes. Long-term studies of individually marked animals are not an exception. These studies are especially important as instrumental for understanding evolutionary and ecological processes in the wild. Furthermore, their number and global distribution provides a unique opportunity to assess the generality of patterns and to address broad-scale global issues (e.g. climate change). To solve data integration issues and enable a new scale of ecological and evolutionary research based on long-term studies of birds, we have created the SPI-Birds Network and Database ()-a large-scale initiative that connects data from, and researchers working on, studies of wild populations of individually recognizable (usually ringed) birds. Within year and a half since the establishment, SPI-Birds has recruited over 120 members, and currently hosts data on almost 1.5 million individual birds collected in 80 populations over 2,000 cumulative years, and counting. SPI-Birds acts as a data hub and a catalogue of studied populations. It prevents data loss, secures easy data finding, use and integration and thus facilitates collaboration and synthesis. We provide community-derived data and meta-data standards and improve data integrity guided by the principles of Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Reusable (FAIR), and aligned with the existing metadata languages (e.g. ecological meta-data language). The encouraging community involvement stems from SPI-Bird's decentralized approach: research groups retain full control over data use and their way of data management, while SPI-Birds creates tailored pipelines to convert each unique data format into a standard format. We outline the lessons learned, so that other communities (e.g. those working on other taxa) can adapt our successful model. Creating community-specific hubs (such as ours, COMADRE for animal demography, etc.) will aid much-needed large-scale ecological data integration.
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| 14. |
- Daniel, Gregory, 1985-
(författare)
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Interaction between dispersal and behavioural syndromes - empirical approach in a fragmented population of passerine birds
- 2015
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Dispersal is a key life history trait for ecological and evolutionary processes in wild populations. The latest research has particularly focused on the correlation between behavioural traits and dispersal, in order to emphasize the existence of behavioural syndromes of dispersal, and on the estimation of the genetic basis of the dispersal behaviour. Dispersing individuals are not a random part of the population, but are individuals showing particular strategies, that help them to succeed in their dispersal attempt.This thesis has three main aims of research. The first is to show a genetic basis of the dispersal propensity in a fragmented population of collared flycatchers (Ficedulla albicollis). We show, not only, the genetic bases of the dispersal, but also a non-random spatial distribution of relationship between individuals in this population, that might be due to genetic effects on the decision rules of habitat choice in this population. The second aim concerns phenotypic and a genetic correlation between the natal dispersal and a behavioural trait, the nest-defense behaviour, in the alpin swift (Tachymarptis melba). We showed that natal dispersal and nest-defense behaviour were negatively correlated at a phenotypic level, but also at a genetic level in these populations. Finally, the third aim attempts to test the existence of a behavioural syndrome of dispersal, that is if dispersing individuals have a particular behavioural profile, which enable them to colonize new sites, in the collared flycatcher.
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| 15. |
- Doligez, Blandine, et al.
(författare)
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Estimation and comparison of heritability and parent-offspring resemblance in dispersal probability from capture-recapture data using different methods : the Collared Flycatcher as a case study
- 2012
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Ingår i: Journal of Ornithology = Journal fur Ornithologie. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0021-8375 .- 1439-0361. ; 152, s. S539-S554
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Understanding the evolution of a trait requires analysing its genetic basis. Many studies have therefore estimated heritability values of different traits in wild populations using quantitative genetic approaches on capture-recapture data of individuals with known parentage. However, these models assume perfect individual detection probability, a hidden hypothesis that is rarely met in natural populations. To what extent ignoring imperfect detection may bias heritability estimates in wild populations needs specific investigation. We give a first insight into this question using dispersal probability in a patchy population of Collared Flycatchers Ficedula albicollis as an example. We estimate and compare heritability and parent-offspring resemblance in dispersal obtained from (1) quantitative genetic approaches ("classical'' parent-offspring regressions and more recent animal models) and (2) multi-state capture-recapture models accounting for individual detection probability. Unfortunately, current capture-recapture models do not provide heritability estimates, preventing a full comparison of results between models at this stage. However, in the study population, detection probability may be expected to be lower for dispersing compared to philopatric individuals because of lower mating/breeding success and/or higher temporary emigration, making the use of capture-recapture models particularly relevant. We show significant parent-offspring resemblance and heritable component of between-patch dispersal probability in this population. Accounting for imperfect detection does however not seem to influence the observed pattern of parent-offspring resemblance in dispersal probability, although detection probability is both sensibly lower than 1 and heterogeneous among individuals according to dispersal status. We discuss the problems encountered, the information that can be derived from, and the constraints linked to, each method. To obtain unbiased heritability estimates, combining quantitative genetic and capture-recapture models is needed, which should be one of the main developments of capture-recapture models in the near future.
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| 16. |
- Doligez, Blandine, et al.
(författare)
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'Heritability' of dispersal propensity in a patchy population
- 2009
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Ingår i: Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Biological Sciences. - : The Royal Society. - 0962-8452 .- 1471-2954. ; 276:1668, s. 2829-2836
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Although dispersal is often considered to be a plastic, condition-dependent trait with low heritability, growing evidence supports medium to high levels of dispersal heritability. Obtaining unbiased estimates of dispersal heritability in natural populations nevertheless remains crucial to understand the evolution of dispersal strategies and their population consequences. Here we show that dispersal propensity (i.e. the probability of dispersal between habitat patches) displays a significant heritability in the collared flycatcher Ficedula albicollis, as estimated by within-family resemblance when accounting for environmental factors. Offspring of dispersing mothers or fathers had a higher propensity to disperse to a new habitat patch themselves. The effect of parental dispersal status was additional to that of local habitat quality, as measured by local breeding population size and success, confirming previous results about condition-dependent dispersal in this population. The estimated levels of heritability varied between 0.30+/-0.07 and 0.47+/-0.10, depending on parent-offspring comparisons made and correcting for a significant assortative mating with respect to dispersal status. Siblings also displayed a significant resemblance in dispersal propensity. These results suggest that variation in between-patch natal dispersal in the collared flycatcher is partly genetically determined, and we discuss ways to quantify this genetic basis and its implications.
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| 17. |
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| 18. |
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| 19. |
- Forsman, Jukka T., et al.
(författare)
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Avoiding perceived past resource use of potential competitors affects niche dynamics in a bird community
- 2014
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Ingår i: BMC Evolutionary Biology. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 1471-2148. ; 14, s. 175-
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Background: Social information use is usually considered to lead to ecological convergence among involved con-or heterospecific individuals. However, recent results demonstrate that observers can also actively avoid behaving as those individuals being observed, leading to ecological divergence. This phenomenon has been little explored so far, yet it can have significant impact on resource use, realized niches and species co-existence. In particular, the time-scale and the ecological context over which such shifts can occur are unknown. We examined with a long-term (four years) field experiment whether experimentally manipulated, species-specific, nest-site feature preferences (symbols on nest boxes) are transmitted across breeding seasons and affect future nest-site preferences in a guild of three cavity-nesting birds. Results: Of the examined species, resident great tits (Parus major) preferred the symbol that had been associated with unoccupied nest boxes in the previous year, i.e., their preference shifted towards niche space previously unused by putative competitors and conspecifics. Conclusions: Our results show that animals can remember the earlier resource use of conspecifics and other guild members and adjust own decisions accordingly one year after. Our experiment cannot reveal the ultimate mechanism(s) behind the observed behaviour but avoiding costs of intra-or interspecific competition or ectoparasite load in old nests are plausible reasons. Our findings imply that interspecific social information use can affect resource sharing and realized niches in ecological time-scale through active avoidance of observed decisions and behavior of potentially competing species.
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| 20. |
- Germain, Marion, et al.
(författare)
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Lower settlement following a forced displacement experiment : nonbreeding as a dispersal cost in a wild bird?
- 2017
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Ingår i: Animal Behaviour. - : Elsevier BV. - 0003-3472 .- 1095-8282. ; 133, s. 109-121
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Dispersal is a key life history trait impacting ecological and evolutionary processes. Yet, the fitness consequences of dispersal remain poorly investigated. Using a displacement experiment of 616 individuals in a patchy population of collared flycatchers, Ficedula albicollis, we investigated behavioural responses to forced movement in terms of settlement, subsequent breeding performance and return rate. Newly arrived birds were caught and displaced between patches or released back in the patch of capture. We analysed (1) the probability of successful settlement within the study area, (2) for displaced birds, the probability of accepting the forced movement rather than returning to the patch of capture, (3) components of reproductive performance and (4) return rate in subsequent years according to experimental treatment. The probability of settling within the study area tended to be lower for displaced than control birds and was lower for immigrants than local birds. This suggests that displacement induced long-distance dispersal movements or nonbreeding, which could reflect costs of unfamiliarity with the environment. Nondispersers (individuals caught early in the breeding season in the same patch as their previous one) were more likely to return to their patch of capture, probably because of higher benefits of familiarity. Once individuals had settled, their breeding performance did not vary markedly between treatments, although displaced individuals that did not return to their patch of capture raised lighter young than other individuals. This could indicate a lower phenotypic quality of these individuals or, again, a cost of breeding in an unfamiliar environment. Finally, individuals that settled (and non-dispersers) were more likely to return to the study area in subsequent years than individuals that disappeared (and immigrants/dispersers, respectively). Together, these results suggest that, in addition to the costs of transience, dispersal (here forced) may entail costs linked to settlement in an unfamiliar habitat.
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| 21. |
- Germain, Marion, et al.
(författare)
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Natal dispersers pay a lifetime cost to increased reproductive effort in a wild bird population
- 2017
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Ingår i: Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Biological Sciences. - : ROYAL SOC. - 0962-8452 .- 1471-2954. ; 284:1851
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Natal dispersal is assumed to be costly. Such costs can be difficult to detect, and fitness consequences of dispersal are therefore poorly known. Because of lower phenotypic quality and/or familiarity with the environment, natal dispersers may be less buffered against a sudden increase in reproductive effort. Consequently, reproductive costs associated with natal dispersal may mostly be detected in harsh breeding conditions. We tested this prediction by comparing lifetime reproductive success between natal dispersers and non- dispersers in a patchy population of collared flycatchers (Ficedula albicollis) when they reared either a non- manipulated brood or an experimentally increased or decreased brood. Natal dispersers achieved lower lifetime reproductive success than non- dispersers only under more stressful breeding conditions (i. e. when brood size was experimentally increased). This was mostly due to a lower number of recruits produced in the year of the increase. Our results suggest a cost associated with natal dispersal paid immediately after an increase in reproductive effort and not subsequently compensated for through increased survival or future offspring recruitment. Natal dispersers adjusted their breeding investment when reproductive effort is as predicted but seemed unable to efficiently face a sudden increase in effort, which could affect the influence of environmental predictability on dispersal evolution.
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| 22. |
- Hsu, Bin-Yan, et al.
(författare)
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Transient growth-enhancing effects of elevated maternal thyroid hormones at no apparent oxidative cost during early postnatal period
- 2019
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Ingår i: Journal of Avian Biology. - : Wiley. - 0908-8857 .- 1600-048X. ; 50:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Maternal thyroid hormones (THs) have been proven crucial for embryonic development in humans, but their influence within the natural variation on wild animals remains unknown. So far the only two studies that experimentally investigated the potential fitness consequences of maternal THs in birds found inconsistent results. More studies are thus required to assess the general effects of maternal THs and their influences on more behavioral and physiological parameters. In this study, we experimentally elevated yolk TH content in a wild migratory passerine species, the collared flycatcher Ficedula albicollis, to investigate the effects on hatching success, nestling growth and oxidative stress. We found that TH‐injected eggs had a higher hatching success, and the nestlings hatched from TH‐injected eggs were heavier and larger than control nestlings, but only during the early postnatal period. These differences vanished by fledging. Nestlings from TH‐injected eggs exhibited lower activity of the glutathione‐s‐transferase, a major antioxidant enzyme, than control nestlings at day 12, a few days before fledging, but they did not differ in oxidative damage and overall intracellular oxidative state. These results suggest that the early growth‐enhancing effects incurred no observable oxidative stress. We hypothesize that such a transient growth‐enhancing effect might be adaptive in advancing the development and maturation of the offspring so they are well‐prepared in time for the upcoming migration. Further studies investigating whether such advancing effects can influence long‐term fitness, will be more than valuable.
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| 23. |
- Kivela, Sami M., et al.
(författare)
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The past and the present in decision-making : the use of conspecific and heterospecific cues in nest site selection
- 2014
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Ingår i: Ecology. - : Wiley. - 0012-9658 .- 1939-9170. ; 95:12, s. 3428-3439
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Nest site selection significantly affects fitness, so adaptations for assessment of the qualities of available sites are expected. The assessment may be based on personal or social information, the latter referring to the observed location and performance of both conspecific and heterospecific individuals. Contrary to large-scale breeding habitat selection, small-scale nest site selection within habitat patches is insufficiently understood. We analyzed nest site selection in the migratory Collared Flycatcher Ficedula albicollis in relation to present and past cues provided by conspecifics and by resident tits within habitat patches by using long-term data. Collared Flycatchers preferred nest boxes that were occupied by conspecifics in the previous year. This preference was strongest in breeding pairs where both individuals bred in the same forest patch in the previous year. The results also suggest preference for nest boxes close to boxes where conspecifics had a high breeding success in the previous year, and for nest boxes which are presently surrounded by a high number of breeding Great Tits Parus major. The results indicate social information use in nest site selection at a small spatial scale, where Collared Flycatchers use conspecific cues with a time lag of one year and heterospecific cues instantly.
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| 24. |
- Laaksonen, T., et al.
(författare)
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Sympatric divergence and clinal variation in multiple coloration traits of Ficedula flycatchers
- 2015
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Ingår i: Journal of Evolutionary Biology. - : Wiley. - 1010-061X .- 1420-9101. ; 28:4, s. 779-790
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Geographic variation in phenotypes plays a key role in fundamental evolutionary processes such as local adaptation, population differentiation and speciation, but the selective forces behind it are rarely known. We found support for the hypothesis that geographic variation in plumage traits of the pied flycatcher Ficedula hypoleuca is explained by character displacement with the collared flycatcher Ficedula albicollis in the contact zone. The plumage traits of the pied flycatcher differed strongly from the more conspicuous collared flycatcher in a sympatric area but increased in conspicuousness with increasing distance to there. Phenotypic differentiation (P-ST) was higher than that in neutral genetic markers (F-ST), and the effect of geographic distance remained when statistically controlling for neutral genetic differentiation. This suggests that a cline created by character displacement and gene flow explains phenotypic variation across the distribution of this species. The different plumage traits of the pied flycatcher are strongly to moderately correlated, indicating that they evolve non-independently from each other. The flycatchers provide an example of plumage patterns diverging in two species that differ in several aspects of appearance. The divergence in sympatry and convergence in allopatry in these birds provide a possibility to study the evolutionary mechanisms behind the highly divergent avian plumage patterns.
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| 25. |
- Lemoine, Melissa, et al.
(författare)
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Low but contrasting neutral genetic differentiation shaped by winter temperature in European great tits
- 2016
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Ingår i: Biological Journal of the Linnean Society. - : Oxford University Press (OUP). - 0024-4066 .- 1095-8312. ; 118:3, s. 668-685
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Gene flow is usually thought to reduce genetic divergence and impede local adaptation by homogenising gene pools between populations. However, evidence for local adaptation and phenotypic differentiation in highly mobile species, experiencing high levels of gene flow, is emerging. Assessing population genetic structure at different spatial scales is thus a crucial step towards understanding mechanisms underlying intraspecific differentiation and diversification. Here, we studied the population genetic structure of a highly mobile species - the great tit Parus major - at different spatial scales. We analysed 884 individuals from 30 sites across Europe including 10 close-by sites (< 50 km), using 22 microsatellite markers. Overall we found a low but significant genetic differentiation among sites (F-ST = 0.008). Genetic differentiation was higher, and genetic diversity lower, in south-western Europe. These regional differences were statistically best explained by winter temperature. Overall, our results suggest that great tits form a single patchy metapopulation across Europe, in which genetic differentiation is independent of geographical distance and gene flow may be regulated by environmental factors via movements related to winter severity. This might have important implications for the evolutionary trajectories of sub-populations, especially in the context of climate change, and calls for future investigations of local differences in costs and benefits of philopatry at large scales.
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