Badge Size and Arrival Time Predict Mating Success of Red-Breasted Flycatcher<i>Ficedula parva</i>Males

Mitrus, Cezary; Mitrus, Joanna; Sikora, Magdalena

doi:10.2108/zsj.29.795

Cited by 7 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 64 publications

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“…The active territories with males were checked every day to determine when mating occurred. Mated males of the red-breasted flycatcher ceased singing (Mitrus et al 2012 ), therefore, if a male was seen to have stopped singing and was observed with female, or seen copulating, then it was designated as mated. The difference between the date of mating and the arrival time was defined as the waiting time for a mate.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Early arriving males wait longer for a mate than later arrivals: the case of a migratory monogamous passerine bird species

Mitrus

2017

J Ethol

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Individuals that arrive earlier on the breeding grounds may obtain many advantages but they also have to spend time waiting for a mate. I studied the waiting times of male red-breasted flycatchers Ficedula parva, a small, migratory, sexually dichromatic passerine bird species under natural conditions (Białowieża National Park, Poland) in relation to year, arrival time, age of male and morphological parameters. The length of waiting time was dependent on males’ arrival time. The males which arrived later waited a shorter time for females than earlier arrivals. In some years older males spent more time waiting for mates than younger males, but in other years they waited for shorter times. A significant interaction between age of male and year was also observed. Despite the significantly earlier arrival of older males, the waiting time was not related to male age. The waiting time was also not related to body biometric parameters of the male. Despite waiting longer, early male red-breasted flycatchers have an advantage over later arrivals given this greater chance of mating.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Early arriving males wait longer for a mate than later arrivals: the case of a migratory monogamous passerine bird species

Mitrus

2017

J Ethol

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“…During the arrival time and singing period of male Red-breasted Flycatchers, occupied territories were searched for males (Mitrus, 2012) in three study plots (total area 79.5 ha) and along roads leading to these plots. This part of the forest is characterised by old-growth oak-lime-hornbeam (Tomiałojć, 1991;Wesołowski et al, 2002).…”

Section: Study Area and Field Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Both females and males participate in parental care during nestling . Earlier observations showed that arrival time, age and badge size all influenced male mating success (Mitrus, 2006, Mitrus et al, 2012, but no evidence for extra-pair copulation was found.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 90%

Extra-pair Paternity in Relation to Age of the Red-breasted Flycatcher Ficedula Parva males

Mitrus

Rutkowski

et al. 2014

Avian Biology Research

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Despite advances in knowledge, in many bird species, the true mating system is unknown, and especially so for birds breeding at low densities under natural conditions. We studied paternity at the population and breeding pair level in the Red-breasted Flycatcher (Ficedula parva), a small, migrant passerine breeding in oldgrowth Białowie a Forest. Over seven breeding seasons we genotyped a total of 159 nestlings and 25 adult males as fathers from 33 broods of the Red-breasted Flycatcher. Extra-pair young were present in eight broods (24.2%). Twelve (7.5%) chicks mismatched with the 'social' male in several loci. Both low breeding density and synchrony in breeding phenology can explain such findings. Also of interest was the share of extra-pair paternity at the individual level, in relation to the age/ornamentation of the extra-pair male. Male Red-breasted Flycatchers exhibit delayed plumage maturation. Young males (second year) are without an orange badge on the throat and breast, while older males (after-second year) are ornamented and have an orange badge. The extra-pair nestlings were found in eight broods ,four with young males as a fathers (36.4%) and four in broods of old males (18.2%). However, in all seven cases when the age of the extra-pair partner was known, irrespective of the age of the social father, the extra-pair partner was a male with an orange patch on the breast. This indicated female preference for ornamented males as partners for extra-pair copulation.

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“…A similar function could be expected for grey plumage patches due to their high eumelanin content (Galván & Wakamatsu 2016). A competitive signalling function of the trait is expected to be the highest in species living in large social groups (during breeding or/and non‐breeding season), which experience elevated conspecific competition for food, shelter, nest‐sites, mates and other resources (Barnard 1980, West‐Eberhard 1983, Møller 1987). To test whether grey plumage serves as a social status signal, we adopt the predictions of Dey et al .…”

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Occurrence and function of melanin‐based grey coloration in Western Palaearctic songbirds (Aves: Passeriformes)

Surmacki¹,

Minias²,

Kudelska³

2020

Ibis

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Melanin is the most common pigment in avian plumage and has various functions, including signalling individual condition, social status, aiding in camouflage and strengthening feathers. To date, most research focusing on melanin‐based colours has focused on eumelanin black and pheomelanin rusty traits. The occurrence and function of grey melanin‐based coloration, however, remains largely unstudied. Using colour plates from a bird identification guide and a comparative phylogenetic approach, we analysed the occurrence and relative patch size of grey plumage regions in 239 passerine species belonging to 36 families occurring in the Western Palaearctic. We proposed four hypotheses to explain the evolution of grey plumage: (1) protection from visually oriented predators, (2) badges of social information, (3) sexually selected ornaments, and (4) visual enhancement of badges and ornamental colour patches via high between‐colour contrast. We tested these hypotheses by analysing the occurrence and relative size of grey patches in relation to ecological and life‐history traits and the occurrence of other colours. Moreover, we surveyed the distribution of grey over avian body regions and its adjacency to other plumage colours. Grey coloration was present in 97 species from 25 families (40.5% of all species and 69.4% of all families sampled, respectively). Our results support the idea that grey plumage evolved to provide cryptic coloration and/or as a sexual signal used in female mate choice. Grey colour occurrence was associated with less concealed nest structure and open habitats, and this effect was especially pronounced in species in which males incubate. In both sexes, grey was more abundant on the head and back regions, which are the most visible body parts during incubation. The occurrence of grey was related to a greater dichromatism and was slightly higher in males than in females, which suggests that it could have evolved in response to female mate choice. No evidence suggests that grey plumage enhances ornamental colours or acts as a competitive signal. The study provides the first insight into potential functions of grey plumage in birds. Further studies at the species level are needed to test our findings.

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Badge Size and Arrival Time Predict Mating Success of Red-Breasted FlycatcherFicedula parvaMales

Cited by 7 publications

References 64 publications

Early arriving males wait longer for a mate than later arrivals: the case of a migratory monogamous passerine bird species

Early arriving males wait longer for a mate than later arrivals: the case of a migratory monogamous passerine bird species

Extra-pair Paternity in Relation to Age of the Red-breasted Flycatcher Ficedula Parva males

Occurrence and function of melanin‐based grey coloration in Western Palaearctic songbirds (Aves: Passeriformes)

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