Coping with nest predation risk in a species-rich bird community inhabiting a Siberian wetland

Sládeček, Martin; Kubelka, Vojtěch; Mlíkovský, Jiří; Šálek, Miroslav

doi:10.25225/fozo.v63.i4.a5.2014

Cited by 9 publications

(15 citation statements)

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“…Alternatively, egg survival may be ensured by the presence and aggressive behaviour of the parent (e.g. [14][15][16][17]). The level of aggression may vary as the clutch approaches independence or over the course of the breeding season, affected by the reproductive value of the clutch and the breeding opportunities that remain to the parents [1,5,18].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Hypoxia increases the risk of egg predation in a nest-guarding fish

et al. 2016

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For fish with parental care, a nest should meet both the oxygenation needs of the eggs and help protect them against predators. While a small nest opening facilitates the latter, it impedes the former and vice versa. We investigated how the presence of potential egg predators in the form of shore crabs Carcinus maenas affects nest building, egg fanning, defensive displays and filial cannibalism of egg-guarding male sand gobies Pomatoschistus minutus under two levels of dissolved oxygen. In the high oxygen treatment, males retained their nest opening size in the presence of crabs, while males in low oxygen built large nest openings both in the absence and presence of crabs, despite the fact that crabs were more likely to successfully intrude into nests with large entrances. Males in low oxygen also fanned more. In the presence of crabs males increased their defensive displays, but while males in high oxygen reduced fanning, males in low oxygen did not. Filial cannibalism was unaffected by treatment. Sand gobies thus prioritize egg ventilation over the protection afforded by small nest openings under hypoxia and adopt defensive behaviour to avert predator attention, even though this does not fully offset the threat from the egg predators.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Hypoxia increases the risk of egg predation in a nest-guarding fish

et al. 2016

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“…In addition, the risk of predation can be reduced in such aggregations through defensive or dilution mechanisms (Larsen and Moldsvor 1992, Larsen and Grundetjern 1997). The species passively protecting their nest against predators and relying more on nest crypsis can benefit from shared nesting near active defenders (Cramp and Simmons 1983) who can increase their nest success (Larsen and Grundetjern 1997, Šálek and Šmilauer 2002, Sládeček et al 2014, Rocha et al 2016). All these reasons may increase the attractiveness of nesting in both conspecific and heterospecific aggregations.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Wetland bird communities are highly diverse in terms of species richness and habitat requirements (Paracuellos 2006, Żmihorski et al 2016). Many species of these communities breed in groups and use different anti‐predator tactics (Gochfeld 1984, Sládeček et al 2014, Cunningham et al 2016). Distinguishing the multiple drivers of nest site choice, possibly extending far beyond the exclusive selection of preferred habitat, can be particularly important from a conservation perspective.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Beyond habitat: effects of conspecific and heterospecific aggregation on the spatial structure of a wetland nesting bird community

Šálek

Sládeček

Kubelka

et al. 2022

Journal of Avian Biology

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Nest location is a key factor influencing reproductive success in birds, and habitat choice is considered the main way in which birds select nest sites. Less attention has been devoted to the demand for proximity to other bird nests, which can provide additional profit, namely defense against predators. Here we analyzed the contributions of habitat, and conspecific and heterospecific aggregation to the spatial arrangement of breeding birds in a model bird community. We surveyed a pristine Siberian wetland bird community with the aim to locate all bird territories or nests, in 1993 and 2013. Habitat explained much of the nest site choice, but the nests were aggregated both intra‐ and inter‐specifically more than the spatial pattern of the habitat could explain. In particular, ducks, grebes and some waders bred nearby the most abundant active nest defenders, such as gulls and terns. Heterospecific associations were particularly pronounced in 2013, when the community was impoverished and one common active defender (white‐winged black tern Chlidonias leucopterus) was replaced by a less numerous but aggressive predator (Mongolian gull Larus mongolicus). The results suggest that spatial pattern in bird nests may be influenced by the (dis)appearance of one or a few species, which can play a role as umbrella or predator species. Integration of factors supporting the breeding of umbrella species, such as gulls, may became key targets for comprehensive conservation measures in large wetlands.

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“…Importantly, this rule does not require a heterospecific attraction parameter, suggesting that individuals may be optimizing colony size as a tradeoff between attracting females and competing with conspecific males for mating opportunities. Further, any benefits and costs for nesting within a mixed species colony likely will be asymmetric (Groom , Ellis and Good ), and different compositions of con‐ and heterospecifics may influence antipredator behaviors and breeding success (Ellis and Good , Sridhar et al , Sládeček et al ). The nest density of the species using conspicuous and sometimes aggressive antipredator behavior could also shape patterns in predation risk for nearby nests.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Alternatively, 'eavesdropping' on alarm calls can reduce the probability of detection by predators (Magrath et al 2015). Descriptive studies of heterospecific nesting associations are relatively common (Quinn and Ueta 2008), but few studies have examined the mechanisms or the costs and benefits of the association to both species (but see Sládeček et al 2014). In one example, terns and skimmers nesting with sand-colored nighthawks Chordeiles rupestris had reduced hatching success due to increased time spent in antipredator behaviors and less time in parental care (Groom 1992).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Asymmetric benefits of a heterospecific breeding association vary with habitat, conspecific abundance and breeding stage

Swift

Anteau

Roche

et al. 2020

Oikos

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Heterospecific breeding associations may benefit individuals by mitigating predation risk but may also create costs if they increase competition for resources or are more easily detectable by predators. Our understanding of the interactions among hetero-and conspecifics is often lacking in mixed species colonies. Here, we test how the presence of hetero-and conspecifics influence nest and chick survival for two listed (under the U.S. Endangered Species Act) migratory species breeding on the Missouri River, USA. We monitored 2507 piping plover Charadrius melodus nests and 3245 chicks as well as 1060 least tern Sternula antillarum nests and 1374 chicks on Lake Sakakawea, the Garrison River Reach and the Gavins Point Reach for varying years between 2007 and 2016. Piping plover nest and chick survival improved with the presence and abundance of least terns, but least terns only benefited from piping plover presence for certain study areas and breeding stages. Piping plover nest survival was also improved by the presence and abundance of conspecifics on the Garrison River Reach and was negatively influenced by conspecific presence on Lake Sakakawea. Least tern chick survival improved with the presence of other least terns only on the Gavins Point Reach. Ultimately, the heterospecific breeding association between plovers and terns is mutualistic but asymmetric and is moderated by habitat, abundance of conspecifics and breeding stage. Our results highlight that spatiotemporal variation in the interactions among individuals breeding in groups precludes simple generalizations and suggests that management focused on one species may restrict benefits to that focal species if nest site requirements for heterospecifics are not also included.

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Coping with nest predation risk in a species-rich bird community inhabiting a Siberian wetland

Abstract: BioOne Complete (complete.BioOne.org) is a full-text database of 200 subscribed and open-access titles in the biological, ecological, and environmental sciences published by nonprofit societies, associations, museums, institutions, and presses.

Cited by 9 publications

References 50 publications

Hypoxia increases the risk of egg predation in a nest-guarding fish

Hypoxia increases the risk of egg predation in a nest-guarding fish

Beyond habitat: effects of conspecific and heterospecific aggregation on the spatial structure of a wetland nesting bird community

Asymmetric benefits of a heterospecific breeding association vary with habitat, conspecific abundance and breeding stage

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