Hatching Asynchrony and Spring Climatic Conditions in the European Roller

Parejo, Deseada; Avilés, Jesús M.; Expósito, Mónica

doi:10.1007/s11692-015-9337-4

Cited by 11 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 55 publications

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“…It may be also that some species flexibly determine their investment strategies in other ways and at other times; for example, 1) during incubation by varying the amount of hatching asynchrony (e.g. blackbirds (Magrath 1992) and European rollers (Parejo et al 2015));…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Parental control: ecology drives plasticity in parental response to offspring signals

Caro

Velasco

Mastrigt

et al. 2021

Preprint

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Different bird species have completely different parent-offspring interactions. When food is plentiful, the chicks that are begging the loudest are fed the most. When food is scarce, bird species instead feed the largest offspring. While this variation could be due to parents responding to signalling differently based on food availability, it could equally be due to offspring adjusting their behaviour, or to variation in information availability. We tested between these competing explanations experimentally, by manipulating food availability in a population of wild great tits, Parus major, while standardising offspring behaviour and size. We found that when food was more plentiful, parents were: (1) more likely to preferentially feed the chicks that were begging the most; and (2) less likely to preferentially feed larger chicks. In addition, we consistently found these same patterns, in a meta-analysis across 57 bird species. Overall, our results suggest that parents have more control over food distribution than offspring do, and that they flexibly adjust how they respond to both offspring signals and cues of offspring quality in response to food availability. Consequently, depending upon environmental conditions, predictably different signalling systems are favoured.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Parental control: ecology drives plasticity in parental response to offspring signals

Caro

Velasco

Mastrigt

et al. 2021

Preprint

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“…In 2011, spring climatic conditions influencing insect phenology and abundance in the Mediterranean region were exceptionally good (see Parejo et al. for details). Thus, it is possible that the good environmental conditions prevailing during the study season made unnecessary to favour senior over junior nestlings due to the availability of food.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sex‐Specific Parental Care in Response to Predation Risk in the European Roller, Coracias garrulus

2015

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Sublethal effects of predation constitute an important part of predation effects, which may modulate prey population and community dynamics. In birds, the risk of nest predation may cause a reduction in parental activity in the care of offspring to reduce the chance of being detected by predators. In addition, parents may modify their parental food allocation preferences within the brood in response to predation risk. Our aim in this study was to evaluate the effects of risk of nest predation on parental care and within-nest food allocation in the European Roller (Coracias garrulus), an asynchronously hatching bird. We manipulated brood predation risk by placing a snake model near the nests that simulates the most common nest predator in the Mediterranean region. Our results show that males but not females increased their provisioning rate when they were exposed to the model and that despite this, nestlings' body mass decreased in response to this temporary increase in predation risk. We did not find evidence that parents changed their food allocation strategy towards senior or junior nestlings in their nests in response to predation risk. These results show that the European roller modifies parental care in response to their perception of predation risk in the nest and a sex-specific sensitivity to the threat, which suggests a different perception of offspring reproductive value by parents. Finally, our results show that changes in parental behaviour in response to nest predation risk might have consequences for nestling fitness prospects.

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“…This is the first study to show such an effect in this species. Relatively high temperatures during the incubation phase may favour chick embryo development and subsequent egg hatching (Parejo et al 2015). Rollers usually start incubating after that the third egg has been laid (hatching is hence asynchronous), so that parents may leave the eggs unattended for short periods (Cramp 1985;Parejo et al 2012).…”

Section: Effects On Reproductive Parametersmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In this sense, high temperatures (typical of the climate which characterizes our study area) can maintain eggs in the right conditions during periods when parents are away from the nest, thereby assuring the embryonic survival/growth. In addition, rollers can adjust hatching asynchrony in response to spring climatic conditions and resources availability (Parejo et al 2015):…”

Section: Effects On Reproductive Parametersmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nest box selection and reproduction of European Rollers in Central Italy: a 7-year study

et al. 2019

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Background: Changes and increased mechanisation of agricultural practices have influenced the biodiversity composition of farmland habitats and caused a decline of bird communities in many European countries. The removal of shrubs and large trees rich in natural cavities, has also led to a drastic decrease in nest site availability for cavity-nesting bird species. Nest-boxes are a common conservation tool used to improve nest-site availability, and have helped to reverse declines in many endangered bird populations. Nonetheless to maximize the results of such interventions it is crucial to know where nest-boxes should be sited. The objective of this study was to investigate the effectiveness of the nest-box program for the European Roller (Coracias garrulus) population of Lazio region (Central Italy). More specifically, we focused on what landscape features were preferred (or avoided) in the process of nest box selection and how they influenced population's breeding parameters. Particular attention was paid to identifying potential limitations and to provide management recommendations for future interventions.Methods: Using data from 70 nest boxes sited on power lines monitored over a 7-year period (representing 140 breeding attempts), we developed probability functions to evaluate if nest box location, in terms of distance from habitat resources and habitat composition and structure, had an effect on nest box occupancy and on the main reproductive parameters.Results: Nest boxes were more likely to be occupied if they were located near arable fields and in areas characterized by a higher amount of incoming solar radiation. Higher fledging success was associated with fallow fields and with a moderate/low habitat structural complexity. Higher breeding success was associated with solar radiation and with greater distance from urban areas. Conclusions:Our results highlight the importance of specific habitat variables in influencing nest occupancy, and show which drivers primarily affect species' reproduction and persistence over time. Siting nest boxes in habitats where occupancy rate and fledging success is higher, such as in arable and fallow fields and on south-facing slopes where solar radiation is maximised, may help to extend the suitable habitat for rollers and facilitate its local expansion.

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Hatching Asynchrony and Spring Climatic Conditions in the European Roller

Cited by 11 publications

References 55 publications

Parental control: ecology drives plasticity in parental response to offspring signals

Parental control: ecology drives plasticity in parental response to offspring signals

Sex‐Specific Parental Care in Response to Predation Risk in the European Roller, Coracias garrulus

Nest box selection and reproduction of European Rollers in Central Italy: a 7-year study

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