Nest Quality in Relation to Adult Bird Condition and Its Impact on Reproduction in Great Tits<i>Parus major</i>

Álvarez, Elena; Barba, Emilio

doi:10.3161/000164508x345275

Cited by 70 publications

(72 citation statements)

References 32 publications

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“…In blue tits, larger females and healthier females that were less infected with Trypanosoma avium (Tomás et al, 2006) built heavier nests than smaller females and females with higher infection rates of Trypanosoma avium, respectively. Meanwhile, other studies report no effect of the phenotypic quality of female great tits on the size of their nests but report that nest size was positively correlated with reproductive success (Álvarez and Barba, 2008). These patterns may be explained by the findings of another study in which female great tits with higher chromatic breast plumage built bigger nests than conspecifics with lower chromatic breast plumage, and especially so when they were paired to males which also had higher chromatic breast plumage (Broggi and Senar, 2009).…”

Section: Sexual Selectionmentioning

confidence: 95%

Causes and Consequences of Intraspecific Variation in Nesting Behaviors: Insights from Blue Tits and Great Tits

Mainwaring

2017

Front. Ecol. Evol.

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Nest building is an important and yet under-studied stage of the reproductive cycle in many taxa, including birds, and whilst we have a decent understanding of interspecific variation in avian nesting behaviors, our understanding of intraspecific variation in nesting behaviors is much less developed. This is largely because an insufficient number of studies have been performed on any one species to draw robust conclusions. Fortunately, though, the amount of research on the nesting behaviors of nestbox-breeding blue tits (Cyanistes caeruleus) and great tits (Parus major) has increased dramatically in recent years and their nesting behaviors are now sufficiently well-studied to offer useful insights into intraspecific variation in avian nesting behaviors. Studies show that individuals of both species select nest sites based on the presence and/or absence of conspecifics and heterospecifics and whilst neighbors were assumed to adversely affect focal individuals by competing for resources, they are now considered beneficial as they provide information about habitat quality and contribute to anti-predator defenses. Nest-building females accurately gauge local weather conditions and respond to predictable variation in environmental conditions by building nests with variable amounts of cup lining material to create suitable nest microclimates for nestlings. Meanwhile, both species vary the amount of aromatic plant materials in their nests in relation to the abundance of nest-dwelling parasites and pathogens and as aromatic plant materials also play a role in sexual selection then nest materials can have multiple functions. The height of nests is negatively correlated with the local risk of predation but whilst predator avoidance favors lower nests, sexual selection favors taller nests. In fact, higher quality females build taller nests that contain more green plant material which in turn influences the amount of care provided by males. This suggests there is considerable intraspecific variation in nesting behaviors in blue and great tits, and in birds generally, and highlights that birds are adept at adaptively varying their nesting behaviors in response to multiple factors. There is, however, a paucity of evidence directly linking such variation in nest building behaviors to reproductive success or fitness more broadly and so further studies could usefully examine such links because trade-offs between competing selection pressures may constrain adaptive nesting behaviors.

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Section: Sexual Selectionmentioning

confidence: 95%

Causes and Consequences of Intraspecific Variation in Nesting Behaviors: Insights from Blue Tits and Great Tits

Mainwaring

2017

Front. Ecol. Evol.

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“…In Blue Tits (Cyanistes caeruleus), and closely related Great Tits (Parus major), there is significant variation in the structure of the nest, even within relatively small study sites (Alabrudzińska et al 2003;Á lvarez and Barba 2008;Hartley 2008, 2009;Mennerat et al 2009a, b;Britt and Deeming 2011). In these species, nests usually consist of a layer of moss mixed with dry grass or other plant material placed at a base of a natural or artificial nest cavity (e.g.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…Previous studies in Blue Tits (Tomás et al 2006;Hartley 2008, 2009;Mennerat et al 2009a, b;Britt andDeeming 2011), andGreat Tits (e.g. Löhrl 1973;Heeb et al 2000;Alabrudzińska et al 2003;Remeš and Krist 2005;Á lvarez and Barba 2008;Mazgajski and Rykowska 2008;Broggi and Senar 2009) have investigated complex relationships among nest characteristics (e.g. weight, height, size or composition of nests), environmental factors (e.g.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…nest weight, diameter of the nest cup, thickness of the nest bottom, moss mass, lining mass) are taken into account (e.g. Alabrudzińska et al 2003;Á lvarez and Barba 2008;Britt and Deeming 2011). For instance, experimental changes in nest composition influenced morphological or physiological indices of chick body condition (Słomczyński et al 2006;Mennerat et al 2009b).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Nest size and breeding success in first and replacement clutches: an experimental study in Blue Tits Cyanistes caeruleus

et al. 2011

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Bird nests function to protect parents, eggs or offspring against fluctuations in the environment. In Blue Tits (Cyanistes caeruleus) producing first or replacement clutches, we examined relationships between nest height (a measure of nest size) and several parameters of breeding performance that are often quantified in long-term avian field studies. We artificially increased the cost of reproduction in randomly selected females by removing the whole first clutch and nest material after about 5 days of incubation. This experiment resulted in replacement nests. Experimentally increasing the range of breeding conditions across females, we expected to have more power to detect a positive correlation between nest height and breeding success. However, we found that nest height was not significantly related to any of the breeding traits investigated (clutch size, number of hatchlings, number of fledglings, hatching success, fledging success, chick mass), after controlling for factors frequently investigated in long-term monitoring programs and known to influence breeding performance (female age, year, clutch type as a proxy of egg-laying date). We conclude that the identification of the exact underlying mechanisms causing relationships between nest characteristics and breeding performance will require more experimental study and the exploitation of larger datasets, both within and across avian model systems.Zusammenfassung Vogelnester schützen Elternvögel, Eier oder Jungvögel vor Schwankungen in der Umwelt. Wir haben bei Blaumeisen (Cyanistes caeruleus), die Erst-oder Ersatzgelege produzierten, die Beziehungen zwischen Nesthöhe (einem Maß für Nestgröße) und mehreren Bruterfolgsparametern, die oftmals in Langzeitfeldstudien an Vögeln quantifiziert werden, untersucht. Wir haben für zufällig ausgewählte Weibchen die Kosten der Fortpflanzung experimentell erhöht, indem wir das gesamte Erstgelege sowie Nistmaterial nach etwa fünf Tagen Bebrütung entfernt haben. Dieses Experiment hatte Ersatznester zur Folge. Unsere Erwartung war, dass wir eine positive Korrelation zwischen Nesthöhe und Bruterfolg eher entdecken können, wenn wir die Brutbedingungen für Weibchen experimentell variabler machen. Wir fanden jedoch, dass die Nestgröße nicht signifikant mit irgendeinem der untersuchten Brutparameter (Gelegegröße, Anzahl geschlüpfter und ausgeflogener Jungvögel, Schlupf-und Ausfliegeerfolg, Körpermasse der Küken) zusammenhing, nachdem wir Faktoren, die in Langzeitstudien häufig untersucht werden und bekanntermaßen die Fortpflanzungleistung beeinflussen (Weibchenalter, Jahr, Gelegetyp als Maß für Legedatum), berücksichtigt hatten. Wir schlussfolgern, dass für die Ermittlung der genauen Mechanismen, die Zusammenhänge zwischen Nestmerkmalen und Fortpflanzungleistung verursachen, mehr experimentelle Untersuchungen und grö-ßere Datensätze benötigt werden, sowohl innerhalb als auch zwischen verschiedenen Vogel-Modellsystemen.

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“…Although this explanation is widely accepted, it does not fit very well to species with perennial nests, simply because the majority of studies have been focused on small passerines (Álvarez & Barba 2008), which only occasionally re-use nests (Goodenough et al 2009). …”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

New is not always better: low breeding success and different occupancy patterns in newly built nests of a long-lived species, the white storkCiconia ciconia

et al. 2013

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Nest Quality in Relation to Adult Bird Condition and Its Impact on Reproduction in Great TitsParus major

Cited by 70 publications

References 32 publications

Causes and Consequences of Intraspecific Variation in Nesting Behaviors: Insights from Blue Tits and Great Tits

Causes and Consequences of Intraspecific Variation in Nesting Behaviors: Insights from Blue Tits and Great Tits

Nest size and breeding success in first and replacement clutches: an experimental study in Blue Tits Cyanistes caeruleus

New is not always better: low breeding success and different occupancy patterns in newly built nests of a long-lived species, the white storkCiconia ciconia

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