Sex differences in feeding visit rates in Northern Wheatears Oenanthe oenanthe
Abstract The Northern Wheatear (Oenanthe oenanthe) is a small insectivorous passerine bird living in open landscapes. Both parents feed the brood of approximately five chicks, but little is known about how each sex allocates their feeding effort. In this study I investigate feeding nest visit diffe...
| Autor principal: | |
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| Formato: | First cycle, G2E |
| Lenguaje: | sueco Inglés |
| Publicado: |
2011
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| Acceso en línea: | https://stud.epsilon.slu.se/3273/ |
| _version_ | 1855570546332270592 |
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| author | Schmiterlöw, Siri |
| author_browse | Schmiterlöw, Siri |
| author_facet | Schmiterlöw, Siri |
| author_sort | Schmiterlöw, Siri |
| collection | Epsilon Archive for Student Projects |
| description | Abstract
The Northern Wheatear (Oenanthe oenanthe) is a small insectivorous passerine bird living in open landscapes. Both parents feed the brood of approximately five chicks, but little is known about how each sex allocates their feeding effort.
In this study I investigate feeding nest visit differences between male and female Northern Wheatears relative to the age of the chicks, the number of chicks and the quality of the territory for 17 pairs from 2008-2010. Data were collected using automated data loggers to record nest visitation rates during chick feeding, and the sex was determined from nest video cameras. I also examine if the parents’ rate of feeding visits changes over the nestling period.
The predictions were that: (1) the male would visit relatively more when the chicks were young compared to the female, and that these roles would reverse (i.e. the female would become the parent with most feeding visits) when the chicks grew older; (2) any differences between the feeding rates of parents would be smaller for larger broods; (3) any differences between the feeding rates of parents would be relatively small when the quality of the territory was low; and (4) parents would increase their rate of feeding visits as the chicks grew. The predictions are based on the theory of resource limitation.
I found some support for differences in feeding nest visits between the sexes. The male had a greater share of feeding visits when the chicks were young and a smaller share when the chicks were older. There was no difference between the male and the female in their feeding visit rates with varying numbers of young. The quality of the territory had a small effect on the sexes’ feeding visits, but only when the age of the chicks was added to the analysis. The rate of feeding visits was higher when the chicks were older.
This study is the first to provide information on wheatear behaviour in the nest relative to its sex and should outline the basis of future research on sex differences in the Northern Wheatear. |
| format | First cycle, G2E |
| id | RepoSLU3273 |
| institution | Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences |
| language | swe Inglés |
| publishDate | 2011 |
| publishDateSort | 2011 |
| record_format | eprints |
| spelling | RepoSLU32732012-04-22T09:59:59Z https://stud.epsilon.slu.se/3273/ Sex differences in feeding visit rates in Northern Wheatears Oenanthe oenanthe Schmiterlöw, Siri Animal ecology Abstract The Northern Wheatear (Oenanthe oenanthe) is a small insectivorous passerine bird living in open landscapes. Both parents feed the brood of approximately five chicks, but little is known about how each sex allocates their feeding effort. In this study I investigate feeding nest visit differences between male and female Northern Wheatears relative to the age of the chicks, the number of chicks and the quality of the territory for 17 pairs from 2008-2010. Data were collected using automated data loggers to record nest visitation rates during chick feeding, and the sex was determined from nest video cameras. I also examine if the parents’ rate of feeding visits changes over the nestling period. The predictions were that: (1) the male would visit relatively more when the chicks were young compared to the female, and that these roles would reverse (i.e. the female would become the parent with most feeding visits) when the chicks grew older; (2) any differences between the feeding rates of parents would be smaller for larger broods; (3) any differences between the feeding rates of parents would be relatively small when the quality of the territory was low; and (4) parents would increase their rate of feeding visits as the chicks grew. The predictions are based on the theory of resource limitation. I found some support for differences in feeding nest visits between the sexes. The male had a greater share of feeding visits when the chicks were young and a smaller share when the chicks were older. There was no difference between the male and the female in their feeding visit rates with varying numbers of young. The quality of the territory had a small effect on the sexes’ feeding visits, but only when the age of the chicks was added to the analysis. The rate of feeding visits was higher when the chicks were older. This study is the first to provide information on wheatear behaviour in the nest relative to its sex and should outline the basis of future research on sex differences in the Northern Wheatear. Sammanfattning Stenskvättan (Oenanthe oenanthe) är en liten insektsätande tätting som lever i öppna landskap. Båda föräldrar matar kullen på ca fem ungar, men kunskapen om hur könen fördelar sina ansträngningar är liten. I den här studien undersöker jag skillnader i matningsfrekvens mellan hane och hona av stenskvätta i förhållande till ungarnas ålder, deras antal och kvaliteten på reviret hos 17 par under 2008 till 2010. Data samlades in med en automatiserad datalogger för att registrera bobesöksfrekvens medan ungarna matas, och den matande förälderns kön bestämdes från filmer av boet. Jag undersökte också om föräldrarnas matningsfrekvens ändras under tiden ungarna är i boet. Jag antog att: (1) hanen skulle mata oftare relativt honan när ungarna är små, och att rollerna skulle bli ombytta (d.v.s. honan skulle bli föräldern med högst matningsfrekvens) när ungarna blivit äldre; (2) skillnader i matningsfrekvens mellan föräldrarna skulle vara mindre ju fler ungar det är i boet; (3) skillnader i matningsfrekvens mellan föräldrarna skulle vara relativt liten när kvaliteten på reviret var låg; och (4) föräldrarna skulle öka matningsfrekvensen allteftersom ungarna växte. Antagandena är baserade på teorin om begränsade resurser. Jag fann visst stöd för skillnader i matningsfrekvens mellan könen. Hanen hade en större del av matningen när ungarna var små men det var ingen skillnad när ungarna var större. Det var ingen skillnad mellan hane och hona med varierande antal ungar. Kvaliteten på reviret hade en liten effekt på könens matningsfrekvens, men bara när ungarnas ålder togs med i analysen. Matningsfrekvensen var högre för äldre ungar än för yngre. Den här studien är den första att förse information om hur stenskvättor beter sig i boet i förhållande till dess kön och bör utgöra grunden för framtida forskning på könsskillnader hos stenskvätta. 2011-09-26 First cycle, G2E NonPeerReviewed application/pdf swe https://stud.epsilon.slu.se/3273/1/schmiterlow_s_110926.pdf Schmiterlöw, Siri, 2011. Sex differences in feeding visit rates in Northern Wheatears Oenanthe oenanthe. First cycle, G2E. Uppsala: (NL, NJ) > Dept. of Ecology <https://stud.epsilon.slu.se/view/divisions/OID-415.html> urn:nbn:se:slu:epsilon-s-629 eng |
| spellingShingle | Animal ecology Schmiterlöw, Siri Sex differences in feeding visit rates in Northern Wheatears Oenanthe oenanthe |
| title | Sex differences in feeding visit rates in Northern Wheatears Oenanthe oenanthe |
| title_full | Sex differences in feeding visit rates in Northern Wheatears Oenanthe oenanthe |
| title_fullStr | Sex differences in feeding visit rates in Northern Wheatears Oenanthe oenanthe |
| title_full_unstemmed | Sex differences in feeding visit rates in Northern Wheatears Oenanthe oenanthe |
| title_short | Sex differences in feeding visit rates in Northern Wheatears Oenanthe oenanthe |
| title_sort | sex differences in feeding visit rates in northern wheatears oenanthe oenanthe |
| topic | Animal ecology |
| url | https://stud.epsilon.slu.se/3273/ https://stud.epsilon.slu.se/3273/ |