Reduced clutch-size is correlated with increased nest predation in exotic Turdus thrushes
Phillip Cassey A E , Rebecca L. Boulton A , John G. Ewen B and Mark E. Hauber C DA Centre for Ornithology, School of Biosciences, Birmingham University, B15 2TT, United Kingdom.
B Institute of Zoology, Regents Park, London, NW1 4RY, United Kingdom.
C School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, PB92019, Auckland, New Zealand.
D Present address: Department of Psychology, Hunter College, City University of New York, NY 10065, USA.
E Corresponding author. Email: p.cassey@bham.ac.uk
Emu 109(4) 294-299 https://doi.org/10.1071/MU09017
Submitted: 28 February 2009 Accepted: 21 October 2009 Published: 24 November 2009
Abstract
A fundamental prediction of life-history theory is that individuals should reduce their reproductive investment per breeding attempt when the risk of nest predation is high. We tested this trade-off in two species of exotic Turdus thrushes in New Zealand (Common Blackbird (T. merula) and Song Thrush (T. philomelos)). Differences in nest survival were estimated between two habitats (horticultural and agricultural) and among four replicate horticultural sites. Overall, we identified shared patterns of nest survival within a habitat but a significant interaction with different habitats. Critically, as predicted by life-history theory, we found that clutch-size consistently and positively co-varied with site-specific rates of nest survival. Although site-specific difference in habitat and variation in female quality cannot be ruled out as explanations for this pattern, our results support the hypothesis that females can manipulate their reproductive effort across different predation regimes. Future experimental work is required to test these alternate hypotheses explicitly, and to demonstrate the behavioural cues that might lead to variable levels of reproductive effort and trade-offs of maternal resources.
Additional keywords: life-history theory, maternal effects, New Zealand.
Acknowledgements
For help with accommodation and field work, we thank the following individuals: R. Peacock, B. and G. Cassey, K. Mathews, G. and S. Cassey, M. Thompson, D. Armstrong, Y. Richard and N. MacArthur. We are also grateful for discussions with S. J. Reynolds, A. P. Møller, and T. Grim. Our study was conducted under licence number 0443 from the New Zealand Department of Conservation (NZ), and benefited from funding by the University of Auckland Research Council and the Human Frontier Science Program (to PC and MEH).
Akaike, H. (1974). A new look at the statistical model identification. IEEE Transactions on Automatic Control 19, 716–723.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Cassey, P. , Ewen, J. G. , Boulton, R. L. , Blackburn, T. M. , Moller, A. P. , Biard, C. , Olson, V. , and Karadas, F. (2005). Egg carotenoids in passerine birds introduced to New Zealand: relations to ecological factors, integument coloration and phylogeny. Functional Ecology 19, 719–726.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Dinsmore, S. J. , White, G. C. , and Knopf, F. L. (2002). Advanced techniques for modeling avian nest survival. Ecology 83, 3476–3488.
Doligez, B. , and Clobert, J. (2003). Clutch size reduction as a response to increased nest predation rate in the collared flycatcher. Ecology 84, 2582–2588.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Eggers, S. , Griesser, M. , Nystrand, M. , and Ekman, J. (2006). Predation risk induces changes in nest-site selection and clutch size in the Siberian jay. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series B. Biological Sciences 273, 701–706.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Evans, K. L. , Duncan, R. P. , Blackburn, T. M. , and Crick, H. Q. P. (2005). Investigating geographic variation in clutch size using a natural experiment. Functional Ecology 19, 616–624.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Faivre, B. , Preault, M. , Thery, M. , Secondi, J. , Patris, B. , and Cezilly, F. (2001). Breeding strategy and morphological characters in an urban population of blackbirds, Turdus merula. Animal Behaviour 61, 969–974.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Fontaine, J. J. , and Martin, T. E. (2006). Parent birds assess nest predation risk and adjust their reproductive strategies. Ecology Letters 9, 428–434.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | CAS | PubMed |
Ghalambor, C. K. , and Martin, T. E. (2001). Fecundity-survival trade-offs and parental risk-taking in birds. Science 292, 494–497.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | CAS | PubMed |
Grim, T. , and Honza, M. (2001). Differences in behaviour of closely related thrushes (Turdus philomelos and T. merula) to experimental parasitism by the common cuckoo Cuculus canorus. Biologia, Bratislava 56, 549–556.
Hauber, M. E. (2003). Interspecific brood parasitism and the evolution of host clutch sizes. Evolutionary Ecology Research 5, 559–570.
Hoyt, D. F. (1979). Practical methods of estimating volume and fresh egg weights of bird eggs. Auk 96, 73–77.
Martin, T. E. (1995). Avian life history evolution in relation to nest sites, nest predation, and food. Ecological Monographs 65, 101–127.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Martin, T. E. , Scott, J. , and Menge, C. (2000). Nest predation increases with parental activity: separating nest site and parental activity effects. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series B. Biological Sciences 267, 2287–2293.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | CAS |
Martin, T. E. , Bassar, R. D. , Bassar, S. K. , Fontaine, J. J. , Lloyd, P. , Mathewson, H. A. , Nikilson, A. M. , and Chalfoun, A. (2006). Life-history and ecological correlates of geographic variation in egg and clutch mass among passerine species. Evolution 60, 390–398.
| PubMed |
Massaro, M. , Starling-Windhof, A. , Briskie, J. V. , and Martin, T. E. (2008). Introduced mammalian predators induce behavioural changes in parental care in an endemic New Zealand bird. PLoS ONE 3, e2331.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | PubMed |
Morgan, D. , Waas, J. R. , and Innes, J. (2006). The relative importance of Australian magpies (Gymnorhina tibicen) as nest predators of rural birds in New Zealand. New Zealand Journal of Zoology 33, 17–29.
Nager, R. G. , Monaghan, P. , and Houston, D. C. (2000). Within-clutch trade-offs between the number and quality of eggs: experimental manipulations in gulls. Ecology 81, 1339–1350.
Peluc, S. I. , Sillett, T. S. , Rotenberry, J. T. , and Ghalambor, C. K. (2008). Adaptive phenotypic plasticity in an island songbird exposed to a novel predation risk. Behavioral Ecology 19, 830–835.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Pilz, K. M. , Smith, H. G. , Sandell, M. I. , and Schwabl, H. (2003). Inter-female variation in egg yolk androgen allocation in the European starling: do high quality females invest more? Animal Behaviour 65, 841–850.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Powell, L. A. (2007). Approximating variance of demographic parameters using the delta method: a reference for avian biologists. Condor 109, 949–954.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Ricklefs, R. E. (1969). An analysis of nesting mortality in birds. Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology 9, 1–8.
Russell, A. F. , Langmore, N. E. , Cockburn, A. , Astheimer, L. B. , and Kilner, R. M. (2007). Reduced egg investment can conceal helper effects in cooperatively breeding birds. Science 317, 941–944.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | CAS | PubMed |
Schwabl, H. , Palacios, M. G. , and Martin, T. E. (2007). Selection for rapid development leads to higher embryo exposure to maternal androgens among passerine species. American Naturalist 170, 196–206.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | PubMed |
Slagsvold, T. (1984). Clutch size variation of birds in relation to nest predation: on the cost of reproduction. Journal of Animal Ecology 53, 945–953.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Slagsvold, T. , and Lifjeld, J. T. (1990). Influence of male and female quality on clutch size in tits (Parus spp.). Ecology 71, 1258–1266.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Thomson, D. L. , Monaghan, P. , and Furness, R. W. (1998). The demands of incubation and avian clutch size. Biological Reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society 73, 293–304.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Visser, M. E. , and Lessells, C. M. (2001). The costs of egg production and incubation in great tits (Parus major). Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Series B. Biological Sciences 268, 1271–1277.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | CAS |
Wagner, E. C. , and Williams, T. D. (2007). Experimental (antiestrogen-mediated) reduction in egg size negatively affects offspring growth and survival. Physiological and Biochemical Zoology 80, 293–305.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | PubMed |
Weidinger, K. (2002). Interactive effects of concealment, parental behaviour and predators on the survival of open passerine nests. Journal of Animal Ecology 71, 424–437.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
White, G. C. , and Burnham, K. P. (1999). Program MARK: survival estimation from populations of marked animals. Bird Study 46(Suppl.), 120–139.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Williams, T. D. (1994). Intraspecific variation in egg size and egg composition in birds: effects on offspring fitness. Biological Reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society 68, 35–59.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar |
Zanette, L. , Clinchy, M. , and Smith, J. N. M. (2006). Food and predators affect egg production in song sparrows. Ecology 87, 2459–2467.
| Crossref | GoogleScholarGoogle Scholar | PubMed |