An Effective Method for Trapping Both Parents and Chicks of Whiskered Terns (<i>Chlidonias hybrida</i>) and Its Impact on Breeding Success

Ledwoń, Mateusz; Betleja, Jacek; Neubauer, Grzegorz

doi:10.1675/063.038.0309

Cited by 16 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 17 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Trapped adults were molecularly sexed according to Ledwoń et al . (). Hatching success was calculated as the proportion of eggs that hatched (Ledwoń et al .…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…We erected plastic mesh fences around the monitored nests with eggs to prevent the chicks from escaping until they were able to fly (for a detailed description of the enclosure and trapping method, see Ledwoń et al . , ). The enclosure had no adverse effect on either breeding success or bird behaviour (Ledwoń , Ledwoń et al .…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The enclosure had no adverse effect on either breeding success or bird behaviour (Ledwoń , Ledwoń et al . , ).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…We trapped adults using a roof trap mainly during the late incubation or downy chick stages (up to the fourth day of a chick's life; Ledwoń , Ledwoń et al . , ). We trapped both partners in 33 of the 190 nests monitored, but only a single bird in the remainder.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Offspring desertion and parental care in the Whiskered TernChlidonias hybrida

Ledwoń

Neubauer

2017

Ibis

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

In species with biparental care, a conflict of interest can arise if one mate tries to maximize its own reproductive success at the expense of the other's. One of the mates can desert the brood to accrue a number of benefits to enhance its own fitness, leaving parental care to the remaining parent. This study is the first to describe the desertion pattern in a tern species (Sternidae). We investigated offspring desertion in the Whiskered Tern Chlidonias hybrida, a species with semi-precocial chicks. Offspring desertion was recorded in 52% of nests prior to fledging (n = 131 nests). Females also deserted during the post-fledging period. Of the deserters, 97% were females. Desertions started when chicks were 5 days old and no longer required intense brooding. Desertions before fledging did not affect fledging success. Provisioning rates between pair members differed, and females supplied much less food than males. Female provisioning rate affected the chances of nest desertion significantly: daily desertion rates were lower when females supplied more food. After females had deserted, males increased their provisioning rates but compensated for the loss of female care only partly in two-and three-chick broods. Only in small (one-chick) broods was compensation full. We conclude that male and female Whiskered Terns adopt different reproductive strategies in the population studied here. Females invest much less in parental care than males, providing less food and deserting more frequently. Given the ready availability of food and low predation pressure, benefits appear to accrue to females that desert; selection forces may therefore not be acting against female desertion.

show abstract

“…Trapped adults were molecularly sexed according to Ledwoń et al . (). Hatching success was calculated as the proportion of eggs that hatched (Ledwoń et al .…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 97%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The enclosure had no adverse effect on either breeding success or bird behaviour (Ledwoń , Ledwoń et al . , ).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Offspring desertion and parental care in the Whiskered TernChlidonias hybrida

Ledwoń

Neubauer

2017

Ibis

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…These extensively managed carp ponds cover over 1000 ha. For a detailed description of the study area, see Ledwoń et al (2013Ledwoń et al ( , 2014Ledwoń et al ( , 2015Ledwoń et al ( , 2016 and Gwiazda and Ledwoń (2015).…”

Section: Study Areamentioning

confidence: 99%

True deception during extra‐pair courtship feeding: cheating whiskered ternChlidonias hybridafemales perform better

Ledwoń

Neubauer

2018

Journal of Avian Biology

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Males of many bird species feed their mates during the pre‐incubation period. The food provisioned by males during these courtship feedings (CFs) represents the key source of energy for the female during egg formation. Non‐pair males may trade food for extra pair copulations (EPC) with females during extra pair courtship feeding (EPCF), while females may trade copulations for food with non‐pair males to obtain additional resources. Because EPCs can be costly to the females, they are expected to behave in ways that will deceive non‐pair males to obtain additional resources at no cost to themselves. We investigated EPCFs in whiskered terns Chlidonias hybrida breeding in food‐rich conditions, on carp ponds in southern Poland. Almost all CFs (n = 2751) took place during the female's fertile period and peaked just before clutch initiation. 10% of all CFs were performed by non‐pair males. Females tried to obtain food from the non‐pair male during 39% of EPCFs, by swindling (the female solicits a non‐social male for copulation and tries to swindle food with no cloacal contact) or by snatching (the female tries to take the gift without engaging in copulation). In the remaining 61% of EPCFs, females did not react or chased the visiting male away. The probability of a female's obtaining food during EPCF was much higher (0.69, 95% CI: 0.47–0.85) if she swindled rather than snatched (0.08, 95% CI: 0.02–0.22). Only 0.7% of EPCFs were followed by EPCs. The high availability of food in the study area allows males to perform frequent EPCFs, despite the very low probability of obtaining EPCs. This is the first time that ‘true deception’ during EPCFs has been reported in birds: swindling females obtain food from non‐pair males at no immediate detectable cost to themselves.

show abstract