Begging calls provide social cues for prospecting conspecifics in the wild Zebra Finch (Taeniopygia guttata)

Abstract

Social information can spread fast and help animals adapt in fluctuating environments. Prospecting on the breeding sites of others, a widespread behavior, can help to maximize reproduction by, for instance, settling in the same area as other successful breeders. Previous studies have shown that successful broods have the highest number of prospectors and that they are visited most when offspring in nesting sites are already old, making the information more reliable. In this field study, we experimentally tested how prospectors are attracted to successful nest sites. We presented wild Zebra Finches (Taeniopygia guttata) with different visual or acoustic cues in nest boxes, simulating the presence of small or large clutches or broods. More Zebra Finches visited experimental nests that were associated with playback recordings of begging calls of large broods (7 chicks) as opposed to begging calls of small broods (3 chicks) and controls (white noise and silence). On the other hand, visual cues (nests with different numbers of eggs or rocks), representing nests at early stages, did not influence either the probability of visits, nor number or duration of visits. We present the first evidence that begging calls of chicks in the nest, a signal intended for kin communication, can also provide social information to unrelated prospecting conspecifics. This information could potentially be used for a fast initial assessment of the quality of a breeding site.

Family matters: skin microbiome reflects the social group and spatial proximity in wild zebra finches

“…The zebra finches in our study population bred in a large colony extending over 1.5 kms, consisting of several smaller clusters of nest boxes in higher densities (distance between neighbouring boxes within clusters = 10.4 ± 4.8 SD meters). Zebra finches share strong social relationships with their spatially close neighbours that involve different social interactions, such as visiting each other's nests [24], actively synchronising their reproduction [25], and foraging together [26]. These strong social bonds between individuals can be maintained over multiple seasons and persist even outside of reproductive periods [26].…”

Juvenile socio-ecological environment shapes material technology in nest-building birds

“…For nest construction in zebra finches, future study could now focus on whether material preference follows a two-stage developmental process-the consolidation or modification of initial preference-akin to that which underpins their choice of mate (Immelmann et al 1991;Kruijt and Meeuwissen 1991;Kruijt and Meeuwissen 1993). Indeed, as wild zebra finches breed colonially (Zann 1996) and prospect on neighbors' nests (Brandl et al 2019), and nests themselves can influence laboratory-bred zebra finches' material preference (Breen et al 2019), it seems plausible that they may 'double-check' early-life information on material suitability. Alternatively, future study could examine whether variation in nestconstruction speed as a consequence of variation in the early-life environment leads to differences in birds' reproductive success.…”

Family matters: Skin microbiome reflects the social group and spatial proximity in wild zebra finches

“…The zebra nches in our study population bred in a large colony extending over 1.5 kilometres, consisting of several smaller clusters of nest boxes in higher densities (distance between neighbouring boxes within clusters = 10.4 ± 4.8 SD meters). Zebra nches share strong social relationships with their spatially close neighbours that involve different social interactions, such as visiting each other's nests [27], actively synchronising their reproduction [28], and foraging together [29] .…”