Experimental evidence that adult antipredator behaviour is heritable and not influenced by behavioural copying in a wild bird

Abstract

Knowledge of the relative importance of genetics and behavioural copying is crucial to appraise the evolvability of behavioural consistencies. Yet, genetic and non-genetic factors are often deeply intertwined, and experiments are required to address this issue. We investigated the sources of variation of adult antipredator behaviour in the Alpine swift (Apus melba) by making use of long-term behavioural observations on parents and cross-fostered offspring. By applying an 'animal model' approach to observational data, we show that antipredator behaviour of adult Alpine swifts was significantly repeatable over lifetime (r ¼ 0.273) and heritable (h 2 ¼ 0.146). Regression models also show that antipredator behaviours differed between colonies and sexes (females were more tame), and varied with the hour and year of capture. By applying a parent-offspring regression approach to 59 offspring that were exchanged as eggs or hatchlings between pairs of nests, we demonstrate that offspring behaved like their biological parents rather than like their foster parents when they were adults themselves. Those findings provide strong evidence that antipredator behaviour of adult Alpine swifts is shaped by genetics and/or pre-hatching maternal effects taking place at conception but not by behavioural copying.

Behavioral Correlations Associated with Fear of Humans Differ between Rural and Urban Burrowing Owls

“…Thus, urban individuals living in a predator-free area where humans are constantly present can lose their antipredator behavior while breaking its links to the fear of humans. Moreover, urban birds can take advantage of the predator release effect by gaining higher breeding success than their rural counterparts (Rebolo-Ifrán et al, in press), such that the heritabilities of the fear of humans (Carrete et al, 2016) and antipredator behavior (Bize et al, 2012) can subsequently reinforce the behavioral differences between urban and rural populations initially resulting from selection. Whatever the mechanism causing the decoupling between fear of humans and antipredator behaviors in urban individuals, our results-in line with those obtained by Myers and Hyman (2016)challenge previous interpretations of flight initiation distances (FID).…”

Paternal personality and social status influence offspring activity in zebrafish

“…In fact, personality traits such as exploratory behaviour in great tits ( Parus major , [15]), antipredator behaviour in Alpine swift ( Apus melba , [16]) and dominance in chimpanzees ( Pan trolodytes , [17]) as well as aggressiveness and boldness in zebrafish [18] are to some degree heritable, suggesting a genetic underpinning. Nevertheless, personality traits appear to retain high levels of context-dependent plasticity (but see [19]).…”

Environmental transmission of a personality trait: foster parent exploration behaviour predicts offspring exploration behaviour in zebra finches

“…during post-hatching parental care in birds). However, little is known about non-genetic parent-offspring transmission of behaviour during advanced pre-independence stages of offspring development (but see [11,12]). Individual differences in maternal care are behaviourally transmitted between generations in rats, Rattus norvegicus [11].…”

“…Individual differences in maternal care are behaviourally transmitted between generations in rats, Rattus norvegicus [11]. In contrast, Alpine swifts, Apus melba, resemble their genetic but not foster parents in their anti-predator behaviour [12]. Here, we aim to disentangle the genetic and early ( pre-hatching) parental effects from later parental ( personality) effects on offspring personality using a cross-foster breeding experiment with zebra finches.…”