Factors affecting the length of the breeding cycle and the frequency of nest attendance by Grey Herons<i>Ardea cinerea</i>

Vessem, Janine van; Draulans, Dirk

doi:10.1080/00063658609476903

Cited by 12 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 5 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…These results concur with those of van Vessem and Draulans (1986) and Sullivan (1988). They also bear out the predictions of Lack (1968) regarding the influence of food on fledging success.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

“…This largely corresponds to what was reported by Horvath and Moholt (1986) and van Vessem and Draulans (1986Draulans ( , 1987. The frequency of nocturnal activity at the colony of ile Saint-Bernard accounted for, on average, 63 % of the activity observed during the preceding diurnal periods for the eight sampling sessions.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

“…Therefore, although significantly less than diurnal activity, nocturnal activity was not negligible. The activity pattern of the Great Blue Heron was similar to that of the Grey Heron, though Owen (1955) which activity was more nocturnal on certain days, while van Vessem and Draulans (1986) observed that these European herons were sometimes just as active at night as during the day.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 90%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Daytime and nighttime activity at a breeding colony of Great Blue Herons in a nontidal environment

McNeil¹,

Benoit²,

DesGranges³

1993

Can. J. Zool.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

MCNEIL, R., BENOPT, R., and DESGRANGES, J.-L. 1993. Daytime and nighttime activity at a breeding colony of Great BlueHerons in a nontidal environment. Can. J. Zool. 71: 1075 -1078. It is generally admitted that in coastal areas, herons of the genus Ardea adjust their foraging time according to the tidal cycle. However, to what extent do tides control the herons' daily rhythm of activity? To answer this question, we present the day and night activity patterns of Great Blue Herons (Ardea herodias) arriving to feed their young at a heronry located in a nontidal environment in southern Quebec. Herons were about half as active at night as during the day. Therefore, although significantly less than diurnal activity, nocturnal activity was not negligible, and consequently the tide cycle is not the only factor controlling the daily rhythm of the herons' activity. Those breeding pairs that were most active during the day were no more or less active at night. Diurnal activity was more closely correlated with the number of young that fledged than was nocturnal activity. Thus, night activity was not necessarily important for the survival of young herons, but it could be explained by other factors such as the greater availability of certain prey at night. MCNEIL, R., BENO~T, R., et DESGRANGES, J.-L. 1993. Daytime and nighttime activity at a breeding colony of Great BlueHerons in a nontidal environment. Can. J. Zool. 71 : 1075 -1078. I1 est generalement admis que les herons du genre Ardea ajustent leurs periodes d'alimentation selon le cycle des marees dans les regions catikres. Cependant, jusqu'a quel point les marees contralent-elles le cycle d'activite des herons? Pour repondre a cette question, nous presentons les patrons d'activite diurne et nocturne de Grands Herons (Ardea Iterodias) revenant a leur nid pour nourrir leurs jeunes dans une colonie du sud du Quebec, situee dans un milieu non soumis a l'action des marees. Les herons ont Ct C moitik aussi actifs la nuit que le jour. Quoique significativement inferieure a l'activiti diurne, I'activite nocturne n'a donc pas kt6 negligeable et, en consequence, le cycle des marees n'est pas le seul facteur a contraler le cycle journalier d'activiti des herons. Les couples les plus actifs de jour n'ont kt6 ni plus ni moins actifs de nuit. L'activite diurne a semble avoir une influence plus grande que I'activite nocturne sur le nombre de jeunes a I'envol. L'activite diurne n'a donc pas Ct C particulikrement importante pour la survie des jeunes, mais elle peut s'expliquer par d'autres facteurs, tels la plus grande disponibiliti de certaines proies la nuit.

show abstract

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 90%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Daytime and nighttime activity at a breeding colony of Great Blue Herons in a nontidal environment

McNeil¹,

Benoit²,

DesGranges³

1993

Can. J. Zool.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The data from different seasons were pooled, as we did not find any significant differences in clutch size or numbers of chicks fledged between seasons ( van Vessem 1985). In three heronries, however, we studied the breeding success of 11, 11 and 18 nests respectively more in detail: nest contents were examined at least once a week here.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Adaptive Significance of Colonial Breeding in the Grey Heron Ardea cinerea: Inter- and Intra-Colony Variability in Breeding Success

Vessem¹,

Draulans²

1986

Ornis Scandinavica

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact support@jstor.org.. Wiley and Nordic Society Oikos are collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Ornis Scandinavica. Vessem, J. van and Draulans, D. 1986. The adaptive significance of colonial breeding in the Grey Heron Ardea cinerea: interand intra-colony variability in breeding success. Ornis Scand. 17: 356-362.We studied variations in reproductive success within and between Belgian heronries to evaluate the hypotheses that colonial breeding in Grey Herons is an anti-predator adaptation or an adaptation to facilitate food-finding. Breeding success of Grey Herons did not increase with number of breeding pairs present, nor with increasing synchronization of breeding, and pairs nesting in the centre of the heronry did not fledge more chicks than pairs nesting at the edge. We found no consistent differences in the timing of onset of reproduction and in clutch size between and within heronries. There was a suggestion that first-year breeding birds tended to occupy nests at the edge of a heronry, but their proportion in the breeding population probably was too small to affect the results. We suggest that the predation pressure is too low to cause anti-predator responses, such as mobbing, to evolve among herons. There was no evidence for a higher chick survival as a consequence of increasing information transfer through increased number of breeding pairs. The data suggested that new heronries establish near suitable foraging sites, but that overall reproduction success decreases when more pairs settle.

show abstract

“…Increased feeding visits by parents (i.e., higher food availability to chicks) decrease the chick mortality of Grey Herons [9]. The nestling feeding duration of Grey Herons, particularly when feeding small chicks, becomes longer when the frequency of returns to the nest decreases, likely because of less food availability at hunting sites [43]. In a field experiment using food supplements, Great Blue Herons showed increased clutch size and fledging success but no difference in the seasonal timing of nesting [44].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Colony Development and Density-Dependent Processes in Breeding Grey Herons

Shirai

2013

International Journal of Zoology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The density-dependent processes that limit the colony size of colonially breeding birds such as herons and egrets remain unclear, because it is difficult to monitor colonies from the first year of their establishment, and the most previous studies have considered mixed-species colonies. In the present study, single-species colonies of the Grey Heron (Ardea cinerea) were observed from the first year of their establishment for 16 years in suburban Tokyo. Colony size increased after establishment, illustrating a saturation curve. The breeding duration (days from nest building to fledging by a pair) increased, but the number of fledglings per nest decreased, with colony size. The reproductive season in each year began earlier, and there was greater variation in the timing of individual breeding when the colony size was larger. The prolonged duration until nestling feeding by early breeders of the colony suggests that herons at the beginning of the new breeding season exist in an unsteady state with one another, likely owing to interactions with immigrant individuals. Such density-dependent interference may affect reproductive success and limit the colony size of Grey Herons.

show abstract

Factors affecting the length of the breeding cycle and the frequency of nest attendance by Grey HeronsArdea cinerea

Cited by 12 publications

References 5 publications

Daytime and nighttime activity at a breeding colony of Great Blue Herons in a nontidal environment

Daytime and nighttime activity at a breeding colony of Great Blue Herons in a nontidal environment

The Adaptive Significance of Colonial Breeding in the Grey Heron Ardea cinerea: Inter- and Intra-Colony Variability in Breeding Success

Colony Development and Density-Dependent Processes in Breeding Grey Herons

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About