Factors Affecting the Presence and Abundance of Generalist Ectoparasites in Nests of Three Sympatric Hole-Nesting Bird Species

Cantarero, Alejandro; López‐Arrabé, Jimena; Rodríguez-García, Víctor; González‐Braojos, Sonia; Ruiz-de-Castañeda, Rafael; Redondo, Alberto J.; Moreno, Juan

doi:10.3161/000164513x669982

Cited by 38 publications

(48 citation statements)

References 67 publications

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“…Such a relationship between anthropogenic materials and parasite load, even if indirect, may help explain findings by others on variation in nest ectoparasite loads with different materials (Moreno et al 2009;Tomás et al 2012;Cantarero et al 2013;Reynolds et al 2016). Nevertheless, it is not clear if nest material choice and associated changes in arthropod assemblage help explain variation in breeding success associated with urbanisation.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…Moreno et al 2009;Suárez-Rodríguez et al 2013) but only one has previously been carried out in a European urban environment (Reynolds et al 2016), focusing on fleas and Blue Tits. Generalist nest-dwelling ectoparasites such as fleas (Siphonaptera) and biting mites (Acari, principally the family Dermanyssidae) are common in passerine nests (Moreno et al 2009;Cantarero et al 2013), but the latter are rarely considered.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Use of anthropogenic material affects bird nest arthropod community structure: influence of urbanisation, and consequences for ectoparasites and fledging success

et al. 2017

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Nests are a critically important factor in determining the breeding success of many species of birds. Nevertheless, we have surprisingly little understanding of how the local environment helps determine the materials used in nest construction, how this differs among related species using similar nest sites, or if materials used directly or indirectly influence the numbers of offspring successfully reared. We also have little understanding of any potential links between nest construction and the assemblage of invertebrates which inhabit nests, in particular, ectoparasites. We addressed these questions by monitoring the success rates of Blue Tits Cyanistes caeruleus and Great Tits Parus major, using nest boxes in rural, urban greenspace and urban garden settings. We collected used nests, identified the arthropods present, and measured the proportions of highly processed anthropogenic materials used in nest construction. Twenty-five percent of Great Tit nest materials were of anthropogenic origin and this was consistent across habitats, while Blue Tits used little (1-2%) anthropogenic material except in gardens (*16%), suggesting that Great Tits preferentially sought out these materials. In fledged nests, an increasing use of anthropogenic material was associated with a lower general arthropod diversity and ectoparasite predator abundance (Blue Tits only), but higher levels of Siphonaptera (fleas).Higher arthropod diversity was associated with lower flea numbers, suggesting that increased diversity played a role in limiting flea numbers. No direct link was found between breeding success and either anthropogenic material usage or arthropod diversity and abundance. However, breeding success declined with increasing urbanisation in both species and increased with nest weight in Blue Tits. The interplay between urbanisation and bird ecology is complex; our work shows that subtle anthropogenic influences may have indirect and unexpected consequences for urban birds.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Use of anthropogenic material affects bird nest arthropod community structure: influence of urbanisation, and consequences for ectoparasites and fledging success

et al. 2017

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“…The study was conducted during the spring of 2013 in a montane forest of Egg laying in the pied flycatcher population under study typically begins in late May (Cantarero et al 2013b), and the modal clutch size is six. The female incubates and broods alone and receives some of her food from her mate (Cantarero et al 2013b;Moreno et al 2011).…”

Section: Study Area and Speciesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The female incubates and broods alone and receives some of her food from her mate (Cantarero et al 2013b;Moreno et al 2011). No brooding is observed after nestlings attain 7 days of age (Sanz and Moreno 1995).…”

Section: Study Area and Speciesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In many passerines such as the pied flycatcher, females incubate alone and receive some of their food from their mates (Cantarero et al 2013b;Moreno et al 2011). Some experimental studies have shown that pied flycatcher males seem able to adjust incubation feeding to female requirements (Moreno et al 2011), although the behavioural mechanism behind male responses remains unknown.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Males respond to female begging signals of need: a handicapping experiment in the pied flycatcher, Ficedula hypoleuca

et al. 2014

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ABSTRACT. The 'female nutrition' hypothesis proposes that food provided by males during incubation is an important energy source for females in bird species in which females alone incubate. Females should be able to communicate their needs through begging signals to mates and males may compensate for the energetic limitations of females through their feeding visits, owing to their overlapping reproductive interests. To test whether female begging during incubation is an honest signal of energetic need and whether mates respond to it we experimentally handicapped female pied flycatchers at the beginning of incubation by clipping two primary flight feathers on each wing. Experimental manipulation led females to intensify begging displays arising from condition impairment and males accordingly increased their incubation feeding rates.Female begging intensity explained more than half of the variation in male incubation feeding rate, thereby showing that female nutrition is the main factor explaining male incubation feeding. Moreover, handicapped females consumed a higher proportion of male food deliveries during the first few days after hatching and weighed less at the end of the nestling period than control females.

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Ectoparasites as developmental stressors: Effects on somatic and physiological development

Pryor

Casto

2017

J Exp Zool Pt A

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Developmental stress can alter resource allocation in early life, and in altricial birds with rapid developmental trajectories and high resource demands, nestlings may adjust early resource partitioning to cope with challenging environments. We experimentally manipulated ectoparasite levels in nests and assessed whether ectoparasites affected somatic and physiological development in European starling (Sturnus vulgaris) nestlings. We hypothesized that mites act as developmental stressors in nestlings and predicted that nestlings from infested nests would exhibit either reduced somatic growth, or reduced physiological development, including impaired innate immunity, and would have elevated corticosterone concentrations. We either added ≈200 mites to nests during early incubation, or treated nests with a pesticide, permethrin, to reduce mites and possibly other arthropods. We assessed treatment effects on egg spottiness and mite abundance, and monitored offspring hatching and survival. We also measured somatic growth (mass, tarsus length, and feather growth), hematocrit, immune-related metrics (bacterial killing ability [BKA] and spleen mass), and baseline corticosterone concentrations in response to treatment. Compared with mite treatment, permethrin reduced egg spottiness and mite abundance in nests. Relative to nestlings in mite-reduced nests, nestlings in mite-enhanced nests had lower survival, hematocrit, and corticosterone concentrations. Early in development, nestlings from both treatments exhibited similar rapid somatic growth, yet mite-treated nestlings exhibited lower BKA. Nestlings in both treatments increased BKA across development, despite nestlings in mite-treated nests exhibiting lower mass as nest leaving neared. Overall, we found evidence that mites can act as development stressors, but contrary to our prediction, mites decreased corticosterone concentrations.

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Factors Affecting the Presence and Abundance of Generalist Ectoparasites in Nests of Three Sympatric Hole-Nesting Bird Species

Cited by 38 publications

References 67 publications

Use of anthropogenic material affects bird nest arthropod community structure: influence of urbanisation, and consequences for ectoparasites and fledging success

Use of anthropogenic material affects bird nest arthropod community structure: influence of urbanisation, and consequences for ectoparasites and fledging success

Males respond to female begging signals of need: a handicapping experiment in the pied flycatcher, Ficedula hypoleuca

Ectoparasites as developmental stressors: Effects on somatic and physiological development

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