Food division in the Arabian babbler nest: adult choice or nestling competition?

Ostreiher, Roni

doi:10.1093/beheco/8.2.233

Cited by 75 publications

(45 citation statements)

References 45 publications

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“…However, many ¢eld studies suggest that parents do combine cues (e.g. Forbes & Ankney 1987;McRae et al 1993;Malacarne et al 1994;Kacelnik et al 1995;Price & Ydenberg 1995;Leonard & Horn 1996;Ostreiher 1997;Ko« lliker et al 1998), for example, feeding according to nest position, which, as larger chicks are better able to shove their smaller siblings out of the way, and may be di¡erentially motivated to do so by the amount of food in their stomachs, is some combination of hunger and size. We therefore also tested a set of cue-combining strategies.…”

Section: (C) Multiple Cuesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Environment quality predicts parental provisioning decisions

Davis

Todd

Bullock

1999

Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B

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Although avian parents appear to exhibit a variety of feeding strategies in nature, there currently exist no models or theories that account for this range of diversity. Here we present the results of a computer simulation designed to model inter-dependent parental decisions, where investment is meted out in small doses, and must be distributed over time to maximize return on investment at the end of the parentalcare period. With this technique we show that the success of various simple, observed, parental rules of thumb varies with environmental resource level, and that increasing the complexity of parental decision rules does not necessarily result in increased ¢tness.

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Section: (C) Multiple Cuesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Environment quality predicts parental provisioning decisions

Davis

Todd

Bullock

1999

Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B

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“…Groups of babblers defend year-round territories of 0.2-1.0 km 2 or of up to several kilometers in length along dry river beds (wadis) with few trees and widely spaced bushes. Groups of babblers in this area have been studied more or less continuously since 1971 (details in Ostreiher, 1997;Zahavi, 1990;Zahavi and Zahavi, 1997). Size of our study groups varied from two to nine birds, with an average of five individuals per group.…”

Section: Generalmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cooperatively breeding Arabian babblers call differently when mobbing in different predator-induced situations

Naguib¹

1999

Behavioral Ecology

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Cooperatively breeding Arabian babblers (Turdoides squamiceps) have a repertoire of different calls that they use in predatorinduced contexts. We investigated their vocal mobbing behavior in two different predator-induced situations. We presented territorial groups of babblers a perched, stuffed owl representing an avian predator and a cat representing a ground predator. Babblers approached in both situations and mobbed the predators with the same two call types. In both predator-induced situations their first call was a short, metallic-sounding ''tzwick.'' In response to the cat, babblers continued to primarily use tzwicks. However, in continued response to the owl, the babblers primarily used long trills. The experiments indicate that differences in use of two common call types during mobbing provide information on differences in predator-induced situations, although no call type per se identified a specific situation. The experiments suggest that the short tzwicks indicate a higher risk or urgency than trills and that combinations of both call types may provide graded information about differences in predatorinduced situations. The relatively stable groups of these cooperative breeders might have favored evolution for using different calls in different mobbing situations.

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“…Our study of babblers was carried out in a habituated population, enabling us to observe interactions (and quantify feeding rates of individual nestlings) in the nest at a very close distance (less than 1 m) without disturbing the adults or the chicks (see Ostreiher 1997Ostreiher , 2001. As we report, there was a surprising negative correlation between the number of feedings that a nest received and the overall weight gain of the nestlings in the nest.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 90%

“…Both males and females incubate the eggs. Hatching order is identical to laying order, with 6-34 h passing between hatching of the first and last egg (Ostreiher 1997).…”

Section: Study Speciesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Asymmetric contests at the nest

Ostreiher

Pruett‐Jones

Heifetz

2012

Behav Ecol Sociobiol

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Hatching asynchrony of nestling birds leads to weight asymmetries, which in turn affect the nestlings' relative success when competing for feedings brought to the nest. We present a game theoretic model that predicts how weight asymmetry influences the nestlings' energy on securing feedings, thus determining the caloric value remaining for weight gain as well as the distribution of feedings obtained. The model has a unique Evolutionary Stable Strategy (ESS) profile, in which nestlings in more asymmetric nests exhibit less aggression and hence achieve larger weight gain per feeding. The impetus for this model was data from a long-term study of Arabian babblers (Turdoides squamiceps) that showed a surprising negative correlation between the number of feedings that a nest received and the overall weight gain in the nest. This finding is, however, entirely consistent with our modelin more symmetric nests, the individuals fight more and are consequently hungrier and beg for additional food, are fed more, but still gain less weight due to the higher energetic costs of fighting. The model provides a fundamental explanation also for related findings in other species, in which chicks in asynchronous broods were found to be heavier than those from synchronous broods. In addition, it supports the sibling rivalry hypothesis by which brood asynchrony may diminish aggressive interactions among nestlings, leading to more efficient use of resources.

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Food division in the Arabian babbler nest: adult choice or nestling competition?

Cited by 75 publications

References 45 publications

Environment quality predicts parental provisioning decisions

Environment quality predicts parental provisioning decisions

Cooperatively breeding Arabian babblers call differently when mobbing in different predator-induced situations

Asymmetric contests at the nest

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