Habitat Heterogeneity and Life-History Variation of Mediterranean Blue Tits (Parus caeruleus)

Blondel, Jacques; Maistre, M.; Perret, Philippe

doi:10.2307/4088415

Cited by 148 publications

(177 citation statements)

References 40 publications

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“…It explains why mainland, evergreen blue tits start reproduction well before the occurrence of the non-photoperiodic cues (e.g. bud burst) (Wing¢eld 1980;Blondel et al 1993) proximately required to anticipate the late optimal breeding time in evergreen habitat. At the ultimate level, it assumes that landscapes which are dominated by broad-leaved, deciduous habitat and not the local habitat selected the response mechanism (see also Lambrechts et al 1997;Visser & Lambrechts 1999).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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A long photoperiod overrides non-photoperiodic factors in blue tits' timing of reproduction

Lambrechts

Perret

2000

Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B

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Endocrinological studies have contributed considerably to the development of theory concerning the proximate aspects of the timing of reproduction. In non-domesticated, avian species, the relative importance of the photoperiodic and non-photoperiodic factors in£uencing later stages of the breeding cycle, such as the onset of egg laying, remains unclear because egg laying is di¤cult to obtain with captive populations and laboratory experiments of breeding are rarely carried out in the framework of long-term ¢eld studies. We set up a special experimental design such that captive Mediterranean blue tits (Parus caeruleus) can breed with success in large outdoor aviaries at similar latitudes and altitudes to their wild counterparts. Here we demonstrate experimentally that the non-photoperiodic factors responsible for large and consistent di¡erences in the expression of natural breeding responses between three captive outdoor blue tit populations are ignored during long-day treatment. Based on these ¢ndings, an evolutionary explanation is provided for why the relative importance of the non-photoperiodic factors decreases with the progress of the season. The hypothesis can explain observed maladapted breeding dates in free-living populations and could possibly be used to increase the success of breeding programmes with some endangered, captive, non-domesticated, photoperiodic species.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In southern France, mainland blue tits are confronted with habitat mosaics constituted of both broadleaved, deciduous and evergreen, oak woodland patches (e.g. Blondel et al 1993;Dias & Blondel 1996;Lambrechts et al 1997). Gene £ow between the di¡erent woodland types exists .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A long photoperiod overrides non-photoperiodic factors in blue tits' timing of reproduction

Lambrechts

Perret

2000

Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B

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“…Moreover, there is no evidence that densitydependent effects on adult mortality are greater in species with greater fecundity. Indeed, a species may have a stable population because territoriality (density-dependence) causes excess young produced in a good habitat to disperse to lower quality habitats where reproductive success is insufficient to maintain the local population, such that metapopulation stability is attained by differential reproductive success and dispersal and not by effects on evolved life history traits such as fecundity and survival (e.g., see Dhondt et al 1990, Blonde! et a!.…”

Section: The Fecundity-survival Relationshipmentioning

confidence: 99%

Avian Life History Evolution in Relation to Nest Sites, Nest Predation, and Food

Martin¹

1995

Ecological Monographs

1,302

1,089

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Abstract. Food limitation is generally thought to underlie much of the variation in life history traits of birds. I examined variation and covariation of life history traits of 123 North American Passeriformes and Piciformes in relation to nest sites, nest predation, and foraging sites to examine the possible roles of these ecological factors in life history evolution of birds. Annual fecundity was strongly inversely related to adult survival, even when phylogenetic effects were controlled. Only a little of the variation in fecundity and survival was related to foraging sites, whereas these traits varied strongly among nest sites. Interspecific differences in nest predation were correlated with much of the variation in life history traits among nest sites, although energy trade-offs with covarying traits also may account for some variation. For example, increased nest predation is associated with a shortened nestling period and both are associated with more broods per year, but number of broods is inversely correlated with clutch size, possibly due to an energy trade-off. Number of broods was much more strongly correlated with annual fecundity and adult survival among species than was clutch size, suggesting that clutch size may not be the primary fecundity trait on which selection is acting. Ultimately, food limitation may cause trade-offs between annual fecundity and adult survival, but differences among species in fecundity and adult survival may not be explained by differences in food abundance and instead represent differing tactics for partitioning similar levels of food limitation. Variation in fecundity and adult survival is more clearly organized by nest sites and more closely correlated with nest predation; species that use nest sites with greater nest predation have shorter nestling periods and more broods, yielding higher fecundity, which in turn is associated with reduced adult survival.Fecundity also varied with migratory tendencies; short-distance migrants had more broods and greater fecundity than did neotropical migrants and residents using similar nest sites. However, migratory tendencies and habitat use were confounded, making separation of these two effects difficult. Nonetheless, the conventional view that neotropical migrants have fewer broods than residents was not supported when nest site effects were controlled.

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“…Because carotenes are deposited in the feathers of tits in an unmodified form (Partali et al 1987;Stradi 1998), a brightly carotene-coloured tit may be signalling its ability to find caterpillars. Given that caterpillars are a main highquality food source for good fledgling development (Blondel et al 1993;Gosler 1993;Naefdaenzer 1994;Eeva et al 1998), and that this is directly related to their survival (Garnett 1981;Alatalo et al 1990), it would directly benefit the female to pair with a very yellow male. Blue (Parus caeruleus) or great tits (Parus major), which display carotene-based yellow coloration, therefore provide an ideal model species to test for the good-parent process of sexual selection.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Brighter yellow blue tits make better parents

Senar

Figuerola

Pascual

2002

Proc. R. Soc. Lond. B

119

112

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Whether or not bird ornaments are a signal for direct (e.g. good parents) or indirect (e.g. good genes) benefits to prospective partners in sexual selection is controversial. Carotene coloration in Parus species is directly related to the ingestion of caterpillars, so that a brightly carotene-coloured tit may be signalling its ability to find caterpillars, a main high-quality food source for good fledgling development, and hence its parental abilities. If carotene-based plumage coloration is related to the good-parent hypothesis, we predict that yellow plumage brightness of tit fathers should be positively correlated to their investment in offspring provisioning. Here, we use cross-fostering experiments in blue tits (Parus caeruleus) to show that chick development (as measured by tarsus length) is related to yellowness of the foster father, but not to that of the genetic parents. Using these data, we were able to measure, for the first time to our knowledge, the separate contribution of genetic and environmental factors (i.e. parental plumage coloration) to chick development, and hence parental investment. Our data, which relate carotenoid coloration to models of good parents, and data from other authors, which relate ultraviolet coloration to good-genes models, stress that different kinds of coloration within an individual may provide different units of information to prospective females.

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Habitat Heterogeneity and Life-History Variation of Mediterranean Blue Tits (Parus caeruleus)

Cited by 148 publications

References 40 publications

A long photoperiod overrides non-photoperiodic factors in blue tits' timing of reproduction

A long photoperiod overrides non-photoperiodic factors in blue tits' timing of reproduction

Avian Life History Evolution in Relation to Nest Sites, Nest Predation, and Food

Brighter yellow blue tits make better parents

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