Parrot Behavior at a Peruvian Clay Lick

Brightsmith, Donald J.; Villalobos, Ethel M.

doi:10.1676/09-109.1

Cited by 25 publications

(38 citation statements)

References 22 publications

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“…). Here, hundreds of psittacines of up to 18 species congregate daily on exposed riverbanks at sites called clay licks to consume soils rich in sodium and clay minerals (Munn , Brightsmith , Brightsmith & Villalobos ). Findings from this system have helped shape the global dialogue on geophagy across a wide range of vertebrate taxa (Diamond , Panichev et al .…”

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Food availability and breeding season as predictors of geophagy in Amazonian parrots

Brightsmith

Hobson

Martínez

2017

Ibis

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Geophagy, the consumption of soil, is common in many species, but the drivers of geophagy are not well understood. The best-studied example of avian geophagy is the parrots of the western Amazon Basin, but even here, there is debate over what drives the behaviour. There are two possible explanations: (1) extra nutritional demands of reproduction drive an increase in geophagy, which would predict that geophagy should be highest during the breeding season, and (2) consumption of naturally toxic plant foods increases the need for the toxin protection effects of soil, which would predict that geophagy should be highest when food availability is low and animals are forced to consume more toxic foods. We used long-term data from lowland Amazonia to compare seasonal fluctuations in rainfall, food availability, parrot breeding and parrot geophagy, and conducted novel tests of these hypotheses. Our analyses of annual patterns suggested that seasonal changes in rainfall drive plant fruiting, the resulting food availability patterns drive the timing of parrot breeding, and breeding drives seasonal patterns of geophagy. Surprisingly, chicks of the largest psittacine species fledged as food supplies approach their annual lows, suggesting that future climatic changes that alter peaks in food availability could have unexpected impacts on the reproduction of large psittacines in this system. Our tests found no evidence to support the toxin-protection hypothesis. Instead, we found that the peak of geophagy occurred during species' breeding seasons, which strongly supports the supplemental nutrients hypothesis. Our findings join a growing body of biochemical, physiological, behavioural, ecological and biogeographical evidence suggesting that a need for sodium is driving soil consumption in this classic model system of avian geophagy.

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“…), the species that consume the soils (Kyle , Brightsmith , Montenegro , Tobler et al . , Brightsmith & Villalobos , Lee et al . ) and the geographical distribution of this behaviour (Lee et al .…”

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Food availability and breeding season as predictors of geophagy in Amazonian parrots

Brightsmith

Hobson

Martínez

2017

Ibis

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“…The sources of natural disturbance we measured (raptors, arboreal mammals, terrestrial mammals and other birds) had a minimal effect on overall parrot geophagy: parrots were able to accommodate their presence by moving away or feeding later. Some large raptors kill parrots at claylicks (Robinson , DJB unpublished data, Burger & Gochfeld ) and predation risk likely structures the flocking behavior of parrots at claylicks (Brightsmith & Villalobos ). When large raptors attack it often results in all birds abandoning the claylick and the surrounding area (Burger & Gochfeld ).…”

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confidence: 99%

“…Previous studies have found that large non‐raptor birds can startle parrots using claylicks causing them to give ‘false alarms’ and scare other birds from the claylick (Burger & Gochfeld ). However, the birds usually return quickly to the claylick after such events (Brightsmith & Villalobos ). Our findings support the contention that the effects on total claylick use of such false alarm events are minor.…”

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The effects of tourist and boat traffic on parrot geophagy in lowland Peru

Lee

Marsden

Emma³

et al. 2017

Biotropica

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Ecotourism generates important revenue in many developing economies, but poorly regulated ecotourism can threaten the long‐term viability of key biological resources. We determined the effects of tourism, boat traffic, and natural disturbances on parrot geophagy (soil consumption) across seven riverine claylicks in the lowlands of Madre de Dios, Peru. Claylick use significantly decreased when visitors did not follow good practice guidelines and tourist numbers exceeded the capacity of the observation blinds. Otherwise, tourist presence and natural disturbance did not have a significant effect. However, large macaws, particularly Red‐and‐green Macaws (Ara chloropterus), avoided visiting claylicks during periods of peak tourist numbers. Where parrots had multiple geophagy sites to choose from, they preferred sites further from tourist groups. The effect of boat disturbance was greatest on a narrow river with infrequent boat events. On a wider river with heavier traffic, boat disturbance had less of an effect and this effect was inversely proportional to the distance of boats from the claylick. Where visitors followed good‐practice tourism guidelines, they had a low overall negative effect on parrot geophagy. We recommend that visitors respect the claylick observation guidelines to minimize anthropogenic disturbance on parrots and maintain these sites for the benefit of wildlife and humans alike.

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“…Mineral deficiencies can have major impacts on animal health , ecology , and behavior (Klasing , Phalen et al . , Brightsmith & Villalobos ). Herbivorous animals may face shortages of a wide variety of minerals including Na, Ca, Mg, Fe, Cu, Zn, and Mn (Oates , Jones & Hanson , Wilson ).…”

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Parrots consume sodium‐rich palms in the sodium‐deprived landscape of the Western Amazon Basin

Brightsmith

Cáceres

2017

Biotropica

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Herbivorous animals face shortages of different minerals in different geographic areas. In the Amazon Basin, sodium is often limiting, driving herbivores to seek supplemental sources. In the lowlands of the western Amazon Basin, parrots commonly consume sodium‐rich soils at clay licks but lick use varies widely among species, and to date, parrots in the region have not been reported consuming other supplemental sodium sources. We document 11 species of psittacines consuming sodium‐rich leaves and trunks of Attalea butyracea palms growing on sodium‐rich soils in lowland Peru. Consumed palms had more sodium and less potassium than uneaten A. butyracea palms and other palm species in the area. Among A. butyracea palm parts, sodium and Na:K ratios were highest in trunks (consumed by parrots in 94% of the 387 foraging bouts recorded) and lowest in leaves (consumed in only 14% of foraging bouts). The low potassium and high Na:K ratio suggest that birds may be seeking not just any sodium sources, but those low in potassium, as potassium is known to exacerbate dietary sodium shortages. Use of the palms and species’ abundance in the study area were not correlated. Instead, parrot species that consumed palms the most were those that use relatively few traditional soil clay licks. This finding suggests that parrot species in the region have fundamental differences in preferred strategies for obtaining supplemental sodium and may help explain documented interspecific differences in geophagy.

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Parrot Behavior at a Peruvian Clay Lick

Cited by 25 publications

References 22 publications

Food availability and breeding season as predictors of geophagy in Amazonian parrots

Food availability and breeding season as predictors of geophagy in Amazonian parrots

The effects of tourist and boat traffic on parrot geophagy in lowland Peru

Parrots consume sodium‐rich palms in the sodium‐deprived landscape of the Western Amazon Basin

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