Predation risk on incubating adults constrains the choice of thermally favourable nest sites in a plover

Amat, Juan A.; Masero, José A.

doi:10.1016/j.anbehav.2003.06.014

Cited by 145 publications

(166 citation statements)

References 35 publications

(39 reference statements)

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“…The nests were allocated to two categories according to their cover: "exposed" or "covered" depending on whether they were viewed by the researcher >75% or Ç75%, respectively, of the sites from 1 m around the nests (for details, see Amat et al 1999a;Amat and Masero 2004). Adults were captured at nests using walk-in traps.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In this respect, shorebirds provide an interesting study-case, since they are ground-nesting and many species nest in hot environments with little or no cover, where temperatures at ground level may be >50°C during the hottest parts of the day (Purdue 1976;Grant 1982;Ward 1990). The reason why some bird species nest in exposed sites, where temperatures may be very high, is that predation on incubating adults is higher in covered than in exposed sites (Jehl and Mahoney 1987;Wiebe and Martin 1998;Amat and Masero 2004). If the high temperatures experienced by incubating shorebirds overwhelm their thermoregulatory capabilities, placing nests in thermally stressful sites may constrain nest attendance, which may then affect nesting success (Grant 1982;Zerba and Morton 1983;Jehl and Mahoney 1987;Wiebe and Martin 1998).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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How Kentish plovers, Charadrius alexandrinus , cope with heat stress during incubation

Amat

Masero

2004

Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology

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Biparental incubation is frequent among shorebirds and is expected when the survival prospects of offspring increase relative to uniparental incubation. To understand why this occurs, it is important to identify the factors that constrain uniparental incubation. It is assumed that birds choose nesting sites that provide an appropriate microclimate for incubation. Many shorebirds nest in sites with no or little cover, where ambient temperatures at ground level might be >50°C during very hot days. Shorebirds nest in exposed sites because predation risk on incubating adults is higher in covered sites. In hot environments, incubating shorebirds might experience heat stress in exposed sites, and this may compromise nesting success if adults are unable to attend their nests continuously, limiting the possibilities of uniparental incubation and thus the expression of a sexual conflict over incubation. The operative temperatures of Kentish plovers (Charadrius alexandrinus) were recorded in exposed and covered sites, and the thermal behaviour and incubating tactics of pair members were studied in a hot environment. During the hottest part of the day, there was a difference of 10-15°C in the operative temperatures of plovers between covered and exposed sites. Plovers in covered sites did not exhibit any thermoregulatory behaviour indicative of thermal stress, probably because the thermal range encountered by them in such places during most of the daytime was close to the thermo-neutral zone. The frequency with which plovers in exposed sites exhibited thermoregulatory behaviour was related to

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

How Kentish plovers, Charadrius alexandrinus , cope with heat stress during incubation

Amat

Masero

2004

Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology

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“…White-tailed Ptarmigan Lagopus leucurus , for example, chooses densely covered sites for nesting, which reduces the risk of incubating females being detected by predators; however, such sites are also risky because there are fewer escape routes (Wiebe & Martin 1998). Therefore, there are complex fitness trade-offs involved in nest site selection (Götmark et al 1995, Koivula & Rönkä 1998, Wiebe & Martin 1998, Amat & Masero 2004. Nest site selection studies provide essential information in terms of species conservation because nesting success directly affects fitness (Caughley 1994, Jones 2001.…”

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confidence: 99%

Nest site selection and nesting biology of Rock PtarmiganLagopus muta japonicusin Japan

2011

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“…Both sexes participate in incubation, with females practicing most diurnal incubation and males mainly incubating at night (Nazakawa, 1979;Fraga & Amat, 1996;Kosztolányi & Székely, 2002;Amat & Masero, 2004b;AlRashidi et al, 2011). The main visual searching nest predator at our study site is the gull-billed tern Gelochelidon nilotica (Fraga & Amat, 1996;Amat & Masero, 2004a).…”

Section: Study Speciesmentioning

confidence: 94%

“…Optimal egg temperature for embryo development in most Charadriiformes is 35-38°C (Drent, 1975;Grant, 1982;Rahn, 1991). Many shorebird species nest on small scrapes on the ground, in sites with little or no cover (Grant, 1982;Koivula & Rönkä, 1998;Brown & Downs, 2003;Amat & Masero, 2004a;AlRashidi et al, 2011), in which unattended nests may be easy to locate by visual searching predators and, thus, egg-covering may make the nests better camouflaged than if eggs remain uncovered (Summers & Hockey, 1981). On the other hand, if the function of egg-covering is to maintain an optimal thermal environment for embryos, then egg-covering should occur when it allows egg temperatures to be within those limits, i.e., 35-38°C, and should be avoided if it does not contribute to keep egg temperature within optimal limits for embryogenesis.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dual function of egg-covering in the Kentish plover Charadrius alexandrinus

Amat

Monsa²,

Masero

et al. 2012

Behav

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Many bird species take recesses during incubation, and while the nests are unattended, the eggs may both be vulnerable to predation and reach suboptimal temperatures for embryo development. Perhaps to avoid these negative possibilities, some birds cover their eggs with materials when they depart from nests. We examined experimentally, using the ground-nesting Kentish plover as model species, whether egg-covering allows egg temperatures to remain within optimal limits for embryogenesis in unattended nests, thus reducing the requirements of contact incubation, and simultaneously maintain the eggs' camouflage. There was a negative relationship between nest attendance and ambient temperature, but only during mid-morning, the period of the day when eggcovering was most frequent. Indeed, during mid-morning egg-covering not only served to better camouflage the eggs, but also to maintain egg temperatures within optimal thermal thresholds for embryogenesis while the nests remained unattended. During other periods of the day, covered eggs in unattended nests overheated (e.g., afternoon) or did not reach the optimal temperature for embryogenesis (e.g., early morning). During periods in which eggs may be uncovered to alleviate overheating, unattended nests may be easier to locate by predators, because the eggs are less well camouflaged. Therefore, camouflage and appropriate thermal environment are inseparable functions of egg-covering in the ground-nesting Kentish plover.

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Predation risk on incubating adults constrains the choice of thermally favourable nest sites in a plover

Cited by 145 publications

References 35 publications

How Kentish plovers, Charadrius alexandrinus , cope with heat stress during incubation

How Kentish plovers, Charadrius alexandrinus , cope with heat stress during incubation

Nest site selection and nesting biology of Rock PtarmiganLagopus muta japonicusin Japan

Dual function of egg-covering in the Kentish plover Charadrius alexandrinus

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