The effects of food limitation on behavior, corticosterone, and the use of social information in the red crossbill (Loxia curvirostra)

Wurtz, Megan; Cussen, Victoria A.; Cornelius, Jamie M.

doi:10.1007/s10071-021-01520-5

Cited by 3 publications

(4 citation statements)

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“…Activity levels declined over time in all food-restricted birds—regardless of social information delivery—suggesting that the time-limited feedings imposed a relatively severe energy deficit. Many animal taxa show increased activity during mild or short-term food restriction [19,60–62] but then reduce activity if restriction more severely limits energy intake over time [49,60]. In this study, there was an interaction that suggested that birds with predictive social information may have initiated this decline in activity slightly earlier than birds with parallel social information.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 72%

“…Controls had access to food ad libitum for the entire experiment. Focal and neighbour birds in the social groups each experienced 3 days of food restriction during which they had access to food for two 45 min feeding sessions per day [19,46]. Food was provided in a covered cup to minimize spills and food intake was calculated as the change in grams of food remaining in the cup across a 24 h period, measured with an electronic balance to the nearest 0.01 g. Multiple food cups were provided in neighbour cages to ensure both birds had access to food during the feeding periods.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Public information can improve the accuracy of environmental assessment [11,12], help individuals find rare or novel food resources [13][14][15] and help to coordinate group responses, although it may also come with a cost if public information is sometimes inaccurate [16]. Public information may be particularly important during unpredictable environmental change when recent historical knowledge of an environment is mismatched with changing conditions [17][18][19]. If public information can provide predictive information in regard to impending environmental challenges, then it may also improve fitness by allowing for preparations that reduce the physiological repercussions of environmental stress.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Advance social information allows red crossbills ( Loxia curvirostra ) to better conserve body mass and intestinal mass during food stress

Cornelius

2022

Proc. R. Soc. B.

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Animals prepare for fluctuations in resources through advance storage of energy, planned reduction in energy costs or by moving elsewhere. Unpredictable fluctuations in food, however, may be particularly challenging if animals cannot avoid negative impacts on body condition. Social information may help animals to cope with unpredictable resources if cues from individuals with low foraging success give advance warning about deteriorating conditions. This study investigates the impact of social information on behaviour and physiology of food-restricted captive red crossbills ( Loxia curvirostra ). Birds were restricted to two short feeding periods per day to simulate a decline in resources and were given social information from food-restricted neighbours either before (i.e. predictive) or during (i.e. parallel) the food-restriction period. Focal birds better conserved body mass during food restriction if social information was predictive of the decline in resources. Crossbills with predictive information ate more food, had larger intestinal mass and better conserved pectoral muscle size at the end of the restriction period compared to those with parallel social information. These data suggest that birds can use social information to alter behavioural and physiological responses during food shortage in ways that may confer an adaptive advantage for survival.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 72%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Advance social information allows red crossbills ( Loxia curvirostra ) to better conserve body mass and intestinal mass during food stress

Cornelius

2022

Proc. R. Soc. B.

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“…Other components can fluctuate, such as increased energetic cost of reproduction or seasonal food availability. Thus, the relative value of social information use could be higher due to the animal being risk‐averse, being in an energetically challenging state, or having limited food options, or it could be lower if it is a food generalist or if social information is common, for instance if density of foraging conspecifics and thus density of social information in the landscape is high (Webster & Laland, 2011; Spiegel et al ., 2013; Wurtz, Cussen & Cornelius, 2021). This is further modulated by an animal's current knowledge about its environment.…”

Section: Frameworkmentioning

confidence: 99%

A conceptual framework to predict social information use based on food ephemerality and individual resource requirements

2022

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Environmental variability poses a range of challenges to foraging animals trying to meet their energetic needs. Where food patches are unpredictable but shareable, animals can use social information to locate patches more efficiently or reliably. However, resource unpredictability can be heterogeneous and complex. The behavioural strategies animals employ to exploit such resources also vary, particularly if, when, and where animals use available social information. We reviewed the literature on social information use by foraging animals and developed a novel framework that integrates four elements -(1) food resource persistence; (2) the relative value of social information use; (3) behavioural context (opportunistic or coordinated); and (4) location of social information useto predict and characterize four strategies of social information use -(1) local enhancement; (2) group facilitation; (3) following; and (4) recruitment. We validated our framework by systematically reviewing the growing empirical literature on social foraging in bats, an ideal model taxon because they exhibit extreme diversity in ecological niche and experience low predation risk while foraging but function at high energy expenditures, which selects for efficient foraging behaviours. Our framework's predictions agreed with the observed natural behaviour of bats and identified key knowledge gaps for future studies. Recent advancements in technology, methods, and analysis will facilitate additional studies in bats and other taxa to further test the framework and our conception of the ecological and evolutionary forces driving social information use. Understanding the links between food distribution, social information use, and foraging behaviour will help elucidate social interactions, group structure, and the evolution of sociality for species across the animal kingdom.

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Social foraging and information transfer

Kohles,

Dechmann

2024

A Natural History of Bat Foraging

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The effects of food limitation on behavior, corticosterone, and the use of social information in the red crossbill (Loxia curvirostra)

Cited by 3 publications

References 50 publications

Advance social information allows red crossbills ( Loxia curvirostra ) to better conserve body mass and intestinal mass during food stress

Advance social information allows red crossbills ( Loxia curvirostra ) to better conserve body mass and intestinal mass during food stress

A conceptual framework to predict social information use based on food ephemerality and individual resource requirements

Social foraging and information transfer

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