White-rumped swallows prospect while they are actively nesting

Abstract

Nest prospecting, that is, visiting potential future nest sites, may be a widespread bird behavior. Here we describe apparent prospecting while nesting by whiterumped swallows (Hirundinidae, Aves). In southern Brazil, birds tagged with passive-integrated transponders (PITtags) and breeding in nest boxes with PIT-tag readers: (1) often visited nest boxes that were in use by apparently unrelated birds (54 % of nests were visited at least once), (2) visited other boxes while caring for their own nestlings, (3) tended to have smaller broods than birds that were not recorded visiting, and (4) did not have a preference for any particular box. These patterns do not indicate any clear explanation for nest visiting, but they do show that prospecting is done by floaters (non-breeders) as well as actively breeding individuals. We suggest that these visits occur when time is available and that visitors may be assessing the availability of future nest sites.

Achromatic plumage brightness predicts stress resilience and social interactions in tree swallows (Tachycineta bicolor)

“…Tree swallows are one of the best-studied species of birds outside of the laboratory. Although visits to other boxes have been documented previously (Lombardo 1986(Lombardo , 1987bWischhoff et al 2015), the extent of social visitation to other boxes that we uncovered was surprising and was made possible only because of the novel use of RFID technology at each active nest-box. This technology has been used to quantify social interaction networks at central food resources (Adelman et al 2015;Psorakis et al 2015;Ellwood et al 2017), but has not been used nearly as extensively in quantifying social interactions at nest locations, which may have quite different functions than social associations within a foraging flock.…”

Parenting styles in white‐rumped swallows (Tachycineta leucorrhoa) show a trade‐off between nest defense and chick feeding

“…The study area in southern Brazil (25.50°S, 49.05°W) consists of two colonies, ca. 5 km apart, with regularly mowed lawns, sparse groups of trees, and marshes (Wischhoff et al., ). During this study, 139–149 wooden nest‐boxes of similar design (17 × 13 × 25 cm) were available to breeding birds.…”

“…As an alternative, swallows exhibit another behavior to explore the environment. This behavior is the prospection of cavities and supposedly allows them to occupy better nest‐sites in the future (Lombardo, ; Wischhoff, Marques‐Santos, Ardia, & Roper, ). Prospecting behavior may be a personality trait in swallows because it was found to be consistent in jackdaws ( Corvus monedula ; Schuett, Laaksonen, & Laaksonen, ).…”

Monogamous Mating System in the Hill Mynah Gracula Religiosa: The Role of Female–Female Aggression

“…At the beginning of the breeding season, breeders separate from the flock to start their reproductive activities (Archawaranon, 2003). A difficult challenge and an ecological constraint of Hill Mynahs is that they are secondary nest-cavity breeders, with heavy competition for nest sites (Bonebrake and Beissinger, 2010); this can limit their reproductive success (Karlsson, 1983;Wischhoff et al, 2015). Studies of Hill Mynah breeding in the wild have shown that male and female Hill Mynah aggressively chase away other couples from encroaching a tree in which they have already established their nests, and there are never two or more breeding pairs nested in the same tree even if the tree has a number of cavities (Archawaranon, 2003(Archawaranon, , 2006.…”