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Parent-absent calls are related to nestling reaction time and parental food allocation in the spotless starling

Parent-absent calls are related to nestling reaction time and parental food allocation in the... Absent repeat calls (ARC) are produced by nestlings of some bird species when parents are not at the nest, and play a role in sibling interactions and parental investment. We explored if individual traits influencing begging also determine ARC in the spotless starling ( Sturnus unicolor ), and whether this behaviour explains nestling feeding success. We video-taped natural broods and examined the effects of experimental feeding in this behaviour. Experimentally fed chicks stopped calling and received fewer feedings. Among un-fed chicks, absence calls were more frequent in smaller nestlings. We found a positive relationship between nestling reaction time to parental arrival and food acquisition: chicks that reacted first received more feedings that slower chicks. ARC performance was also positively related to reaction time: chicks that produced more calls also reacted first to parents. These results suggest that ARC may have important effects on resource allocation and family interaction networks. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Behaviour Brill

Parent-absent calls are related to nestling reaction time and parental food allocation in the spotless starling

Behaviour , Volume 152 (10): 1413 – Jan 1, 2015

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References (51)

Publisher
Brill
Copyright
Copyright 2015 by Koninklijke Brill NV, Leiden, The Netherlands.
Subject
Regular articles
ISSN
0005-7959
eISSN
1568-539X
DOI
10.1163/1568539X-00003285
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

Absent repeat calls (ARC) are produced by nestlings of some bird species when parents are not at the nest, and play a role in sibling interactions and parental investment. We explored if individual traits influencing begging also determine ARC in the spotless starling ( Sturnus unicolor ), and whether this behaviour explains nestling feeding success. We video-taped natural broods and examined the effects of experimental feeding in this behaviour. Experimentally fed chicks stopped calling and received fewer feedings. Among un-fed chicks, absence calls were more frequent in smaller nestlings. We found a positive relationship between nestling reaction time to parental arrival and food acquisition: chicks that reacted first received more feedings that slower chicks. ARC performance was also positively related to reaction time: chicks that produced more calls also reacted first to parents. These results suggest that ARC may have important effects on resource allocation and family interaction networks.

Journal

BehaviourBrill

Published: Jan 1, 2015

Keywords: parent-absent begging; begging; spotless starling; Sturnus unicolor ; parental care; sibling competition; sibling negociation

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