Egg Viability, Nest Predation, and the Adaptive Significance of Clutch Size in Prairie Ducks

1987 ◽  
Vol 130 (5) ◽  
pp. 643-653 ◽  
Author(s):  
Todd W. Arnold ◽  
Frank C. Rohwer ◽  
Terry Armstrong
Keyword(s):  
Clutch Size ◽  
Nest Predation ◽  
Adaptive Significance ◽  
Egg Viability

Egg Viability as a Determinant of Clutch Size in Birds: A Basic Analysis

2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 98-106 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jong Koo Lee ◽  
Steven L. Lima
Keyword(s):  
Clutch Size ◽  
Nest Predation ◽  
Egg Production ◽  
Egg Viability ◽  
Risk Of Predation ◽  
Key Points ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Over Time ◽  
Egg Limitation

Many hypotheses address the determinants of clutch size in birds. One of the more recent is the egg viability hypothesis, which holds that a drop in egg viability with days left unincubated acts to limit clutch size, especially in tropical birds. We provide a basic theoretical analysis of this hypothesis in the form of a simulation model that considers different types of reproductive mortality and the role of multiple breeding attempts per season. We consider both biologically plausible and implausible scenarios to illustrate key points. In its simplest form, assuming a limit to seasonal egg production and the absence of predation on parent or nest, a drop in egg viability favours the allocation of eggs into the smallest clutches that allow eggs to be laid over multiple nesting attempts. This allocation maximises overall egg viability (or minimises egg mortality). Drops in egg viability also lead to smaller clutches when no egg limitation is assumed, as long as multiple nesting attempts are possible. A drop in egg viability alone does not favour small clutches when only a single nesting attempt is possible. The possibility of nest predation renders clutch sizes sensitive to egg viability decreases over time, and generally acts to limit clutch sizes still further. However, steep drops in the viability of unincubated eggs can render clutch size insensitive to changes in the risk of predation to parent or nest. Similarly, a high risk of nest predation renders clutch size insensitive to changes in egg viability.

scholarly journals Glucocorticoids, state-dependent reproductive investment and success in the face of danger in a long-lived bird

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristina Noreikienė ◽  
Kim Jaatinen ◽  
Benjamin B. Steele ◽  
Markus Öst
Keyword(s):  
Predation Risk ◽  
Telomere Length ◽  
Clutch Size ◽  
Body Condition ◽  
Nest Predation ◽  
Hatching Success ◽  
Reproductive Investment ◽  
Trade Off ◽  
Relative Telomere Length ◽  
Future Reproduction

AbstractGlucocorticoid hormones may mediate trade-offs between current and future reproduction. However, understanding their role is complicated by predation risk, which simultaneously affects the value of the current reproductive investment and elevates glucocorticoid levels. Here, we shed light on these issues in long-lived female Eiders (Somateria mollissima) by investigating how current reproductive investment (clutch size) and hatching success relate to faecal glucocorticoid metabolite [fGCM] level and residual reproductive value (minimum years of breeding experience, body condition, relative telomere length) under spatially variable predation risk. Our results showed a positive relationship between colony-specific predation risk and mean colony-specific fGCM levels. Clutch size and female fGCM were negatively correlated only under high nest predation and in females in good body condition, previously shown to have a longer life expectancy. We also found that younger females with longer telomeres had smaller clutches. The drop in hatching success with increasing fGCM levels was least pronounced under high nest predation risk, suggesting that elevated fGCM levels may allow females to ensure some reproductive success under such conditions. Hatching success was positively associated with female body condition, with relative telomere length, particularly in younger females, and with female minimum age, particularly under low predation risk, showing the utility of these metrics as indicators of individual quality. In line with a trade-off between current and future reproduction, our results show that high potential for future breeding prospects and increased predation risk shift the balance toward investment in future reproduction, with glucocorticoids playing a role in the resolution of this trade-off.

scholarly journals How Many Baskets? Clutch Sizes That Maximize Annual Fecundity of Multiple-Brooded Birds

The Auk ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 118 (4) ◽  
pp. 973-982 ◽  
Author(s):  
George L. Farnsworth ◽  
Theodore R. Simons ◽  
J. Brawn
Keyword(s):  
Clutch Size ◽  
Breeding Season ◽  
Nest Predation ◽  
Reproductive Effort ◽  
Nest Survival ◽  
Survival Rates ◽  
Season Length ◽  
Deterministic Models ◽  
Cavity Nesting ◽  
Theoretical Issues

Abstract We developed deterministic models on the basis of nest survival rates and renesting behavior capable of predicting annual fecundity in birds. The models calculate probabilities of fledging from one to four nests within a discrete breeding season. We used those models to address theoretical issues related to clutch size. In general, birds require at least one day to lay an egg, and many species delay incubation until their entire clutch is laid. Because it takes longer to complete a larger clutch, and fewer such clutches can fit into a limited breeding season, there exists a clutch size for which annual fecundity is maximized. We asked, for a given amount of reproductive effort (i.e. a set number of eggs), does the age-old maxim “don't put all your eggs in one basket” apply? If so, in how many “baskets” should a nesting bird place its eggs? The answer depends on both likelihood of nest predation and length of the breeding season. Those results are consistent with the observed increase in clutch size with latitude (shorter breeding season length) and larger clutch sizes characteristic of cavity-nesting species (with higher nest survival rates). The models also predict that the size of replacement clutches should decrease as the breeding season progresses, and that intraseasonal decline in clutch size should be more pronounced when the breeding season is short.

scholarly journals Predation risk induces changes in nest-site selection and clutch size in the Siberian jay

2005 ◽  
Vol 273 (1587) ◽  
pp. 701-706 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sönke Eggers ◽  
Michael Griesser ◽  
Magdalena Nystrand ◽  
Jan Ekman
Keyword(s):  
Clutch Size ◽  
Site Selection ◽  
Perceived Risk ◽  
Nest Predation ◽  
Life History Theory ◽  
Nest Site ◽  
Nest Site Selection ◽  
Nest Sites ◽  
Increased Risk ◽  
Size Adjustment

Life-history theory predicts that an individual should reduce its reproductive efforts by laying a smaller clutch size when high risk of nest predation reduces the value of current reproduction. Evidence in favour of this ‘nest predation hypothesis’, however, is scarce and based largely on correlative analyses. Here, we manipulated perceived risk of nest predation in the Siberian jay Perisoreus infaustus using playback involving a mixture of calls by corvid nest predators in the vicinity of nest sites. In response to being exposed to this acoustic cue simulating increased risk of nest predation, the jays chose a nest site offering more protective covering and reduced clutch size. This is the first experimental demonstration of clutch size adjustment and nest site selection as a result of phenotypic plasticity in an open nesting passerine reflecting a facultative response to the perceived risk of nest predation.

The Adaptive Significance of Clutch Size in Prairie Ducks

The Auk ◽  
1985 ◽  
Vol 102 (2) ◽  
pp. 354-361 ◽  
Author(s):  
Frank C. Rohwer
Keyword(s):  
Clutch Size ◽  
Adaptive Significance

Parasite infestation and predation in Darwin's small ground finch: contrasting two elevational habitats between islands

2010 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. 285-292 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jody A. O'Connor ◽  
Rachael Y. Dudaniec ◽  
Sonia Kleindorfer
Keyword(s):  
Clutch Size ◽  
Resource Availability ◽  
Nest Predation ◽  
Life History Strategies ◽  
Opposite Pattern ◽  
Bird Populations ◽  
Parasite Intensity ◽  
Large Clutch ◽  
Parasite Infestation ◽  
Small Clutch

Abstract:Contrasting ecological conditions may affect the distribution, abundance and impact of parasites and predators throughout the ranges of hosts and prey. Such patterns are evident on the archipelagos of Hawaii and the Galapagos, which vary in their distribution and abundance of avian parasites within and across islands. Previous research has documented higher intensity of parasitic fly larvae (Philornis downsi) in nests of Darwin's finches on elevated islands of the Galapagos. Here we examine P. downsi intensity and predation in 71 nests of Darwin's small ground finch (Geospiza fuliginosa) on Floreana Island. We found significant differences in parasite intensity, nest predation and clutch size between the lowland (0–100 m) and highland (300–400 m) habitats. Lowland finch nests had few P. downsi parasites (mean of 8 per nest), high nest predation (44% of nests) and large clutch size (3.4). Highland finch nests showed the opposite pattern, with many P. downsi parasites (40 per nest), low nest predation (17%) and small clutch size (2.5). This study suggests that the impacts of an introduced parasite are limited by its niche requirements and resource availability within and across islands. Our findings also imply that the vulnerability of bird populations to introduced parasites and predators is linked with variation in life history strategies across habitats.

Number and Size of Offspring

2021 ◽  
pp. 115-128
Author(s):  
Jeffrey A. Hutchings
Keyword(s):  
Life History ◽  
Clutch Size ◽  
Parental Investment ◽  
Adaptive Significance ◽  
Offspring Size ◽  
Structural Constraints ◽  
Offspring Survival ◽  
Trade Off ◽  
Offspring Number ◽  
Parental Fitness

Offspring number and size are two of the most variable life-history traits. Among species, much of this variability can be attributed to genetic, developmental, physiological, or structural constraints. Some trait combinations are not possible because of differences associated with a species’ evolutionary history. Substantial variation in propagule number and size can exist among populations of the same species, generating questions concerning the adaptive significance of this variability. The most influential models are those attributed to Lack on clutch size and to Smith and Fretwell on offspring size. Fundamental to both sets of models is a trade-off between offspring number and parental investment per offspring. When offspring survival or fitness continuously varies with offspring size, the fitness of the parent depends on both offspring size and the number of offspring of that size that the parent can produce. If offspring survival is independent of offspring size, parental fitness is maximized when individuals maximize the production of minimally sized propagules.

Geographic variation in avian clutch size and nest predation risk along a productivity gradient in South Africa

Ostrich ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 82 (3) ◽  
pp. 175-183 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Hořák ◽  
Ondřej Sedláček ◽  
Anna Tószögyová ◽  
Tomáš Albrecht ◽  
Michal Ferenc ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Predation Risk ◽  
Geographic Variation ◽  
Clutch Size ◽  
Nest Predation ◽  
Productivity Gradient
Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document