Exploring Biotic and Abiotic Determinants of Nest Size in Mediterranean Great Tits (Parus major) and Blue Tits (Cyanistes caeruleus)

Ethology ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 122 (6) ◽  
pp. 492-501 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marcel M. Lambrechts ◽  
Jacques Blondel ◽  
Cyril Bernard ◽  
Samuel P. Caro ◽  
Anne Charmantier ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Parus Major ◽  
Nest Size ◽  
Cyanistes Caeruleus ◽  
Blue Tits

Does the Threat of European Pine Marten (Martes Martes) Predation Influence the Height of Nests Built by Blue Tits(Cyanistes Caeruleus)and Great Tits (Parus Major)?

2014 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 83-90 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adam Kaliński ◽  
Jarosław Wawrzyniak ◽  
Mirosława Bańbura ◽  
Joanna Skwarska ◽  
Piotr Zieliński ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Parus Major ◽  
Martes Martes ◽  
Pine Marten ◽  
Cyanistes Caeruleus ◽  
Blue Tits ◽  
European Pine Marten

Supplementary Information – Chapter 2

2020 ◽  
pp. 34-35
Author(s):  
Marta Szulkin ◽  
Colin J. Garroway ◽  
Michela Corsini ◽  
Andrzej Z. Kotarba ◽  
Davide Dominoni
Keyword(s):  
Remote Sensing ◽  
Parus Major ◽  
Environmental Variation ◽  
Supplementary Information ◽  
Cyanistes Caeruleus ◽  
Gis And Remote Sensing ◽  
Urban Sites ◽  
Blue Tits

Environmental variation was quantified at nestboxes monitored as part of a prospectively long-term project on the ecology and evolution of great tits Parus major and blue tits Cyanistes caeruleus in Warsaw, Poland. Nine axes of environmental variation were investigated across 9 different urban sites, for a total of 565 specific locations (here: nestboxes). Data was collected on the ground, with the use of GIS and remote sensing using the following methodology:...

Relationship between Blood Haemoglobin and Glucose Concentrations in Adult Great Tits (Parus Major) and Blue Tits (Cyanistes Caeruleus)

2016 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 152-158 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adam Kaliñski ◽  
Mirostawa Bańbura ◽  
Michat Glądalski ◽  
Marcin Markowski ◽  
Joanna Skwarska ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Blood Glucose ◽  
Body Condition ◽  
Parus Major ◽  
Blood Chemistry ◽  
Cyanistes Caeruleus ◽  
Bird Populations ◽  
Common Value ◽  
Blood Haemoglobin ◽  
The Common ◽  
Blue Tits

Haematological and blood chemistry variables are widely used in ecophysiological research as physiological indices of body condition in various vertebrate taxa. In this study, we analysed relationships between blood glucose and blood haemoglobin concentrations of adult birds in wild populations of Blue Tits ( Cyanistes caeruleus) and Great Tits ( Parus major) during the breeding season in central Poland. We found that blood glucose and blood haemoglobin concentrations are negatively correlated. We also show that individual Blue Tits have higher mean haemoglobin levels adjusted for the common value of glucose concentration than individual Great Tits and that females of both species have higher mean haemoglobin concentrations than males. Our results suggest that haematological as well as biochemical variables may be used in tune as complementary indices of body condition in wild bird populations.

scholarly journals “The tale of the three little tits”: Different nest building solutions under the same environmental pressures

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 49-56
Author(s):  
Iván Alambiaga ◽  
Elena Álvarez ◽  
David Diez-Méndez ◽  
José Verdejo ◽  
Emilio Barba
Keyword(s):  
Parus Major ◽  
Sympatric Species ◽  
Nest Building ◽  
Mass Composition ◽  
Nest Size ◽  
Cyanistes Caeruleus ◽  
Environmental Pressures ◽  
Species Specific ◽  
And Behavior ◽  
First Time

Evolutionary selection pressures, and species-specific ecology and behavior, promote a great variability in the size and composition of nests. However, it would be expected that phylogenetically close species, with similar ecological needs, breeding at the same time in the same place, would also build similar nests. In contrast with this, previous studies have found differences in nest mass and composition among closely related sympatric species. These differences have been attributed to small differences in body size (smaller species building larger and/or more insulated nests), or to the different ways in which species perceive the environment (e.g. perceived predation risk). In this study, for the first time, we searched for differences between nest mass, composition, and importance of the different functional parts of the nest between Blue ( Cyanistes caeruleus), Great ( Parus major) and Coal tits ( Periparus ater) breeding under the same conditions. We found that smaller species built larger nests and/or include more thermoregulatory materials, probably having greater insulating capacity, which agrees with previous hypotheses. In particular, Blue Tits made greater use of bark, feathers and vegetable fiber, while Great Tits used wild boar hair in greater proportions. In addition, for the first time, we described in detail the nest composition of Coal Tits, which contained large amounts of fluff compared to the other two species. All these results are in line with previous hypothesis linking nest size and composition to the size of the birds, and the existence of species-specific characteristics in the selection of materials for nest building.

scholarly journals Testing for effects of climate change on competitive relationships and coexistence between two bird species

2015 ◽  
Vol 282 (1807) ◽  
pp. 20141958 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nils Chr. Stenseth ◽  
Joël M. Durant ◽  
Mike S. Fowler ◽  
Erik Matthysen ◽  
Frank Adriaensen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Relative Equilibrium ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Parus Major ◽  
Statistical Modelling ◽  
Climate Variation ◽  
Cyanistes Caeruleus ◽  
Threshold Time ◽  
Blue Tits

Climate change is expected to have profound ecological effects, yet shifts in competitive abilities among species are rarely studied in this context. Blue tits ( Cyanistes caeruleus ) and great tits ( Parus major ) compete for food and roosting sites, yet coexist across much of their range. Climate change might thus change the competitive relationships and coexistence between these two species. Analysing four of the highest-quality, long-term datasets available on these species across Europe, we extend the textbook example of coexistence between competing species to include the dynamic effects of long-term climate variation. Using threshold time-series statistical modelling, we demonstrate that long-term climate variation affects species demography through different influences on density-dependent and density-independent processes. The competitive interaction between blue tits and great tits has shifted in one of the studied sites, creating conditions that alter the relative equilibrium densities between the two species, potentially disrupting long-term coexistence. Our analyses show that long-term climate change can, but does not always, generate local differences in the equilibrium conditions of spatially structured species assemblages. We demonstrate how long-term data can be used to better understand whether (and how), for instance, climate change might change the relationships between coexisting species. However, the studied populations are rather robust against competitive exclusion.

scholarly journals Does mist-netting provide reliable data to determine the sex and age ratios of migrating birds? A case study involving the Great Tit (Parus major) and the Blue Tit (Cyanistes caeruleus)

2013 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jarosław K. Nowakowski ◽  
Jacek Chruściel ◽  
Krzysztof Muś
Keyword(s):  
Parus Major ◽  
Great Tit ◽  
Reliable Data ◽  
Blue Tit ◽  
Cyanistes Caeruleus ◽  
Baltic Coast ◽  
Migrating Birds ◽  
Blue Tits ◽  
Age And Sex

AbstractNowakowski J.K., Chruściel J., Muś K.: Does mist-netting provide reliable data to determine the sex and age ratios of migrating birds? A case study involving the Great Tit (Parus major) and the Blue Tit (Cyanistes caeruleus). Ekologia (Bratislava), Vol. 32, No. 2, p. 173-185 , 2013.Ringing results of tits caught at two stations on the Polish Baltic coast were used to check if mistnetting could be successfully used to analyse the composition of sex and age classes of migrating birds. Four hypotheses are discussed, describing the distribution of age and sex classes during migration, and the consequences these distributions might have for the catching results. We analysed records of 59 000 Blue Tits and more than 84 000 Great Tits that were caught and we found a similarity in the results of catches at stations 188 km apart, and a higher similarity among catching sites 0.5-16 km apart. These results proved that mist-netting provides reliable data on the sex and age structure of migrating flocks, and that these data can generally be interpreted as representative for at least the area in a radius of more than 10 km. The results also showed a migratory divide through the central part of the Polish Baltic coastline between irruptive Blue Tits in the west and regular partial migrants in the east. Great Tits showed no tendency for irruptions anywhere in the study area. A high correspondence in the age and sex ratio was found for Great Tits and Blue Tits, in particular where both species are regular migrants. We found that the ratios of females and immatures did not differ by more than 1% over many years of study in these areas.

scholarly journals Great tits Parus major and blue tits Cyanistes caeruleus as indicators of agri-environmental habitat quality

2013 ◽  
Vol 178 ◽  
pp. 31-38 ◽  
Author(s):  
J.W. Redhead ◽  
R.F. Pywell ◽  
P.E. Bellamy ◽  
R.K. Broughton ◽  
R.A. Hill ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Habitat Quality ◽  
Parus Major ◽  
Cyanistes Caeruleus ◽  
Blue Tits

Nest size is positively correlated with fledging success in Corsican Blue Tits (Cyanistes caeruleus) in an insular oak-dominated habitat mosaic

2016 ◽  
Vol 158 (1) ◽  
pp. 125-132 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marcel M. Lambrechts ◽  
Jacques Blondel ◽  
Christophe de Franceschi ◽  
Claire Doutrelant
Keyword(s):  
Nest Size ◽  
Cyanistes Caeruleus ◽  
Fledging Success ◽  
Habitat Mosaic ◽  
Blue Tits

scholarly journals Social learning in birds and its role in shaping a foraging niche

2011 ◽  
Vol 366 (1567) ◽  
pp. 969-977 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tore Slagsvold ◽  
Karen L. Wiebe
Keyword(s):  
Social Learning ◽  
Foraging Behaviour ◽  
Parus Major ◽  
Passerine Birds ◽  
Cyanistes Caeruleus ◽  
In Captivity ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Foraging Niche ◽  
Evolutionary Consequences ◽  
Blue Tits

We briefly review the literature on social learning in birds, concluding that strong evidence exists mainly for predator recognition, song, mate choice and foraging. The mechanism of local enhancement may be more important than imitation for birds learning to forage, but the former mechanism may be sufficient for faithful transmission depending on the ecological circumstances. To date, most insights have been gained from birds in captivity. We present a study of social learning of foraging in two passerine birds in the wild, where we cross-fostered eggs between nests of blue tits, Cyanistes caeruleus and great tits, Parus major . Early learning causes a shift in the foraging sites used by the tits in the direction of the foster species. The shift in foraging niches was consistent across seasons, as showed by an analysis of prey items, and the effect lasted for life. The fact that young birds learn from their foster parents, and use this experience later when subsequently feeding their own offspring, suggests that foraging behaviour can be culturally transmitted over generations in the wild. It may therefore have both ecological and evolutionary consequences, some of which are discussed.

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