Résumé
Theoretical models of the evolution of begging in nestling passerines assume that begging is costly, either energetically or in terms of predation. However, few empirical measures of these costs exist. We examined whether nestling begging calls could attract predators to nests by comparing predation rates at artificial nests with and without playbacks of tree swallow begging calls. Nests were baited with quail eggs and placed in pairs on the ground or in modified nest-boxes. Nests with playbacks of begging calls were depredated before control nests significantly more often in both the ground and nest-box trials, suggesting that predators may use begging calls to locate nests. These results suggest that the risk of nest predation may be increased because of calling by nestlings and provide further support for the assumption that conspicuous begging is costly in terms of predation.
| Langue d'origine | English |
|---|---|
| Pages (de-à) | 644-646 |
| Nombre de pages | 3 |
| Journal | Behavioral Ecology |
| Volume | 8 |
| Numéro de publication | 6 |
| DOI | |
| Statut de publication | Published - 1997 |
Note bibliographique
Funding Information:We thank John Fentress, Ron O'Dor, and Hal Whitehead for help with the design of this experiment We also thank Cory Brown, Nicole Fernandez, and Michael Hunter for assistance during data collection and John Fentress, Marc Mangel, John McCarty, Hal Whitehead, and two anonymous reviewen for providing many helpful comments on an earlier draft of the manuscript. We are especially grateful to Andy Horn for his helpful input throughout the course of this study. This work was supported by grants to M.L.L from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada and the Dalhousie University Research Development Fund.
ASJC Scopus Subject Areas
- Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics
- Animal Science and Zoology