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RESEARCH PRODUCT
Nest defence against avian brood parasites is promoted by egg-removal events in a cowbird–host system
Daniela CampobelloSpencer G. Sealysubject
0106 biological sciencesBrood parasiteCowbirdbiologyEcologyHost (biology)05 social sciencesParasitismbiology.organism_classification010603 evolutionary biology01 natural sciencesMobbing (animal behavior)PredationNestantiparasite response brown-headed cowbird individual learning Molothrus ater nest defence Setophaga petechia social learning yellow warbler0501 psychology and cognitive sciencesAnimal Science and Zoology050102 behavioral science & comparative psychologyPredatorEcology Evolution Behavior and Systematicsdescription
Recent studies of birds have found that the antiparasite behaviour of host species is modified by social learning. We tested whether individual or social learning modifies the nest defence of yellow warblers, Setophaga petechia, against the parasitic brown-headed cowbird, Molothrus ater. Using field experiments, we exposed warblers to simulated events of nest parasitism and predation, or allowed them to observe conspecifics mobbing a cowbird. Intensity of nest defence by yellow warblers was greater after simulated threats at their nest than after they had observed mobbing of cowbirds by conspecifics. Warblers defended their nests more aggressively when they perceived a cowbird as an egg predator rather than as a parasite. Higher predation than parasitism frequencies probably explain the more prompt change in defence when cowbirds were encountered as egg predators. Annual fluctuations in frequencies of both parasitism and predation suggest that defence acquired via observing conspecifics may contain outdated information and probably explains the warblers’ reliance on individually learned over socially learned defence.
| year | journal | country | edition | language |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2011-10-01 | Animal Behaviour |