Search results for "Clutch"
showing 10 items of 76 documents
Viability selection creates negative heterozygosity–fitness correlations in female Black Grouse Lyrurus tetrix
2017
There is widespread interest in the relationship between individual genetic diversity and fitness–related traits (heterozygosity–fitness correlations, HFC). Most studies found weak continuous increases of fitness with increasing heterozygosity while negative HFC have rarely been reported. Negative HFC are expected in cases of outbreeding depression and outbreeding is rare in natural populations; but negative HFC may also arise through viability selection acting on low heterozygosity individuals at an early stage producing a skew in the heterozygosity distribution leading to negative HFCs. We tested this idea using survival and clutch parameters (egg mass, egg volume, chick mass, clutch size…
An integrated analysis of micro- and macro-habitat features as a tool to detect weather-driven constraints: A case study with cavity nesters.
2017
The effects of climate change on animal populations may be shaped by habitat characteristics at both micro- and macro-habitat level, however, empirical studies integrating these two scales of observation are lacking. As analyses of the effects of climate change commonly rely on data from a much larger scale than the microhabitat level organisms are affected at, this mismatch risks hampering progress in developing understanding of the details of the ecological and evolutionary responses of organisms and, ultimately, effective actions to preserve their populations. Cavity nesters, often with a conservation status of concern, are an ideal model because the cavity is a microenvironment potentia…
Interspecific variation in the relationship between clutch size, laying date and intensity of urbanization in four species of hole-nesting birds
2016
Marie Vaugoyeau [et al.]
Reproduction ecology of the recently invasive snake Hemorrhois hippocrepis on the island of Ibiza
2019
Abstract Knowing the causes of biological invasion success can be relevant to combat future invasive processes. The recent invasion of the horseshoe whip snake Hemorrhois hippocrepis on the island of Ibiza provides the opportunity to compare natural history traits between invasive and source populations, and to unravel what makes this snake a successful invader that is threatening the only endemic vertebrate of the island, Podarcis pityusensis. This study compares the basic reproductive traits of mainland native and invasive populations of the snake. Our results revealed that invasive populations were characterized by female maturity at a smaller size, extended reproductive period, and much…
Geographical variation in egg mass and egg content in a passerine bird
2011
Reproductive, phenotypic and life-history traits in many animal and plant taxa show geographic variation, indicating spatial variation in selection regimes. Maternal deposition to avian eggs, such as hormones, antibodies and antioxidants, critically affect development of the offspring, with long-lasting effects on the phenotype and fitness. Little is however known about large-scale geographical patterns of variation in maternal deposition to eggs. We studied geographical variation in egg components of a passerine bird, the pied flycatcher (Ficedula hypoleuca), by collecting samples from 16 populations and measuring egg and yolk mass, albumen lysozyme activity, yolk immunoglobulins, yolk and…
Early developmental conditions affect stress response in juvenile but not in adult house sparrows (Passer domesticus).
2009
6 pages; International audience; The short- and long-term consequences of developmental conditions on fitness have received growing attention because the environmental conditions during early life may influence growth, condition at independence, recruitment, reproductive success or survival. We tested here, in a natural house sparrow population, if early conditions during nestling stage affected the stress response of the birds (i) shortly after fledging and (ii) next year, during their first breeding. We experimentally manipulated brood size to mimic different rearing conditions, creating reduced (-2 chicks) and enlarged broods (+2 chicks), while in a third group brood size was not manipul…
Clutch-size variation in Western Palaearctic secondary hole-nesting passerine birds in relation to nest box design.
2014
Møller, A.P. [et al.]
Intraspecific social information use in the selection of nest site characteristics
2012
Animals commonly acquire information about the environment by monitoring how others interact with it. The importance of social information use probably varies among species. In particular, many migratory birds breeding in northern latitudes rely on social information provided by resident tits when making important decisions and are able to copy or reject selectively the decisions of tits exhibiting good or bad fitness correlates, respectively. However, little is known about the role of social information use among resident tits. In a field experiment we tested whether great tits, Parus major, given a choice between two novel alternative features on adjacent nest sites, copy or reject conspe…
To Swim or Not to Swim: Potential Transmission of Balaenophilus manatorum (Copepoda: Harpacticoida) in Marine Turtles
2017
Species of Balaenophilus are the only harpacticoid copepods that exhibit a widespread, obligate association with vertebrates, i.e., B. unisetus with whales and B. manatorum with marine turtles and manatees. In the western Mediterranean, juveniles of the loggerhead sea turtle, Caretta caretta are the only available hosts for B. manatorum, which has been found occurring at high prevalence (>80%) on them. A key question is how these epibionts are transmitted from host to host. We investigated this issue based on experiments with live specimens of B. manatorum that were cultured with turtle skin. Specimens were obtained from head-started hatchlings of C. caretta from the western Mediterranean. …
The worldwide variation in avian clutch size across species and space.
2008
Traits such as clutch size vary markedly across species and environmental gradients but have usually been investigated from either a comparative or a geographic perspective, respectively. We analyzed the global variation in clutch size across 5,290 bird species, excluding brood parasites and pelagic species. We integrated intrinsic (morphological, behavioural), extrinsic (environmental), and phylogenetic effects in a combined model that predicts up to 68% of the interspecific variation in clutch size. We then applied the same species-level model to predict mean clutch size across 2,521 assemblages worldwide and found that it explains the observed eco-geographic pattern very well. Clutches a…