Search results for "Treecreeper"
showing 5 items of 15 documents
Behavioural responses of Eurasian treecreepers, Certhia familiaris, to competition with ants
1997
Competition for a specific resource that is essential for the survival of both the competitors may be intense even between very dissimilar taxa. However, the importance of the effects caused by such interspecific competition has seldom been emphasized. These effects can appear as differences in individual foraging behaviour during the breeding season, which can result in critical variation in fitness. In this study we examined the effects of wood ants (Formica rufa group) on the abundance of other invertebrates on tree trunks and on the foraging site selection of breeding Eurasian treecreepers, which use the same habitat as wood ants. Arthropods were scarcer on the trunks with ants present;…
Food availability and the male's role in parental care in double-brooded TreecreepersCerthia familiaris
1996
The aim of this work was to examine differences in paternal and maternal care in a double-brooded, monogamous species, the Treecreeper Certhia familiaris, in relation to food availability. As a measure of parental care, we recorded the hourly feeding activity of parents when the nestlings from their first and second breeding attempts were 7 and 12 days old. Feeding frequency of the first brood increased with the age of the nestlings and also with the brood size when 12 days old. While the feeding activities of the females were similar with respect to the first and second broods, the males were less active and failed to provide any food to their nestlings in 15 cases out of 28 second broods.…
Thresholds in selection of breeding habitat by the Eurasian treecreeper (Certhia familiaris)
2005
Abstract Assessment of habitat thresholds is a topical issue in ecology, both from theoretical and applied perspectives. We examined how forest structure influences selection of breeding habitat in the Eurasian treecreeper (Certhia familiaris). It is an old-growth forest passerine, which can be considered an umbrella species. Habitat selection data, covering five breeding seasons, were collected from a study area across three spatial scales: (a) territory core scale (a radius of 30 m), (b) territory scale (a radius of 200 m) and (c) large scale (a radius of 500 m). Logistic regression analyses revealed that the radii of 30 and 200 m from the nest were the most important spatial scales for t…
Molecular phylogeny of treecreepers (Certhia) detects hidden diversity†
2006
We sequenced a part of the mitochondrial cytochrome-b gene from the seven treecreeper species, including 18 subspecies, to reconstruct the phylogeny of the genus Certhia. Species status of all seven species could be affirmed. Certhia discolor, C. himalayana, C. nipalensis, and C. tianquanensis, the species with relatively small distribution ranges in southeast Asia and simple territorial song, are found at the base of all phylogenetic trees, although without good support. A comparatively recent sister species of C. tianquanensis is C. nipalensis, replacing C. discolor as closest relative. Certhia familiaris, C. brachydactyla and C. americana form a derived set of species (again only weak su…
Within territory abundance of red wood ants Formica rufa is associated with the body condition of nestlings in the Eurasian treecreeper Certhia famil…
2007
Studies on individual reproductive success in relation to interspecific competition between distantly related taxa are scarce. We studied whether the abundance of red wood ants Formica rufa -group is related to the breeding habitat selection, fecundity and offspring quality in the Eurasian treecreeper Certhia familiaris, an old-growth forest passerine. The nest-box occupancy data were gathered over a five-year study period, whereas the breeding performance analyses were based on a two-year data set. The abundance of wood ants, measured within 50 m around the nest-boxes, was not related to nest-box occupancy rate, fecundity or the physiological stress of nestlings. In contrast, the abundance…