scholarly journals Does nest sanitation elicit egg rejection in an open-cup nesting cuckoo host rejecter?

2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tongping Su ◽  
Chanchao Yang ◽  
Shuihua Chen ◽  
Wei Liang
Keyword(s):  
Egg Rejection ◽  
Nest Sanitation

scholarly journals Correlates of Egg Rejection in Hosts of the Brown-Headed Cowbird

The Condor ◽  
2004 ◽  
Vol 106 (3) ◽  
pp. 580-599 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brian D. Peer ◽  
Spencer G. Sealy
Keyword(s):  
Molothrus Ater ◽  
Egg Rejection ◽  
The Past ◽  
Evolutionary Equilibrium ◽  
Long Time ◽  
Cowbird Parasitism ◽  
Nest Sanitation ◽  
Evolutionary Lag ◽  
Taxonomic Affiliation ◽  
Recognition Errors

AbstractWe conducted a comparative analysis of eight potential correlates of egg rejection in hosts of the parasitic Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater) to test the evolutionary equilibrium and evolutionary lag hypotheses as explanations for the acceptance of cowbird parasitism. The analyses generally supported evolutionary lag. Historic contact with cowbirds may explain why hosts that have recently come into contact with cowbirds accept parasitism, but it does not account for acceptance by hosts with long histories of contact with cowbirds. Egg predation by hosts, nest sanitation, population size, and egg appearance were not correlated with rejection. Larger species that typically build larger nests were more likely to reject. Large hosts may have been parasitized more frequently in the past, possibly due to their more easily found nests or superiority as hosts, and as a result, may have had more opportunity to evolve rejection. Rejection was also correlated with taxonomic affiliation, suggesting that once rejection evolves it is maintained, which implies that rejection is not costly and thus argues against an evolutionary equilibrium. Not surprisingly, hosts with large bills were more likely to reject. This may be a corollary of the tendency for large hosts, which tend to have larger bills, to reject. An evolutionary equilibrium may exist for hosts with eggs that resemble cowbird eggs, depending on the costs to host reproductive success and the likelihood of committing recognition errors. Nevertheless, some hosts have been in contact with cowbirds for a long time, build large nests, have large bills, have a “favorable” phylogeny, and lay eggs that differ from cowbird eggs, yet accept cowbird parasitism. Chance may play a role in the accumulation of the necessary recombinants and mutations necessary for the evolution of rejection.Factores Correlacionados con el Rechazo de Huevos por parte de Hospederos de Molothrus aterResumen. Realizamos un análisis comparativo de ocho factores que potencialmente podrían estar correlacionados con el rechazo de huevos por parte de hospederos del parásito de cría Molothrus ater para poner a prueba las hipótesis de equilibrio evolutivo y de demora en la respuesta evolutiva propuestas para explicar la aceptación del parasitismo. Los análisis generalmente apoyaron la hipótesis de la demora en la respuesta evolutiva. El contacto histórico con Molothrus podría explicar por qué hospederos que sólo recientemente han entrado en contacto con estas aves aceptan el parasitismo, pero no explica por qué hay hospederos que tienen largas historias de contacto con el parásito y aceptan ser parasitadas. La depredación de huevos por parte del hospedero, el comportamiento de aseo del nido, el tamaño poblacional y la apariencia de los huevos no estuvieron correlacionados con el rechazo de huevos parásitos. Las especies grandes, que típicamente construyen nidos más grandes, presentaron una probabilidad más alta de rechazar huevos. Los hospederos más grandes podrían haber sido parasitados más frecuentemente en el pasado, posiblemente debido a que sus nidos se encuentran con mayor facilidad o a que son mejores hospederos y, como resultado, podrían haber tenido mayores oportunidades evolutivas para desarrollar el comportamiento de rechazar huevos. El comportamiento de rechazo también estuvo correlacionado con la filiación taxonómica, lo que sugiere que una vez que éste evoluciona se mantiene, implicando que no es costoso, lo que a su vez es un argumento en contra de la hipótesis del equilibrio evolutivo. De forma poco sorprendente, los hospederos con picos grandes fueron más propensos a rechazar huevos. Esto podría ser un corolario de la tendencia de los hospederos grandes (los cuales tienden a tener picos más grandes) a rechazar huevos. Es posible que exista un equilibrio evolutivo para los casos de hospederos que tienen huevos que se asemejan a los de Molothrus, dependiendo de los costos sobre el éxito reproductivo del hospedero y la probabilidad de cometer errores de reconocimiento. Sin embargo, algunos hospederos han estado en contacto con Molothrus por períodos prolongados, construyen nidos grandes, tienen picos grandes, tienen afinidades filogenéticas “favorables” y ponen huevos que difieren de los del parásito, y aún así aceptan el parasitismo. El azar podría jugar un papel importante en la acumulación de los recombinantes y mutaciones necesarios para que el comportamiento de rechazo pueda evolucionar.

scholarly journals Impact of nest sanitation behavior on hosts’ egg rejection: An empirical study and meta-analyses

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Qihong Li ◽  
Jianli Bi ◽  
Jiangwen Wu ◽  
Canchao Yang
Keyword(s):  
Empirical Study ◽  
Host Species ◽  
Brood Parasitism ◽  
Egg Rejection ◽  
Specific Adaptation ◽  
Potential Host ◽  
Nest Sanitation ◽  
Avian Brood Parasitism ◽  
Meta Analyses ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract Egg rejection in birds is a specific adaptation toward avian brood parasitism, while nest sanitation is a general behavior for cleaning the nest and avoiding predation. However, both behaviors refer to the action of ejecting objects out of the nest, and nest sanitation has been proposed as a pre-adaptation for egg rejection. Here we tested the eliciting effect of nest sanitation on egg rejection in the red-whiskered bulbul Pycnonotus jocosus, a potential host species that is sympatric with parasitic cuckoos. We conducted meta-analyses of previous studies on both nest sanitation and egg rejection, in order to evaluate the consistency of our conclusions. Our results showed that nest sanitation did not elicit egg rejection in P. jocosus. The conclusions concerning such an eliciting effect from previous studies were mixed, while the methodologies were inconsistent, making the studies unsuitable for comparisons. However, the ejection frequency of nest sanitation was consistently higher than the frequency of egg rejection across different host species or populations. These results suggest that nest sanitation, which is an ancient behavior, is more fundamental than egg rejection, but the effect of the former on the latter is complex and needs further study. Standardized methodologies and the integration of behavior, physiology, and modeling may provide better opportunities to explore the relationship between nest sanitation and egg rejection.

Nest sanitation behavior in hirundines as a pre-adaptation to egg rejection to counter brood parasitism

2014 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
pp. 355-360 ◽  
Author(s):  
Canchao Yang ◽  
Longwu Wang ◽  
Wei Liang ◽  
Anders Pape Møller
Keyword(s):  
Brood Parasitism ◽  
Egg Rejection ◽  
Nest Sanitation

scholarly journals Nest sanitation behavior does not increase the likelihood of parasitic egg rejection in herring gulls

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
J Benjamin Stratton ◽  
Donald C Dearborn
Keyword(s):  
Brood Parasitism ◽  
Behavioral Response ◽  
Underlying Mechanism ◽  
Larus Argentatus ◽  
Individual Experience ◽  
Herring Gull ◽  
Egg Rejection ◽  
Single Object ◽  
Herring Gulls ◽  
Nest Sanitation

Abstract Birds’ behavioral response to brood parasitism can be influenced not only by evolution but also by context and individual experience. This could include nest sanitation, in which birds remove debris from their nests. Ultimately, nest sanitation behavior might be an evolutionary precursor to the rejection of parasitic eggs. Proximately, the context or experience of performing nest sanitation behavior might increase the detection or prime the removal of parasitic eggs, but evidence to date is limited. We tested incubation-stage nests of herring gulls Larus argentatus to ask whether nest sanitation increased parasitic egg rejection. In an initial set of 160 single-object experiments, small, red, blocky objects were usually rejected (18 of 20 nests), whereas life-sized, 3 D-printed herring gull eggs were not rejected whether red (0 of 20) or the olive-tan base color of herring gull eggs (0 of 20). Next, we simultaneously presented a red, 3 D-printed gull egg and a small, red block. These nests exhibited frequent nest sanitation (small, red block removed at 40 of 48 nests), but egg rejection remained uncommon (5 of those 40) and not significantly different from control nests (5 of 49) which received the parasitic egg but not the priming object. Thus, performance of nest sanitation did not shape individuals’ responses to parasitism. Interestingly, parents were more likely to reject the parasitic egg when they were present as we approached the nest to add the experimental objects. Depending on the underlying mechanism, this could also be a case of experience creating variation in responses to parasitism.

scholarly journals Egg rejection behavior and clutch characteristics of the European Greenfinch introduced to New Zealand

Chinese Birds ◽  
2012 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
pp. 330-338 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter SAMAŠ ◽  
Lenka POLACIKOVÁ ◽  
Mark E. HAUBER ◽  
Phillip CASSEY ◽  
Tomáš GRIM
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Egg Rejection

scholarly journals The Perceptual and Cognitive Processes That Govern Egg Rejection in Hosts of Avian Brood Parasites

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Hanley ◽  
Samantha L. Rutledge ◽  
Juliana Villa
Keyword(s):  
Cognitive Processing ◽  
Cognitive Processes ◽  
Selective Pressure ◽  
Null Model ◽  
Egg Rejection ◽  
Egg Recognition ◽  
Brood Parasites ◽  
The Past ◽  
The Cost ◽  
Receptor Noise

Hosts of avian brood parasites are under intense selective pressure to prevent or reduce the cost of parasitism. Many have evolved refined egg discrimination abilities, which can select for eggshell mimicry in their parasite. A classic assumption underlying these coevolutionary dynamics is that host egg recognition depends on the perceivable difference between their own eggs and those of their parasite. Over the past two decades, the receptor noise-limited (RNL) model has contributed to our understanding of these coevolutionary interactions by providing researchers a method to predict a host’s ability to discriminate a parasite’s egg from its own. Recent research has shown that some hosts are more likely to reject brown eggs than blue eggs, regardless of the perceived differences to their own. Such responses suggest that host egg recognition may be due to perceptual or cognitive processes not currently predictable by the RNL model. In this perspective, we discuss the potential value of using the RNL model as a null model to explore alternative perceptual processes and higher-order cognitive processes that could explain how and why some hosts make seemingly counter-intuitive decisions. Further, we outline experiments that should be fruitful for determining the perceptual and cognitive processing used by hosts for egg recognition tasks.

scholarly journals Ecophysiology of egg rejection in hosts of avian brood parasites: new insights and perspectives

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Francisco Ruiz-Raya
Keyword(s):  
Potential Role ◽  
Physiological State ◽  
Host Responses ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Egg Rejection ◽  
Fitness Costs ◽  
Brood Parasites ◽  
Proximate Mechanisms ◽  
Proximate Factors

Abstract Egg rejection is the most effective and widespread defence used by host species to counteract the extreme fitness costs frequently imposed by obligate avian brood parasites. Yet, the proximate mechanisms underlying between- and within-individual variation in host responses remain poorly explored. Emerging evidence suggests that egg rejection is dependent on individual physiological state, and draws attention to the role of hormones as mediators of flexible antiparasitic responses. In this perspective article, I outline recent advances in our understanding of the proximate factors that mediate egg rejection. I also point out some areas where knowledge remains still lacking, especially those related to the development and maintenance of effective cognitive functions, the potential role of oxidative stress, immunological state and developmental stressors. I propose new hypotheses that stimulate future research on behavioural host responses towards brood parasitism.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document