Differences in Pre-Laying Behavior between Floor-Laying and Nest-Laying Pekin Ducks

Floor-laying in commercially farmed Pekin ducks is not well understood. This exploratory study aimed to determine if behavioral differences exist between floor-laying and nest-laying ducks. Retrospective analysis of video footage from a small commercial breeding flock (n = 60 birds) was used to quantify the behavior of floor-laying and nest-laying birds (n = 24 events per group) in the hour prior to oviposition site selection. The frequency, percentage of time spent, and duration of bouts were compared for nest box interactions, behaviors inside and outside of boxes and aggressive interactions. Some floor-laying birds did not enter or investigate nest boxes (FL-Out), whilst some floor-layers (FL-In) used nest boxes similarly to nest-laying birds (NL). Nest-building behavior differed only in location, with FL-Out performing the behavior on the shed floor and the other groups performing it primarily in boxes. FL-Out sat more, walked less, and engaged in less aggression (p < 0.05) than FL-In and NL. The occurrence of multiple birds in a nest box was strongly correlated with the number of aggressive interactions that occurred in the box (R = 0.81). Competition appears to contribute to floor-laying in Pekin ducks; FL-Out birds may not engage with nest boxes as a coping strategy to avoid agonistic behavior. These findings indicate that developing practical strategies to reduce nest box competition could help mitigate floor-laying. However, other factors such as nest design may also contribute to FL-Out birds’ reluctance to use nest boxes and require further investigation.

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Keeping Africanized Honey Bees Out of Wildlife Nest Boxes

EDIS ◽

10.32473/edis-in682-2007 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 2007 (7) ◽

Author(s):

William H. Kern, Jr.

Keyword(s):

Honey Bee ◽

Honey Bees ◽

Africanized Honey Bees ◽

Nest Box ◽

Africanized Honey Bee ◽

Fact Sheet ◽

Nest Boxes

ENY-838, a 4-page illustrated fact sheet by William H. Kern, Jr., provides useful information for keeping pests out of bird and mammal nest boxes, especially the Africanized honey bee, which has become established in Florida, and sets up colonies in smaller and lower locations which may displace wildlife that uses these locations as dens. Includes recommendations, what to do if bees have invaded your nest box, and references. Published by the UF Department of Entomology and Nematology, January 2007. ENY-838/IN682: Keeping Africanized Honey Bees Out of Wildlife Nest Boxes (ufl.edu)

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Nest box contentions: Are nest boxes used by the species they target?

Ecological Management & Restoration ◽

10.1111/emr.12408 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 21 (2) ◽

pp. 115-122 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Ross L. Goldingay ◽

David Rohweder ◽

Brendan D. Taylor

Keyword(s):

Nest Box ◽

Nest Boxes

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Sex-Related Natal Dispersal of Pied Flycatchers: How Far Away From Home?

The Condor ◽

10.1093/condor/108.3.711 ◽

2006 ◽

Vol 108 (3) ◽

pp. 711-717

Author(s):

Nikita Chernetsov ◽

Leonid V. Sokolov ◽

Vladislav Kosarev ◽

Dmitry Leoke ◽

Mikhail Markovets ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Frequency Distribution ◽

Null Model ◽

Ficedula Hypoleuca ◽

Dispersal Distance ◽

Natal Dispersal ◽

Nest Box ◽

Nest Boxes ◽

Baltic Coast ◽

The Difference ◽

Dispersal Distances

Abstract Over four years, nestling Pied Flycatchers (Ficedula hypoleuca) were banded and recaptured in nest boxes at a 44 km long and 1–1.5 km wide study area along the Courish Spit on the southeast Baltic coast. The return rate for males was nearly twice as high as for females. Males settled significantly closer to their natal sites than predicted by the null model, which assumed that any nest box in the study area was selected at random. For females, the frequency distribution of natal dispersal distances was not significantly different from that predicted by the null model. The difference in average dispersal distance between the sexes was highly significant. Although some individuals settled within tens of kilometers, most male Pied Flycatchers settled within several kilometers of their natal sites. We suggest that even if females settle on average farther from their natal sites than males do, both sexes imprint on a relatively small (several kilometers in diameter) area during postfledging exploration, to which they return each spring.

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Nest-box choice in the laboratory mouse: Preferences for nest-boxes differing in design (size and/or shape) and composition

Behavioural Processes ◽

10.1016/0376-6357(81)90051-6 ◽

1981 ◽

Vol 6 (4) ◽

pp. 337-384 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Marie-Christine Buhot-Averseng

Keyword(s):

Laboratory Mouse ◽

Nest Box ◽

Nest Boxes

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Social networks predict selective observation and information spread in ravens

Royal Society Open Science ◽

10.1098/rsos.160256 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 3 (7) ◽

pp. 160256 ◽

Cited By ~ 20

Author(s):

Ipek G. Kulahci ◽

Daniel I. Rubenstein ◽

Thomas Bugnyar ◽

William Hoppitt ◽

Nace Mikus ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Social Rank ◽

Interaction Network ◽

Social Connections ◽

Strongly Correlated ◽

Aggressive Interactions ◽

Diffusion Analysis ◽

Observation Network ◽

Transmission Of Information ◽

Group Member

Animals are predicted to selectively observe and learn from the conspecifics with whom they share social connections. Yet, hardly anything is known about the role of different connections in observation and learning. To address the relationships between social connections, observation and learning, we investigated transmission of information in two raven ( Corvus corax ) groups. First, we quantified social connections in each group by constructing networks on affiliative interactions, aggressive interactions and proximity. We then seeded novel information by training one group member on a novel task and allowing others to observe. In each group, an observation network based on who observed whose task-solving behaviour was strongly correlated with networks based on affiliative interactions and proximity. Ravens with high social centrality (strength, eigenvector, information centrality) in the affiliative interaction network were also central in the observation network, possibly as a result of solving the task sooner. Network-based diffusion analysis revealed that the order that ravens first solved the task was best predicted by connections in the affiliative interaction network in a group of subadult ravens, and by social rank and kinship (which influenced affiliative interactions) in a group of juvenile ravens. Our results demonstrate that not all social connections are equally effective at predicting the patterns of selective observation and information transmission.

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Possible Predation on Feathertail Gliders (Acrobates pygmaeus) by Agile Antechinus (Antechinus agilis).

Australian Mammalogy ◽

10.1071/am00173 ◽

1999 ◽

Vol 21 (2) ◽

pp. 173

Author(s):

S.J. Ward

Keyword(s):

Ecological Study ◽

Nest Box ◽

Nest Boxes ◽

Faecal Analysis ◽

Entrance Hole ◽

Antechinus Agilis ◽

Small Forest

A series of observations of the remains of partially eaten feathertail gliders Acrobates pygmaeus and three other small forest vertebrates is reported. All were made while checking nest-boxes erected for an ecological study of A. pygmaeus, and each nest-box had a restricted entrance hole. The delicacy with which some of these animals had been killed and eaten and the small size of the entrances to the nest-boxes indicated a small- sized predator was responsible, and the most likely species in the area is the agile antechinus Antechinus agilis. These small dasyurid marsupials were also captured from the nest-boxes on several occasions. Based on faecal analysis, they had previously been considered almost totally insectivorous.

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Twilight transitions promote circadian entrainment to lengthening light-dark cycles

AJP Regulatory Integrative and Comparative Physiology ◽

10.1152/ajpregu.1996.271.3.r813 ◽

1996 ◽

Vol 271 (3) ◽

pp. R813-R818 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Z. Boulos ◽

M. Macchi ◽

M. Terman

Keyword(s):

Activity Rhythm ◽

Constant Darkness ◽

Circadian Activity ◽

Nest Box ◽

Circadian Activity Rhythm ◽

Nest Boxes ◽

Upper Limit ◽

Upper Limits

The upper limits of entrainment of the circadian activity rhythm were compared in hamsters initially exposed to daily light-dark (LD) cycles with either abrupt (LD-rectangular) or simulated twilight (LD-twilight) transitions. Daytime illuminance (10 lx) and the total amount of light emitted per day were the same under the two LD cycles. One-half of the animals in each condition had access to dark nest boxes. The period of the LD cycles was then increased from 24 to 26 h, by 5 min per day. All animals in LD-twilight remained entrained to the lengthening cycle, whereas 60% of those in LD-rectangular began to free run well before the period of the cycle reached 26 h. These effects were independent of nest box availability. The lengthening LD cycles exerted clear aftereffects on the period of the rhythms in constant darkness, the magnitude of which was related to the efficacy of prior entrainment. The results indicate that twilight transitions raise the upper limit of entrainment to LD cycles, suggesting that their inclusion increases the strength of the LD zeitgeber.

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A UHF RFID System for Studying Individual Feeding and Nesting Behaviors of Group-Housed Laying Hens

Transactions of the ASABE ◽

10.13031/trans.12202 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 60 (4) ◽

pp. 1337-1347 ◽

Cited By ~ 12

Author(s):

Lihua Li ◽

Yang Zhao ◽

Jofran Oliveira ◽

Wilco Verhoijsen ◽

Kai Liu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Feeding Behavior ◽

Egg Production ◽

Well Being ◽

Design Parameters ◽

Uhf Rfid ◽

Nest Box ◽

Nest Boxes ◽

Rfid System ◽

The Impact ◽

Nesting Behaviors

Abstract. Enriched colony housing (ECH) is a relatively new egg production system. As such, information is lacking on design parameters to ensure the well-being of the hens and optimal utilization of housing resources. A new system has been developed at Iowa State University that enables automated monitoring and quantification of feeding and nesting behaviors of individual hens in ECH. Ultra-high-frequency radio frequency identification (UHF RFID) is employed to track individual animals. The UHF RFID system consists of four components: antennas, tags, readers, and a data acquisition system. The antennas for monitoring feeding behavior are placed inside the two feed troughs and covered with plastic boards. Each feed trough has six antennas aligned in series covering the length of the feeder. Four additional antennas are placed inside the nest boxes to monitor the nesting behaviors. All 16 antennas are connected to five 4-channel readers, two per feed trough and one for the nest boxes, that are further connected to the hosting computer via Ethernet. Feed and water consumption and egg production are continuously monitored using load cells. This article describes the development and testing of the RFID system for monitoring feeding and nesting behaviors and provides sample data. The system has proven to be able to characterize benchmark feeding and nesting behaviors of individual hens in ECH, such as daily time spent at the feeder and in the nest box, daily frequency of visiting the feeder and the nest box, number of hens feeding and nesting simultaneously, and variability in these behaviors among individual hens. Future applications of the system include assessing the impact of resource allocation and management practices on feeding and nesting behaviors and on the well-being of the hens. This information will provide a scientific basis for optimal design and management of alternative hen housing systems. Keywords: Animal well-being, Enriched colony housing, Feeding behavior, Nesting behavior, UHF RFID.

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Do feathertail gliders show a preference for nest box design?

Wildlife Research ◽

10.1071/wr06174 ◽

2007 ◽

Vol 34 (6) ◽

pp. 484 ◽

Cited By ~ 21

Author(s):

Ross L. Goldingay ◽

Matthew J. Grimson ◽

Geoffrey C. Smith

Keyword(s):

New South ◽

Nest Box ◽

Local Populations ◽

Nest Boxes ◽

North East ◽

Tree Hollows ◽

South Wales ◽

Eucalypt Plantations ◽

Arboreal Marsupials ◽

Breeding Groups

Although nest boxes have considerable application in the research and management of hollow-using arboreal marsupials, few studies have assessed whether species show a preference for particular nest box designs. This study aimed to determine whether the feathertail glider (Acrobates pygmaeus) showed a preference when offered four different designs, each of which had been used in earlier studies. We established one of each design in 45 plots across five locations, spanning north-east New South Wales and south-east Queensland. Feathertail gliders used 34 nest boxes at four locations but avoided a medium-sized rear-entry box with a 45-mm-diameter entrance. No clear preference was shown for three designs with narrow (≤25 mm) entrances. Feathertail gliders used 15 small rear-entry boxes, 10 large slit-entrance boxes and 9 wedge-shaped bat boxes. A slight preference was shown by breeding groups to occur in the non-wedge boxes compared with the wedge boxes. Squirrel gliders (Petaurus norfolcensis) used 51% of medium rear-entry boxes at four locations. This may account for the avoidance of this box design by feathertail gliders at these locations. Breeding and prolonged use of nest boxes by resident feathertail gliders and squirrel gliders at two locations in eucalypt plantations suggest that nest boxes can support local populations of arboreal marsupials where tree hollows are absent or scarce.

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