Nestling competition, rather than supernormal stimulus, explains the success of parasitic brown-headed cowbird chicks in yellow warbler nests

Interspecific parasitic chicks are usually fed more than the smaller host young with whom they share the nest. This could he due to parasitic chicks having evolved exaggerated features that are preferred by the adults to the features present in their own young (the supernormal stimulus hypothesis)....

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Autores principales: Lichtenstein, G., Sealy, S.G.
Formato: JOUR
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Acceso en línea:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12110/paper_09628452_v265_n1392_p249_Lichtenstein
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spelling todo:paper_09628452_v265_n1392_p249_Lichtenstein2023-10-03T15:54:15Z Nestling competition, rather than supernormal stimulus, explains the success of parasitic brown-headed cowbird chicks in yellow warbler nests Lichtenstein, G. Sealy, S.G. Begging Brood parasitism Cowbird Supernormal stimulus begging behaviour brown-headed cowbird interspecific competition nestling competition parasitic bird yellow warbler animal behavior animal experiment article bird body size competition feeding behavior height nonhuman parasitism priority journal Animalia Aves Dendroica petechia Dendroica petechia Molothrus ater Molothrus ater Interspecific parasitic chicks are usually fed more than the smaller host young with whom they share the nest. This could he due to parasitic chicks having evolved exaggerated features that are preferred by the adults to the features present in their own young (the supernormal stimulus hypothesis). Alternatively, the success of parasitic chicks could be due to them being better competitors. We tested these hypotheses by studying the interaction between brown-headed cowbird chicks, Molothrus ater, and a common small host, the yellow warbler, Dendroica petechia. Parasitic chicks begged more intensively than the host's young and received most of the feeds. The relative height reached by the begging chicks of both species was the most important variable in determining their feeding success. Being larger and begging intensively, brown-headed cowbirds were better able to reach higher than the host's young, but at equal heights parasitic chicks were no better than the hosts young at gaining feeds. It is suggested that the success of the brown-headed cowbirds when parasitizing yellow warblers is due to them physically out-competing the smaller young of their hosts, and not to them evoking a stronger response from the hosts by being a supernormal stimulus. JOUR info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5/ar http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12110/paper_09628452_v265_n1392_p249_Lichtenstein
institution Universidad de Buenos Aires
institution_str I-28
repository_str R-134
collection Biblioteca Digital - Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales (UBA)
topic Begging
Brood parasitism
Cowbird
Supernormal stimulus
begging behaviour
brown-headed cowbird
interspecific competition
nestling competition
parasitic bird
yellow warbler
animal behavior
animal experiment
article
bird
body size
competition
feeding behavior
height
nonhuman
parasitism
priority journal
Animalia
Aves
Dendroica petechia
Dendroica petechia
Molothrus ater
Molothrus ater
spellingShingle Begging
Brood parasitism
Cowbird
Supernormal stimulus
begging behaviour
brown-headed cowbird
interspecific competition
nestling competition
parasitic bird
yellow warbler
animal behavior
animal experiment
article
bird
body size
competition
feeding behavior
height
nonhuman
parasitism
priority journal
Animalia
Aves
Dendroica petechia
Dendroica petechia
Molothrus ater
Molothrus ater
Lichtenstein, G.
Sealy, S.G.
Nestling competition, rather than supernormal stimulus, explains the success of parasitic brown-headed cowbird chicks in yellow warbler nests
topic_facet Begging
Brood parasitism
Cowbird
Supernormal stimulus
begging behaviour
brown-headed cowbird
interspecific competition
nestling competition
parasitic bird
yellow warbler
animal behavior
animal experiment
article
bird
body size
competition
feeding behavior
height
nonhuman
parasitism
priority journal
Animalia
Aves
Dendroica petechia
Dendroica petechia
Molothrus ater
Molothrus ater
description Interspecific parasitic chicks are usually fed more than the smaller host young with whom they share the nest. This could he due to parasitic chicks having evolved exaggerated features that are preferred by the adults to the features present in their own young (the supernormal stimulus hypothesis). Alternatively, the success of parasitic chicks could be due to them being better competitors. We tested these hypotheses by studying the interaction between brown-headed cowbird chicks, Molothrus ater, and a common small host, the yellow warbler, Dendroica petechia. Parasitic chicks begged more intensively than the host's young and received most of the feeds. The relative height reached by the begging chicks of both species was the most important variable in determining their feeding success. Being larger and begging intensively, brown-headed cowbirds were better able to reach higher than the host's young, but at equal heights parasitic chicks were no better than the hosts young at gaining feeds. It is suggested that the success of the brown-headed cowbirds when parasitizing yellow warblers is due to them physically out-competing the smaller young of their hosts, and not to them evoking a stronger response from the hosts by being a supernormal stimulus.
format JOUR
author Lichtenstein, G.
Sealy, S.G.
author_facet Lichtenstein, G.
Sealy, S.G.
author_sort Lichtenstein, G.
title Nestling competition, rather than supernormal stimulus, explains the success of parasitic brown-headed cowbird chicks in yellow warbler nests
title_short Nestling competition, rather than supernormal stimulus, explains the success of parasitic brown-headed cowbird chicks in yellow warbler nests
title_full Nestling competition, rather than supernormal stimulus, explains the success of parasitic brown-headed cowbird chicks in yellow warbler nests
title_fullStr Nestling competition, rather than supernormal stimulus, explains the success of parasitic brown-headed cowbird chicks in yellow warbler nests
title_full_unstemmed Nestling competition, rather than supernormal stimulus, explains the success of parasitic brown-headed cowbird chicks in yellow warbler nests
title_sort nestling competition, rather than supernormal stimulus, explains the success of parasitic brown-headed cowbird chicks in yellow warbler nests
url http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12110/paper_09628452_v265_n1392_p249_Lichtenstein
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