Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Facultative interspecific brood parasitism in tits: a last resort to coping with nest-hole shortage

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

We studied the occurrence of facultative interspecific brood parasitism (eggs from two species incubated by a single female) in two bird species, the blue (Cyanistes caeruleus) and the great tit (Parus major). These species are secondary cavity nesters. We monitored 38 forest plots of variable size over 3 years. We found a total of 39 mixed-species clutches in 1285 nests, representing a prevalence of 3.0 %, but it reached 7.2 % in small woodlands. Seventeen mixed-species clutches involved blue tit facultative interspecific brood parasitism, with the same number of great tits usurping and directly laying in blue tit clutches. The higher the nest-box occupation rate, the greater the prevalence of mixed-species clutches of any origin. However, the two tit species behaved differently when faced with nest-hole shortage, with blue tits dumping one or two eggs into clutches incubated by great tits and these taking over the entire blue tit clutch. Nest takeovers were more frequent at the end of the season. These differences in behaviour are likely mediated by differing dominance status, with great tits being larger. The difference in size could also explain why great tit chicks presented larger hatching and fledging rates than their blue tit broodmates. These rates were lower in blue tit chicks from mixed-species broods compared with pure ones, and no advantages were found in usurper great tit chicks compared to pure broods. Mixed-species clutches appear to be a response to nest-hole shortage, a concept that we have termed the ‘last resort hypothesis’.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2
Fig. 3

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Aitken KEH, Martin K (2008) Resource selection plasticity and community responses to experimental reduction of a critical resource. Ecology 89:971–980

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Aitken KEH, Martin K (2012) Experimental test of nest-site limitation in mature mixed forests of central British Columbia, Canada. J Wildlife Manage 76:557–565

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Baba R, Nagata Y, Yamagishi S (1990) Brood parasitism and egg robbing among three fresh-water fish. Anim Behav 40:776–778

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Barrientos R (2010) Retention of native vegetation within the plantation matrix improves its conservation value for a generalist woodpecker. Forest Ecol Manag 260:595–602

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Blondel J, Aronson J (1999) Biology and wildlife of the Mediterranean region. Oxford University Press, Oxford

    Google Scholar 

  • Broggi J, Senar JC (2009) Brighter great tit parents build bigger nests. Ibis 151:588–891

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Burnham KP, Anderson DR (2002) Model selection and multimodel inference. Springer, New York

    Google Scholar 

  • Burnham KP, Anderson DR, Huyvaert KP (2011) AIC model selection and multimodel inference in behavioral ecology: some background, observations, and comparisons. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 65:23–35

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cervo R (2006) Polistes wasps and their social parasites: an overview. Ann Zool Fenn 43:531–549

    Google Scholar 

  • Cervo R, Macinai V, Dechigi F, Turillazzi S (2004) Fast growth of immature brood in a social parasite wasp: a convergent evolution between avian and insect cuckoos. Am Nat 164:814–820

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cramp S, Perrins CM (1993) The birds of the western palearctic, volume VII. Oxford University Press, Oxford

    Google Scholar 

  • Davies NB (2000) Cuckoos, cowbirds and other cheats. T. & A.D. Poyser, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Davies NB, Bourke AFG, Brooke MD (1989) Cuckoos and parasitic ants: interspecific brood parasitism as an evolutionary arms race. Trends Ecol Evol 9:274–278

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dhondt AA, Adriaensen F (1999) Experiments on competition between great and blue tit: effects on blue tit reproductive success and population processes. Ostrich 70:39–48

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dickens M, Berridge D, Hartley IR (2008) Biparental care and offspring begging strategies: hungry nestling blue tits move towards the father. Anim Behav 75:167–174

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dolenec Z (2002) A mixed brood of nuthatch (Sitta europaea) and great tit (Parus major) species. Nat Croat 11:103–105

    Google Scholar 

  • Field JP (1992) Intraspecific parasitism as an alternative reproductive tactic in nest-building wasps and bees. Biol Rev 67:79–126

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • García-Navas V, Ferrer ES, Bueno-Enciso J, Barrientos R, Sanz JJ, Ortego J (2014a) Extrapair paternity in Mediterranean blue tits: socioecological factors and the opportunity for sexual selection. Behav Ecol 25:1–11

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • García-Navas V, Ferrer ES, Serrano-Davies E (2014b) Experimental evidence for parental, but not parentally biased, favouritism in relation to offspring size in Blue Tits Cyanistes caeruleus. Ibis 156:404–414

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Griffith SC, Barr I, Sheldon BC, Rowe LV, Burke T (2009) Egg pattering is not a reliable indicator of intraspecific brood parasitism in the blue tit Cyanistes caeruleus. J Avian Biol 40:337–341

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hansen BT, Slagsvold T (2003) Rival imprinting: interspecifically cross-fostered tits defend their territories against heterospecific intruders. Anim Behav 65:1117–1123

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hansen BT, Slagsvold T (2004) Early learning affects social dominance: interspecifically cross-fostered tits become subdominant. Behav Ecol 15:262–268

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hansen BT, Johannessen LE, Slagsvold T (2008) Imprinted species recognition lasts for life in free-living great tits and blue tits. Anim Behav 75:921–927

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hansen BT, Johannessen LE, Slagsvold T (2009) Interspecific cross-fostering affects mate guarding behaviour in great tits (Parus major). Behaviour 146:1349–1361

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hoyt DW (1979) Practical methods of estimating volume and fresh weight of bird eggs. Auk 96:73–77

    Google Scholar 

  • Jacot A, Valcu M, van Oers K, Kempenaers B (2009) Experimental nest site limitation affects reproductive strategies and parental investment in a hole-nesting passerine. Anim Behav 77:1075–1083

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kempenaers B, Pinxten R, Eens M (1995) Intraspecific brood parasitism in two tit Parus species: occurrence and responses to experimental parasitism. J Avian Biol 26:114–120

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kent DI, Fisher JD, Marliave JB (2011) Interspecific nesting in marine fishes: spawning of the spinynose sculpin, Asemichthys taylori, on the eggs of the buffalo sculpin, Enophrys bison. Ichthyol Res 58:355–359

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Krakauer AH, Kimball RT (2009) Interspecific brood parasitism in galliform birds. Ibis 151:373–381

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lindén M, Gustafsson L, Part T (1992) Selection on fledging mass in the collared flycatcher and the great tit. Ecology 73:336–343

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lyon BE, Eadie JM (1991) Mode of development and interspecific avian brood parasitism. Behav Ecol 2:309–18

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lyon BE, Eadie JM (2008) Conspecific brood parasitism in birds: a life-history perspective. Annu Rev Ecol Evol S 39:343–363

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • MacWhirter RB (1989) On the rarity of intraspecific brood parasitism. Condor 91:485–492

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Merilä J (1994) Two mixed clutches of Blue Tits Parus caeruleus and Collared Flycatchers Ficedula albicollis. Ornis Svec 4:188–189

    Google Scholar 

  • Newton I (1994) The role of nest sites in limiting the numbers of hole-nesting birds: a review. Biol Conserv 70:265–276

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nour N, Currie D, Matthysen E, Van Damme R, Dhondt A (1998) Effects of habitat fragmentation on provisioning rates, diet and breeding success in two species of tit (great tit and blue tit). Oecologia 114:522–530

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Oetting S, Bischof HJ (1996) Sexual imprinting in female zebra finches: changes in preferences as an effect of adult experience. Behaviour 133:387–397

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Oetting S, Pröve E, Bischof HJ (1995) Sexual imprinting as a two-stage process: mechanisms of information storage and stabilization. Anim Behav 50:393–403

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Payne RB (1977) Ecology of brood parasitism in birds. Annu Rev Ecol Evol S 8:1–28

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Peig J, Green AJ (2009) New perspectives for estimating body condition from mass/length data: the scaled mass index as an alternative method. Oikos 118:1883–1891

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Petrassi F, Sorace A, Tanda F, Consiglio C (1998) Mixed clutches of Blue tits Parus caeruleus and Great Tits Parus major in nest boxes in Central Italy. Ornis Svec 8:49–52

    Google Scholar 

  • Petrie M, Møller AP (1991) Laying eggs in others’ nests: intraspecific brood parasitism in birds. Trends Ecol Evol 6:315–320

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Robles H, Ciudad C, Matthysen E (2011) Tree-cavity occurrence, cavity occupation and reproductive performance of secondary cavity-nesting birds in oak forests: the role of traditional management practices. Forest Ecol Manag 261:1428–1435

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Robles H, Ciudad C, Matthysen E (2012) Responses to experimental reduction and increase of cavities by a secondary cavity-nesting bird community in cavity-rich Pyrenean oak forests. Forest Ecol Manag 277:46–53

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rohwer FC, Freeman S (1989) The distribution of conspecific nest parasitism in birds. Can J Zool 67:239–253

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rothstein SI (1990) A model system for coevolution: avian brood parasitism. Annu Rev Ecol Evol S 21:481–508

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Saitou T (2001) Floaters as intraspecific brood parasites in the grey starling Sturnus cineraceus. Ecol Res 16:221–231

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Samplonius JM, Both C (2014) A case of a three species mixed brood after two interspecific nest takeovers. Ardea 102:105–107

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sandell MI, Diemer M (1999) Intraspecific brood parasitism: a strategy for floating females in the European starling. Anim Behav 57:197–202

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Sato T (1986) A brood parasitic catfish of mouthbrooding cichlid fishes in Lake Tanganyika. Nature 323:58–59

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Semel B, Sherman PW (2001) Intraspecific parasitism and nest-site competition in wood ducks. Anim Behav 61:787–803

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Slagsvold T (1998) On the origin and rarity of interspecific nest parasitism in birds. Am Nat 152:264–272

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Slagsvold T, Hansen BT (2001) Sexual imprinting and the origin of obligate brood parasitism in birds. Am Nat 158:354–367

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Slagsvold T, Hansen BT, Johannessen LE, Lifjeld JT (2002) Mate choice and imprinting in birds studied by cross-fostering in the wild. Proc R Soc Lond B 269:1449–1455

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sorenson MD (1991) The functional-significance of parasitic egg-laying and typical nesting in redhead ducks: an analysis of individual behavior. Anim Behav 42:771–796

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Strubbe D, Matthysen E (2009) Experimental evidence for nest-site competition between invasive ring-necked parakeets (Psittacula krameri) and native nuthatches (Sitta europaea). Biol Conserv 142:1588–1594

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Suzuki TN, Tsuchiya Y (2010) Feeding a foreign chick: a case of a mixed brood of two tit species. Wilson J Ornithol 122:618–620

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Svensson L (ed) (1984) Identification guide to European passerines. Ugga, Stockholm

    Google Scholar 

  • Tallamy DW (2005) Egg dumping in insects. Annu Rev Entomol 50:347–370

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • ten Cate C, Vos DR (1999) Sexual imprinting and evolutionary processes in birds: a reassessment. Adv Stud Behav 28:1–31

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tinbergen JM, Boerlijst MC (1990) Nestling weight and survival in individual great tits (Parus major). J Anim Ecol 59:1113–1127

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tomás G, Merino S, Martínez-de la Puente J, Moreno J, Morales J, Rivero-de Aguilar J (2013) Nest size and aromatic plants in the nest as sexually selected female traits in blue tits. Behav Ecol 24:926–934

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Vedder O, Kingma SA, Engelhardt N, Korsten P, Groothuis TGG, Komdeur J (2007) Conspecific brood parasitism and egg quality in blue tits Cyanistes caeruleus. J Avian Biol 38:625–629

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Warton DI, Hui FKC (2011) The arcsine is asinine: the analysis of proportions in ecology. Ecology 92:3–10

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Winkel W (1970) Experimentelle Untersuchungen zur Brutbiologie von Kohl- und Blaumeise (Parus major und P. caeruleus). J Ornithol 111:154–174

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yom-Tov Y (1980) Intraspecific nest parasitism in birds. Biol Rev 55:93–108

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Yom-Tov Y (2001) An updated list and some comments on the occurrence of intraspecific nest parasitism in birds. Ibis 143:133–143

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

We thank E. S Ferrer and V. García-Navas for their help during sample collection and B. Álvarez and I. Pozo for figure editing. J. Morales, B. E. Lyon, M. Leonard and two anonymous reviewers greatly improved the first version of the manuscript with their comments. S. Young checked the English language of the article. We thank the Council of San Pablo de Los Montes and the board of ‘Centro Quintos de Mora’ for the permit allowance to develop our work. RB benefited from the JCCM-FSE 2007/2013 post-doctoral programme and from a ‘Juan de la Cierva’ post-doctoral contract (JCI-2011-10945). JBE was supported by a pre-doctoral fellowship from Junta de Comunidades de Castilla-La Mancha and ESD enjoyed a pre-doctoral fellowship from Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (BES-2011-047046). This study was funded by the Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (grant CGL2010-21933-C02-01) and Junta de Comunidades de Castilla-La Mancha and European Social Fund (grant POIC10-0269-7632).

Ethical standards

Catching and ringing protocols and the general ethics of our research were approved by the Junta de Comunidades de Castilla-La Mancha, Consejería de Agricultura y Medio Ambiente (licenses avp_11_1467, avp_12_061 and avp_13_059) in accordance with current Spanish laws.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Área de Zoología, Departamento de Ciencias Ambientales, Facultad de Ciencias del Medio Ambiente, Universidad de Castilla-La Mancha, Avenida Carlos III, s/n, 45071, Toledo, Spain

    Rafael Barrientos, Javier Bueno-Enciso & Eva Serrano-Davies

  2. Departamento de Ecología Evolutiva, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (MNCN-CSIC), José Gutiérrez Abascal, 2, 28006, Madrid, Spain

    Juan José Sanz

Authors
  1. Rafael Barrientos
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Javier Bueno-Enciso
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Eva Serrano-Davies
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Juan José Sanz
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Rafael Barrientos.

Additional information

Communicated by M. Leonard

Electronic supplementary material

Below is the link to the electronic supplementary material.

ESM 1

The online version of this article (xxx) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. (PDF 50919 kb)

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Barrientos, R., Bueno-Enciso, J., Serrano-Davies, E. et al. Facultative interspecific brood parasitism in tits: a last resort to coping with nest-hole shortage. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 69, 1603–1615 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-015-1972-3

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-015-1972-3

Keywords

Search

Navigation