Abstract
To investigate laying decision and clutch size determination in indeterminate layers, we analysed in-nest activity (nest presence, and copulation, prey deliveries, and entrance frequencies) and female body mass change, as well as their relation to clutch size variation in five Barn Owl pairs (Tyto alba) nesting in eastern France. Body mass of the female and behaviour [copulation frequency, entrance frequency, and prey delivery to the nest by the male (in number and mass)] were monitored using an automated weighing system and a video camera. There was a consistent change of behaviour and foraging activity among pairs ca. 18 days before laying indicating that the females may be tied to the nest at this time. Barn Owls being indeterminate layers have their clutch size determined at the oviposition of the first egg of the clutch. Window correlation analyses between the clutch size and the female body mass gain indicate that the clutch size might be determined no later than a few days before the laying of the first egg. Our results suggest that female Barn Owls may use the pre-laying period to determine the clutch size using cues such as the male food deliveries (a proxy for male quality).
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Acknowledgments
This study was supported financially by the Ministère de l’Environnement, Service de la Recherche des Etudes et du Traitement de l’Information sur l’Environnement, France. The experiments were done in compliance with current French laws and after acceptance by French authorities (authorisation of the Ministère de l’Agriculture et de la Pêche, Nb. 04196). We thank C. Plumeré for help in developing the automatic nest and M. and B. Bertrand for the maintenance of the system. We are grateful to J. Lage of Jensen Software Systems (http://jensen-software.com) for his computer expertise. We also thank J.-F. Le Galliard, D.Ø. Hjermann, V. Penteriani and three anonymous referees for their useful comments on our manuscript.
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Communicated by T. Friedl.
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Durant, J.M., Gendner, JP. & Handrich, Y. Behavioural and body mass changes before egg laying in the Barn Owl: cues for clutch size determination?. J Ornithol 151, 11–17 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-009-0415-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-009-0415-1