Abstract
Breeding birds often give alarm calls when a predator is near the nest. These calls have been proposed to serve as distraction displays for the predator, alerts for a mate conveying information about the presence of a threat, or a warning for nestlings about a potential risk. These functions, however, may not be mutually exclusive. In our study, we assessed if alarm calls uttered by breeding Southern House Wrens, Troglodytes musculus, are made to warn nestlings about risk. If so, we expected that nestlings would reduce overall activity in the nest and that the parents’ call rate would be related to the detectability of the young (e.g., vocalizations). We experimentally elicited parents’ alarm calls and compared nestling behavior before and after giving that stimulus. We found that Southern House Wren nestlings reduced their time spent vocalizing and remained inactive for longer when their parents called. Therefore, nestlings reduced their detectability by decreasing their activity inside the nest when their parents produced alarm calls. On the other hand, parental calling rates were not related to the nestling activity registered in any experimental stage. Therefore, we failed to find reliable results supporting the hypothesis that parent calling is uttered to silence nestlings. These results appear to indicate that alarm calling by breeding birds might fulfill other functions besides alerting nestlings. Future studies of this species are necessary to understand if parents are warning nestlings about a threat when they emit alarm calls.
Zusammenfassung
Brütende Vögel geben häufig Warnrufe ab, wenn sich in der Nähe des Nestes ein Räuber befindet. Es wird angenommen, dass diese Rufe zur Ablenkung für den Räuber, zur Warnung des Brutpartners oder als Warnung der Nestlinge vor einer Gefahrenquelle dienen. Diese Funktionen schließen sich dabei nicht unbedingt gegenseitig aus. In dieser Studie untersuchten wir, ob Warnrufe brütender Südlicher Hauszaunkönige für deren Nestlinge bestimmt waren. In diesem Fall erwarteten wir, dass Nestlinge ihre Aktivität im Nest verringern und dass die Frequenz der elterlichen Warnrufe mit der Erkennbarkeit der Jungen (z. B. durch Lautäußerungen) korreliert. Wir lösten experimentell Warnrufe der Elternvögel aus und verglichen das Verhalten der Nestlinge vor und nach dem Stimulus. Es zeigte sich, dass die Südlichen Zaunkönignestlinge weniger häufig Lautäußerungen von sich gaben und längere Zeit inaktiv waren, wenn die Eltern riefen. Dadurch verringerten die Nestlinge ihre Entdeckungswahrscheinlichkeit im Falle einer Gefahr. Andererseits war die Frequenz der Warnrufe nicht mit der Aktivität der Nestlinge verbunden. Die Ergebnisse unterstützen also nicht eindeutig die Hypothese, dass Eltern rufen, um ihre Jungen zum Schweigen zu bringen. Möglicherweise dienen Warnrufe von Brutvögeln anderen Funktionen außer der Alarmierung von Jungvögeln. Um festzustellen, ob Warnrufe der Eltern die Jungen vor Gefahr warnen sollen, wären weiterführende Studien notwendig.
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Acknowledgments
We thank Paulo E. Llambías for the help given in the field, the Whisky-Michelli family and Luis Martinez for allowing us to work on their ranches at Buenos Aires, and Mario Beade for logistical support. We also thank Jose E. Crespo, Craig Barnett, Idrikis Krams and one anonymous reviewer for their helpful comments on an earlier version of this manuscript. This work was supported by grants to G.J.F. provided by the University of Buenos Aires (Grant X007 and X434) and CONICET Grants (PIP5223). All methods used in the present study meet the ethical requirements for science research and comply with the current laws of our country.
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Communicated by T. Friedl.
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Serra, C., Fernández, G.J. Reduction of nestlings’ vocalizations in response to parental alarm calls in the Southern House Wren, Troglodytes musculus . J Ornithol 152, 331–336 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-010-0595-8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-010-0595-8