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opencc-by-4.0Dec 2022View details →

Multi-location trials and population-based genotyping reveal high diversity and adaptation to breeding environments in a large collection of red clover

This dataset accompanies the article with the same title made available on bioRxiv <a href="https://doi.org/10.1101/2022.12.19.520744">https://doi.org/10.1101/2022.12.19.520744</a>

opencc-zeroDec 2022View details →

Data for: Should I breed or should I go? Manipulating individual state during migration influences breeding decisions in a long-lived bird species

Documentation of Carry-Over Effects (COEs), defined as effects resulting from events that occurred in a previous time period, has largely been observational and understanding of specific mechanisms underlying COEs is still lacking. To investigate this, we simulated an environmental perturbation during the spring migration of a long-lived bird species and looked at the subsequent effects on various breeding parameters. We captured female greater snow geese (Anser caerulescens atlanticus) on their spring staging sites and maintained individuals in captivity for up to four days before releasing them. We re-observed females 3000 km North, on their Arctic breeding grounds, to estimate their breeding propensity (i.e., probability of initiating a reproductive event for a given year), and measure their arrival date, laying date, clutch size, and nesting success. Only proxies of breeding propensity were affected by our manipulation, which decreased as the time spent in captivity increased. However, females were able to overcome the effects of captivity in two out of the three years of experimentation with normal or good environmental conditions at the breeding site. When facing the additional challenge of poor environmental conditions, many individuals manipulated during migration apparently curtailed their reproductive effort by skipping breeding. This experiment is the first to show that breeding propensity is an important parameter affected by COEs resulting from stressful events prior to reproduction in long-lived species.

opencc-by-4.0Jan 2023View details →

Timing of migration and African non-breeding grounds of geolocator-tracked Pied Flycatchers: A multi-population assessment

We provide raw geolocator data from eight pied flycatchers tracked by light geolocators from breeding sites in the Czech Republic. Geolocator model GDL2.0 with 7 mm light stalk, producer Swiss Ornithological Institute. A script for R with calibration method for the equinox period is provided.

opencc-by-4.0Dec 2022View details →

Data from: Non-breeding sites, loop migration and activity patterns over the annual cycle in the Lesser Grey Shrike Lanius minor from a western edge of its range

Raw data from three tracked individuals. Two were tracked with light geolocators (22UL and an incomplete track of 22UH) and one (16KN) with GDL3-PAM multi-sensor logger. All produced by Swisss Ornithological Insitute.

opencc-zeroFeb 2023View details →

Data from: Time series of bird abundances, land cover and temperature from standardized breeding bird monitoring schemes (line transects and point count routes) from Norway, Sweden and Finland, for 1975-2016

These data on bird species abundance and environmental variables were used in testing and comparing two different species distribution model validation methods that are applied to models which are used to predict the effects of climate change on species' distributions. The aim of the study was to investigate whether different validation methods give different results of the model's predictive performance and to demonstrate that validation methods based on measuring and validating a "static" pattern in distribution can assess model performance over-optimistically compared to methods based on measuring and validating a "change" in the distribution, which can assess the predictive performance more critically.

opencc-zeroApr 2023View details →

Symbiotic microbiota vary with breeding group membership in a highly social joint-nesting bird

Symbiotic microbes affect the health, fitness, and behavior of their animal hosts, and can even affect the behavior of non-hosts. Living in groups presents numerous benefits and challenges to social animals, including exposure to symbiotic microbes, which can mediate both cooperation and competition. In social mammals, individuals from the same social group tend to share more similar microbes, and this social microbiome, the microbial community of all hosts in the same social group, can shape the benefits and costs of group living. In contrast, little is known about the social microbiome of group-living birds. We tested the predictions that communally breeding smooth-billed anis (Crotophaga ani) belonging to the same breeding group share more similar microbes and that microbial community composition differs between body regions. To test this, we used 16S rRNA gene sequencing to characterize the preen gland and body feather microbiota of adult birds from 16 breeding groups at a long-term study site in southwestern Puerto Rico. As predicted, individuals from the same breeding group shared more similar microbiota than non-group members and preen gland and body feathers harboured distinct microbial communities. Future research will evaluate whether this social microbiome affects the behavior of group living birds.

opencc-by-4.0Dec 2015View details →

Fig. 3 in Chewing lice (Phthiraptera) infesting breeding Suliformes (Aves: Aequornithes) of the Arabian Peninsula

Fig. 3. (a) Female Pectinopygus socotranus Timmermann; (b) male Pectinopygus socotranus Timmermann; (c) female Pectinopygus sulae (Rudow); (d) male Pectinopygus sulae (Rudow).

opencc-by-4.0Dec 2015View details →

Fig. 1 in Chewing lice (Phthiraptera) infesting breeding Suliformes (Aves: Aequornithes) of the Arabian Peninsula

Fig. 1. Map of the Arabian Peninsula indicating bird collection sites: (1) Socotra cormorant; (2) Brown booby; (3) Masked booby.

opencc-by-4.0Dec 2015View details →

Fig. 2 in Chewing lice (Phthiraptera) infesting breeding Suliformes (Aves: Aequornithes) of the Arabian Peninsula

Fig. 2. (a) Female Eidmanniella albescens (Piaget); (b) female Eidmanniella nancyae Ryan & Price.

opencc-zeroMay 2023View details →

Bird breeding season linked to sunshine hours in a marginally seasonal equatorial climate

The timing of reproduction is a fundamental aspect of life history, yet the breeding seasons of most birds of the world, i.e., those in the tropics, remain poorly understood. Here we use more than 3,000 mist-netting records and 300,000 citizen scientist observations collected over six years to characterize the nesting, incubation, fledging, and juvenile stages of the breeding season on Singapore Island in Southeast Asia's equatorial rainforest zone. The breeding season was compared with climate variables and food availability to identify possible proximate and ultimate causes. Breeding was seasonal and began just after the rainiest months of the year, when insect abundance was highest and when masting events were most likely to occur. While true photoperiod varied little throughout the year, overcast weather in November–December and sunnier weather in February–March caused average daily sunshine to increase by several hours at the onset of the breeding season in all six years. Our data suggest that subjective daily sunshine hours, which correlate with photoperiod at higher latitudes but not in the tropics, may be the actual proximate trigger of breeding activity in most of the world's birds.

opencc-zeroJun 2023View details →

Breeding season forest fragment size does not create negative carry-over for adult Wood Thrushes on fall migration timing or apparent annual survival

Although carry-over effects related to wintering habitat quality are known to influence population dynamics of migratory songbirds, the presence of breeding season carry-over is under-studied in full annual cycle models. To test whether forest fragment size on the breeding grounds can impose negative carry-over effects on a migratory songbird, we fitted adult Wood Thrushes with one-year coded radio-tags in forest fragments ranging from 11–499 ha in southwestern Ontario during the 2016–2019 breeding seasons and utilized automated telemetry via the Motus Wildlife Tracking System to record fall migration timing and returns the following spring (apparent annual survival). To examine short-term effects of fragment size on breeding females, during the 2018 and 2019 breeding seasons, we collected blood samples during incubation to measure corticosterone levels and tracked complete reproductive success and nest timing. We found that Wood Thrushes breeding in small forest fragments were not subject to strong negative effects on body condition (mass, corticosterone), reproductive success, or timing of the last nest of the season. Next, we found that the onset of fall migration departure was not delayed for birds nesting in small fragments and that apparent annual survival was not linked to breeding fragment size. This suggests that habitat differences linked to fragment size were not strong enough to trigger the kinds of negative carry-over effects (delayed migration, lower reproductive success) that have been documented in other species as a result of poor wintering ground habitat quality. The strength of breeding fragment size-induced seasonal carry-over remains a critical gap in full annual cycle models for other declining migratory songbirds. Our findings suggest that while the importance of preserving large forested areas is often prioritized in conservation projects, small forest fragments can also have high conservation value.

Fig. 3 in Reduction Of The Breeding Population Of The Rook, Corvus Frugilegus (Aves, Corvidae), In Ukraine: The Example Of The Eastern Part Of The Kyiv Region

Fig. 3. Kernel Density Estimation of number of the rook breeding group in the research area in 1983–1985 (A), and in 2021 (B). The highest density areas are highlighted in red; the lowest density areas are green.

Fig. 2 in Reduction Of The Breeding Population Of The Rook, Corvus Frugilegus (Aves, Corvidae), In Ukraine: The Example Of The Eastern Part Of The Kyiv Region

Fig. 2. The location of Rook colonies and their number in the research area in 1983–1985 (A), and in 2021 (B).

Fig. 4 in Reduction Of The Breeding Population Of The Rook, Corvus Frugilegus (Aves, Corvidae), In Ukraine: The Example Of The Eastern Part Of The Kyiv Region

Fig. 4. Standard Deviational Ellipses for the location of rook colonies and their number in the research area in 1983–1985 and 2021.

Fig. 1 in Reduction Of The Breeding Population Of The Rook, Corvus Frugilegus (Aves, Corvidae), In Ukraine: The Example Of The Eastern Part Of The Kyiv Region

Fig. 1. Geographical location of the study area. The circle is a research territory with an area of 1850 km².

opencc-zeroJul 2023View details →

Does social information affect the settlement decisions of resident birds in their second breeding attempt? A case study of the Japanese tit (Parus minor)

Individuals may gather information about environmental conditions when deciding where to breed in order to maximize their lifetime fitness. Many studies have shown that birds can rely on social information to select their nest site. The location of active nests and the reproductive success of conspecifics and heterospecifics can provide accurate predictions about the quality of the breeding habitat. Some short-lived species can facultatively reproduce two and/or more times within a breeding season. However, few studies have focused on how multiple-brooding individuals select nest sites for their second breeding attempts. In this study, we use long-term data to test whether the Japanese tit (Parus minor) can use social information from conspecifics and/or heterospecifics to select a nest site for the second breeding attempt. Our results showed that the nest boxes occupied by tits on their second breeding attempt tended to be surrounded by more breeding conspecific nests, first-breeding successful conspecific nests, and fewer first-breeding failed conspecific nests than the nest boxes that remained unoccupied (the control group). However, the numbers of breeding heterospecific nests, successful heterospecific nests, and failed heterospecific nests did not differ between the nest boxes occupied by tits on their second breeding attempt and the unoccupied nest boxes. Furthermore, the tits with local successful breeding experience tended to choose areas with more first-breeding successful conspecific nests than those without successful breeding experience. Thus, we suggest that conspecifics' but not heterospecifics' social information within the same breeding season is the major factor influencing the nest site selection of Japanese tits during second breeding attempts.

opencc-by-4.0Nov 2021View details →

Figures 1–8 in Breeding behavior of the Helmeted Manakin Antilophia galeata (Passeriformes: Pipridae) in a gallery forest from São Paulo state, Brazil

Figures 1–8. Egg color patterns, hatchlings and nestlings of the Helmeted Manakin, Antilophia galeata, in different developmental stages observed in a gallery forest from southeastern Brazil: (1) eggs with light background color and streaks distributed throughout their surfaces; (2) eggs with pale beige background and blotches; (3) eggs with reddish-brown blotches and scratches forming a crown; (4) hatchlings; (5) three days old nestlings evidencing the bright-yellow mouth lining; (6) seven days old nestlings; (7) 10 ten days old nestlings; (8) nestling in the day before fledging.

opencc-by-4.0Aug 2023View details →

Transcriptome analysis of anuran breeding glands reveals a surprisingly high expression and diversity of NNMT-like genes

Abstract In many amphibians, males have sexually dimorphic breeding glands, which can produce proteinaceous or volatile pheromones, used for intraspecific communication. In this study we analyse two types of glands in the Mexican treefrog species Ptychohyla macrotympanum (Hylidae) – large ventrolateral glands and small nuptial pads on their fingers – using histology, whole-transcriptome sequencing and phylogenetic analyses. We found strong differences in glandular tissue composition and gene expression patterns between the two breeding gland types. In both glands we only found low expression of protein pheromone candidates. Instead, in the ventrolateral glands, gene expression was strikingly dominated by nicotinamide N-methyltransferase (NNMT)-like genes. Diversity of these genes was remarkably high, with at least 68 distinct NNMT-like genes. Our phylogenetic comparative analysis of the diversity of NNMT-like genes across vertebrates indicates that the extreme diversity of this gene is largely a frog-specific phenomenon and can be traced to large numbers of relatively recent gene duplications occurring independently in many lineages. The strong dominance and astonishing diversity of NNMT-like genes found in anurans in general, and in their sexually dimorphic breeding glands specifically, suggests an important function of NNMT-like proteins for anuran reproduction, possibly being related to volatile pheromone production.In many amphibians, males have sexually dimorphic breeding glands, which can produce proteinaceous or volatile pheromones, used for intraspecific communication. In this study we analyse two types of glands in the Mexican treefrog species Ptychohyla macrotympanum (Hylidae) – large ventrolateral glands and small nuptial pads on their fingers – using histology, whole-transcriptome sequencing and phylogenetic analyses. We found strong differences in glandular tissue composition and gene expression patterns between the two breeding gland types. In both glands we only found low expression of protein pheromone candidates. Instead, in the ventrolateral glands, gene expression was strikingly dominated by nicotinamide N-methyltransferase (NNMT)-like genes. Diversity of these genes was remarkably high, with at least 68 distinct NNMT-like genes. Our phylogenetic comparative analysis of the diversity of NNMT-like genes across vertebrates indicates that the extreme diversity of this gene is largely a frog-specific phenomenon and can be traced to large numbers of relatively recent gene duplications occurring independently in many lineages. The strong dominance and astonishing diversity of NNMT-like genes found in anurans in general, and in their sexually dimorphic breeding glands specifically, suggests an important function of NNMT-like proteins for anuran reproduction, possibly being related to volatile pheromone production.   Supplementary datasets accompanying the paper: - final RNAseq assemblies of the ventrolateral glands and the nuptial pads of Ptychohyla macrotympanum - fasta-file of all Ptychohyla-NNMT-like genes found in this study

opencc-zeroSep 2023View details →

Northern bobwhite adult breeding season and nest survival Missouri 2014-2018

These data and code are associated with the publication in The Journal of Wildlife Management entitled "Northern Bobwhite breeding season and nest survival are greater on native grasslands." We evaluated the influence of vegetation cover type, woody vegetation structure and composition, and habitat management on nest survival and adult survival from May through September in southwest Missouri 2014-2018.