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592 results for “songbirds”
Data from: Smaller beaks for colder winters: Thermoregulation drives beak size evolution in Australasian songbirds
Birds' beaks play a key role in foraging, and most research on their size and shape has focused on this function. Recent findings suggest that beaks may also be important for thermoregulation, and this may drive morphological evolution as predicted by Allen's rule. However, the role of thermoregulation in the evolution of beak size across species remains largely unexplored. In particular, it remains unclear whether the need for retaining heat in the winter or dissipating heat in the summer plays the greater role in selection for beak size. Comparative studies are needed to evaluate the relative importance of these functions in beak size evolution. We addressed this question in a clade of birds exhibiting wide variation in their climatic niche: the Australasian honeyeaters and allies (Meliphagoidea). Across 158 species, we compared species' climatic conditions extracted from their ranges to beak size measurements in a combined spatial-phylogenetic framework. We found that winter minimum temperature was positively correlated with beak size, while summer maximum temperature was not. This suggests that while diet and foraging behavior may drive evolutionary changes in beak shape, changes in beak size can also be explained by the beak's role in thermoregulation, and winter heat retention in particular.
Data from: Age-dependent modulation of songbird summer feather molt by temporal and functional constraints
Time constraints influence various ecological, life-history, and demographic properties of individuals and populations of many species throughout the annual cycle. Feather molt is a timely undertaking that is considered among the three most energy-demanding processes in the life cycle of birds. To deal with time pressure, passerines may shorten their molt duration, using three non–mutually exclusive mechanisms: (1) replacing only part of the plumage, (2) increasing the speed of molt, and (3) postponing the renewal of some or all the plumage to a later season (i.e., from the summer to the overwintering period). We used a comparative approach by measuring 12,349 individuals from 134 passerine species to explore how feather molt of juvenile and adult passerines is evolutionarily modulated under time constraints. The results indicate that breeding at northern latitudes and long-distance migration limit the time available for molt and that the consequences of time constraints were age dependent. While the duration of adult summer molt decreased, the extent, rather than the duration, of juvenile molt declined under time constraints. This study highlights the importance of considering time constraints in order to enhance the understanding of selective forces that shape life-history processes and their consequences throughout the annual routine.
Female solo song and duetting are associated with different territoriality in songbirds
<p>Recently, there has been an increased effort to unravel selective factors behind female song evolution in songbirds. Female birds which produce songs may sing either solo or in duets; although the two vocal performances likely evolved through different selection forces and mechanisms, the majority of large-scale studies to date have focused only on duetting or female song in general (pooling female solo song and duetting into a single category). Hence, here we estimate the effect of behavioral life-history traits (territoriality, social bonds, cooperative breeding) and environmental productivity on the occurrence of female solo song and duetting separately in songbirds of South Africa and Lesotho. The focal region is characterized by subtropical/tropical climate, clear spatial environmental productivity gradient, and detailed knowledge on avian species distribution and behavioral life-history traits. Phylogenetically informed comparative analyses revealed that species where females produce only solo songs exhibited higher levels of territoriality than species with non-singing females (in an univariable model) but, simultaneously, lower levels than duetting species. Although both species with female solo song and duetting establish mainly long-term social bonds, the former defend their territories seasonally while the latter exhibit mainly year-round territoriality. Cooperative breeding and environmental productivity was not associated with the distribution of female solo song and duetting in any model. Our results indicate that when exploring female song ecology and evolution, female solo song and duetting are likely to be distinct song categories associated with different levels of territoriality.</p>
Data from: Diurnal variation in the production of vocal information about food supports a model of social adjustment in wild songbirds
Wintering songbirds have been widely shown to make economic foraging decisions to manage the changing balance of risks from predation and starvation over the course of the day. In this study, we ask whether the communication and use of information about food availability differ throughout the day. First, we assessed temporal variation in food-related vocal information produced in foraging flocks of tits (Paridae) using audio recordings at RFID-equipped feeding stations. Vocal activity was highest in the morning and decreased into the afternoon. This pattern was not explained by there being fewer birds present, as we found that group sizes increased over the course of the day. Next, we experimentally tested the underlying causes for this diurnal calling pattern. We set up bird feeders with or without playback of calls from tits, either in the morning or in the afternoon, and compared latency to feeder discovery, accumulation of flock members, and total number of birds visiting the feeder. Irrespective of time of day, playbacks had a strong effect on all three response measures when compared to silent control trials, demonstrating that tits will readily use vocal information to improve food detection throughout the day. Thus, the diurnal pattern of foraging behaviour did not appear to affect use and production of food-related vocalizations. Instead, we suggest that, as the day progresses and foraging group sizes increase, the costs of producing calls at the food source (e.g. competition and attraction of predators) outweigh the benefits of recruiting group members (i.e. adding individuals to large groups only marginally increases safety in numbers), causing the observed decrease in vocal activity into the afternoon. Our findings imply that individuals make economic social adjustments based on conditions of their social environment when deciding to vocally recruit group members.
A supergene underlies linked variation in color and morphology in a Holarctic songbird
<p>The genetic architecture of a phenotype can have considerable effects on the evolution of a trait or species. Characterizing genetic architecture provides insight into the complexity of a given phenotype and, potentially, the role of the phenotype in evolutionary processes like speciation. We use genome sequences to investigate the genetic basis of phenotypic variation in redpoll finches (<i>Acanthis</i> spp.). We demonstrate that variation in redpoll phenotype is broadly controlled by a ~55-Mb chromosomal inversion. Within this inversion, we find multiple candidate genes related to melanogenesis, carotenoid coloration, and bill shape, suggesting the inversion acts as a supergene controlling multiple linked traits. A latitudinal gradient in ecotype distribution suggests supergene driven variation in color and bill morphology are likely under environmental selection, maintaining supergene haplotypes as a balanced polymorphism. Our results provide a mechanism for the maintenance of ecotype variation in redpolls despite a genome largely homogenized by gene flow.</p>
Does hatch date set the clock? Timing of post-fledging movements for families of a colonially breeding, long-distance migratory songbird
<p><span>Factors that influence the development of migration timing in juvenile songbirds have implications for the ability of individuals to respond positively to rapid environmental changes. We investigated the impacts of nest timing on the post-fledging movement timing of juveniles and adults of a migratory songbird. We tested whether first egg date and environmental factors predicted the initiation of post-fledging stages: fledge date for juveniles, and colony departure date for both adults and juveniles. At breeding colonies of purple martin (<i>Progne subis</i>) in southern Ontario, Canada, we monitored nests to determine the date of nest initiation ('first egg date') and deployed 122 coded radio-frequency tracking tags on young and adults to determine the timing of post-fledging stages. We found that first egg date, the number of nestmates and age of parents were the main predictors of fledge date. Of these three factors, only first egg date was carried through post-fledge to influence colony departure date for juvenile birds, but this relationship weakened between first egg date and departure date. Nestmates tended to fledge together (range 0-4 days) but exhibited greater variation in colony departure timing (range 0-11 days). Further, while first egg influenced departure date, increasing variation between fledge and departure led to some birds departing breeding colonies at a younger age, suggesting in influence of local environmental factors (e.g. social or photoperiod change) in departure decisions. The timing of adult colony departure date was independent of first egg dates. In sum, our results suggest a role for 1<sup>st</sup> egg dates in setting timing of post-breeding movements, but with variation introduced between fledge and departure dates. Experimental manipulations of photoperiod in a wild setting are needed and future research should investigate whether the timing of movement driven by nesting timing, holds across the rest of migration or even the lifetime of birds. </span></p>
Data for Manuscript: A desert songbird with no confamilials in the Western Hemisphere (Verdin, Auriparus flaviceps) investigates divergent conspecific songs
<p>This is the dataset that accompanies the manuscript: A desert songbird with no confamilials in the Western Hemisphere (Verdin, <i>Auriparus flaviceps</i>) investigates divergent conspecific songs, published in the journal Ornithology (2021). One spreadsheet is a dataset for analysis of Verdin song acoustic structure ("Supplementary Material Acoustic Data.xls"), one spreadsheet is a dataset for analysis of Verdin response to playbacks ("Supplementary Material Playback Data.xls"), and one spreadsheet is metadata about all the recordings used in the paper for song analysis and playback exemplars ("Supplementary Material Recording Metadata.xls").</p>
Songbird preen oil odour reflects haemosporidian parasite load
<p>Data used for Talbott et al. 2022 <em>Animal Behaviour</em> (in press; anticipated publish date in June 2022). This data set includes capture data, proportion data for preen oil volatile compounds identified and quantified by GC-MS (trace values added; see paper for details), diagnostic data (qPCR for haemosporidian parasite load, given as proportion of parasite to host DNA), and FASTA files for parasite DNA sequences (sequences isolated using 343F/496R primer set)</p>
Reduced habitat suitability and landscape connectivity in a songbird migratory divide
<p><b>Aim</b></p> <p>Seasonal migration is a common phenomenon in animals and connects geographically distant ecosystems. Considerable variation has been documented in this behaviour and migratory divides (contact zones between populations that use different routes to navigate around ecological barriers) are an example of this. Migratory divides could have important implications for ecological speciation as hybrids in divides take intermediate routes and it has been predicted that these routes will be ecologically inferior as they bring hybrids over barriers that parental forms avoid. We provide the first test of this prediction here using a well-characterized divide between coastal and inland subspecies of Swainson's thrushes.</p> <p><b>Location</b></p> <p>North, Central and South America</p> <p><b>Time period</b></p> <p>2006-2013</p> <p><b>Major taxa studied</b></p> <p>Birds</p> <p><b>Methods</b></p> <p>We used ecological niche models and analyses of landscape connectivity to predict suitable habitat for coastal and inland thrushes on migration and identify optimal migratory routes. We compared estimates of habitat suitability and landscape connectivity along the actual migratory routes of birds tracked with light-level geolocators.</p> <p><b>Results</b></p> <p>Consistent with predictions for migratory divides, niche models estimated lower habitat suitability in the intermediate range between the migratory ranges of parental forms. Furthermore, our models of landscape connectivity predicted optimal routes that circumvent this intermediate area. Birds taking intermediate routes used stopover sites of lower predicted habitat suitability than birds migrating on either side of the divide and overlapped less with optimal paths.</p> <p><b>Main conclusions</b></p> <p>Our results support the prediction that intermediate routes of hybrids in migratory divides are ecologically inferior to those of parental forms. This finding suggests ecological differences are helping to maintain divides and could have broad implications, with divides shaping the distribution and maintenance of species boundaries globally and across many taxonomic groups.</p>
Data from: Pathways of information transmission amongst wild songbirds follow experimentally imposed changes in social foraging structure
Animals regularly use information from others to shape their decisions. Yet, determining how changes in social structure affect information flow and social learning strategies has remained challenging. We manipulated the social structure of a large community of wild songbirds by controlling which individuals could feed together at automated feeding stations (selective feeders). We then provided novel ephemeral food patches freely accessible to all birds and recorded the spread of this new information. We demonstrate that the discovery of new food patches followed the experimentally imposed social structure and that birds disproportionately learnt from those whom they could forage with at the selective feeders. The selective feeders reduced the number of conspecific information sources available and birds subsequently increased their use of information provided by heterospecifics. Our study demonstrates that changes to social systems carry over into pathways of information transfer and that individuals learn from tutors that provide relevant information in other contexts.
Data from: Sperm head morphology is associated with sperm swimming speed: a comparative study of songbirds using electron microscopy
Sperm exhibit extraordinary levels of morphological diversification across the animal kingdom. In songbirds, sperm have a helically shaped head incorporating a distinct acrosomal membrane or 'helical keel', the form and extent of which varies across species. The functional significance of this helical shape, however, remains unknown. Using scanning electron microscopy, we quantified inter- and intra-specific variation in sperm head morphology across 36 songbird species (Passeriformes: Passerida). Using phylogenetic comparative methods, we investigated the relationship between sperm head morphology and both sperm swimming speed and the frequency of extra-pair young (EPY). We found that species whose sperm had a relatively more pronounced helical form (i.e. long acrosome, short nucleus, wide helical membrane, and a more pronounced waveform along the sperm head 'core') had faster-swimming sperm. We found no evidence of a relationship between inter-specific variation in sperm head morphology and EPY, although we did find that among- and within-male variation in sperm head traits were negatively correlated with EPY. Applying principles of fluid mechanics, we discuss how the helical form of the sperm head may influence swimming speed, and suggest that further studies considering aspects of sperm morphology beyond sperm length are needed to improve our understanding of sperm structure-function relationships.
Data from: Songbird frequency selectivity and temporal resolution vary with sex and season
Many species of songbirds exhibit dramatic seasonal variation in song output. Recent evidence suggests that seasonal changes in auditory processing are coincident with seasonal variation in vocal output. Here we show for the first time that frequency selectivity and temporal resolution of the songbird auditory periphery change seasonally and in a sex-specific manner. Male and female house sparrows (Passer domesticus) did not differ in their frequency sensitivity during the non-breeding season, nor did they differ in their temporal resolution. In contrast, female house sparrows showed enhanced frequency selectivity during the breeding season which was matched by a concomitant reduction of temporal resolution. However, males failed to show seasonal plasticity in either of these auditory properties. We discuss potential mechanisms generating these seasonal patterns and the implications of sex-specific seasonal changes in auditory processing for vocal communication.
Stronger population differentiation at infection-sensing than infection-clearing innate immune loci in songbirds: different selective regimes for different defenses
<p><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span><span>Parasite-mediated selection is widespread at loci involved in immune defence, but different defences may experience different selective regimes. For defences involved in clearing infections, purifying selection favouring a single most efficacious allele likely predominates. However, for defences involved in sensing and recognizing infections, evolutionary arms races may make positive selection particularly important. This could manifest primarily within populations (e.g., balancing selection maintaining variation) or among them (e.g., spatially varying selection enhancing population differences in allele frequencies). We genotyped three toll-like receptors (TLR; involved in sensing infections) and three avian beta-defensins (involved in clearing infections) in 96 song sparrows (<i>Melospiza melodia</i>) from three breeding populations that differ in disease resistance. Variation-based indicators of selection (proportion of variable sites, proportion of nonsynonymous SNPs, proportion of sites bearing signatures of positive or purifying selection, rare allele frequencies) did not differ appreciably between the two locus types. However, differentiation was generally higher at infection-sensing than infection-clearing loci. Allele frequencies differed markedly at TLR3, driven by a variant predicted to alter protein function. Geographically structured variants at infection-sensing loci may reflect local adaptation to spatially heterogeneous parasite communities. Selective regimes experienced by infection-sensing versus infection-clearing loci may differ primarily due to parasite-mediated population differentiation.</span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></span></p>
Evolution of songbird eggs colour
<p>To understand why avian eggs are so variable in colour and patterning, we investigated contemporary species that provide insights into the evolutionary transitions that occurred during the early radiation of the songbirds. We quantified egg colour and patterning from museum collections of 269 species of Australian passerine and collated it to nest type data (cup or dome nesting species). Using phylogenetically reconstructed trait data, we showed that the ancestral passerine egg was likely to be white, and to have been laid inside a domed nest. Egg colouration and nest type were both phylogenetically clustered, and there was evidence of correlated evolution between the two traits. As nests transitioned from domes to cups, there was an increase in the range of egg colours observed, presumably as a response to additional stressors. Finally, we found that egg colour changes occurred more than twice as frequently in cup nesting species than in dome nesting species. This suggests that cup-nesting species may be using colour as an adaptive trait to compensate for the loss of the protective nest roof.</p>
Data from: Post-fledging behavioral ecology of migratory songbirds: How do fledgling activity rates vary across species?
<p>This datsaset contains data for a comparison of fledgling activity rates from 9 songbird species in east-central Illinois, USA, described in the paper: "Jones, TM, and MP Ward. 2021. Post-fledging behavioral ecology of migratory songbirds: how do fledgling activity rates vary across species?"; published in <em>Behavioral Ecology</em>. The dataset contains estimates of fledgling activity rates during the daytime, nighttime, and across the post-fledging period, which were compared to estimates of fledgling morphologies (e.g. mass, tarsus, wing development) and post-fledging survival. Analyses, which can be reproduced with this data, showed that overall rates of post-fledging activity differed by species, but species showed similarities in the development of activity rates across the period. All species exhibited a stead increase in activity rates with age and general patterns mirrored rates of post-fledging mortality, including the presence and absence of post-fledging bottlenecks within each species. Additionally, our findings suggest that fledgling wing development and brood size at fledging contribute to variatio in activity rates within and across species.</p>
Loss of vocal culture and fitness costs in a critically endangered songbird
<p>Cultures in humans and other species are maintained through interactions among conspecifics. Declines in population density could be exacerbated by culture loss, thereby linking culture to conservation. We combined historical recordings, citizen science and breeding data to assess the impact of severe population decline on song culture, song complexity and individual fitness in critically endangered regent honeyeaters (<i>Anthochaera phrygia</i>). Song production in remaining wild males varied dramatically, with 27 % singing songs that differed from the regional cultural norm. Occurring at low population density 12% of males completely failed to sing any species-specific songs and instead sang other species' songs. Atypical song production was associated with reduced individual fitness, as males singing atypical songs were less likely to pair and nest than males that sang the regional cultural norm. Songs of captive-bred birds differed from those of all wild birds. The complexity of regent honeyeater songs has also declined over recent decades. We therefore provide rare evidence that a severe decline in population density is associated with loss of vocal culture in a wild animal, with concomitant fitness costs for remaining individuals. Loss of culture may be a precursor to extinction in declining populations that learn selected behaviours from conspecifics, and therefore provide a useful conservation indicator.</p>
Data from: Why are tropical mountain passes ‘low’ for some species? genetic and stable-isotope tests for differentiation, migration, and expansion in elevational generalist songbirds
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Data from: The relative response of songbirds to shifts in song amplitude and song minimum frequency
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Data from: Sperm head abnormalities are more frequent in songbirds with more helical sperm: A possible trade-off in sperm evolution
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Data from: Diurnal variation in the production of vocal information about food supports a model of social adjustment in wild songbirds
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Allen Brain Atlas
Allen Brain Atlas is an Allen Institute collection of brain map atlases, datasets, APIs, and analysis tools covering mouse, human, and non-human primate brain resources.
Annotated Behaviour and Observability Dataset (ABODe)
ABODe is a University of Edinburgh DataShare dataset for behavior classification in group-housed mice using home-cage video, identities, bounding boxes, ground-plate positions, and annotator labels.
DANDI Archive for NWB datasets
DANDI is a BRAIN Initiative archive for publishing and sharing neurophysiology data, including electrophysiology, optophysiology, and behavioral data packaged as NWB and related standards.
International Brain Laboratory public data
The International Brain Laboratory public data releases expose standardized mouse decision-making experiments, including Neuropixels recordings, widefield calcium imaging, behavior, and session metadata accessed through the ONE API.
OpenNeuro
OpenNeuro is a free, open platform for sharing neuroimaging datasets, with public search, dataset pages, and download paths for web, S3, DataLad, and the OpenNeuro CLI.