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Fig. 4 in Experimental manipulation of cavity temperature produces differential effects on parasite abundances in blue tit nests at two different latitudes

Fig. 4. Differences in the body mass of adult blue tit males by heat treatment of nest boxes and locality. Means ± intervals of confidence at 95% are shown.

Fig. 2 in Experimental manipulation of cavity temperature produces differential effects on parasite abundances in blue tit nests at two different latitudes

Fig. 2. Blowfly pupae abundance observed in control and heated nests of blue tits (Cyanistes caeruleus) in both localities (Spain and Germany). The data presented was controlled for the locality and the interaction between locality and treatment. Means ± intervals of confidence at 95% are shown.

Fig. 3 in Experimental manipulation of cavity temperature produces differential effects on parasite abundances in blue tit nests at two different latitudes

Fig. 3. Differences in the abundance of Haemoproteus/Plasmodium in blue tit males by treatment and locality. Means ± intervals of confidence at 95% are shown.

Fig. 1 in Experimental manipulation of cavity temperature produces differential effects on parasite abundances in blue tit nests at two different latitudes

Fig. 1. Daily variation of temperature in nests of blue tits. Temperature is decreasing at 00:00 and lower values for the day are attained close to 8:00 h. Data from two different nests with nestling of 7 days old are represented from A) Spain and B) Germany.

opencc-by-4.0Sep 2024View details →

Viral catalogue from faecal microbiomes of great tits and blue tits

<h2>Overview:</h2> The vertebrate gut microbiome plays crucial roles in host health and disease. However, there is limited data on the microbiomes of wild birds, most of which is restricted to barcode sequences. We therefore explored the use of shotgun metagenomics on the faecal microbiomes of two wild bird species widely used as model organisms in ecological studies: the great tit (Parus major) and the Eurasian blue tit (Cyanistes caeruleus). High and Medium quality Metagenome Assembled Genomes (MAGs) were assembled from these metagenomes and are made available as a catalogue in this archive. <h2>Methods:</h2> Metagenomic reads were trimmed, and quality controlled using FastP configured to a minimum phred score of 20 and minimum length of 50 bp. The potential viral and plasmidic sequences were retrieved from the assembled contigs using GeNomad v1.8.0 (Camargo et al. 2023) and the quality of these viral sequences was then assessed using CheckV v 1.0.3 (Nayfach et al. 2021) using the checkV database v 1.5. Putative viral sequences longer than 1000bp carrying at least one hallmark viral gene or no detectable cellular genes were considered in this analysis. The viral sequences were clustered into species-level vOTU clusters using mmseqs2 v2.13 using an identity threshold of 95% over 75% of the longest sequence. For viral species identified as Caudoviral, the potential host was inferred using iPhop v1.3.3 (Roux et al 2023). <h2>Files:</h2> <ul> <li>The vOTU_characteristics.csv table contains the sequence characteristics from CheckV and the viral taxonomy determined by GeNomad</li> <li>The vOTU_PredictedHost.csv table contains the viral sequence inferred host from iPhop</li> <li>The vOTU_representatives.fasta file contains the fasta sequence of the vOTU representatives</li> </ul>

opencc-by-4.0Sep 2024View details →

Metagenomic investigation of the faecal microbiomes of great tits and blue tits - supplementary sequences

<h2>Overview:</h2> The vertebrate gut microbiome plays crucial roles in host health and disease. However, there is limited data on the microbiomes of wild birds, most of which is restricted to barcode sequences. We therefore explored the use of shotgun metagenomics on the faecal microbiomes of two wild bird species widely used as model organisms in ecological studies: the great tit (Parus major) and the Eurasian blue tit (Cyanistes caeruleus). Mitochondrial genomes from the host and eukaryotic pathogens that were assembled from these metagenomes and are made available as a catalogue in this archive. <h2>Methods:</h2> Metagenomic reads were trimmed, and quality controlled using FastP configured to a minimum phred score of 20 and minimum length of 50 bp. Individual sample assemblies were performed on each metagenomic sample using MEGAHIT v1.2.9. The BLAST 2.16 suite of programs was downloaded from ftp.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/blast and used to perform homology searches of the assemblies, using the makeblastdb utility to generate libraries, the blastn and tblastx utilities to search contigs with query sequences under high stringency (e value ≥1*e-200) and the blastdbcmd utility to retrieve hits from databases. <h2>Files:</h2> <ul> <li>The Isospora_mitochondrial.fasta contains the fasta sequences for mitochondrial genomes of the bird pathogen Isospora sp, assembled from two faecal samples from the Great Tit (Parus major).</li> <li>The Cyanistes.caeruleus_mitochondrial.fasta contains the fasta sequences for mitochondrial genomes of the host bird, assembled from two faecal samples from the blue Tit (Cyanistes caeruleus).</li> <li>The Parus.major_mitochondrial.fasta contains the fasta sequences for mitochondrial genomes of the host bird, assembled from two faecal samples from the blue Tit (Cyanistes caeruleus).</li> </ul>

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Data from: Individual genetic diversity and probability of infection by avian malaria parasites in blue tits (Cyanistes caeruleus)

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publicSep 2014View details →

opencc-zeroJan 2021View details →

The correlates of intraspecific variation in nest height and nest building duration in the Eurasian blue tit Cyanistes caeruleus

Birds build nests primarily as a receptacle to lay their eggs in, but they can also provide secondary benefits including structural support, camouflage, and adjustment of the microclimate surrounding the eggs and offspring. The factors underlying intraspecific variation in nest characteristics are poorly understood. In this study, we aim to identify the environmental factors that predict nest height variation and the duration of nest building in blue tits (Cyanistes caeruleus), evaluating latitude, elevation, temperature, and the timing of egg-laying as predictors of nest height, while also taking into account female and male parental identity. Using 713 nest height observations collected over a period of five years along a 220km transect in Scotland, we found that if the annual mean timing of egg-laying was earlier, nests were taller. However, there was no correlation between nest height and elevation, latitude, the minimum temperature in the 14 days pre-egg-laying or the phenology of birds within a year. Female parental identity accounted for a large amount of variation in nest height, suggesting that individual behaviour has an influence on nest structure. We also found that nest building duration was shorter in years when egg laying occurred earlier in the year, and that across all observations taller nests took longer to build. Overall, our results show that blue tits are able to alter their nest characteristics based on conditions environmental gradients like latitude (in the case of building duration) and the annual mean phenological variation timing of egg laying, and that birds build relatively taller nests faster.

opencc-zeroApr 2020View details →

Extra-pair copulations can insure female blue tits against male infertility

Mating outside the pair-bond occurs frequently in socially monogamous birds, but the benefits that females gain from this behaviour remain debated. One hypothesis is that females engage in extra-pair copulations (EPCs) to ensure that their clutch is fertilised in case their own mate is infertile, but evidence for this idea is scarce. We report on a case of an infertile male blue tit that bred in three successive years with three different females. In the first year, all eggs were sired by an extra-pair male whereas in the second year all eggs were unfertilised and contained no sperm. In the third year, the female produced two clutches that were fertilised by an extra-pair male, but - unlike 'normal' clutches - sperm numbers on the perivitelline membrane decreased rapidly over the laying sequence. Our findings show that blue tit females mated to an infertile male can escape reproductive failure by engaging in EPCs and support previous suggestions that EPCs in blue tits cease after the onset of egg laying.

opencc-zeroDec 2023View details →

Temperature variability is associated with the occurrence of extra-pair paternity in blue tits

In birds, extra-pair paternity (EPP) constitutes an alternative mating strategy, with potentially important fitness consequences for both males and females and their offspring. Several factors have been identified that can influence the occurrence of EPP, but the role of environmental variability has so far received relatively little attention. Using long-term data set from a wild population of blue tit (Cyanistes cearuleus) we assess the importance of ambient temperature in modulating the levels of extra-pair paternity. Here, we show that variability of local thermal conditions affects the occurrence of EPP. Specifically, we found that the probability of EPP increased with increasing variability in ambient temperature experienced by females prior to egg laying. This pattern is consistent with the idea of plastic female responses to unpredictable environmental conditions. Our results suggest that extra-pair mating may represent an adaptive behavioural strategy to compensate for possible negative effects of unpredictable environmental conditions.

opencc-by-4.0Jul 2020View details →

Fig. 2 in Nest Predation In The African Blue Tit, Cyanistes Teneriffae (Aves, Paridae), Using Nest-Boxes And Artificial Nests

Fig. 2. Predation rates versus years, %.

opencc-by-4.0Jul 2020View details →

Fig. 1 in Nest Predation In The African Blue Tit, Cyanistes Teneriffae (Aves, Paridae), Using Nest-Boxes And Artificial Nests

Fig. 1. Location of the study area.

opencc-by-4.0Jul 2020View details →

Fig. 3 in Nest Predation In The African Blue Tit, Cyanistes Teneriffae (Aves, Paridae), Using Nest-Boxes And Artificial Nests

Fig. 3. Predation typology in nest-boxes, %.

opencc-zeroApr 2022View details →

Habitat shapes diversity of gut microbiomes in a wild population of blue tits Cyanistes caeruleus

Microbiome constitutes and important axis of individual variation that, together with genes and the environment, influences an individual's physiology and fitness. Microbiomes are dependent not only on an individual's body condition but also on external factors, such as diet or stress levels, and as such can be involved into feedbacks between the external ecological factors and internal physiology. In our study we used a wild population of blue tits (Cyanistes caeruleus) to investigate the impact of external habitat composition on the microbiome of adult birds. We hypothesized, that – through differences in plant composition, potentially affecting diet complexity – habitat type may impact the diversity and structure of the gut microbiome. Blue tits breeding in dense deciduous forests tended to have more diverse microbiomes, and significantly different in terms of microbiome composition from birds breeding in open, sparsely forested hay meadows. Distinct study plots also tended to differ in a number of parameters describing microbiome diversity. We observed no microbiome differentiation according to individual characteristics such as sex or age. The study emphasizes, that external environment is one of the important modulators of microbiome diversity and calls for more such studies in wild animal populations.

opencc-zeroOct 2022View details →

Data and code for: Social phenotype-dependent selection of social environment in wild great and blue tits: An experimental study

There is growing evidence that individuals actively assess the match between their phenotype and their environment when making habitat choice decisions (so-called matching habitat choice). However, to our knowledge, no studies have considered how the social environment may interact with social phenotype in determining habitat choice, despite habitat choice being an inherently social process and growing evidence for individual variation in sociability. We conducted an experiment using wild great and blue tits to understand how birds integrate their social phenotype and social environment when choosing where and how to feed. We used programmable feeders to (i) record social interactions and estimate social phenotype and (ii) experimentally manipulate the local density experienced by birds of differing social phenotype. By tracking feeder usage, we estimated how social environment and social phenotype predicted feeder choice and feeding behaviour. Both social environment and social phenotype predicted feeder usage, but a bird's decision to remain in a particular social environment did not depend on their social phenotype. In contrast, for feeding behaviour, responses to the social environment depended on social phenotype. Our results provide rare evidence of matching habitat choice and shed light on the dependence of habitat choice on between-individual differences in social phenotype.

opencc-by-4.0Sep 2024View details →

Metagenome Assembled Genomes (MAGs) from faecal microbiomes of great tits and blue tits

<h2>Overview:</h2> The vertebrate gut microbiome plays crucial roles in host health and disease. However, there is limited data on the microbiomes of wild birds, most of which is restricted to barcode sequences. We therefore explored the use of shotgun metagenomics on the faecal microbiomes of two wild bird species widely used as model organisms in ecological studies: the great tit (Parus major) and the Eurasian blue tit (Cyanistes caeruleus). High and Medium quality Metagenome Assembled Genomes (MAGs) were assembled from these metagenomes and are made available as a catalogue in this archive. <h2>Methods:</h2> Metagenomic reads were trimmed, and quality controlled using FastP configured to a minimum phred score of 20 and minimum length of 50 bp. In order to avoid contamination of the bins by eukaryotic sequences, Tiara v1.0.3  was used to classify contigs longer than 3.000 kb into their high-level kingdoms, allowing to exclude sequences of a eukaryotic or of an organelle origin, and only retaining all unclassified contigs and prokaryotic contigs for the binning step.  Contigs were binned using MaxBin2 v2.2.7 , SemiBin2 v2.1.0 and Metabat2 v 2.15 independently. The bins were refined using DasTool v 1.1.7 using a min score threshold of 0.3. The quality of the refined bins was obtained using CheckM2 v 1.0.2, and any bin with a contamination above 10% were excluded. The final MAGs were classified as Low-quality (<50% completeness, <10% contamination), medium-quality (>50% completeness, <10% contamination) and high-quality (>90% completeness, <5% contamination), as recommended by the MIMAG specification . Finally, the MAGs were dereplicated using an dRep v 3.4.3 with an ANI of 95% and classified using gtdb-tk v2.4.0 using the gtdb database release220. Files: <ul> <li>The MAGs_sequences_v1.0.0 contains the fasta sequence for the individual MAGs assembled in this project</li> <li>The MAGs_catalogue_v1.0.0.xlsx contains a description of the quality, taxonomic annotation and characteristics of each MAGs in the dataset</li> </ul>

opencc-zeroJan 2023View details →

Data for: Offspring plumage colouration as a condition-dependent signal in the Blue Tit

In many species, offspring display conspicuous colouration already early in life, even though they might be very vulnerable to predation at this stage. However, most attention has been drawn to the conspicuous plumage displayed by adult individuals in a sexual context, while other signalling functions have been explored much less. Here, we investigated whether the yellow breast plumage of blue tit (Cyanistes caeruleus) nestlings shows patterns of condition-dependence and hence signals individual quality, as has been described for adult birds. During three consecutive breeding seasons, we, therefore, explored the association between nestling body mass and three colour components of the yellow breast plumage (i.e., UV chroma, carotenoid chroma and total brightness), considering both within and among nest effects. Variation in carotenoid chroma was not related to body mass. However, UV chroma and total brightness varied with body mass on an among-nest level, suggesting that they might signal aspects of genetic quality or parental rearing capacity. Interestingly, we also found a within-nest effect of body mass on total brightness, suggesting that this is a good candidate for a condition-dependent signal within the family. Thus, other family members could rely on brightness to adjust their behavioural strategies, such as feeding behaviour in parents. Our study thus reveals that certain colour components of the yellow breast plumage might signal different aspects of offspring quality and they might have a correlated signalling value across life-history stages.

publicAug 2024View details →

Data from: Environmental constraints can explain clutch size differences between urban and forest blue tits: Insights from an egg removal experiment

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publicJan 2023View details →

Data for: Offspring plumage colouration as a condition-dependent signal in the Blue Tit

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