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52 results for “chickadee”
Chickadee breeding and parasite survey from Boulder, Sugarloaf, and MRS nest boxes, 2019 - 2021.
Between the years 2019 and 2021 chickadees were sampled at the NWT LTER as part of a broader study encompassing multiple projects (The Boulder Chickadee Study). Here we provide data on the presence of infections with haemosporidian parasites for Black-capped Chickadees (Poecile atricapillus) and Mountain Chickadees (P. gambeli). Haemosporidian parasites are a diverse group of apicomplexans that infect vertebrate hosts during a portion of their life cycle (Valkiunas, G. 2004). We screened chickadees for infections with three haemosporidian genera: Leucocytozoon, Plasmodium, and Haemoproteus using a nested PCR protocol (Hellgren et al. 2004). Both nestlings and adults were screened for parasites in 2019 and 2020 but we only screened adults in 2021. Chickadees sampled at NWT LTER did not have detectable infections with Haemoproteus or Plasmodium, however, we found multiple infections with Leucocytozoon. In conjunction with findings at other field sites, infections with Leucocytozoon parasites appear more common for adult chickadees sampled at higher elevation, while Plasmodium parasites were almost exclusively found in the city of Boulder (Theodosopoulos et al. 2023).
Boulder Chickadee Study nest temperature data, Boulder County, Colorado, 2024.
Incubation is a crucial part of the avian life cycle; eggs must be kept warm enough for embryos to develop. As egg temperatures drop rapidly when not being actively incubated, birds must balance the thermal requirements of their developing offspring with their own energy requirements when deciding to make a feeding trip. Incubation behavior can vary with ambient temperature, and across the breeding cycle. Here, we examine the incubation behavior of black-capped (Poecile atricapillus) and mountain (P. gambeli) chickadees where they live together in the Front Range of the Colorado Rocky Mountains. We deployed iButton temperature monitors in and around chickadee nests to record nest and ambient temperatures during the incubation period. For each deployment, we visually inspected temperature data to determine whether incubation was detected. For each deployment in which incubation was detected we quantified incubation behavior using the incR R package. Across the four nests for which incubation was detected, females (the incubating sex) spent about 85% of the day incubating, and left the nest about 32 times per day for an average of 6.7 minutes. On average, nest temperatures were maintained around 35˚C.
Similar parasite communities but dissimilar infection patterns in two closely related chickadee species
<p>Haemosporidian parasite communities are broadly similar in Boulder County, CO between two common songbirds –– the Black-capped Chickadee (<em>Poecile</em> <em>atricapillus</em>) and Mountain Chickadee (<em>Poecile</em> <em>gambeli</em>). However, Mountain Chickadees appear more likely to be infected with <em>Plasmodium</em> and potentially experience higher infection burdens with <em>Leucocytozoon</em> in contrast to Black-capped Chickadees. We found that elevation change (and associated ecology) drives the distributions of these parasite genera. For Boulder County chickadees, environmental factors play a more important role in structuring haemosporidian communities than host evolutionary differences. However, evolutionary differences are likely key to shaping the probability of infection, infection burden, and whether an infection remains detectable over time. We found that for recaptured birds, their infection status (i.e., presence or absence of detectable parasite infection) tends to remain consistent across capture periods. We sampled 234 chickadees between 2017–2021 across a ~1500-meter elevation gradient from low elevation (i.e., the city of Boulder) to comparatively high elevation (i.e., the CU Boulder Mountain Research Station). It is unknown whether long-term haemosporidian abundance trends have changed over time in our sampling region. However, we ask whether potentially disparate patterns of <em>Plasmodium</em> susceptibility and <em>Leucocytozoon</em> infection burden could be playing a role in the negative population trends of Mountain Chickadees.</p>
Data for: Age, sex, and temperature shape within- and among-individual space use in Black-capped Chickadees
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Feather growth rate and hormone deposition vary with elevation but not reproductive costs in resident Mountain Chickadees
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Data from: Individual discrimination within, but not between, two vocalization types of the black-capped chickadee
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Black-capped and mountain chickadee hybridization and breeding ecology in Boulder County, CO
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Similar parasite communities but dissimilar infection patterns in two closely related chickadee species
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Data from: Testing the greater male variability hypothesis: male mountain chickadees exhibit larger variation in reversal learning compared to females
The 'greater male variability hypothesis' predicts that males exhibit larger ranges of variation in cognitive performance compared to females, however, support for this hypothesis has come exclusively from studies of humans. This scenario aligns with the fact that the vast majority of the literature assessing sex differences in cognition is based on studies of humans and a few other mammals. In order to elucidate the underpinnings of cognitive variation and the potential for fitness consequences, we must investigate sex differences in cognition in non-mammalian systems as well. Here we assess the performance of male and female food-caching birds on a spatial learning and memory task and a reversal spatial task to address whether there are sex differences in mean cognitive performance or in the range of variation in performance. For both tasks, male and female mean performance was similar across four years of testing; however, males did exhibit a wider range of variation in performance on the reversal spatial task compared to females. The implications for mate choice and sexual selection of cognitive abilities are discussed, with a call for further investigation into sex-related cognitive variation.
Black-capped and mountain chickadee range-wide condition
<p>Both abiotic and biotic drivers influence species distributions. Abiotic drivers, such as climate, have received considerable attention, even though biotic drivers, such as hybridization, often interact with abiotic drivers. We sought to explore the (1) costs of co-occurrence for ecologically similar species that hybridize and (2) associations between ecological factors and condition to understand how abiotic and biotic factors influence species distributions. For two closely related and ecologically similar songbirds, black-capped and mountain chickadees, we characterized body condition, as a proxy for fitness, using a 1,358 individual range-wide dataset. We compared body condition in sympatry and allopatry with several abiotic and biotic factors using species-specific generalized linear mixed models. We generated genomic data for a subset of 217 individuals to determine the extent of hybridization-driven admixture in our dataset. Within this data subset, we found that ~11% of the chickadees had hybrid ancestry, and all hybrid individuals had typical black-capped chickadee plumage. In the full data set, we found that birds of both species, independent of demographic and abiotic factors, had significantly lower body condition when occurring in sympatry than birds in allopatry. This could be driven by either the inclusion of cryptic, likely poor condition, hybrids in our full dataset, competitive interactions in sympatry, or be due to range edge effects. We are currently unable to discriminate between these mechanisms. Our findings have implications for mountain chickadees in particular, which will encounter more black-capped chickadees as black-capped chickadee ranges shift upslope and could lead to local declines in mountain chickadee populations.</p>
Urban and rural chickadee response to novel object and simulated predator
<p>Urbanization is changing natural landscapes worldwide, pushing species to quickly acclimate or adapt if they are to survive in urban environments. Mountain chickadees (<em>Poecile gambeli</em>) readily nest in both urban and rural environments without suffering apparent reproductive costs. However, whether urban-nesting chickadees are successful in these environments due to differences in behaviour between urban and rural birds remains untested. We examined the behavioural responses of urban and rural nesting mountain chickadee females when presented with a novel object (red plastic cup) or simulated predator (imitation squirrel model) at the nest. Behavioural responses depended on both the type of model and the habitat. As expected, mountain chickadees responded more strongly to squirrel models than novel objects; however, the magnitude of the difference in response depended on habitat. Urban birds seemingly ignored the novel object, spending little time investigating, and re-entering the nest box quickly. In contrast, rural birds spent more time reacting to the novel object and alarm calling within 5 m of the nest. When presented with a predator model, the urban birds reacted relatively more strongly (compared to the novel stimulus) than rural birds, spending more time within 5 m of the nest and alarm calling. These results suggest that either mountain chickadees in urban environments quickly acclimatize to the presence of novel objects or, potentially, that less neophobic birds disproportionately settle in urban environments or experience positive selection in urban areas. Either way, reduced neophobia may aid in mountain chickadees' ability to readily and successfully nest in such habitats.</p>
Large-scale supplemental feeding alters lay date and nest survival in Eastern Bluebirds but not in two species of chickadees
<p>Wild bird feeding is a popular and growing activity, with approximately half of households participating in nations including the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, New Zealand, and Australia. Supplemental feeding can increase survival and reproductive success of birds (which is often a goal of supplemental feeding efforts), but it raises concerns about phenological mismatch, reduced clutch size, or increased risk of nest predation. Our objectives were to test whether access to supplemental food during the breeding season was correlated with (1) advanced egg-laying phenology, (2) increased clutch size, or (3) improved nest survival of 3 cavity-nesting species (Carolina Chickadee, <i>Poecile carolinensis</i>; Black-capped Chickadee, <i>P. atricapillus</i>; and<i> </i>Eastern Bluebird, <i>Sialia</i> <i>sialis</i>) at a large spatial scale (United States and Canada; 22 degrees latitude difference and 55 degrees longitude difference). We examined data from 24,528 nest attempts submitted to NestWatch from 2014–2019. For Eastern Bluebirds, birds with access to supplemental insects initiated clutches 5.83 (± 0.89 SE) days earlier than birds without access to food subsidies, while predicted nest survival was 5% greater for birds with access to supplemental insects (probability of nest success = 0.79, 95% CI = 0.77–0.81) when compared to birds without (0.74, 95% CI = 0.72–0.75). Clutch size of Eastern Bluebirds did not differ between birds with and without access to supplemental insects. For chickadees, supplemental feeding (of seeds, suet, insects, or fruit) was not correlated with phenology, clutch size, or nest survival. <span>Our results suggest that supplemental feeding of insects can be an effective tool for increasing nest survival in Eastern Bluebirds and potentially other food-limited insectivores. However, the efficacy of supplemental feeding for improving reproductive success varies across <a>taxa</a></span><span>. </span>Our results can help elucidate how wild bird feeding contributes to global phenomena such as earlier nesting, nest survival, and population <a>change</a>.</p>
Social dominance status is associated with differences in spatial cognitive flexibility in wild mountain chickadees
Social dominance has long been used as a model to investigate social stress. However, many studies using such comparisons have been performed in captive environments. These environments may produce unnaturally high antagonistic interactions, exaggerating the stress of social subordination and any associated adverse consequences. One such adverse effect concerns impaired cognitive ability, often thought to be associated with social subordination. Here, we tested whether social dominance rank is associated with differences in spatial learning and memory and in reversal spatial learning (flexibility) abilities in wild food-caching mountain chickadees at different montane elevations. Higher dominance rank was associated with higher spatial cognitive flexibility in harsh environments at higher elevations, but not at lower, milder elevations. In contrast, there were no consistent differences in spatial learning and memory ability associated with dominance rank. Our results suggest that spatial learning and memory ability in specialized food-caching species is a stable trait resilient to social influences. Spatial cognitive flexibility, on the other hand, appears to be more sensitive to environmental influences including social dominance. These findings contradict those from laboratory studies and suggest that it is critical to investigate the biological consequences of social dominance under natural conditions.
Data From: Long-term winter food supplementation shows no significant impact on reproductive performance in Mountain Chickadees in the Sierra Nevada Mountains
<p>Supplemental feeding of wild animal populations is popular across many areas of the world and has long been considered beneficial, especially to avian taxa. Over four billion dollars are spent by hobby bird feeders in the United States each year alone. However, there is mixed evidence whether wildlife feeding is beneficial, including when it is implemented as a conservation management tool, a targeted experimental design, or an avocation. Much of the current evidence suggests that providing supplemental food is advantageous to the reproductive output and general survival of focal taxa. However, many of these studies are limited in scope and duration, leaving possible negative impacts unaddressed. This is particularly true regarding passive backyard feeding, which describes the majority of supplemental feeding, including the immense effort of millions of public enthusiasts. Here we show that winter supplemental feeding prior to reproduction had no significant impact on a range of reproductive parameters in a resident, montane passerine species, the Mountain Chickadee (<em>Poecile</em> <em>gambeli</em>). This population resides in an intact natural environment with no exposure to supplemental food beyond our experimental treatments, and individual birds were tracked across six years using radio frequency identification technology. Our results add to the growing evidence that supplemental feeding alone, isolated from the effects of urban environments, may have little to no impact on the population dynamics of some avian taxa.</p>
Disturbance-mediated hybridization in black-capped and mountain chickadees
<p>Human habitat disturbances can promote hybridization between closely related, but typically reproductively isolated, species. We explored whether human habitat disturbances are related to hybridization between two closely related songbirds, black-capped, and mountain chickadees, using both genomic and citizen science datasets. First, we genotyped 409 individuals from across both species' ranges using reduced-representation genome sequencing and compared measures of genetic admixture to a composite measure of human landscape disturbance. Then, using eBird observations, we compared human landscape disturbance values for sites where phenotypically diagnosed hybrids were observed to locations where either parental species was observed to determine whether hybrid chickadees are reported in more disturbed areas. We found that hybridization between black-capped and mountain chickadees positively correlates with human habitat disturbances. From genomic data, we found that 1) hybrid index significantly increased with habitat disturbance, 2) more hybrids were sampled in disturbed habitats, 3) mean hybrid indexes were higher in disturbed habitats versus wild habitats, and 4) hybrids were detected in habitats with significantly higher disturbance values than parentals. Using eBird data, we found that both hybrid and black-capped chickadees were significantly more disturbance-associated than mountain chickadees. Surprisingly, we found that nearly every black-capped chickadee we sampled contained some proportion of hybrid ancestry, while we detected very few mountain chickadee backcrosses. Our results highlight that hybridization between black-capped and mountain chickadees is widespread, but initial hybridization is rare (few F1s were detected). We conclude that human habitat disturbances can erode pre-zygotic reproductive barriers between chickadees and that post-zygotic isolation is incomplete. Understanding what becomes of recently hybridizing species following large-scale habitat disturbances is a new, but pressing, consideration for successfully preserving genetic biodiversity in a rapidly changing world.</p>
Data From: Long-term winter food supplementation shows no significant impact on reproductive performance in Mountain Chickadees in the Sierra Nevada Mountains
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Song measure averages of allopatric and sympatric Black-capped and Mountain Chickadee individuals
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Disturbance-mediated hybridization in black-capped and mountain chickadees
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Urban and rural chickadee response to novel object and simulated predator
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Data from: Black-capped chickadees (Poecile atricapillus) can identify individual females by their fee-bee songs
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