Solicitation displays reliably reflect oxidative damage in barn swallow nestlings |
| |
Authors: | Email author" target="_blank">Giuseppe?BoncoraglioEmail author Manuela?Caprioli Nicola?Saino |
| |
Institution: | 1.Dipartimento di Biologia,Università degli Studi di Milano,Milan,Italy;2.Department of Zoology,University of Cambridge,Cambridge,UK |
| |
Abstract: | Reproduction entails parental decisions over allocation of limiting resources. ‘Begging’ solicitation displays by the offspring
have been hypothesised to evolve as reliable indicators of quality, allowing parents to adopt optimal allocation strategies.
To function as such, however, begging signals must covary with offspring traits that affect viability. Here we tested whether
oxidative damage of nestling barn swallows predicts begging bout duration, call amplitude and intensity of postural displays
both under normal food provisioning and under food shortage. Oxidative damage as determined by normal metabolism, pathological
conditions and functioning of the immune system can serve as a comprehensive indicator of offspring condition because it can
profoundly affect viability, senescence and reproduction. Begging bout duration was negatively predicted by oxidative damage
but only after food deprivation. Postural begging negatively covaried with oxidative damage, at least when nestlings were
confronted with related nest mates. Plasma antioxidant capacity did not predict begging behaviour. Thus, we show for the first
time that behavioural begging covaries with a comprehensive index of chick condition, lending support to reliability of such
begging traits also as signals of quality rather than need or hunger only. Future studies are candidate to decouple the effect
of hunger state and individual condition on behavioural begging. |
| |
Keywords: | |
本文献已被 SpringerLink 等数据库收录! |
|