Snake slough in nests of crested mynas: effect on breeding success and nestling growth
Snake slough in nests of crested mynas: effect on breeding success and nestling growth
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DOI：
10.1080/24750263.2021.1907460
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发表时间：
2021-01-01
影响因子：
1.8
通讯作者：
Liang, W.
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Liu, J.;Liu;Liang, W.
选择合适的筑巢材料是鸟类筑巢过程的关键。在2018年和2019年的繁殖季节（3月至8月），我们发现八哥（Acridotheres cristatellus）会将蛇蜕（长度2 - 18.3厘米）添加到它们的巢中。在整个繁殖期都有添加蛇蜕的行为，其中38.9%是在筑巢阶段。2018年蛇蜕的使用率（38.5%）显著低于2019年（71.4%）。有蛇蜕的巢（蛇蜕组）和无蛇蜕的巢（非蛇蜕组）在窝卵数、卵质量和卵大小方面均未发现显著差异。两组在每巢孵出的雏鸟数量、雏鸟生长情况以及繁殖成功率方面也没有显著差异。这是首次有研究报告八哥在整个繁殖期都会向巢中添加蛇蜕，但蛇蜕对八哥的大多数繁殖参数影响不大。我们推测，八哥巢中的蛇蜕可能有助于减少巢穴被捕食的风险、提高雏鸟免疫力，或者作为一种交配后的性信号，引发配偶在繁殖方面的差异化投入；然而，这些推测还需要进一步研究。
The choice of suitable nest materials is a key to nest-building process in birds. During the breeding season (March-August) in 2018 and 2019, we discovered that crested mynas (Acridotheres cristatellus) added snake slough (2-18.3 cm in length) to their nests. The addition of snake slough continued throughout the breeding period, with a proportion of 38.9% being during the nest-building period. The use of snake slough in 2018 (38.5%) was significantly less than in 2019 (71.4%). No significant differences were found in clutch size, egg mass, and egg size between nests with snake slough (the slough group) and nests without snake slough (the non-slough group). There were also no significant differences in the number of nestlings hatched for each nest, nestling growing and breeding success between the snake slough and the non-snake slough group. This is the first study to report that crested mynas add snake slough to their nests throughout their breeding period, but snake slough had little impact on most of the breeding parameters of crested mynas. We speculate that snake slough in crested myna nests may serve to reduce nest predation, improve the immunity of nestlings or serve as a post-mating sexual signal eliciting differential reproductive investment in mates; however, these speculations require further investigation.