LTREB: Long Term Studies of Ecology of Social Behavior

本研究将探讨红火蚁在降低东部蓝知更鸟的繁殖性能，从而影响其社会和交配系统中的作用。先前的研究表明，在蚂蚁定居的格鲁吉亚雅典，蓝知更鸟的繁殖比在没有蚂蚁的南卡罗来纳州克莱姆森的同一物种的繁殖要低。 现在蚂蚁正在入侵克莱姆森;这个自然实验将被用来检验火蚁是繁殖减少的原因的假设。 将在这两个地点监测蓝鸟的繁殖和社会行为。 雅典遗址将作为其他类型环境变化的控制点。 如果火蚁是雅典繁殖率下降的原因，那么当它们入侵克莱姆森时，蓝鸟的繁殖率也会下降。 这些涟漪会波及多远，又会影响到多少遥远的关系？ 这项研究将有助于对这个大问题的一般答案。 雄鸟保护配偶的倾向，以及其配偶进行额外配对交配的速度，可能受到入侵的蚂蚁物种的影响。

This study will examine the role of red imported fire ants in reducing the reproductive performance, and thereby in affecting the social and mating system, of eastern bluebirds. Previous work has shown that the reproduction of bluebirds in Athens, Georgia, where the ants are established, is depressed compared to the reproduction of the same species in Clemson, South Carolina, where the ants have been absent. Now the ants are invading Clemson; this natural experiment will be used to test the hypothesis that the fire ants are the cause of decreased reproduction. Bluebird reproduction and social behavior will be monitored in the two sites. The Athens site will serve as a control for other kinds of environmental variation. If fire ants are the cause of lowered reproduction in Athens, then as they invade Clemson, bluebird reproduction should decline there, as well.A new species invasion is like a stone thrown into a pond. How far do the ripples go, and how many distant relationships do they affect? This study will contribute to the general answer to this big question. It may be that the tendency of a male bird to guard his mate, and the rate at which his mate engages in extra-pair matings, is influenced by an invading ant species.