Prudent investment in rearing nestlings in bull‐headed shrikes

Abstract

I investigated seasonal changes in the relationships between brood size, body mass of nestlings and body mass of parents of the bull‐headed shrike, Lanius bucephalus, in Ishikari, northern Japan. When the broods were 12 days old, the body mass of the heaviest nestling in a brood did not differ among brood sizes, or throughout the season. However, the body mass of the lightest nestlings in a brood was different among brood sizes. The body mass of the lightest nestling in five‐ and six‐nestling broods decreased throughout the season. The lightest nestling in four‐nestling broods, and the lightest and the second lightest nestlings in five‐nestling broods, were significantly lighter than the heaviest nestling in broods of this size. It is likely that pairs with six nestlings at 12 days old can feed at least five of these nestlings enough to ensure their survival . The standardized body mass of parents (SBM), which was defined as the body mass divided by the length of the tarsus, did not differ among brood sizes, or throughout the season. It is possible that the relationship between the constancy of the SBM and the seasonal decline in the body mass of nestlings indicates that bull‐headed shrikes have a limit to their parental efforts.