Threat-sensitive anti-predator defence in precocial wader, the northern lapwing Vanellus vanellus.

Natalia Królikowska,Lechosław Kuczyński,Jakub Szymkowiak,Rebecca Anne Laidlaw

doi:10.1007/s10211-016-0236-1

Abstract

Birds exhibit various forms of anti-predator behaviours to avoid reproductive failure, with mobbing—observation, approach and usually harassment of a predator—being one of the most commonly observed. Here, we investigate patterns of temporal variation in the mobbing response exhibited by a precocial species, the northern lapwing (Vanellus vanellus). We test whether brood age and self-reliance, or the perceived risk posed by various predators, affect mobbing response of lapwings. We quantified aggressive interactions between lapwings and their natural avian predators and used generalized additive models to test how timing and predator species identity are related to the mobbing response of lapwings. Lapwings diversified mobbing response within the breeding season and depending on predator species. Raven Corvus corax, hooded crow Corvus cornix and harriers evoked the strongest response, while common buzzard Buteo buteo, white stork Ciconia ciconia, black-headed gull Chroicocephalus ridibundus and rook Corvus frugilegus were less frequently attacked. Lapwings increased their mobbing response against raven, common buzzard, white stork and rook throughout the breeding season, while defence against hooded crow, harriers and black-headed gull did not exhibit clear temporal patterns. Mobbing behaviour of lapwings apparently constitutes a flexible anti-predator strategy. The anti-predator response depends on predator species, which may suggest that lapwings distinguish between predator types and match mobbing response to the perceived hazard at different stages of the breeding cycle. We conclude that a single species may exhibit various patterns of temporal variation in anti-predator defence, which may correspond with various hypotheses derived from parental investment theory.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s10211-016-0236-1) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

Highlights

Predation constitutes the most important cause of reproductive failure in the majority of bird species (Ricklefs 1969; Montgomerie and Weatherhead 1988; Lima and Dill 1990; Martin 1995)
Based on our own observations and literature data (Kis et al 2000; Schekkerman et al 2009), we predict that the following avian predators recorded in the study area could be considered as potentially dangerous for lapwing offspring: white stork Ciconia ciconia, marsh harrier Circus aeruginosus, hen harrier Circus cyaneus, Montagu’s harrier Circus pygargus, common buzzard Buteo buteo, rough-legged buzzard Buteo lagopus, Eurasian sparrowhawk Accipiter nisus, northern goshawk Accipiter gentilis, kestrel
The generalized additive models (GAMs) (Hastie and Tibshirani 1990) is an extension of the generalized linear model and allows for flexible, nonlinear and nonparametric functions to be included as predictors

Summary

Introduction

Predation constitutes the most important cause of reproductive failure in the majority of bird species (Ricklefs 1969; Montgomerie and Weatherhead 1988; Lima and Dill 1990; Martin 1995). The most frequent are nest concealment and cryptic behaviours (Lima and Dill 1990), reducing the number of eggs under increased risk of nest predation (Eggers et al 2006), nesting near protector species (Lima and Dill 1990), feigning injury behaviours (Caro 2005), changing their risk sensitivity depending on the risk and the option for renesting (Schneider and Griesser 2015) and active nest defence, like mobbing (Caro 2005; Lima and Dill 1990). Parents should trade off the investment in current reproduction (anti-predator behaviour) and the ability to invest in the future (Clutton-Brock 1991; Stearns 1992)

Methods

Results

Conclusion