bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Flight Directions in the Migratory Butterfly Pieris brassicae: Results from Semi‐natural Experiments
Authors: Spieth Hubert R. , Cordes Ralf‐Gerd , Dorka Martin 
Published: May 2010

AbstractA recently developed experimental set‐up has been used to test the constancy of flight direction in the large white butterfly Pieris brassicae, originally collected in Northern Germany. The flight direction, tested with virgin females, depends on the developmental mode. Butterflies from diapause pupae fly north, those from subitan pupae fly south.The constancy of the flight direction has been examined in detail with the spring generation over a period of 14d. The preferred direction does not change with advancing age and is essentially not influenced by temperature or by the sun's azimuth. The flight activity, however, increases with temperature, but this is concealed by an intrinsic response resulting in a diurnal peak of flight activity at 10.00–11.00 hours, long before the maximum temperature of the day is reached.Whether the observed direction can be considered as a parameter of migration behaviour is discussed. It is shown that migration in Pieris brassicae does not end with reproductive maturity but lasts throughout the entire imaginal stage.
Social and Demographic Influences on Mothering Style in Pigtail Macaques
Authors: Maestripieri Dario 
Published: May 2010

AbstractThis study represents the first investigation of variability in mothering styles in pigtail macaques, Macaca nemestrina nemestrina. Fifteen group‐living mother‐infant pairs were focally observed during the first 12 wk of infant life and several measures of maternal and infant behavior were recorded. Variability in mothering styles occurred along the three dimensions of maternal protectivencss, rejection, and warmth. Maternal parity and aggression received by mothers were the best predictors of variability in protectiveness and warmth, whereas variability in rejection was not predicted by any of the variables considered. This study provides clear evidence that aggression towards mothers and previous maternal experience have an important influence on mothering styles in pigtail macaques.
Release Factors of Breeding Activities in Capercaillie (Tetrao urogallus) Hens
Authors: Catusse Michel 
Published: May 2010

AbstractThe present 7‐year study was conducted on a capercaillie (Tetrao urogallus) lek. The study included four years of continuous monitoring of reproductive behaviour of capercaillie in spring and a 3‐year study of hen‐cock relationships. We used a factorial Correspondence Analysis (CA) to assess the relationship between variables such as weather, release activity and cock display behaviour, as well as the presence and activity of hens. The statistical correlations between these factors were also summarized, showing that: there is no direct relationship between daily activity of hens on the lek and photoperiod; the behavioural interactions between cocks, their spatial and territorial organization, on the one hand, and hen activity and receptivity on the other, are reinforced by reciprocal interactions between the sexes.
Influence of the Queen on Worker Behaviour and Queen Recognition Behaviour in Ants
Authors: Vienne Catherine , Errard Christine , Lenoir Alain 
Published: May 2010

AbstractWe investigated the influence of the queen on worker behaviour in ants and their queen recognition behaviour. Queenless and queenright homo‐ and hetero‐specific groups were created using three Myr‐micinae species (Manica rubida, Myrmica rubra and Myrmica ruginodis). In homospecific groups, the presence of a queen contributed to an increase in the brood care, which had an effect on all other tasks of the group. In heterospecific groups, the presence of a queen led workers to care more for the conspecific brood. The queen appears to be a factor in the maintenance of both behavioural characteristics of the workers and the organization of the colony. The absence of the queen revealed some behavioural differences between species compared and populations that did not occur in queenright groups. Attractiveness tests were also conducted on these colonies. In homospecific queenright groups, workers were attracted both by unfamiliar conspecific and allospecific queens, but they were attracted more by the former. Therefore, queens appear to emit volatile pheromones which have a non‐species‐specific and a species‐specific attractant effect. In heterospecific groups, workers were attracted more by an unfamiliar queen of the familiar species (even if allospecific) than by an unfamiliar conspecific queen, suggesting the importance of early social experience for the discrimination behaviour of adults.
Age and Behavior of Honey Bees, Apis mellifera (Hymenoptera: Apidae), that Perform Vibration Signals on Queens and Queen Cells
Authors: Painter‐Kurt S. , Schneider S. S. 
Published: May 2010

AbstractThe vibration signal of the honey bee (Apis mellifera) may play a central role in the regulation of queen behavior during reproductive swarming and supersedure. We examined honey bee workers that performed vibration signals on queens and developing queen cells in three observation hives, each containing a population of marked bees of known age. In all three colonies, workers of all ages greater than 2 d old could perform vibration signals on queens and queen cells. However, most signals were performed by a small proportion of the bees of greater than 10 d of age. Relatively few workers less than 10 d old vibrated queens and queen cells, even though this age‐group is typically associated with queen care. Thus, the regulation of queen behavior by the vibration signal may occur primarily through a relatively small subset of older workers that, under most circumstances, have only limited involvement with queens. It is unclear what triggers the vibrating of queens. Workers producing vibration signals did not differ from same‐age non‐vibrating controls in rate of locomotion in the hive or in task performance, and they rarely engaged in foraging, even though the majority of observed bees were of foraging age; vibrators also did not spend more time with queens and queen cells compared with controls. Vibration signals performed on queens and queen cells therefore do not appear to be influenced by task performance or increased contact with queens.
Sound Characteristics and Outcome of Contests in Male Croaking Gouramis (Teleostei)
Authors: Ladich Friedrich 
Published: May 2010

AbstractA correlative study using similar‐sized males of the croaking gourami Trichopsis vittata was carried out to investigate whether sound characteristics influenced winning and if relative fighting ability was assessed by acoustic signals. Pair‐wise contests between males were decided using lateral displays (LD) and vocalization in 26 cases, whereas 66 fights escalated to the frontal display (FD) phase. Physical fighting (mouth wrestling) and injuries were rarely observed in this species. Winners were generally larger than their opponents, and this effect was more pronounced in non‐escalated than in escalated contests. Sounds of fight winners had a higher sound pressure level and also a lower dominant frequency. Neither number of acoustic signals nor duration of lateral and frontal displays were predictors of contest outcome. Acoustic measures were highly correlated to body weight. These results indicate that traits correlated with RHP (such as sound pressure level and dominant frequency) were predictors of the outcome, while traits not correlated with size (such as number and duration of displays) did not influence winning. In accordance with the main prediction of assessment models, the contest duration (cost) increased with the decrease in asymmetry of body length as well as sound pressure level. No such relationships were found for weight and dominant frequencies in LD‐ and FD‐contests.The present study indicates that morphological and sound characteristics influence winning in fish. Moreover, the results suggest that croaking gouramis settle conflicts without damaging combats by assessing asymmetries in different components of RHP such as body weight and length, which may reliably be signalled by acoustic and visual assessment signals.
Embryonic Calls as Care‐soliciting Signals in Budgerigars, Melopsittacus undulatus
Authors: Berlin Kim E. , Clark Anne B. 
Published: May 2010

AbstractEmbryonic calls occur 1–3 d before hatching among precocial and some altricial birds. In precocial species, calls may synchronize hatching among siblings or, in semi‐precocial species, elicit parental attention to, and often thermoregulation of, the hatching egg. Much less is known about the functional significance of calls in fully altricial species. In this study, naturalistic observations and laboratory experiments were used to document factors affecting calling and the parental responses to calls in one altricial species, the budgerigar Melopsittacus undulatus. Budgerigar chicks hatch asynchronously and vocalize 24–48 h before hatching. Embryonic calling rates increase at higher egg temperatures, and also as embryos near hatching. Parents easily locate a calling egg in their clutch, even among a large brood of much older, vocalizing nestlings. Furthermore, they actively assist in the last stages of hatching by helping to break the shell along the crack in the egg. Both observational and experimental evidence suggests that embryonic vocalizations are distinctive signals that increase parental attention and care, and may stimulate hatching assistance to a calling egg.
The ‘Widow Effect’ and its Consequences for Reproduction in Burying Beetles, Nicrophorus vespilloides (Coleoptera: Silphidae)
Authors: Sakaluk Scott K. , Eggert Anne‐Katrin , Müller Josef K. 
Published: May 2010

AbstractBurying beetles tend their young on small vertebrate carcasses, which serve as the sole source of food for the developing larvae. Single females are as proficient at rearing offspring as male‐female pairs, yet males opt to remain with their broods throughout most of the larval development. One potential benefit of a male's extended residency is that it affords him the opportunity of additional copulations with the female, which could ensure his paternity in a replacement brood should the female's first egg clutch fail to hatch. We tested this hypothesis by manipulating males' access to their mates during the production of replacement clutches, using genetic colour markers to determine the paternity of offspring. Females were induced to produce a replacement brood by removing their first clutch of eggs. In one experimental treatment, we removed the female's mate upon the removal of her first egg clutch (‘widowed’ females); in a second treatment, the female was permitted to retain her mate up until she produced a replacement clutch. There was no significant difference in paternity between males removed from females before the initiation of replacement clutches and those permitted to remain with their mates. However, widowed females produced fewer offspring in replacement broods than did females permitted to retain their mates. This difference occurred primarily because a significantly greater proportion of widowed females opted not to produce a replacement clutch, a result we refer to as the ‘widow effect’. This widow effect was further shown in those replicates in which females of both treatments produced replacement clutches: widowed females took significantly longer to produce a replacement clutch than did females permitted to retain their mates. The loss of her mate could be a signal to a female that a take‐over of the carcass is imminent. Her reluctance to produce a replacement clutch under these circumstances might constitute a strategy by which she conserves carrion for a subsequent reproductive attempt with an intruding male successful at ousting her previous mate. Regardless of its functional significance, the widow effect favours the extended residency of males and therefore contributes to the selective maintenance of male parental care.
Behavioural Responses to Scent Marks of Increasing Age in Klipspringer Oreotragus oreotragus
Authors: Roberts S. C. 
Published: May 2010

AbstractKlipspringers Oreotragus oreotragus are small antelopes which use scent marks to demarcate and defend their territory. The strength of behavioural response to the introduction of unfamiliar scent was measured in order to estimate the effective lifespan of scent secretion. The total number of scent marks deposited during the experiment was higher than control levels when fresh scent was introduced, but not when older scent was introduced. However, the proportion of marks deposited on introduced twigs remained higher than control levels until scent was aged at least 7d. The probability of licking twigs immediately before scent‐marking was much higher than control levels when scent aged up to 3d was introduced, but not when scent was aged 7d or more. These results indicate that preorbital gland scent retains at least some degree of efficacy for up to 7d. The decreasing level of response to scent aged 0‐7d is most likely to be due to decay of the scent signal. However, in contrast to the total number of marks deposited and the probability of licking before scent‐marking, which both consistently decreased in response to older scent, the proportion of marks deposited on scent aged 3d was higher than over fresh scent. It is suggested that, in view of the role that scent‐marking plays in territory defence, this difference in the timing of peak response between the three variables may represent an adaptive response to the perceived threat of encounter with an adversary, which is mediated by the age of the scent marks.
Risk Sensitivity in Foraging Jack Dempsey Cichlids (Cichlasoma octofasciatum)
Authors: Roche John P. , Dravet Susan M. , Bolyard Kimberly , Rowland William 
Published: May 2010

AbstractStudies have documented that animals with positive energy budgets tend to prefer feeding sites offering constant amounts of food over those offering variable amounts of food. The present study tested whether Jack Dempsey cichlids (Cichlasoma octofasciatum) in a two‐patch environment preferred the patch offering a constant amount of food over the one offering a variable amount of food. The study also examined (1) whether fish displayed shifts in risk sensitivity when they were allowed only one choice per trial (discrete‐choice treatment), as opposed to when they could freely sample both alternatives (free‐choice treatment), and (2) whether or not fish displayed shifts in risk sensitivity between the first trial of the day, when they were hungrier, and the final trial of the day, when they were more satiated. Two of six fish significantly preferred the constant alternative and one showed a numerical preference for the constant alternative that approached significance. The mean proportion of first choices to the constant side did not differ significantly between the discrete‐choice treatment and the free‐choice treatment. In the discrete‐choice treatment, however, fish were significantly more risk averse in the first trial of daily sessions than in the final trial — a shift in risk sensitivity opposite to that seen in a number of other studies. This suggests that animals may pass through more than one threshold in risk sensitivity on different points along an energy budget continuum.
Habitat Manipulation Modifies Lek Use in Fallow Deer
Authors: Apollonio Marco , Festa‐Bianchet Marco , Mari Franco , Bruno Elisabetta , Locati Maurizio 
Published: May 2010

AbstractFallow deer leks and single territories often persist in specific locations over many years. In our study area in Tuscany, one site (Lek 1) was used as a lek by fallow deer for at least 30 years. Females passed through the lek year‐round while travelling between sheltering and foraging sites. In 1987–89, forestry operations affected areas near the lek that were used by females as travel routes, but the lek site itself was not affected. After the logging operations, very few females traversed the lek site. Over the next 2 years the lek decreased in size (both in terms of number of territories defended and number of territorial males) until it became a single territory, and after two more years it was abandoned. Another lek (Lek 2) whose access routes were unaffected by forest cuts, continued to exist. Territorial males abandoned Lek 1 and moved to Lek 2 when female visits to Lek 1 became rare. Our results suggest that female movement patterns can be affected by habitat manipulations, and that females will not return to traditional mating sites that become external to their home ranges. Male fallow deer may form leks along female movement routes, where they experience a high female encounter rate as predicted by the hotspot model.
Male Song Stimulation of Female Reproduction in Canaries: Features Relevant to Sexual Displays are not Relevant to Nest‐building or Egg‐laying
Authors: Leboucher Gérard , Depraz Violaine , Kreutzer Michel , Nagle Laurent 
Published: May 2010

AbstractRecent studies conducted in our laboratory have demonstrated that a special type of song phrase (‘sexy’ phrases) containing bipartite syllables composed of abrupt frequency falls and short silences stimulate female canaries to solicit for copulation. The study was undertaken to determine whether sexy phrases also facilitated other aspects of the reproductive activity of the female canary, namely, nest‐building and egg‐laying. During the first experiment, we studied the effect of sexy and non‐sexy songs on copulation solicitation displays in 1‐year‐old females without reproductive experience and in mature females with previous reproductive experience. We confirmed that sexy songs elicited more sexual responses than did non‐sexy songs in yearlings and in mature females. During the second experiment, we studied the effect of male songs on nest‐building activities and egg‐laying in 1‐year‐old inexperienced females, and in mature, experienced females. The songs of conspecific males significantly triggered and increased nest‐building behaviour in female canaries whatever their age or reproductive experience. In contrast, song effects on egg‐laying were only found in young females. One‐year‐old inexperienced females exposed to sexy or non‐sexy songs laid more eggs and laid earlier than did 1‐year‐old inexperienced controls; no such differences were observed in mature, experienced females. The efficiency of songs in promoting nest‐building or egg‐laying appeared to be unrelated to their efficiency in eliciting sexual responses. No difference was found between females exposed to sexy songs and females exposed to non‐sexy songs; differences were only found between control and the two groups of song‐exposed females. This result demands further experiments in order to determine whether other song phrase types may account for the stimulating effects of male song on female nest‐building and egg‐laying.
Diel Calling Activity and Field Survival of the Bushcricket, Sciarasaga quadrata (Orthoptera: Tettigoniidae): A Role for Sound‐locating Parasitic Flies?
Authors: Allen Geoff R. 
Published: May 2010

AbstractIn this study I examine the variability in calling activity of Sciarasaga quadrata over both the short (4 d) and long term (life span), and the temporal pattern to host searching by its most significant natural enemy, the ormiine fly Homotrixa alleni. Indeed, few male S. quadrata survive the entire calling season as this acoustically orienting parasitoid fly continually ‘culls’ calling males out of the population. I found that male S. quadrata commence calling over 1 h before sunset, cease around midnight and call, on average, for over 3 h within this period (range 0–11 h 09 min). There was significant concordance and repeatability in calling activity over both the short and long term, enabling me to conclude that relative differences in calling activity among males persist throughout a male's life span. There was a distinct peak to host searching by gravid female flies, with 82 % of all flies collected at acoustic traps between sunset and midnight. A positive association between call duration (time spent calling) and fly attraction was evident from multiple collections of flies at single traps. Counter to expectation, there was no significant decline in average call duration across successive collections of males, indicating that long‐call‐duration males were not being selectively culled by flies from the calling population. Males at the end of the calling season, when their remaining reproductive potential is low, allocate the majority of their calling time between sunset and midnight despite the high risk of fly attack. The distribution of call durations within the population was not skewed, which if heritable, indicates a lack of history of directional selection acting on call duration. Limited evidence suggests that encounters with females are rare in S. quadrata so that males may be selected, irrespective of natural selection pressure, to call for long periods of time to optimize their chance of attracting mates. The above findings are further discussed in relation to parasitoid foraging and acoustic reproductive strategies.
Effects of Predation Risk and Food Availability on the Activity, Habitat Use, Feeding Behavior and Mating Behavior of a Pond Water Strider, Gerris marginatus (Hemiptera)
Authors: Moses Jennifer L. , Sih Andrew 
Published: May 2010

AbstractBy experimentally manipulating predation risk and food availability, we explored the effects of these factors on refuge use, general activity, feeding activity, and mating activity of adults of the pond water strider Gerris marginatus. Predation risk (from adult backswimmers Notonecta undulata) profoundly influenced the behavior of G. marginatus, reducing mating activity, general activity in males and females, decreasing feeding activity in females and increasing the use of refuge by both sexes. Surprisingly, variations in food availability failed to produce significant effects on any of these behavior patterns. Risk x food interactions were also not statistically significant for any gerrid behavior. The significant responses to predators all changed in directions that should decrease the risk of predation for G. marginatus.