OrnithologyPub Date : 2022-06-01DOI: 10.1093/ornithology/ukac021
N. Burley, Felipe Azevedo Campos, Emilie Chien, Shauna Duarte, Nathalie Kirshman, Alison Thuy Tien N Phan, Kerianne M. Wilson
{"title":"Experimentally reduced feather microbial loads improve reproductive performance in captive Zebra Finches","authors":"N. Burley, Felipe Azevedo Campos, Emilie Chien, Shauna Duarte, Nathalie Kirshman, Alison Thuy Tien N Phan, Kerianne M. Wilson","doi":"10.1093/ornithology/ukac021","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/ornithology/ukac021","url":null,"abstract":"ABSTRACT We performed a laboratory experiment on caged, domesticated Australian Zebra Finches (Taeniopygia guttata castanotis) to assess the effects of antimicrobial treatment applied to birds' plumage on the feather microbial loads of breeding pairs and their associated reproductive performance. Treatments included an experimental group that experienced frequent misting with a broad-spectrum antimicrobial, as well as 2 control groups. Microbial loads (colony forming units [CFUs]) sampled from the belly feathers of breeders were higher posthatching than prehatching, and experimental pairs had lower loads (one-half to one-third the CFU counts) than controls at all sampled breeding-cycle stages. Clutch size and hatching success did not differ among treatments, but experimental pairs fledged nearly 50% more offspring (mean = 3.5 per clutch) than controls (mean = 2.3 per clutch) due to experiencing much lower nestling mortality. Offspring development rate, as assessed by one metric, varied among treatments: beak color score sampled midway in the development of adult phenotype revealed that offspring of experimental pairs had more rapid development. Findings imply that experimentally reduced density of feather microbial loads on breeders decreased reproductive costs in the posthatch phase, resulting in increased offspring survival and condition. At the time offspring fledged, uropygial gland volume tended to be greater among breeders that had experienced antimicrobial application throughout the breeding cycle. These results are consistent with a growing literature showing that the feather microbiome contributes significantly to the evolution of avian life histories and behavior and indicate that Zebra Finches are a useful laboratory model for investigating in vivo effects of the feather microbiome on avian hosts. LAY SUMMARY Feathers are necessary for bird survival, flight, and reproduction but provide large surface areas for the growth of microbes (bacteria plus yeast), whose aggregate effects on birds' health and reproduction are largely unknown. To measure reproductive effects, we used an antimicrobial treatment to reduce feather microbial density on one group of breeding pairs of Australian Zebra Finch (Taeniopygia guttata castanotis) and compared their reproduction to that of untreated control pairs of the same species. Birds with reduced feather microbial density raised more offspring per brood than controls, and their young showed more rapid development of beak color. Results imply that treated birds experienced reduced physiological costs that result from high microbial densities. This study indicates that feather microbes increase reproductive costs to birds and suggests that such costs have been influential in the evolution of avian reproductive schedules and behavior. RESUMO Realizamos um experimento laboratorial em diamantes-mandarim engaiolados e domesticados para avaliar os efeitos do tratamento antimicrobiano aplicado à plumagem das ave","PeriodicalId":19617,"journal":{"name":"Ornithology","volume":"33 1","pages":"1 - 18"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"75356203","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
OrnithologyPub Date : 2022-05-20DOI: 10.1093/ornithology/ukac022
Ester Martínez-Renau, Natalia Rojas-Estévez, Guillermo Friis, J. Hernández-Montoya, P. Elizondo, B. Milá
{"title":"Haemosporidian parasite diversity and prevalence in the songbird genus Junco across Central and North America","authors":"Ester Martínez-Renau, Natalia Rojas-Estévez, Guillermo Friis, J. Hernández-Montoya, P. Elizondo, B. Milá","doi":"10.1093/ornithology/ukac022","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/ornithology/ukac022","url":null,"abstract":"ABSTRACT The evolution of host–parasite interactions as host lineages colonize new geographic regions and diversify over evolutionary time is poorly understood. To assess whether haemosporidian parasite diversity has changed during the diversification of an avian host, we surveyed the diversity and prevalence of blood parasite lineages (genera Plasmodium, Haemoproteus, and Leucocytozoon) across the range of the songbird genus Junco, which has diversified recently as it recolonized North America following the last glacial maximum ∼18,000 years ago. We report the diversity and prevalence of parasites in junco taxa sampled from Costa Rica to Canada, and examine the influence of local avian species richness in the prevalence and diversity of parasites in junco samples. We screened for parasites in each individual by sequencing a fragment of their cytochrome b gene, identifying the different lineages, and quantifying the prevalence per junco taxon and locality. Of 304 juncos sampled, 178 tested positive for 1 or more parasite genera (58.5% overall prevalence). We found high parasite diversity in genera Haemoproteus and Leucocytozoon and much lower diversity in Plasmodium. Among the 63 parasite lineages detected, 32 of which have not been previously described, we found generalist lineages with widespread but low prevalence in Junco, but also some that appear to have remained specialized on this genus as it diversified across North America over thousands of years. Our results suggest a range of parasitic strategies, ranging from specialized to generalist lineages within single parasite genera. LAY SUMMARY In this study we describe patterns of haemosporidian blood parasite diversity and prevalence across the range of the genus Junco. We surveyed blood parasites in 304 juncos from across the range, and looked at parasite prevalence and diversity. We found high parasite diversity in genera Haemoproteus and Leucocytozoon and much lower diversity in Plasmodium. Both the prevalence and diversity of Haemoproteus and Leucocytozoon were positively correlated with local avian species richness. We also found that some parasites are specialized on juncos, whereas others can also be found in other landbird species. Some parasites appear to have remained restricted to juncos even when the recolonization of North America caused juncos to adapt to many different habitats and even diversify into different evolutionary lineages. RESUMEN La evolución de las interacciones entre hospedadores y parásitos cuando linajes de hospedadores colonizan nuevas regiones geográficas y se diversifican a lo largo del tiempo evolutivo es un proceso poco conocido. Para determinar si la diversidad de parásitos hemosporidios ha cambiado durante la diversificación de su hospedador aviar, muestreamos la diversidad y prevalencia de linajes de parásitos sanguíneos (géneros Plasmodium, Haemoproteus y Leucocitozoon) a lo largo de la distribución del género paseriforme Junco, el cual se ha diversif","PeriodicalId":19617,"journal":{"name":"Ornithology","volume":"5 1","pages":"1 - 17"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-05-20","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"88413432","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
OrnithologyPub Date : 2022-05-06DOI: 10.1093/ornithology/ukac016
M. H. Neate‐Clegg
{"title":"Effects of Climate Change on Birds","authors":"M. H. Neate‐Clegg","doi":"10.1093/ornithology/ukac016","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/ornithology/ukac016","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":19617,"journal":{"name":"Ornithology","volume":"23 1","pages":"1 - 2"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-05-06","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"79088051","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
OrnithologyPub Date : 2022-04-27DOI: 10.1093/ornithology/ukac018
Mary J. Woodruff, C. Zimmer, D. Ardia, Maren N. Vitousek, K. Rosvall
{"title":"Heat shock protein gene expression varies among tissues and populations in free-living birds","authors":"Mary J. Woodruff, C. Zimmer, D. Ardia, Maren N. Vitousek, K. Rosvall","doi":"10.1093/ornithology/ukac018","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/ornithology/ukac018","url":null,"abstract":"ABSTRACT Climate change is dramatically altering our planet, yet our understanding of mechanisms of thermal tolerance is limited in wild birds. We characterized natural variation in heat shock protein (HSP) gene expression among tissues and populations of free-living Tree Swallows (Tachycineta bicolor). We focused on HSPs because they prevent cellular damage and promote recovery from heat stress. We used quantitative PCR to measure gene expression of 3 HSPs, including those in the HSP70 and HSP90 families that have robust experimental connections to heat in past literature. First, to evaluate how tissues and, by extension, the functions that they mediate, may vary in their thermal protection, we compared HSP gene expression among neural and peripheral tissues. We hypothesized that tissues with particularly vital functions would be more protected from heat as indicated by higher HSP gene expression. We found that brain tissues had consistently higher HSP gene expression compared to the pectoral muscle. Next, we compared HSP gene expression across 4 distinct populations that span over 20° of latitude (>2,300 km). We hypothesized that the more southern populations would have higher HSP gene expression, suggesting greater tolerance of, or experience with, warmer local conditions. We observed largely higher HSP gene expression in more southern populations than northern populations, although this pattern was more striking at the extremes (southern Indiana vs. Alaska), and it was stronger in some brain areas than others (ventromedial telencephalon vs. hypothalamus). These results shed light on the potential mechanisms that may underlie thermal tolerance differences among populations or among tissues. LAY SUMMARY Birds can be internally protected from heat by elevated production of heat shock proteins (HSPs), which prevent damage and promote recovery from heat stress. We characterized natural variation in HSP gene expression in wild Tree Swallows (Tachycineta bicolor), a songbird undergoing a southward expansion in its breeding range. We found that the brain had consistently higher HSP gene expression compared to the flight muscle. We also observed higher neural HSP gene expression in more southern populations than northern populations, although this pattern was more striking at the extremes (southern Indiana vs. Alaska), and it was stronger in some brain areas than others. These results shed light on potential mechanisms of thermal tolerance in birds, including variation among tissues or variation among populations. RÉSUMÉ Le changement climatique modifie considérablement notre planète, mais notre compréhension des mécanismes de tolérance thermique est limitée chez les oiseaux sauvages. Nous avons caractérisé la variation naturelle dans l'expression des gènes de protéines de choc thermique (HSP) entre les tissus et les populations de Tachycineta bicolor vivant en liberté. Nous nous sommes concentrés sur les HSP car elles préviennent les dommages cellula","PeriodicalId":19617,"journal":{"name":"Ornithology","volume":"7 1","pages":"1 - 13"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-04-27","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"79992119","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
OrnithologyPub Date : 2022-04-09DOI: 10.1093/ornithology/ukac014
P. Hendricks
{"title":"Richard Evan Johnson, 1936–2021","authors":"P. Hendricks","doi":"10.1093/ornithology/ukac014","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/ornithology/ukac014","url":null,"abstract":"With the passing of Richard E. (“Dick”) Johnson on December 8, 2021 at the age of 85, from complications associated with dementia, ornithology lost the foremost authority on the biology of North American rosy-finches (Leucosticte). For aspiring students of alpine bird ecology in the U.S. during the last three decades of the 20th century, potential mentors with the depth of knowledge and experience that Dick possessed could be counted on one hand. Likewise, for anyone wanting feedback on the possibilities of studying birds (or anything else) in the challenging regions above tree line, Dick was a logical choice for an opinion on the feasibility of the project, for there were few alpine areas of the western U.S. he hadn’t visited at least once. Dick was born on November 9, 1936 in Pomona, California, the only child of George Frank Morris Johnson and Mina Baines Johnson. Dick’s camping trips at a very early age with his parents into the mountains of California had a lasting influence on his passion for mountains. He remained in Pomona through high school, where he was active in Boy Scout Troop 1 (attaining the rank of Eagle). He then attended the University of California, Berkeley (B.S. Forestry 1958), Fuller Theological Seminary, Pasadena (1959–1961), University of Montana (M.S. Zoology 1968), and Berkeley again (Ph.D. Zoology 1972), with Ned K. Johnson as his committee chair. He was hired fresh from Berkeley by Washington State University (WSU) with joint appointments as Director of the Charles R. Conner Museum and Assistant Professor of Zoology, teaching ornithology and mammalogy. At WSU, where he remained until his retirement in 1998, he successfully chaired 12 M.S. and 7 Ph.D. committees and expanded the museum collections by about 33,000 mammals and 9,000 birds. After retirement, he kept his office and laboratory for another 20 years and continued to help at the museum. Dick served in various capacities for the Pacific Northwest Bird and Mammal Society (later the Society for Northwest Vertebrate Biology), including as editor of The Murrelet (now Northwestern Naturalist) (1976–1980). He was named an Elective Member of the American Ornithologists’ Union (AOU) in 1980. Two western states, California and Montana, were central to Dick’s personal and professional development. After completing his forestry degree, and while attending seminary, Dick worked summers during 1958–1961 for the National Park Service as a seasonal ranger-naturalist in Glacier National Park. Dick was encouraged to apply there by Lloyd Parratt, a Professor of Biology at Chaffey College, Alta Loma, California, whom Dick met while in scouts, and who had been a ranger-naturalist in Glacier since 1946. Dick wrote that Lloyd was “important in my history because I may never have gotten to Glacier (or Montana), and therefore never have studied rosy-finches were it not for him!” It was while based in the St. Mary applyparastyle \"fig//caption/p[1]\" parastyle \"FigCapt\"","PeriodicalId":19617,"journal":{"name":"Ornithology","volume":"1 1","pages":"1 - 3"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-04-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"86056000","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
OrnithologyPub Date : 2022-04-05DOI: 10.1093/ornithology/ukac017
Conor C. Taff, Brianna A. Johnson, Allison T. Anker, Alyssa M. Rodriguez, Jennifer L. Houtz, Jennifer J. Uehling, Maren N. Vitousek
{"title":"No apparent trade-off between the quality of nest-grown feathers and time spent in the nest in an aerial insectivore, the Tree Swallow","authors":"Conor C. Taff, Brianna A. Johnson, Allison T. Anker, Alyssa M. Rodriguez, Jennifer L. Houtz, Jennifer J. Uehling, Maren N. Vitousek","doi":"10.1093/ornithology/ukac017","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/ornithology/ukac017","url":null,"abstract":"ABSTRACT Life history theory provides a framework for understanding how trade-offs generate negative trait associations. Among nestling birds, time spent in the nest, risk of predation, and lifespan covary, but some associations are only found within species while others are only observed between species. A recent comparative study suggests that allocation trade-offs may be alleviated by disinvestment in ephemeral traits, such as nest-grown feathers, that are quickly replaced. However, direct resource allocation trade-offs cannot be inferred from interspecific trait associations without complementary intraspecific studies. Here, we asked whether there is evidence for a within-species allocation trade-off between feather quality and time spent in the nest in Tree Swallows (Tachycineta bicolor). Consistent with the idea that ephemeral traits are deprioritized, nest-grown feathers had lower barb density than adult feathers. However, despite substantial variation in fledging age among nestlings, there was no evidence for a negative association between time in the nest and feather quality. Furthermore, accounting for differences in resource availability by considering provisioning rate and a nest predation treatment did not reveal a trade-off that was masked by variation in resources. Our results are most consistent with the idea that the interspecific association between development and feather quality arises from adaptive specialization, rather than from a direct allocation trade-off. LAY SUMMARY For many species of birds, nestlings hatch undeveloped and enter a period during which they must grow rapidly in the nest while also being exposed to a high risk of predation. This intense period of growth can create strong trade-offs where a limited pool of resources must be invested into a variety of traits simultaneously. One way that nestlings might balance these trade-offs is by withholding resources from traits that will have less influence on successful survival into adulthood. We studied wild Tree Swallows to ask whether there is evidence for this direct investment trade-off by measuring fledging age, feather quality, and morphology while manipulating resource availability. We did not find evidence for a direct trade-off within Tree Swallows, and we discuss how this result informs the interpretation of previous work comparing feather quality and development between species. RESUMEN La teoría de la historia de vida proporciona un marco de referencia para comprender cómo las compensaciones generan asociaciones negativas entre los rasgos. Entre los polluelos que anidan, el tiempo que pasan en el nido, el riesgo de depredación y la esperanza de vida covarían, pero algunas asociaciones solo se encuentran dentro de las especies, mientras que otras solo se observan entre especies. Un estudio comparativo reciente sugiere que las compensaciones de asignación pueden aliviarse mediante la desinversión en características efímeras, como las plumas que crecen en ","PeriodicalId":19617,"journal":{"name":"Ornithology","volume":"18 1","pages":"1 - 13"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-04-05","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"80866360","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
OrnithologyPub Date : 2022-03-24DOI: 10.1093/ornithology/ukac013
N. Geist
{"title":"Romancing the Birds and Dinosaurs: Forays in Postmodern Paleontology","authors":"N. Geist","doi":"10.1093/ornithology/ukac013","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/ornithology/ukac013","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":19617,"journal":{"name":"Ornithology","volume":"6 1","pages":"1 - 2"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-03-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"90757317","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
OrnithologyPub Date : 2022-03-15DOI: 10.1642/0004-8038(2003)120[1213:yaitao]2.0.co;2
Leesia C. Marshall
{"title":"100 Years Ago in The American Ornithologists' Union","authors":"Leesia C. Marshall","doi":"10.1642/0004-8038(2003)120[1213:yaitao]2.0.co;2","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1642/0004-8038(2003)120[1213:yaitao]2.0.co;2","url":null,"abstract":"","PeriodicalId":19617,"journal":{"name":"Ornithology","volume":"26 1","pages":"1213 - 1213"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-03-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"84608523","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
OrnithologyPub Date : 2022-03-15DOI: 10.1093/ornithology/ukac009
Andrew N. Stillman, M. V. Caiafa, Teresa J. Lorenz, M. Jusino, M. Tingley
{"title":"DNA metabarcoding reveals broad woodpecker diets in fire-maintained forests","authors":"Andrew N. Stillman, M. V. Caiafa, Teresa J. Lorenz, M. Jusino, M. Tingley","doi":"10.1093/ornithology/ukac009","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/ornithology/ukac009","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000 Ecological disturbance is a key agent shaping the spatial and temporal landscape of food availability. In forests of western North America, disturbance from fire can lead to resource pulses of deadwood-associated arthropods that provide important prey for woodpeckers. Although the foraging strategies among woodpecker species often demonstrate pronounced differences, little is known about the ways in which woodpeckers exploit and partition prey in disturbed areas. In this study, we employed DNA metabarcoding to characterize and compare the arthropod diets of 4 woodpecker species in Washington and California, USA—Black-backed Woodpecker (Picoides arcticus), Hairy Woodpecker (Dryobates villosus), Northern Flicker (Colaptes auratus), and White-headed Woodpecker (Dryobates albolarvatus)—primarily using nestling fecal samples from burned forests 1–13 years postfire. Successful sequencing from 78 samples revealed the presence of over 600 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) spanning 32 arthropod orders. The nestling diets of two species in particular—Northern Flicker and Black-backed Woodpecker—proved to be much broader than previous observational studies suggest. Northern Flicker nestlings demonstrated significantly higher diet diversity compared to other focal species, all of which displayed considerable overlap in diversity. Wood-boring beetles, which colonize dead and dying trees after fire, were particularly important diet items for Black-backed, Hairy, and White-headed woodpeckers. Diet composition differed among species, and diets showed limited differences between newer (≤5 yr) and older (>5 yr) postfire forests. Our results show mixed evidence for dietary resource partitioning, with three of the four focal species exhibiting relatively high diet overlap, perhaps due to the pulsed subsidy of deadwood-associated arthropods in burned forests. Woodpeckers are frequently used as management indicator species for forest health, and our study provides one of the first applications of DNA metabarcoding to build a more complete picture of woodpecker diets.","PeriodicalId":19617,"journal":{"name":"Ornithology","volume":"16 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-03-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"77094713","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
OrnithologyPub Date : 2022-03-15DOI: 10.1093/ornithology/ukac010
T. Sherry, C. Kent
{"title":"Extensions and limitations of MacArthur (1958): A review of ecological and evolutionary approaches to competition and diet in the New World wood warblers (Parulidae)","authors":"T. Sherry, C. Kent","doi":"10.1093/ornithology/ukac010","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1093/ornithology/ukac010","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000 The extent to which interspecific competition structures species interactions and coexistence within communities, and the relevant mechanisms, are still debated. We focus on New World wood warblers (Parulidae), beginning with Robert MacArthur’s iconic 1958 paper in which he shows how subtle foraging behaviors, purportedly linked to dietary differences, within spruce trees contribute to the coexistence of 5 spruce-woods warbler species. MacArthur coined the phrase “resource partitioning”, and profoundly impacted the field of Ecology for subsequent decades in diverse ways. To understand what MacArthur got right and what he missed, we reviewed both ecological and evolutionary approaches to questions of the origin and coexistence of competing species in the context of diet. We argue that an important, underappreciated, mechanism of competition among coexisting migratory warbler species, particularly in winter, is diffuse exploitation competition, based in part on our own studies of warbler diets in relation to foraging behavior, substrate use, bird morphology, and other traits. Our review and synthesis of interspecific competition and coexistence in warblers have important consequences, including our questioning of the importance and effectiveness of resource partitioning in birds. We also suggest a novel hypothesis for the success of warblers today in the Caribbean and other habitats, beginning with their relatively recent adaptive radiation and the ecological opportunity on Caribbean islands.","PeriodicalId":19617,"journal":{"name":"Ornithology","volume":"190 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2022-03-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"74174274","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}