The wages of violence: mobbing by mockingbirds as a frontline defence against brood-parasitic cowbirds

Autores
Gloag, Ros; Fiorini, Vanina Dafne; Reboreda, Juan Carlos; Kacelnik, Alex
Año de publicación
2013
Idioma
inglés
Tipo de recurso
artículo
Estado
versión publicada
Descripción
For many hosts of brood-parasitic birds, their frontline of defence is to mob adult parasites that approach the nest. Mobbing is commonly interpreted as an adaptation to prevent the parasite from laying, although to date evidence of this is indirect or anecdotal. We investigated the effectiveness of mobbing by chalk-browed mockingbirds, Mimus saturninus, as a defence against their parasite, the shiny cowbird, Molothrus bonariensis, using videos of 480 naturally occurring cowbird nest visits and other direct observations. Mockingbirds only occasionally prevented cowbirds from reaching the nest or from laying once in it. More often, cowbirds were able to deposit an egg, aided by their agile flight, rapid laying, endurance of mobbing and, in some cases, opportunistic timing, whereby they approached nests when mockingbirds were distracted in battle with other cowbirds. Adult parasites present a second threat to hosts, however, in that they try to damage or remove host eggs prior to laying their own. We found that mobbing at the nest significantly reduced the likelihood that cowbirds broke a mockingbird egg during their visit, despite almost all mobbed visits concluding with a cowbird laying an egg. In this host therefore, the benefit of mobbing must be assessed by two independent measures: prevention of egg laying by the parasite and loss of their own eggs. As mockingbird eggs that survive a cowbird's visit intact can go on to fledge from parasitized broods, we expect strong selection for mobbing as an antiparasite defence in this host, even though it largely fails to prevent parasitism itself.
Fil: Gloag, Ros. University of Oxford; Reino Unido
Fil: Fiorini, Vanina Dafne. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Ecología, Genética y Evolución de Buenos Aires. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Ecología, Genética y Evolución de Buenos Aires; Argentina
Fil: Reboreda, Juan Carlos. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Ecología, Genética y Evolución de Buenos Aires. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Ecología, Genética y Evolución de Buenos Aires; Argentina
Fil: Kacelnik, Alex. University of Oxford; Reino Unido
Materia
Brood Parasitism
Chalk-Browed Mockingbird
Egg-Puncture
Front-Line Defence
Nivel de accesibilidad
acceso abierto
Condiciones de uso
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.5/ar/
Repositorio
CONICET Digital (CONICET)
Institución
Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas
OAI Identificador
oai:ri.conicet.gov.ar:11336/19609

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spelling The wages of violence: mobbing by mockingbirds as a frontline defence against brood-parasitic cowbirdsGloag, RosFiorini, Vanina DafneReboreda, Juan CarlosKacelnik, AlexBrood ParasitismChalk-Browed MockingbirdEgg-PunctureFront-Line Defencehttps://purl.org/becyt/ford/1.6https://purl.org/becyt/ford/1For many hosts of brood-parasitic birds, their frontline of defence is to mob adult parasites that approach the nest. Mobbing is commonly interpreted as an adaptation to prevent the parasite from laying, although to date evidence of this is indirect or anecdotal. We investigated the effectiveness of mobbing by chalk-browed mockingbirds, Mimus saturninus, as a defence against their parasite, the shiny cowbird, Molothrus bonariensis, using videos of 480 naturally occurring cowbird nest visits and other direct observations. Mockingbirds only occasionally prevented cowbirds from reaching the nest or from laying once in it. More often, cowbirds were able to deposit an egg, aided by their agile flight, rapid laying, endurance of mobbing and, in some cases, opportunistic timing, whereby they approached nests when mockingbirds were distracted in battle with other cowbirds. Adult parasites present a second threat to hosts, however, in that they try to damage or remove host eggs prior to laying their own. We found that mobbing at the nest significantly reduced the likelihood that cowbirds broke a mockingbird egg during their visit, despite almost all mobbed visits concluding with a cowbird laying an egg. In this host therefore, the benefit of mobbing must be assessed by two independent measures: prevention of egg laying by the parasite and loss of their own eggs. As mockingbird eggs that survive a cowbird's visit intact can go on to fledge from parasitized broods, we expect strong selection for mobbing as an antiparasite defence in this host, even though it largely fails to prevent parasitism itself.Fil: Gloag, Ros. University of Oxford; Reino UnidoFil: Fiorini, Vanina Dafne. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Ecología, Genética y Evolución de Buenos Aires. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Ecología, Genética y Evolución de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Reboreda, Juan Carlos. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Ecología, Genética y Evolución de Buenos Aires. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Ecología, Genética y Evolución de Buenos Aires; ArgentinaFil: Kacelnik, Alex. University of Oxford; Reino UnidoElsevier2013-11info:eu-repo/semantics/articleinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersionhttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_6501info:ar-repo/semantics/articuloapplication/pdfapplication/pdfapplication/pdfhttp://hdl.handle.net/11336/19609Gloag, Ros; Fiorini, Vanina Dafne; Reboreda, Juan Carlos; Kacelnik, Alex; The wages of violence: mobbing by mockingbirds as a frontline defence against brood-parasitic cowbirds; Elsevier; Animal Behaviour; 86; 5; 11-2013; 1023-10290003-3472CONICET DigitalCONICETenginfo:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/doi/10.1016/j.anbehav.2013.09.007info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/url/http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0003347213004077info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccesshttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.5/ar/reponame:CONICET Digital (CONICET)instname:Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas2025-09-29T10:08:35Zoai:ri.conicet.gov.ar:11336/19609instacron:CONICETInstitucionalhttp://ri.conicet.gov.ar/Organismo científico-tecnológicoNo correspondehttp://ri.conicet.gov.ar/oai/requestdasensio@conicet.gov.ar; lcarlino@conicet.gov.arArgentinaNo correspondeNo correspondeNo correspondeopendoar:34982025-09-29 10:08:35.921CONICET Digital (CONICET) - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicasfalse
dc.title.none.fl_str_mv The wages of violence: mobbing by mockingbirds as a frontline defence against brood-parasitic cowbirds
title The wages of violence: mobbing by mockingbirds as a frontline defence against brood-parasitic cowbirds
spellingShingle The wages of violence: mobbing by mockingbirds as a frontline defence against brood-parasitic cowbirds
Gloag, Ros
Brood Parasitism
Chalk-Browed Mockingbird
Egg-Puncture
Front-Line Defence
title_short The wages of violence: mobbing by mockingbirds as a frontline defence against brood-parasitic cowbirds
title_full The wages of violence: mobbing by mockingbirds as a frontline defence against brood-parasitic cowbirds
title_fullStr The wages of violence: mobbing by mockingbirds as a frontline defence against brood-parasitic cowbirds
title_full_unstemmed The wages of violence: mobbing by mockingbirds as a frontline defence against brood-parasitic cowbirds
title_sort The wages of violence: mobbing by mockingbirds as a frontline defence against brood-parasitic cowbirds
dc.creator.none.fl_str_mv Gloag, Ros
Fiorini, Vanina Dafne
Reboreda, Juan Carlos
Kacelnik, Alex
author Gloag, Ros
author_facet Gloag, Ros
Fiorini, Vanina Dafne
Reboreda, Juan Carlos
Kacelnik, Alex
author_role author
author2 Fiorini, Vanina Dafne
Reboreda, Juan Carlos
Kacelnik, Alex
author2_role author
author
author
dc.subject.none.fl_str_mv Brood Parasitism
Chalk-Browed Mockingbird
Egg-Puncture
Front-Line Defence
topic Brood Parasitism
Chalk-Browed Mockingbird
Egg-Puncture
Front-Line Defence
purl_subject.fl_str_mv https://purl.org/becyt/ford/1.6
https://purl.org/becyt/ford/1
dc.description.none.fl_txt_mv For many hosts of brood-parasitic birds, their frontline of defence is to mob adult parasites that approach the nest. Mobbing is commonly interpreted as an adaptation to prevent the parasite from laying, although to date evidence of this is indirect or anecdotal. We investigated the effectiveness of mobbing by chalk-browed mockingbirds, Mimus saturninus, as a defence against their parasite, the shiny cowbird, Molothrus bonariensis, using videos of 480 naturally occurring cowbird nest visits and other direct observations. Mockingbirds only occasionally prevented cowbirds from reaching the nest or from laying once in it. More often, cowbirds were able to deposit an egg, aided by their agile flight, rapid laying, endurance of mobbing and, in some cases, opportunistic timing, whereby they approached nests when mockingbirds were distracted in battle with other cowbirds. Adult parasites present a second threat to hosts, however, in that they try to damage or remove host eggs prior to laying their own. We found that mobbing at the nest significantly reduced the likelihood that cowbirds broke a mockingbird egg during their visit, despite almost all mobbed visits concluding with a cowbird laying an egg. In this host therefore, the benefit of mobbing must be assessed by two independent measures: prevention of egg laying by the parasite and loss of their own eggs. As mockingbird eggs that survive a cowbird's visit intact can go on to fledge from parasitized broods, we expect strong selection for mobbing as an antiparasite defence in this host, even though it largely fails to prevent parasitism itself.
Fil: Gloag, Ros. University of Oxford; Reino Unido
Fil: Fiorini, Vanina Dafne. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Ecología, Genética y Evolución de Buenos Aires. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Ecología, Genética y Evolución de Buenos Aires; Argentina
Fil: Reboreda, Juan Carlos. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Ciudad Universitaria. Instituto de Ecología, Genética y Evolución de Buenos Aires. Universidad de Buenos Aires. Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales. Instituto de Ecología, Genética y Evolución de Buenos Aires; Argentina
Fil: Kacelnik, Alex. University of Oxford; Reino Unido
description For many hosts of brood-parasitic birds, their frontline of defence is to mob adult parasites that approach the nest. Mobbing is commonly interpreted as an adaptation to prevent the parasite from laying, although to date evidence of this is indirect or anecdotal. We investigated the effectiveness of mobbing by chalk-browed mockingbirds, Mimus saturninus, as a defence against their parasite, the shiny cowbird, Molothrus bonariensis, using videos of 480 naturally occurring cowbird nest visits and other direct observations. Mockingbirds only occasionally prevented cowbirds from reaching the nest or from laying once in it. More often, cowbirds were able to deposit an egg, aided by their agile flight, rapid laying, endurance of mobbing and, in some cases, opportunistic timing, whereby they approached nests when mockingbirds were distracted in battle with other cowbirds. Adult parasites present a second threat to hosts, however, in that they try to damage or remove host eggs prior to laying their own. We found that mobbing at the nest significantly reduced the likelihood that cowbirds broke a mockingbird egg during their visit, despite almost all mobbed visits concluding with a cowbird laying an egg. In this host therefore, the benefit of mobbing must be assessed by two independent measures: prevention of egg laying by the parasite and loss of their own eggs. As mockingbird eggs that survive a cowbird's visit intact can go on to fledge from parasitized broods, we expect strong selection for mobbing as an antiparasite defence in this host, even though it largely fails to prevent parasitism itself.
publishDate 2013
dc.date.none.fl_str_mv 2013-11
dc.type.none.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/article
info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion
http://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_6501
info:ar-repo/semantics/articulo
format article
status_str publishedVersion
dc.identifier.none.fl_str_mv http://hdl.handle.net/11336/19609
Gloag, Ros; Fiorini, Vanina Dafne; Reboreda, Juan Carlos; Kacelnik, Alex; The wages of violence: mobbing by mockingbirds as a frontline defence against brood-parasitic cowbirds; Elsevier; Animal Behaviour; 86; 5; 11-2013; 1023-1029
0003-3472
CONICET Digital
CONICET
url http://hdl.handle.net/11336/19609
identifier_str_mv Gloag, Ros; Fiorini, Vanina Dafne; Reboreda, Juan Carlos; Kacelnik, Alex; The wages of violence: mobbing by mockingbirds as a frontline defence against brood-parasitic cowbirds; Elsevier; Animal Behaviour; 86; 5; 11-2013; 1023-1029
0003-3472
CONICET Digital
CONICET
dc.language.none.fl_str_mv eng
language eng
dc.relation.none.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/doi/10.1016/j.anbehav.2013.09.007
info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/url/http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0003347213004077
dc.rights.none.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.5/ar/
eu_rights_str_mv openAccess
rights_invalid_str_mv https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/2.5/ar/
dc.format.none.fl_str_mv application/pdf
application/pdf
application/pdf
dc.publisher.none.fl_str_mv Elsevier
publisher.none.fl_str_mv Elsevier
dc.source.none.fl_str_mv reponame:CONICET Digital (CONICET)
instname:Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas
reponame_str CONICET Digital (CONICET)
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instname_str Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas
repository.name.fl_str_mv CONICET Digital (CONICET) - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas
repository.mail.fl_str_mv dasensio@conicet.gov.ar; lcarlino@conicet.gov.ar
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