Parental care in the common tern (Sterna Nirundo): sexual roles in a monogamous seabird
The parental behaviour of male and female Common Terns (Sterna hirundo) was documented throughout two breeding seasons at a colony near Port Colborne , Ontario. Thirteen and fourteen pairs of terns were chosen for intensive study in 1982 and 1983, respectively. The delivery of fish by males to their...
Main Author: | |
---|---|
Other Authors: | |
Format: | Thesis |
Language: | English |
Published: |
Brock University
2009
|
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/10464/1997 |
id |
ftbrockuniv:oai:dr.library.brocku.ca:10464/1997 |
---|---|
record_format |
openpolar |
spelling |
ftbrockuniv:oai:dr.library.brocku.ca:10464/1997 2024-06-09T07:45:28+00:00 Parental care in the common tern (Sterna Nirundo): sexual roles in a monogamous seabird Wiggins, David A. Department of Biological Sciences 2009-07-09T18:42:01Z http://hdl.handle.net/10464/1997 eng eng Brock University http://hdl.handle.net/10464/1997 Common tern Sea birds--Ontario--Port Colborne Sexual behavior in animals Electronic Thesis or Dissertation 2009 ftbrockuniv 2024-05-16T06:42:42Z The parental behaviour of male and female Common Terns (Sterna hirundo) was documented throughout two breeding seasons at a colony near Port Colborne , Ontario. Thirteen and fourteen pairs of terns were chosen for intensive study in 1982 and 1983, respectively. The delivery of fish by males to their mates ("courtship feeding") occurred prior-to, during, and following the egg-laying period. Following the laying of the second egg, courtship feeding rates declined significantly. There was a significant, positive correlation bebween courtship feeding rates and subsequent chick feeding rates by males. The incubation rates of females were significantly higher than those of males, especially during the first ten days of incubation. Territorial attendance rates during the incubation stage were similar for males and females. During the chick stage, territorial attendance rates of females were significantly higher than those of males. The size of fish fed to chicks by males increased as the chicks grew older and chick feeding rates of males were approximately three times higher than female rates. Based on these quantitative differences in parental care activities, the cumulative parental time investment by the two sexes was very similar. However, the energetic investment by males was likely greater than that by females, since male parental contributions (e.g. courtship feeding and chick feeding) often entailed extensive foraging behaviour. Thesis Common tern Sterna hirundo Brock University Digital Repository |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
Brock University Digital Repository |
op_collection_id |
ftbrockuniv |
language |
English |
topic |
Common tern Sea birds--Ontario--Port Colborne Sexual behavior in animals |
spellingShingle |
Common tern Sea birds--Ontario--Port Colborne Sexual behavior in animals Wiggins, David A. Parental care in the common tern (Sterna Nirundo): sexual roles in a monogamous seabird |
topic_facet |
Common tern Sea birds--Ontario--Port Colborne Sexual behavior in animals |
description |
The parental behaviour of male and female Common Terns (Sterna hirundo) was documented throughout two breeding seasons at a colony near Port Colborne , Ontario. Thirteen and fourteen pairs of terns were chosen for intensive study in 1982 and 1983, respectively. The delivery of fish by males to their mates ("courtship feeding") occurred prior-to, during, and following the egg-laying period. Following the laying of the second egg, courtship feeding rates declined significantly. There was a significant, positive correlation bebween courtship feeding rates and subsequent chick feeding rates by males. The incubation rates of females were significantly higher than those of males, especially during the first ten days of incubation. Territorial attendance rates during the incubation stage were similar for males and females. During the chick stage, territorial attendance rates of females were significantly higher than those of males. The size of fish fed to chicks by males increased as the chicks grew older and chick feeding rates of males were approximately three times higher than female rates. Based on these quantitative differences in parental care activities, the cumulative parental time investment by the two sexes was very similar. However, the energetic investment by males was likely greater than that by females, since male parental contributions (e.g. courtship feeding and chick feeding) often entailed extensive foraging behaviour. |
author2 |
Department of Biological Sciences |
format |
Thesis |
author |
Wiggins, David A. |
author_facet |
Wiggins, David A. |
author_sort |
Wiggins, David A. |
title |
Parental care in the common tern (Sterna Nirundo): sexual roles in a monogamous seabird |
title_short |
Parental care in the common tern (Sterna Nirundo): sexual roles in a monogamous seabird |
title_full |
Parental care in the common tern (Sterna Nirundo): sexual roles in a monogamous seabird |
title_fullStr |
Parental care in the common tern (Sterna Nirundo): sexual roles in a monogamous seabird |
title_full_unstemmed |
Parental care in the common tern (Sterna Nirundo): sexual roles in a monogamous seabird |
title_sort |
parental care in the common tern (sterna nirundo): sexual roles in a monogamous seabird |
publisher |
Brock University |
publishDate |
2009 |
url |
http://hdl.handle.net/10464/1997 |
genre |
Common tern Sterna hirundo |
genre_facet |
Common tern Sterna hirundo |
op_relation |
http://hdl.handle.net/10464/1997 |
_version_ |
1801374836034895872 |