| Summary: | Complex incubation strategies have evolved to solve the trade-off between parent survival and care for their eggs with often brief departures (recesses) that maximise egg survival or infrequent extended recesses maximising adult condition. Here we examined incubation behaviour of Sanderlings ( Calidris alba ), a species that exhibits both bi- and uniparental incubation behaviour. During 11 breeding seasons in Greenland, we have quantified incubation variability with thermologgers placed in nests. We estimated the impact of environmental conditions and individual characteristics on the occurrence and the duration of recesses. We found that extended recesses are a unique feature of uniparentals, and their frequency and duration increased in colder temperatures. The relationship was mediated by body condition, with individuals in poor condition performing longer extended recesses in colder temperatures. This suggests that extended recesses may represent a shift towards self-maintenance at the expense of the egg care, allowing birds to continue incubating under unfavourable conditions. Our study illustrates how extended recesses may be a key breeding strategy to overcome high energetical costs associated with incubation. Quantifying such behavioural flexibility paves the way for tracking future behavioural responses of individuals in the face of changing environments. Funding provided by: Agence Nationale de la Recherche Crossref Funder Registry ID: https://ror.org/00rbzpz17 Award Number: ANR-21-CE02-0024 PACS Funding provided by: Institut Polaire Français Paul Émile Victor Crossref Funder Registry ID: https://ror.org/011ed2d57 Award Number: Program "Interactions 1036" This dataset (2011-2021) is a long-term monitoring based on fieldwork in Greenland. The field team collects behavioural data at Sanderling nests by putting thermologgers in the nest cups during the incubation period. Loggers are then retrieved at the end of the breeding season and data is processed with TinyTag Explorer Software. One dataset is at ...
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