{"title":"Brain size mediates the choice of breeding strategy in the red-backed shrike Lanius collurio","authors":"Joanna T. BIALAS, Łukasz DYLEWSKI, Marcin TOBOLKA","doi":"10.1111/1749-4877.12803","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p>The brain size of vertebrates represents a trade-off between natural selection for enhanced cognitive abilities and the energetic constraints of brain tissue production. Processing information efficiently can confer benefits, but it also entails time costs. Breeding strategies, encompassing timing of breeding onset and nest-site selection, may be related to brain size. In this study, we aim to elucidate the relationship between brain size, breeding timing, nest-site choice, and breeding success in the red-backed shrike <i>Lanius collurio</i>. Our findings revealed that the timing of the first egg-laying date was associated with female head size, with larger-headed females tending to lay eggs later in the breeding season. Additionally, we observed that breeding success was positively correlated with increased nest concealment. However, this relationship was stronger in males with smaller heads. In turn, nest concealment was not related to head size but primarily influenced breeding onset. These results suggest that the choice of breeding strategy may be moderated by brain size, with differences between sexes. Larger-headed females may invest more time in selecting nesting sites, leading to delayed breeding onset, while larger-headed males may compensate for suboptimal nest concealment. Our study sheds light on the intricate interplay between brain size, breeding timing, nest-site preferences, and breeding success in passerine birds, underscoring the potential role of cognitive capacity in shaping individual decision-making processes.</p>","PeriodicalId":13654,"journal":{"name":"Integrative zoology","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":3.5000,"publicationDate":"2024-01-09","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Integrative zoology","FirstCategoryId":"99","ListUrlMain":"https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1749-4877.12803","RegionNum":1,"RegionCategory":"生物学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q1","JCRName":"ZOOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
The brain size of vertebrates represents a trade-off between natural selection for enhanced cognitive abilities and the energetic constraints of brain tissue production. Processing information efficiently can confer benefits, but it also entails time costs. Breeding strategies, encompassing timing of breeding onset and nest-site selection, may be related to brain size. In this study, we aim to elucidate the relationship between brain size, breeding timing, nest-site choice, and breeding success in the red-backed shrike Lanius collurio. Our findings revealed that the timing of the first egg-laying date was associated with female head size, with larger-headed females tending to lay eggs later in the breeding season. Additionally, we observed that breeding success was positively correlated with increased nest concealment. However, this relationship was stronger in males with smaller heads. In turn, nest concealment was not related to head size but primarily influenced breeding onset. These results suggest that the choice of breeding strategy may be moderated by brain size, with differences between sexes. Larger-headed females may invest more time in selecting nesting sites, leading to delayed breeding onset, while larger-headed males may compensate for suboptimal nest concealment. Our study sheds light on the intricate interplay between brain size, breeding timing, nest-site preferences, and breeding success in passerine birds, underscoring the potential role of cognitive capacity in shaping individual decision-making processes.
期刊介绍:
The official journal of the International Society of Zoological Sciences focuses on zoology as an integrative discipline encompassing all aspects of animal life. It presents a broader perspective of many levels of zoological inquiry, both spatial and temporal, and encourages cooperation between zoology and other disciplines including, but not limited to, physics, computer science, social science, ethics, teaching, paleontology, molecular biology, physiology, behavior, ecology and the built environment. It also looks at the animal-human interaction through exploring animal-plant interactions, microbe/pathogen effects and global changes on the environment and human society.
Integrative topics of greatest interest to INZ include:
(1) Animals & climate change
(2) Animals & pollution
(3) Animals & infectious diseases
(4) Animals & biological invasions
(5) Animal-plant interactions
(6) Zoogeography & paleontology
(7) Neurons, genes & behavior
(8) Molecular ecology & evolution
(9) Physiological adaptations