Foraging intention affects whether willow tits call to attract members of mixed-species flocks.

ABSTRACT: Understanding how individual behaviour influences the spatial and temporal distribution of other species is necessary to resolve the complex structure of species assemblages. Mixed-species bird flocks provide an ideal opportunity to investigate this issue, because members of the flocks are involved in a variety of behavioural interactions between species. Willow tits (Poecile montanus) often produce loud calls when visiting a new foraging patch to recruit other members of mixed-species flocks. The costs and benefits of flocking would differ with individual foraging behaviours (i.e. immediate consumption or caching); thus, willow tits may adjust the production of loud calls according to their foraging intention. In this study, we investigated the link between foraging decisions and c

SUBMITTER: Suzuki TN 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5493917 | biostudies-literature | 2017 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature