Avian nests and nest-building as signals

Abstract:

Birds may signal their condition, health or parental disposition to mates through large nests or intense or elaborate nest-building. The mass, number or elaborateness of nests may exceed their strict reproductive requirements. In several species, courtship rituals include exhibition of nesting materials to mates, and some nests are not used for breeding. Signalling through nests or nest construction may occur both before and after mating and may involve either males or females. Only males appear to be involved in pre-mating signalling, while both males and females may signal after mating. In several species, nest size and nest building activity has been associated with the condition of nest-building males, and females in some cases, while the evidence for parental disposition has been more mixed. Nest defence capacity has also been associated with nest size. In some species, males attract more mates through …

Año de publicación:

2012

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Fuente:

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