Bronzy Hermit (Glaucis aeneus) Science Article 1 abstract On 10 January 1968I walked on a sand ridge between two swamps north of Paramaribo, Surinam, when Isaw two Rufous-breastedH ermits (Gla cis hirs ta) in an aerial fight that ended withone bird hotly pursuing the other. I took no special notice of it as this is […]
Category: Apodiformes
Blue-tailed emerald Hummingbird (Chlorostilbon mellisugus) nesting and nestling development
Blue-tailed Emerald (Chlorostilbon mellisugus) Science Article 1 abstract A nest of the Blue-tailed Emerald Hummingbird (Chlorostilbon mellisugus) was studied from the early finding of two eggs through to the loss of the single surviving nestling on day 19. Nestling growth and development, as well as female attendance during incubation and brooding are reported. The body […]
Der Alpensegler (Tachymarptis melba) in Freiburg im Breisgau
Alpine Swift (Apus melba) Science Article 10 abstract Since the first record of two birds in 1952 the colony of the Alpine Swift in the city of Freiburg im Breisgau (SW Germany) has increased to at least 259 individuals in 1999. From the beginning the population has been monitored and protective measures have been taken, […]
Second clutches in the Alpine Swift Apus melba.
Alpine Swift (Apus melba) Science Article 6 abstract During a 2-year study in Sofia, Bulgaria, second clutches were recorded in Alpine Swift Apus melba, a species stated to raise only one brood per year. Each of the second clutches was laid after a successful first breeding attempt, in one case proved by marked birds. The […]
Additive effects of ectoparasites over reproductive attempts in the long-lived alpine swift
Alpine Swift (Apus melba) Science Article 7 abstract Parasitism is a non-negligible cost of reproduction in wild organisms, and hosts are selected to partition resources optimally between current and future reproduction. While parents can compensate for the cost of parasitism by increasing their current reproductive investment, such change in resource allocation is expected to carry-over […]
MELANIN-BASED COLORATION IS A NONDIRECTIONALLY SELECTEDSEX-SPECIFIC SIGNAL OF OFFSPRING DEVELOPMENT IN THE ALPINE SWIF
Alpine Swift (Apus melba) Science Article 9 abstract Two mutually exclusive hypotheses have been put forward to explain the evolution and adaptive function of melanin-based color traits. According to sexual selection theory melanism is a directionally selected signal of individual quality, whereas theory on the maintenance of genetic polymorphism proposes that alternative melaninbased variants achieve […]
Apparent lack of effects of a high louse-fly infestation (Diptera, Hippoboscidae) on adult colonial Alpine Swifts
Alpine Swift (Apus melba) Science Article 5 abstract A population of Alpine Swifts Apus melba showed the highest louse-fly parasitization rate (74%) as far as known in birds. This might be caused by a limited ability to preen. The prevalence was lower in second-year birds than in adults, probably as a result of their breeding […]
Parasitism, developmental plasticity and bilateral asymmetry of wingfeathers in alpine swift, Apus melba, nestlings
Alpine Swift (Apus melba) Science Article 8 abstract The hypothesis that developmental instability is a cost of developmental plasticity isexplored using the alpine swift (Apus melba) as a model organism. In a previous study,experimentally parasitized nestlings showed a reduced wing growth rate in the first halfof the rearing period when parasites were abundant (i.e. peak […]
Covariation between egg size and rearing condition determines offspring quality: an experiment with the alpine swift
Alpine Swift (Apus melba) Science Article 1 abstract A positive correlation between egg size, early growth and nestling survival has been frequently reported in the ornithological literature. Albeit of interest, most of these studies did not determine whether the relationship between egg size, early growth and nestling survival was confounded by the quality of rearing […]
Female-biased mortality in experimentally parasitized Alpine Swift Apus melba nestlings
Alpine Swift (Apus melba) Science Article 2 abstract 1) Sex-biased mortality in adult vertebrates is often attributed to lower immunocompetence and higher parasite susceptibility of males. Although sex-specific mortality has also been reported during growth, the importance of sex-specific immunocompetence and parasite susceptibility in explaining male-biased mortality remains ambiguous in growing individuals because of potentially […]