Magpie (Pica pica) Science Article 8 abstract Maternal effects have been suggested to function as a mechanism for transgenerational plasticity,in which the environment experienced by the mother is translated into the phenotype of the offspring.In birds and other oviparous vertebrates where early development is within the egg, mothersmay be able to improve the viability prospects […]

Magpie (Pica pica) Science Article 7 abstract Reproductive success in many avian populations declines throughout the breedingseason. Two hypotheses have gained attention to explain such a decline: the

Magpie (Pica pica) Science Article 11 abstract In many animals immunity is not fully developed until adulthood but the youngstill need protection against various sets of pathogens. Thus, bird nestlings are highlydependent on antibodies received from their mother (in the eggs) during their rapidearly growth period. MARJO PIHLAJA, HELI SIITARI and RAUNO V. ALATALO, Journal […]

Magpie (Pica pica) Science Article 2 abstract We investigated whether an increase in begging levels delays growth of chicks. In experiment 1, we hand-reared nine pairs ofring dove squabs, divided into a control and a begging group. All squabs received similar amounts of food, but those in thebegging group had to beg for a prolonged […]

Magpie (Pica pica) Science Article 9 abstract Post-mating sexually selected signals are expected to indicate parental quality. The good parent model assumes that expression ofthe sexual character positively reflects parental ability, resulting in a potential link between the exaggeration of the character andnestling-fitness traits. We tested this prediction in a population of a monogamous passerine, […]

Magpie (Pica pica) Science Article 3 abstract Brood parasites dramatically reduce the reproductive success of their hosts, which therefore have developed defenses against brood parasites. The first line of defense is protecting the nest against adult parasites. When the parasite has successfully parasitized a host nest, some hosts are able to recognize and reject the […]

Jackdaw (Coloeus monedula) Science Article 2 abstract Variation in size and shape of the jackdaw (Corvus monedula) eggs was studiedon egg’s museum collection data from Bardejov region, NE Slovakia, from1961 to 1964. Mean clutch size was 4.14  1.29 (n = 125). Coecients of variationfor clutch means ranged from 1.67 (breadth) to 4.85 (volume). Meanrepeatability […]

Jackdaw (Coloeus monedula) Science Article 1 abstract We examined the gliding flight performance of a jackdaw Corvus monedula in a wind tunnel. The jackdaw was able to glide steadily at speeds between 6 and 11ms?1. The bird changed its wingspan and wing area over this speed range, and we measured the so-called glide superpolar, which […]

Hooded Crow (Corvus corone cornix) Science Article 1 abstract The Carrion Crow (Corvus corone corone) and the Hooded Crow (C. corone cornix) have parapatric ranges in Europe with narrow areas of hybridization. Reproductive biology of populations of Carrion and Hooded crows and hybrids is described for four areas in northern Italy. Nonrandom mating was observed […]

Hooded Crow (Corvus corone cornix) Science Article 3 abstract Habitat selection of co-existing Hooded Crows Corvus corone cornix and Carrion Crows C. c. corone was studied in the Susa valley, an alpine valley in the Iitalian hybrid zone. Foraging habitat use by the two races was not significantly different during the autumn-winter whereas it was […]