Common Redstart (Phoenicurus phoenicurus) Science Article 1 abstract Spatial foraging activity and feeding of broods was studied in nine pairs of CommonRedstart (Phoenicurus phoenicurus) breeding in nest boxes in pine forest. The effect ofnestling age on feeding rate was not significant. The number of feedings per chick wassimilar in small andmediumsize broods but decreased in […]

Common Nightingale (Luscinia megarhynchos) Science Article 5 abstract Many male temperate zone passerines show a marked peak of singing activity before sunrise. The two mainfunctions of this so-called dawn chorus are mate attraction and territory defence. We examined how seasonalpatterns of different dawn song characteristics were related to mating status and to the breeding cycleof […]

Common Nightingale (Luscinia megarhynchos) Science Article 4 abstract Vocal amplitude, one of the crucial factors for the exchange of acoustic signals, has been neglected instudies of animal communication, but recent studies on song variation in Common Nightingales Lusciniamegarhynchos have revealed new insights into its importance in the singing behavior of territorial birds. Innightingales song amplitude […]

Common Nightingale (Luscinia megarhynchos) Science Article 3 abstract During spring and autumn migration 2003, the Swiss Ornithological Institute set up a concerted project in Mauritania to study bird migration across the Sahara. I participated with a side project using artificial induction of landfall with sound luring in an attempt to overcome the potential problem of […]

Common Nightingale (Luscinia megarhynchos) Science Article 1 abstract The European populations of the Nightingale Luscinia megarhynchos megarhynchos perform a moult strategy which involves a complete post-breeding moult in adults and a partial post-juvenile moult in first-years; both moults take place on the breeding grounds prior to autumn migration (Cramp 1988, Svensson 1992, Jenni & Winkler […]

Common Nightingale (Luscinia megarhynchos) Science Article 2 abstract Songbirds are well known for settling their disputes by vocal signals, and their singing plays a dominant role.Most studies on this issue have concentrated on bird species that develop and use small vocal repertoires. In this article we will go farther and focus on examples of how […]

Collared Flycatcher (Ficedula albicollis) Science Article 2 abstract Environmental conditions experienced during early life are known to impact upon the development of passerinenestlings, as well as on their performance and fitness as adults. Nevertheless, little is yet known about the relative importanceof different types of maternal, environmental and genetic effects as proximate determinants of variation […]

Collared Flycatcher (Ficedula albicollis) Science Article 4 abstract Public information, i.e. local reproductive performance of conspecifics, is expected to be a highly valuable cue for breeding habitat selection. However, the access to this cue may be spatially and temporally constrained. When public information is unavailable, individuals may use other integrative cues, such as the local […]