Author: "Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey" - Searchworks@Jio Institute Digital Library Search Results

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38 results on '"Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey"'

1. Evolution of female song and duetting in the chaffinch (Fringilla) species complex

Author: Joseph E. J. Cooper, Eduardo Garcia‐del‐Rey, and Robert F. Lachlan
Subjects: bioacoustics, female song, island evolution, song function, Biology (General), QH301-705.5, General. Including nature conservation, geographical distribution, QH1-199.5
Abstract: Female song is ancestral to songbirds and shows considerable phylogenetic signal, but its presence also appears to be labile and correlated with life‐history and ecology. While previous studies have examined the evolution of female song across species‐rich families, here we studied female song in island populations of a recently diverged species‐complex, the chaffinches (genus Fringilla). We show this behaviour has recently evolved in these populations, and probably on two independent occasions. In F. teydea, female song is performed in loose duets with males, while in F. coelebs, female song is produced solo. Populations with singing females showed year‐round territoriality and were found in regions with low seasonality – both factors previously connected with high rates of female singing. To determine the relative saliency of female songs to conspecifics, and the degree to which they instigate territorial defence behaviours, we performed a series of speaker playback experiments. In F. c. canariensis, female song could induce comparable responses to male song, whilst duetting F. teydea playback produced similar responses to solo songs, and therefore may relate to within‐pair communication instead. Our results suggest female song can be a highly labile trait that can evolve over short evolutionary timescales.
Published: 2023
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2. Evolution of female promiscuity in Passerides songbirds

Author: Jan T. Lifjeld, Jostein Gohli, Tomáš Albrecht, Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey, Lars Erik Johannessen, Oddmund Kleven, Petter Z. Marki, Taiwo C. Omotoriogun, Melissah Rowe, and Arild Johnsen
Subjects: Extrapair paternity, Life history, Mating system, Pair bond, Parental care, Sexual selection, Evolution, QH359-425
Abstract: Abstract Background Female promiscuity is highly variable among birds, and particularly among songbirds. Comparative work has identified several patterns of covariation with social, sexual, ecological and life history traits. However, it is unclear whether these patterns reflect causes or consequences of female promiscuity, or if they are byproducts of some unknown evolutionary drivers. Moreover, factors that explain promiscuity at the deep nodes in the phylogenetic tree may be different from those important at the tips, i.e. among closely related species. Here we examine the relationships between female promiscuity and a broad set of predictor variables in a comprehensive data set (N = 202 species) of Passerides songbirds, which is a highly diversified infraorder of the Passeriformes exhibiting significant variation in female promiscuity. Results Female promiscuity was highly variable in all major clades of the Passerides phylogeny and also among closely related species. We found several significant associations with female promiscuity, albeit with fairly small effect sizes (all R2 ≤ 0.08). More promiscuous species had: 1) less male parental care, particularly during the early stages of the nesting cycle (nest building and incubation), 2) more short-term pair bonds, 3) greater degree of sexual dichromatism, primarily because females were drabber, 4) more migratory behaviour, and 5) stronger pre-mating sexual selection. In a multivariate model, however, the effect of sexual selection disappeared, while the other four variables showed additive effects and together explained about 16% of the total variance in female promiscuity. Female promiscuity showed no relationship with body size, life history variation, latitude or cooperative breeding. Conclusions We found that multiple traits were associated with female promiscuity, but these associations were generally weak. Some traits, such as reduced parental care in males and more cryptic plumage in females, might even be responses to, rather than causes of, variation in female promiscuity. Hence, the high variation in female promiscuity among Passerides species remains enigmatic. Female promiscuity seems to be a rapidly evolving trait that often diverges between species with similar ecologies and breeding systems. A future challenge is therefore to understand what drives within-lineage variation in female promiscuity over microevolutionary time scales.
Published: 2019
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3. Longer Sperm Swim More Slowly in the Canary Islands Chiffchaff

Author: Emily R. A. Cramer, Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey, Lars Erik Johannessen, Terje Laskemoen, Gunnhild Marthinsen, Arild Johnsen, and Jan T. Lifjeld
Subjects: sperm morphology, sperm velocity, sperm motility, Macaronesia, chiffchaff species complex, Cytology, QH573-671
Abstract: Sperm swimming performance affects male fertilization success, particularly in species with high sperm competition. Understanding how sperm morphology impacts swimming performance is therefore important. Sperm swimming speed is hypothesized to increase with total sperm length, relative flagellum length (with the flagellum generating forward thrust), and relative midpiece length (as the midpiece contains the mitochondria). We tested these hypotheses and tested for divergence in sperm traits in five island populations of Canary Islands chiffchaff (Phylloscopus canariensis). We confirmed incipient mitochondrial DNA differentiation between Gran Canaria and the other islands. Sperm swimming speed correlated negatively with total sperm length, did not correlate with relative flagellum length, and correlated negatively with relative midpiece length (for Gran Canaria only). The proportion of motile cells increased with relative flagellum length on Gran Canaria only. Sperm morphology was similar across islands. We thus add to a growing number of studies on passerine birds that do not support sperm morphology–swimming speed hypotheses. We suggest that the swimming mechanics of passerine sperm are sufficiently different from mammalian sperm that predictions from mammalian hydrodynamic models should no longer be applied for this taxon. While both sperm morphology and sperm swimming speed are likely under selection in passerines, the relationship between them requires further elucidation.
Published: 2021
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4. Author response for 'Evolution of female song and duetting in the chaffinch ( Fringilla ) species complex'

Author: null Joseph E. J. Cooper, null Eduardo Garcia‐del‐Rey, and null Robert F. Lachlan
Published: 2022
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5. Spatiotemporal patterns of avian host-parasite interactions in the face of biogeographical range expansions

Author: Nick Bos, Tomáš Albrecht, Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey, Jan T. Lifjeld, Bonny Koane, Kasun H. Bodawatta, Petter Z. Marki, Pavel Munclinger, Michael Poulsen, Katerina Sam, Knud A. Jønsson, and Petr Synek
Subjects: 0106 biological sciences, 0301 basic medicine, Range (biology), Parasitism, Biology, 010603 evolutionary biology, 01 natural sciences, Host-Parasite Interactions, Birds, 03 medical and health sciences, Spatio-Temporal Analysis, Avian malaria, Genetics, medicine, Animals, Colonization, Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics, Abiotic component, Ecological niche, New Guinea, Ecology, Host (biology), Community structure, medicine.disease, Haemosporida, 030104 developmental biology, Spain
Abstract: Exploration of interactions between hosts and parasitic symbionts is important for our understanding of the temporal and spatial distribution of organisms. For example, host colonization of new geographical regions may alter levels of infections and parasite specificity, and even allow hosts to escape from co-evolved parasites, consequently shaping spatial distributions and community structure of both host and parasite. Here we investigate the effect of host colonization of new regions and the elevational distribution of host-parasite associations between birds and their vector-transmitted haemosporidian blood parasites in two geological and geographical settings: mountains of New Guinea and the Canary Islands. Our results demonstrate that bird communities in younger regions have significantly lower levels of parasitism compared to those of older regions. Furthermore, host-parasite network analyses demonstrate that blood parasites may respond differently after arriving to a new region, through adaptations that allow for either expanding (Canary Islands) or retaining (New Guinea) their host niches. The spatial prevalence patterns along elevational gradients differed in the two regions, suggesting that region-specific biotic (e.g., host community) and abiotic factors (e.g., temperature) govern prevalence patterns. Our findings suggest that the spatiotemporal range dynamics in host-parasite systems are driven by multiple factors, but that host and parasite community compositions and colonization histories are of particular importance.
Published: 2019

6. Field Guide to the Birds of the Canary Islands

Author: Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey and Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey
Subjects: Birds--Canary Islands, Birds--Canary Islands--Identification
Abstract: An essential field guide to birds of the Canary IslandsThis comprehensive guide covers all bird species found in the Canary Islands, a group of beautiful islands that are home to endemics such as the Blue Chaffinch. The Canaries are also one of the best places in the world to see a number of species that are scarce or hard to find elsewhere, such as Houbara Bustard and Cream-coloured Courser. The book covers every species recorded in the Canary Islands, including vagrants, totalling more than 300 species, which are brought to life on 73 beautifully illustrated plates. The concise text opposite them covers status, distribution, habitat, identification, voice and taxonomy. Also included is an introduction with information on the geography and climate of the Canary Islands, plus habitats, birding sites and conservation. Compact and pocket-sized yet authoritative, this guide is the perfect backpack addition for any birder or wildlife-friendly tourist visiting these sun-soaked tropical islands.
Published: 2018

7. The evolutionary history of Afrocanarian blue tits inferred from genomewide SNPs

Author: Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey, Jan T. Lifjeld, Arild Johnsen, Magnus Popp, Jostein Gohli, Erica H. Leder, Lars Erik Johannessen, and Terje Laskemoen
Subjects: Male, Population, Libya, Subspecies, DNA, Mitochondrial, Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide, Coalescent theory, Monophyly, Africa, Northern, Genetics, Animals, Passeriformes, education, Phylogeny, Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics, education.field_of_study, biology, Phylogenetic tree, Ecology, Cyanistes, Cyanistes teneriffae, Bayes Theorem, biology.organism_classification, Biological Evolution, Spermatozoa, Genetics, Population, Sister group, Spain, Evolutionary biology, ta1181
Abstract: A common challenge in phylogenetic reconstruction is to find enough suitable genomic markers to reliably trace splitting events with short internodes. Here, we present phylogenetic analyses based on genomewide single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of an enigmatic avian radiation, the subspecies complex of Afrocanarian blue tits (Cyanistes teneriffae). The two sister species, the Eurasian blue tit (Cyanistes caeruleus) and the azure tit (Cyanistes cyanus), constituted the out-group. We generated a large data set of SNPs for analysis of population structure and phylogeny. We also adapted our protocol to utilize degraded DNA from old museum skins from Libya. We found strong population structuring that largely confirmed subspecies monophyly and constructed a coalescent-based phylogeny with full support at all major nodes. The results are consistent with a recent hypothesis that La Palma and Libya are relic populations of an ancient Afrocanarian blue tit, although a small data set for Libya could not resolve its position relative to La Palma. The birds on the eastern islands of Fuerteventura and Lanzarote are similar to those in Morocco. Together they constitute the sister group to the clade containing the other Canary Islands (except La Palma), in which El Hierro is sister to the three central islands. Hence, extant Canary Islands populations seem to originate from multiple independent colonization events. We also found population divergences in a key reproductive trait, viz. sperm length, which may constitute reproductive barriers between certain populations. We recommend a taxonomic revision of this polytypic species, where several subspecies should qualify for species rank.
Published: 2014
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8. Variation in clutch size in relation to nest size in birds

Author: Blandine Doligez, Ian R. Hartley, Indrikis Krams, Marcel M. Lambrechts, Tore Slagsvold, Francesco Cecere, Tapio Solonen, Sven G. Nilsson, Peter N. Ferns, Vladimír Remeš, Jean Charles Bouvier, Paul Isenmann, Luís P. da Silva, Martyn J. Stenning, Rimvydas Juškaitis, Anna Dubiec, Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey, Jan-Åke Nilsson, Anders Pape Møller, Zihad Bouslama, Arne Lundberg, Cezary Mitrus, Esa Lehikoinen, Jacques Blondel, Carla S. Pimentel, Antero Järvinen, Arie J. van Noordwijk, Toni Laaksonen, Janne T. Seppänen, Wiesław Walankiewicz, Tomasz D. Mazgajski, Jukka T. Forsman, Frank Adriaensen, János Török, Marcel Eens, Tapio Eeva, Hugo Robles, Rianne Pinxten, Juan Carlos Senar, Emilio Barba, Anne Charmantier, Xavier Morin, Clotilde Biard, Camillo Cusimano, Ana Cláudia Norte, Seppo Rytkönen, Judith Morales-Fernaz, Piotr Tryjanowski, Shelley A. Hinsley, Ruedi G. Nager, Mikael von Numers, Lars Gustafsson, Aya Goldshtein, Anne E. Goodenough, Andrew G. Gosler, Jerzy Bańbura, Alberto Sorace, Motti Charter, Virginie Demeyrier, Raivo Mänd, Philippe Perret, Marie Claude Quidoz, Mark C. Mainwaring, Bruno Massa, Staffan Jacob, Bruno Faivre, Santiago Merino, Jordi Camprodon, Markku Orell, Alexandr Artemyev, Arnaud Grégoire, Claire Doutrelant, Dorota Czeszczewik, Bernard Leclercq, Heinz Richner, Iga Góźdź, Philipp Heeb, Erkki Korpimäki, Ilze Priedniece, Mariusz Cichoń, Mikko Mönkkönen, Olli J. Loukola, Ecologie Systématique et Evolution ( ESE ), Université Paris-Sud - Paris 11 ( UP11 ) -AgroParisTech-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique ( CNRS ), Evolutionary Ecology Group, University of Antwerp ( UA ), Institute of Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences [Moscow] ( RAS ), Department of Experimental Zoology & Evolutionary Biology, Łódź University of Technology, Terrestrial Vertebrates Research Unit 'Cavanilles', University of Valencia-Institute of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology, Ecologie et évolution, École normale supérieure - Paris ( ENS Paris ) -Université Pierre et Marie Curie - Paris 6 ( UPMC ) -Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique ( CNRS ), Centre d’Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive ( CEFE ), Institut de Recherche pour le Développement ( IRD [France-Sud] ) -Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique ( CNRS ) -Université de Montpellier ( UM ) -Institut national de la recherche agronomique [Montpellier] ( INRA Montpellier ) -École pratique des hautes études ( EPHE ) -Centre international d'études supérieures en sciences agronomiques ( Montpellier SupAgro ) -Université Paul-Valéry - Montpellier 3 ( UM3 ) -Institut national d’études supérieures agronomiques de Montpellier ( Montpellier SupAgro ), Research Laboratory 'Ecology of Terrestrial and Aquatic Systems', University Badji Mokhtar, Plantes et Systèmes de Culture Horticoles [Avignon], Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique ( INRA ), Biodiversity Department, Forest Technology Center of Catalonia, (Adresse privée), Society for the Protection of Nature, University of Lausanne, University of Haifa [Haifa], Institute of Environmental Sciences, Jagiellonian University [Krakow] ( UJ ), Stazione Inanellamento c/o Dipartimento SEN-FIMIZO, Università di Palermo, Department of Zoology, Siedlce University of Natural Sciences and Humanities, Laboratoire de Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive ( LBBE ), Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1 ( UCBL ), Université de Lyon-Université de Lyon-Institut National de Recherche en Informatique et en Automatique ( Inria ) -Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique ( CNRS ), Museum and Institute of Zoology, Polska Akademia Nauk ( PAN ), Department of Biology (Ethology), Section of Ecology, University of Turku, Biogéosciences [Dijon] ( BGS ), Université de Bourgogne ( UB ) -AgroSup Dijon - Institut National Supérieur des Sciences Agronomiques, de l'Alimentation et de l'Environnement-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique ( CNRS ), School of Bioscience, Cardiff University, Department of Biology, University of Oulu, Departamento de Ecología, Universidad de la Laguna, Department of Natural and Social Sciences, University of Gloucestershire, Edward Grey Institute of Field Ornithology-Institute of Human Sciences, Evolutionary Biology Centre, Uppsala University, Lancaster Environment Centre, Lancaster University, Laboratoire Evolution et Diversité Biologique, UMR 5174 CNRS, Université de Toulouse, Centre for Ecology & Hydrology ( CEH ), Natural Environment Research Council ( NERC ), Kilpisjarvi Biological Station, Institute of Ecology of Nature Research Centre, Institute of Ecology & Earth Sciences, University of Tartu, Departamento de Ecología Evolutiva, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas [Spain] ( CSIC ) -Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales, Rzeszow University, Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Jyväskylä, Institute of Biodiversity, Animal Health & Comparative Medicine, University of Glasgow, Animal Ecology, Lund University [Lund], Department of Biology, Biodiversity, Lund University, Lund, Sweden, Department of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra [Portugal] ( UC ), Centro de Estudos Florestais, Instituto Superior de Agronomia-University of Lisbon, Latvian Fund for Nature, Laboratory of Ornithology, Palacky University, Institute of Ecology & Evolution ( IEE ), University of Bern, Evolutionary Ecology Group ( GIBE ), University of A Coruña ( UDC ), Unidad Asociada CSIC de Ecología Evolutiva y de la Conducta, Nat-Museu de Ciències Naturals de Barcelona, Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo ( UiO ), Luontotutkimus Solonen Oy, SROPU, School of Life Sciences, University of Sussex, Behavioral Ecology Group, Eötvös Loránd University ( ELTE ), Institute of Zoology, Poznan University of Life Sciences, Netherlands Institute of Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology - NIOO-KNAW (NETHERLANDS), Environmental and Marine Biology, Åbo Academy University, Ecologie Systématique et Evolution (ESE), Université Paris-Sud - Paris 11 (UP11)-AgroParisTech-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), University of Antwerp (UA), Russian Academy of Sciences [Moscow] (RAS), Laboratoire Ecologie et évolution, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université Pierre et Marie Curie - Paris 6 (UPMC)-École normale supérieure - Paris (ENS Paris), Centre d’Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive (CEFE), Université Paul-Valéry - Montpellier 3 (UM3)-Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA)-Centre international d'études supérieures en sciences agronomiques (Montpellier SupAgro)-École pratique des hautes études (EPHE)-Université de Montpellier (UM)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD [France-Sud])-Institut national d’études supérieures agronomiques de Montpellier (Montpellier SupAgro), Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA), Université de Lausanne (UNIL), Jagiellonian University [Krakow] (UJ), Evolution, adaptation et comportement, Département écologie évolutive [LBBE], Laboratoire de Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive - UMR 5558 (LBBE), Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1 (UCBL), Université de Lyon-Université de Lyon-Institut National de Recherche en Informatique et en Automatique (Inria)-VetAgro Sup - Institut national d'enseignement supérieur et de recherche en alimentation, santé animale, sciences agronomiques et de l'environnement (VAS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1 (UCBL), Université de Lyon-Université de Lyon-Institut National de Recherche en Informatique et en Automatique (Inria)-VetAgro Sup - Institut national d'enseignement supérieur et de recherche en alimentation, santé animale, sciences agronomiques et de l'environnement (VAS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Laboratoire de Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive - UMR 5558 (LBBE), Université de Lyon-Université de Lyon-Institut National de Recherche en Informatique et en Automatique (Inria)-VetAgro Sup - Institut national d'enseignement supérieur et de recherche en alimentation, santé animale, sciences agronomiques et de l'environnement (VAS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Polska Akademia Nauk (PAN), Biogéosciences [UMR 6282] [Dijon] (BGS), Université de Bourgogne (UB)-AgroSup Dijon - Institut National Supérieur des Sciences Agronomiques, de l'Alimentation et de l'Environnement-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Universidad de La Laguna [Tenerife - SP] (ULL), Evolution et Diversité Biologique (EDB), Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier (UT3), Université Fédérale Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées-Université Fédérale Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (CEH), Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas [Spain] (CSIC)-Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (MNCN), University of Coimbra [Portugal] (UC), Institute of Ecology & Evolution (IEE), Evolutionary Ecology Group (GIBE), University of A Coruña (UDC), Department of Biosciences [Oslo], Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences [Oslo], University of Oslo (UiO)-University of Oslo (UiO), Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE), École normale supérieure - Paris (ENS-PSL), Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université Pierre et Marie Curie - Paris 6 (UPMC)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Université Paul-Valéry - Montpellier 3 (UPVM)-Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA)-Centre international d'études supérieures en sciences agronomiques (Montpellier SupAgro)-École Pratique des Hautes Études (EPHE), Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université de Montpellier (UM)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD [France-Sud])-Institut national d’études supérieures agronomiques de Montpellier (Montpellier SupAgro), Unité de recherche Plantes et Systèmes de Culture Horticoles (PSH), Centre de Ciència i Tecnologia Forestal de Catalunya (CTFC), Université de Lausanne = University of Lausanne (UNIL), Uniwersytet Jagielloński w Krakowie = Jagiellonian University (UJ), Università degli studi di Palermo - University of Palermo, Polska Akademia Nauk = Polish Academy of Sciences (PAN), Biogéosciences [UMR 6282] (BGS), Université de Bourgogne (UB)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), School of Biosciences [Cardiff], Université de Toulouse (UT)-Université de Toulouse (UT)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales [Madrid] (MNCN), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas [Madrid] (CSIC)-Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas [Madrid] (CSIC), Department of Biological and Environmental Science [Jyväskylä Univ] (JYU), University of Jyväskylä (JYU), Universidade de Lisboa = University of Lisbon (ULISBOA)-Instituto Superior de Agronomia [Lisboa] (ISA), Universidade de Lisboa = University of Lisbon (ULISBOA), Palacky University Olomouc, Museu de Ciències Naturals de Barcelona, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD [France-Sud])-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-École pratique des hautes études (EPHE)-Université de Montpellier (UM)-Institut national d’études supérieures agronomiques de Montpellier (Montpellier SupAgro)-Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA)-Centre international d'études supérieures en sciences agronomiques (Montpellier SupAgro)-Université Paul-Valéry - Montpellier 3 (UM3), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université de Bourgogne (UB)-AgroSup Dijon - Institut National Supérieur des Sciences Agronomiques, de l'Alimentation et de l'Environnement, Kilpisjärvi Biological Station, Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université de Montpellier (UM)-École pratique des hautes études (EPHE), Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Centre international d'études supérieures en sciences agronomiques (Montpellier SupAgro)-Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA)-Université Paul-Valéry - Montpellier 3 (UPVM)-Institut national d’études supérieures agronomiques de Montpellier (Montpellier SupAgro), Institut national d'enseignement supérieur pour l'agriculture, l'alimentation et l'environnement (Institut Agro)-Institut national d'enseignement supérieur pour l'agriculture, l'alimentation et l'environnement (Institut Agro)-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD [France-Sud]), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier (UT3), Université Fédérale Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées-Université Fédérale Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas [Madrid] (CSIC)-Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (MNCN), Instituto Superior de Agronomia-Universidade de Lisboa (ULISBOA), Animal Ecology (AnE), Møller, A.P., Adriaensen, F., Artemyev, A., Bańbura, J., Barba, E., Biard, C., Blondel, J., Bouslama, Z., Bouvier, J.-C., Camprodon, J., Cecere, F., Charmantier, A., Charter, M., Cichoń, M., Cusimano, C., Czeszczewik, D., Demeyrier, V., Doligez, B., Doutrelant, C., Dubiec, A., Eens, M., Eeva, T., Faivre, B., Ferns, P.N., Forsman, J.T., García-del-Rey, E., Goldshtein, A., Goodenough, A.E., Gosler, A.G., Góźdź, I., Grégoire, A., Gustafsson, L., Hartley, I.R., Heeb, P., Hinsley, S.A., Isenmann, P., Jacob, S., Järvinen, A., Juškaitis, R., Korpimäki, E., Krams, I., Laaksonen, T., Leclercq, B., Lehikoinen, E., Loukola, O., Lundberg, A., Mainwaring, M.C., Mänd, R., Massa, B., Mazgajski, T.D., Merino, S., Mitrus, C., Mönkkönen, M., Morales-Fernaz, J., Morin, X., Nager, R.G., Nilsson, J.-Å., Nilsson, S.G., Norte, A.C., Orell, M., Perret, P., Pimentel, C.S., Pinxten, R., Priedniece, I., Quidoz, M.-C., Remeš, V., Richner, H., Robles, H., Rytkönen, S., Senar, J.C., Seppänen, J.T., da Silva, L.P., Slagsvold, T., Solonen, T., Sorace, A., Stenning, M.J., Török, J., Tryjanowski, P., van Noordwijk, A.J., von Numers, M., Walankiewicz, W., and Lambrechts, M.M.
Subjects: BREEDING SUCCESS, Avian clutch size, Biodiversité et Ecologie, SEXUAL SELECTION, Predation, natural holes, Nest, TITS PARUS-MAJOR, BLUE TITS, QL_671, Original Research, GE, Ecology, hole nesting, STURNUS-VULGARIS, FLYCATCHERS FICEDULA, Chemistry, reaction norm, Sexual selection, international, 1181 Ecology, evolutionary biology, Hole nesting, Hole nesting, natural holes, nest boxes, reaction norm, nest boxes, education, ta1172, Zoology, Biology, Intraspecific competition, Ecology and Environment, Biodiversity and Ecology, Clutch, Nest box, Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics, Nature and Landscape Conservation, Ekologi, [ SDE.BE ] Environmental Sciences/Biodiversity and Ecology, Interspecific competition, PIED FLYCATCHERS, PASSERINE BIRDS, Settore AGR/11 - Entomologia Generale E Applicata, ta1181, [SDE.BE]Environmental Sciences/Biodiversity and Ecology, GREAT TITS, THERMAL CONDITIONS
Abstract: © 2014 The Authors. Nests are structures built to support and protect eggs and/or offspring from predators, parasites, and adverse weather conditions. Nests are mainly constructed prior to egg laying, meaning that parent birds must make decisions about nest site choice and nest building behavior before the start of egg-laying. Parent birds should be selected to choose nest sites and to build optimally sized nests, yet our current understanding of clutch size-nest size relationships is limited to small-scale studies performed over short time periods. Here, we quantified the relationship between clutch size and nest size, using an exhaustive database of 116 slope estimates based on 17,472 nests of 21 species of hole and non-hole-nesting birds. There was a significant, positive relationship between clutch size and the base area of the nest box or the nest, and this relationship did not differ significantly between open nesting and hole-nesting species. The slope of the relationship showed significant intraspecific and interspecific heterogeneity among four species of secondary hole-nesting species, but also among all 116 slope estimates. The estimated relationship between clutch size and nest box base area in study sites with more than a single size of nest box was not significantly different from the relationship using studies with only a single size of nest box. The slope of the relationship between clutch size and nest base area in different species of birds was significantly negatively related to minimum base area, and less so to maximum base area in a given study. These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that bird species have a general reaction norm reflecting the relationship between nest size and clutch size. Further, they suggest that scientists may influence the clutch size decisions of hole-nesting birds through the provisioning of nest boxes of varying sizes.
Published: 2014
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9. Reduced genetic diversity and sperm motility in the endangered Gran Canaria Blue Chaffinch Fringilla teydea polatzeki

Author: Gunnhild Marthinsen, Lars Erik Johannessen, Terje Laskemoen, Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey, Loly Estévez, Pascual Calabuig, Jan T. Lifjeld, and Arild Johnsen
Subjects: Genetic diversity, education.field_of_study, Population bottleneck, Extinction, Ecology, Captive breeding, Population, Endangered species, Microsatellite, Fringilla teydea, Biology, education, biology.organism_classification
Abstract: The Blue Chaffinch (Fringilla teydea) is endemic to the Canary Islands and restricted to the pine forests on Tenerife (ssp. teydea) and Gran Canaria (ssp. polatzeki). While the teydea population is large and stable, the polatzeki population underwent a dramatic decline in the twentieth century and currently numbers less than 200 individuals. Here, we show that microsatellite allelic diversity is lower in polatzeki than in teydea, consistent with a genetic bottleneck scenario. Our genotyped polatzeki individuals, which were wild-caught but currently used in a captive breeding programme, have the same allelic diversity as free-ranging birds. However, the captive polatzeki males seem to have reduced sperm motility as compared with captive teydea males, which could be an effect of reduced genetic diversity. Because polatzeki and teydea are phylogenetically distinct, they should be recognized as Evolutionarily Significant Units by conservation authorities. We also recommend maintaining the captive polatzeki population as a pre-emptive measure against extinction in the wild.
Published: 2013
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10. Interspecific variation in the relationship between clutch size, laying date and intensity of urbanization in four species of hole-nesting birds

Author: Tomasz D. Mazgajski, Shelley A. Hinsley, Piotr Tryjanowski, Paul Isenmann, Virginie Demeyrier, Xavier Morin, Jordi Camprodon, Toni Laaksonen, Martyn J. Stenning, Philipp Heeb, Francesco Cecere, Erkki Korpimäki, Jan-Åke Nilsson, Mariusz Cichoń, Clotilde Biard, Ana Cláudia Norte, Mikko Mönkkönen, Indrikis Krams, Jacques Blondel, Janne T. Seppänen, Wiesław Walankiewicz, Christopher M. Perrins, Bruno Massa, Marcel M. Lambrechts, Arnaud Grégoire, Rianne Pinxten, Jean-Charles Bouvier, Mikael von Numers, Lars Gustafsson, Bruno Faivre, Claire Doutrelant, Hugo Robles, Luís P. da Silva, Tapio Solonen, Santiago Merino, Anne Charmantier, Anna Dubiec, Anders Pape Møller, Dorota Czeszczewik, Markku Orell, Bernard Leclercq, Alexandr Artemyev, Motti Charter, Philippe Perret, Seppo Rytkönen, Olli J. Loukola, Mark C. Mainwaring, Juan Carlos Senar, Tore Slagsvold, Zihad Bouslama, Raivo Mänd, Aya Goldshtein, Heinz Richner, Staffan Jacob, Jerzy Bańbura, Alberto Sorace, Ian R. Hartley, Jukka T. Forsman, Marie Vaugoyeau, Camillo Cusimano, Emilio Barba, Ruedi G. Nager, Marcel Eens, Iga Harnist, Rimvydas Juškaitis, Peter N. Ferns, Frank Adriaensen, Esa Lehikoinen, Sven G. Nilsson, Blandine Doligez, Cezary Mitrus, Anne E. Goodenough, Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey, Arne Lundberg, Andrew G. Gosler, Tapio Eeva, Carla S. Pimentel, Ecologie Systématique et Evolution (ESE), Université Paris-Sud - Paris 11 (UP11)-AgroParisTech-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Evolutionary Ecology Group, University of Antwerp (UA), Institute of Biology, Karelian Research Center of the Russian Academy of Science (KarRC RAS ), Department of Experimental Zoology & Evolutionary Biology, Łódź University of Technology, Terrestrial Vertebrates Research Unit 'Cavanilles', University of Valencia-Institute of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology, Institut d'écologie et des sciences de l'environnement de Paris (iEES), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université Paris-Est Créteil Val-de-Marne - Paris 12 (UPEC UP12)-Université Pierre et Marie Curie - Paris 6 (UPMC)-Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA), Centre d’Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive (CEFE), Université Paul-Valéry - Montpellier 3 (UPVM)-Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA)-Centre international d'études supérieures en sciences agronomiques (Montpellier SupAgro)-École pratique des hautes études (EPHE), Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université de Montpellier (UM)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD [France-Sud])-Institut national d’études supérieures agronomiques de Montpellier (Montpellier SupAgro), Institut national d'enseignement supérieur pour l'agriculture, l'alimentation et l'environnement (Institut Agro)-Institut national d'enseignement supérieur pour l'agriculture, l'alimentation et l'environnement (Institut Agro), Ecology of Terrestrial and Aquatic Systems [Annaba], Badji Mokhtar-Annaba University, Unité de recherche Plantes et Systèmes de Culture Horticoles (PSH), Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA), Àrea de Biodiversitat - Grup de Biologia de la Conservació, Centre de Ciència i Tecnologia Forestal de Catalunya (CTFC), University of Haifa [Haifa], Society for the Protection of Nature, Université de Lausanne (UNIL), Institute of Environmental Sciences, Uniwersytet Jagielloński w Krakowie = Jagiellonian University (UJ), Department of Agriculture and Forest Sciences, Università degli studi di Palermo - University of Palermo, Department of Zoology, Siedlce University of Natural Sciences and Humanities, Evolution, adaptation et comportement, Département écologie évolutive [LBBE], Laboratoire de Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive - UMR 5558 (LBBE), Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1 (UCBL), Université de Lyon-Université de Lyon-Institut National de Recherche en Informatique et en Automatique (Inria)-VetAgro Sup - Institut national d'enseignement supérieur et de recherche en alimentation, santé animale, sciences agronomiques et de l'environnement (VAS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1 (UCBL), Université de Lyon-Université de Lyon-Institut National de Recherche en Informatique et en Automatique (Inria)-VetAgro Sup - Institut national d'enseignement supérieur et de recherche en alimentation, santé animale, sciences agronomiques et de l'environnement (VAS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Laboratoire de Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive - UMR 5558 (LBBE), Université de Lyon-Université de Lyon-Institut National de Recherche en Informatique et en Automatique (Inria)-VetAgro Sup - Institut national d'enseignement supérieur et de recherche en alimentation, santé animale, sciences agronomiques et de l'environnement (VAS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Museum and Institute of Zoology, Polska Akademia Nauk = Polish Academy of Sciences (PAN), Behavioural Ecology & Ecophysiology Group, Section of Ecology, University of Turku, Biogéosciences [UMR 6282] [Dijon] (BGS), Université de Bourgogne (UB)-AgroSup Dijon - Institut National Supérieur des Sciences Agronomiques, de l'Alimentation et de l'Environnement-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), School of Biosciences [Cardiff], Cardiff University, Department of Ecology, University of Oulu, Departamento de Ecología, Universidad de La Laguna [Tenerife - SP] (ULL), Tel Aviv University [Tel Aviv], Department of Natural and Social Sciences, University of Gloucestershire, Edward Grey Institute of Field Ornithology-Institute of Human Sciences, Department of Animal Ecology - Evolutionary Biology Centre, Uppsala University, Lancaster Environment Centre, Lancaster University, Evolution et Diversité Biologique (EDB), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier (UT3), Université Fédérale Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées-Université Fédérale Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées, Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (CEH), Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), Institute of Ecology of Nature Research Centre, Institute of Ecology & Earth Sciences, University of Tartu, Departamento de Ecología Evolutiva, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas [Madrid] (CSIC)-Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (MNCN), Rzeszow University, Department of Biological and Environmental Science [Jyväskylä Univ] (JYU), University of Jyväskylä (JYU), Institute of Biodiversity, Animal Health & Comparative Medicine, University of Glasgow, Animal Ecology, Lund University [Lund], Department of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra [Portugal] (UC)-Institute of Marine Research, Centro de Estudos Florestais, Technical University of Lisbon-Instituto Superior de Agronomia, Didactica Research Unit, Institute of Ecology & Evolution (IEE), University of Bern, Evolutionary Ecology Group (GIBE), University of A Coruña (UDC), Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas (CSIC), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas [Madrid] (CSIC), Department of Biosciences [Oslo], Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences [Oslo], University of Oslo (UiO)-University of Oslo (UiO), Luontotutkimus Solonen Oy, SROPU, School of Life Sciences, University of Sussex, Institute of Zoology, Poznan University of Life Sciences, Environmental and Marine Biology, Åbo Academy University, Funding from University Paris-Sud, FUNDAME and Xunta de Galicia ('Ángeles Alvariño' and 'Plan I2C' postdoctoral programs), FWO-Flanders and the University of Antwerp, project CGL2013-48001-C2-1-P (Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation), the OSUOREME, the French ANR, and the ERC (ERC-2013-StG-337365-SHE)., Institut d'écologie et des sciences de l'environnement de Paris (IEES), Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD [France-Sud])-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-École pratique des hautes études (EPHE)-Université de Montpellier (UM)-Institut national d’études supérieures agronomiques de Montpellier (Montpellier SupAgro)-Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA)-Centre international d'études supérieures en sciences agronomiques (Montpellier SupAgro)-Université Paul-Valéry - Montpellier 3 (UM3), Ecology of Terrestrial and Aquatic Systems, University Badji Mokhtar, Centre Tecnològico Forestal de Catalunya (CTFC), Jagiellonian University [Krakow] (UJ), Polska Akademia Nauk (PAN), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université de Bourgogne (UB)-AgroSup Dijon - Institut National Supérieur des Sciences Agronomiques, de l'Alimentation et de l'Environnement, School of Bioscience, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier (UT3), Université Fédérale Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées-Université Fédérale Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas [Spain] (CSIC)-Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (MNCN), Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Jyväskylä, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas [Spain] (CSIC), Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA)-Université Pierre et Marie Curie - Paris 6 (UPMC)-Université Paris-Est Créteil Val-de-Marne - Paris 12 (UPEC UP12)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Université Paul-Valéry - Montpellier 3 (UPVM)-Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA)-Centre international d'études supérieures en sciences agronomiques (Montpellier SupAgro)-École Pratique des Hautes Études (EPHE), Université Badji Mokhtar Annaba (UBMA), Université de Lausanne = University of Lausanne (UNIL), Biogéosciences [UMR 6282] (BGS), Université de Bourgogne (UB)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Tel Aviv University (TAU), Université de Toulouse (UT)-Université de Toulouse (UT)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales [Madrid] (MNCN), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas [Madrid] (CSIC)-Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas [Madrid] (CSIC), Technical University of Lisbon-Instituto Superior de Agronomia [Lisboa] (ISA), Universidade de Lisboa = University of Lisbon (ULISBOA)-Universidade de Lisboa = University of Lisbon (ULISBOA), Vaugoyeau, Marie, Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (España), Vaugoyeau, M, Adriaensen, F, Artemyev, A, Bańbura, J, Barba, E, Biard, C, Blondel, J, Bouslama, Z, Bouvier. J-C, Camprodon, J, Cecere, F, Charmantier, A, Charter, M, Cichoń, M, Cusimano, C, Czeszczewik, D, Demeyrier, V, Doligez, B, Doutrelant, C, Dubiec, A, Eens, M, Eeva, T, Faivre, B, Ferns, PN, Forsman, JT, García-del-Rey, E, Goldshtein, A, Goodenough, AE, Gosler, AG, Grégoire, A, Gustafsson, L, Harnist, I, Hartley, IR, Heeb, P, Hinsley, SA, Isenmann, P, Jacob, S, Juśkaitis, R, Korpimäki, E, Krams, I, Laaksonen, T, Lambrechts, MM, Leclercq, B, Lehikoinen, E, Loukola, O, Lundberg, A, Mainwaring, MC, Mänd, R, Massa, B, Mazgajski, TD, Merino, S, Mitrus, C, Mönkkönen, M, Morin, X, Nager, RG, Nilsson, J-Å, Nilsson, SG, Norte, AC, Orell, M, Perret, P, Perrins, CM, Pimentel, CS, Pinxten, R, Richner, H, Robles, H, Rytkönen, S, Senar, JC, Seppänen, JT, Pascoal da Silva, L, Slagsvold, T, Solonen, T, Sorace, A, Stenning, MJ, Tryjanowski, P, von Numers, M, Walankiewicz, W, Møller, AP, Ecologie Systématique et Evolution ( ESE ), Université Paris-Sud - Paris 11 ( UP11 ) -AgroParisTech-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique ( CNRS ), University of Antwerp ( UA ), Karelian Research Center of the Russian Academy of Science ( KarRC RAS ), Institut d'écologie et des sciences de l'environnement de Paris ( IEES ), Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique ( INRA ) -Université Pierre et Marie Curie - Paris 6 ( UPMC ) -Université Paris-Est Créteil Val-de-Marne - Paris 12 ( UPEC UP12 ) -Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique ( CNRS ), Centre d’Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive ( CEFE ), Institut de Recherche pour le Développement ( IRD [France-Sud] ) -Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique ( CNRS ) -Université de Montpellier ( UM ) -Institut national de la recherche agronomique [Montpellier] ( INRA Montpellier ) -École pratique des hautes études ( EPHE ) -Centre international d'études supérieures en sciences agronomiques ( Montpellier SupAgro ) -Université Paul-Valéry - Montpellier 3 ( UM3 ) -Institut national d’études supérieures agronomiques de Montpellier ( Montpellier SupAgro ), Unité de recherche Plantes et Systèmes de Culture Horticoles ( PSH ), Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique ( INRA ), Centre Tecnològico Forestal de Catalunya ( CTFC ), University of Lausanne, Jagiellonian University [Krakow] ( UJ ), Università degli studi di Palermo, Laboratoire de Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive ( LBBE ), Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1 ( UCBL ), Université de Lyon-Université de Lyon-Institut National de Recherche en Informatique et en Automatique ( Inria ) -Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique ( CNRS ), Polska Akademia Nauk ( PAN ), Biogéosciences [Dijon] ( BGS ), Université de Bourgogne ( UB ) -AgroSup Dijon - Institut National Supérieur des Sciences Agronomiques, de l'Alimentation et de l'Environnement-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique ( CNRS ), Universidad de la Laguna, Evolution et Diversité Biologique ( EDB ), Institut de Recherche pour le Développement ( IRD ) -Université Paul Sabatier - Toulouse 3 ( UPS ) -Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique ( CNRS ), Centre for Ecology & Hydrology ( CEH ), Natural Environment Research Council ( NERC ), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas [Spain] ( CSIC ) -Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales, University of Coimbra [Portugal] ( UC ) -Institute of Marine Research, Institute of Ecology & Evolution ( IEE ), Evolutionary Ecology Group ( GIBE ), University of A Coruña ( UDC ), Centro de Investigaciones Biológicas ( CSIC ), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas [Spain] ( CSIC ), Department of Biosciences, and University of Oslo ( UiO )
Subjects: 0106 biological sciences, Avian clutch size, 010504 meteorology & atmospheric sciences, urban heat island effect, 01 natural sciences, Ficedula hypoleuca, orthophotograph, Breeding phenology, orthophotograph, passerine birds, population dynamics, urban heat island effect, Parus major, 11. Sustainability, population dynamics, passerine birds, QL_671, Original Research, [SDV.EE]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Ecology, environment, education.field_of_study, Ecology, Phenology, Cyanistes, breeding phenology, oiseau nicheur, Chemistry, dynamique des populations, Ficedula albicollis, education, Population, Biology, 010603 evolutionary biology, Ecology and Environment, [ SDV.EE ] Life Sciences [q-bio]/Ecology, environment, reproduction, Cyanistes caeruleus, oiseau, Nest box, Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics, 0105 earth and related environmental sciences, Nature and Landscape Conservation, Breeding phenology, Ekologi, Parus, [ SDE.BE ] Environmental Sciences/Biodiversity and Ecology, urbanisation, Environmental and Society, Ficedula, biology.organism_classification, populaatiodynamiikka, Settore AGR/11 - Entomologia Generale E Applicata, 13. Climate action, ta1181, Environnement et Société, [SDE.BE]Environmental Sciences/Biodiversity and Ecology, Zoology
Abstract: Marie Vaugoyeau [et al.], The increase in size of human populations in urban and agricultural areas has resulted in considerable habitat conversion globally. Such anthropogenic areas have specific environmental characteristics, which influence the physiology, life history, and population dynamics of plants and animals. For example, the date of bud burst is advanced in urban compared to nearby natural areas. In some birds, breeding success is determined by synchrony between timing of breeding and peak food abundance. Pertinently, caterpillars are an important food source for the nestlings of many bird species, and their abundance is influenced by environmental factors such as temperature and date of bud burst. Higher temperatures and advanced date of bud burst in urban areas could advance peak caterpillar abundance and thus affect breeding phenology of birds. In order to test whether laying date advance and clutch sizes decrease with the intensity of urbanization, we analyzed the timing of breeding and clutch size in relation to intensity of urbanization as a measure of human impact in 199 nest box plots across Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East (i.e., the Western Palearctic) for four species of hole-nesters: blue tits (Cyanistes caeruleus), great tits (Parus major), collared flycatchers (Ficedula albicollis), and pied flycatchers (Ficedula hypoleuca). Meanwhile, we estimated the intensity of urbanization as the density of buildings surrounding study plots measured on orthophotographs. For the four study species, the intensity of urbanization was not correlated with laying date. Clutch size in blue and great tits does not seem affected by the intensity of urbanization, while in collared and pied flycatchers it decreased with increasing intensity of urbanization. This is the first large-scale study showing a species-specific major correlation between intensity of urbanization and the ecology of breeding. The underlying mechanisms for the relationships between life history and urbanization remain to be determined. We propose that effects of food abundance or quality, temperature, noise, pollution, or disturbance by humans may on their own or in combination affect laying date and/or clutch size., E. Barba acknowledges funding of project CGL2013-48001-C2-1-P (Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation).
Published: 2016
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11. Extrapair paternity in insular African Blue TitsCyanistes teneriffaeis no less frequent than in continental Eurasian Blue TitsCyanistes caeruleus

Author: Jan T. Lifjeld, Eduardo Garcia-Del-Rey, and Oddmund Kleven
Subjects: Brood parasite, Avian clutch size, education.field_of_study, Ecology, Cyanistes, Population, Cyanistes teneriffae, Biology, Mating system, biology.organism_classification, Intraspecific competition, Sexual selection, Animal Science and Zoology, education, Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics
Abstract: Birds breeding on islands often exhibit lower rates of extrapair paternity than their mainland counterparts, perhaps explained by low genetic variation, ‘slower’ life histories and reduced sexual selection in island populations. Extrapair paternity was apparent in 39% (12/19) of broods, and encompassed 15% (21/137) of nestlings, in a population of African Blue Tits Cyanistes teneriffae, in Tenerife, Canary Islands. There were no cases of intraspecific brood parasitism. The incidence of extrapair young lies in the upper range of that reported from mainland populations of the closely related Eurasian Blue Tit Cyanistes caeruleus. We conclude that there is no strong island effect on the genetic mating system in the Cyanistes species group but that extrapair paternity rates in Cyanistes are greater at southern latitudes.
Published: 2012
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12. A reconstruction of Palaeo-Macaronesia, with particular reference to the long-term biogeography of the Atlantic island laurel forests

Author: Rüdiger Otto, José María Fernández-Palacios, Juan D. Delgado, Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey, Lea de Nascimento, José Ramón Arévalo, and Robert J. Whittaker
Subjects: Cape verde, geography, geography.geographical_feature_category, Ecology, Insular biogeography, Peninsula, Biogeography, Archipelago, Biota, Endemism, Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics, Laurel forest
Abstract: Macaronesia is a biogeographical region comprising five Atlantic Oceanic archipelagos: the Azores, Madeira, Selvagen (Savage Islands), Canaries and Cape Verde. It has strong affinities with the Atlantic coast of the Iberian Peninsula and the north-western fringes of Africa. This paper re-evaluates the biogeographical history and relationships of Macaronesia in the light of geological evidence, which suggests that large and high islands may have been continuously available in the region for very much longer than is indicated by the maximum surface area of the oldest current island (27 Ma) – possibly for as long as 60 million years. We review this literature, attempting a sequential reconstruction of Palaeo-Macaronesia from 60 Ma to the present. We consider the implications of these geological dynamics for our understanding of the history of colonization of the present islands of Macaronesia. We also evaluate the role of these archipelagos as stepping stones and as both repositories of palaeo-endemic forms and crucibles of neoendemic radiations of plant and animal groups. Our principal focus is on the laurel forest communities, long considered impoverished relicts of the Palaeotropical Tethyan flora. This account is therefore contextualized by reference to the long-term climatic and biogeographical history of Southern Europe and North Africa and by consideration of the implications of changes in land–sea configuration, climate and ocean circulation for Macaronesian biogeography. We go on to provide a synthesis of the more recent history of Macaronesian forests, which has involved a process of impoverishment of the native elements of the biota that has accelerated since human conquest of the islands. We comment briefly on these processes and on the contemporary status and varied conservation opportunities and threats facing these forests across the Macaronesian biogeographical region.
Published: 2010
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13. Food Composition of the Endemic Plain SwiftApus unicolorin the Canary Islands (Macaronesia)

Author: Charles T. Collins, Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey, and Nicholas W. Volpone
Subjects: Apus, biology, Psocoptera, Ecology, Mecoptera, Foraging, Animal Science and Zoology, Plain swift, Hymenoptera, biology.organism_classification, Hemiptera, Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics, Predation
Abstract: As a first step to investigate the foraging ecology of the Plain Swift Apus unicolora the Canary Islands, we studied the food brought to the nestlings. A total of 12,800 aerial prey items were identified from 32 food boluses. 97.3% of the prey items were insects, most of which (96%) were from the orders Coleoptera, Diptera, Hemiptera and Hymenoptera. Other orders represented were Dermaptera, Ephemeroptera, Lepidoptera, Mecoptera, Psocoptera and Thysanoptera. Spiders made up 2.6% of the prey items. Prey sizes ranged from 0.5 mm (body length) to 9.7 mm (average 2.46 mm, SD 0.90). There was substantial variation in the prey types among the 32 food boluses, both at the level of orders and of families. Prey size was more similar among the boluses suggesting that prey size was more important than prey type to the swifts. The results are in agreement with previous studies of swift diets.
Published: 2010
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14. Age and sex dimorphism in the Canary Blue Tit Cyanistes teneriffae teneriffae on the island of Tenerife, Canary Islands

Author: Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey
Subjects: Sexual dimorphism, Wing, Common blue, Sexual selection, Cyanistes, Cyanistes teneriffae, Sexing, Biology, Subspecies, biology.organism_classification, Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics, Demography
Abstract: The Canary Blue Tit Cyanistes teneriffae has recently been split off from the Common Blue Tit Cyanistes caeruleus as a separate species. Live biometrics from across the entire distribution on the island of Tenerife (subspecies teneriffae teneriffae ) are reported. Results suggest that first-year birds had similar bill shape to adults but differed in wing length, tarsus, tail and mass, being smaller on average. A high degree of sexual size dimorphism is reported, males being on average larger than females for wing length, bill length, bill depth and tarsus. A classification tree between the sexes showed that wing length and bill depth were the most important variables and correctly classified males in all occasions (i.e. male = wing length >62.5 mm; bill depth >3.7 mm, 100% correctly classified) but for practical sexing in the field it is recommended to use wing length as a reliable sexing criterion (wing length >62.5 = male, 96% correctly classified). This high degree of sexual size dimorphism observed suggests a high sexual selection in the Canary Blue Tit. OSTRICH 2010, 81(1): 51–57
Published: 2010
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15. The effect of fire severity on first-year seedling establishment in a Pinus canariensis forest on Tenerife, Canary Islands

Author: José María Fernández-Palacios, Rüdiger Otto, Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey, and Pascual Gil Muñoz
Subjects: Regeneración posterior al fuego Pinus canariensis, Regeneración posterior al fuego, biology, fungi, food and beverages, Forestry, Plant Science, Regression tree, biology.organism_classification, Plant ecology, Agronomy, Seedling, Germination, Pinus canariensis, Botany, Post-fire regeneration, Litter, Seedbed, Serotiny, Woody plant
Abstract: The Canarian pine (Pinus canariensis) exhibits a striking combination of high adult resistance to fire and intermediate serotiny. Hence, the study of its post-fire regeneration can support valuable new insights about functional adaptations to fire. Here, we analyse the firstyear seedling establishment after fire in a P. canariensis forest on the northern slope of Tenerife, Canary Islands. The effects of fire severity and other explanatory variables on the seedling density recorded 9 months after fire were examined. We detected a clear unimodal relationship between seedling density and fire severity, with maximum regeneration associated with intermediate fire severity and no regeneration associated with very high crown damage. The results suggested that high severity fires may have caused the partial destruction of the aerial seed bank and/or the creation of unfavourable seedbed conditions for germination and seedling emergence. The density of large pine trees, reflecting seed availability, was the second most important factor explaining the distribution of seedlings. Cover of scorched needle litter on the ground correlated strongly and positively with pine seedling density and negatively with fire severity. The complete lack of regeneration at sites most strongly affected by fire does not represent a major threat for the stand recovery of the Canarian pine, due to the very high tree resistance to fire and the tremendous capacity of the Canarian pine to resprout after fire. The observed very high seedling densities at sites with intermediate fire impacts can probably be related to both the complete liberation of the seed bank (including seeds stored in serotinous cones) and favourable micro-environmental conditions for seed germination and seedling establishment.
Published: 2009
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16. The status of the Fuerteventura Stonechat Saxicola dacotiae: a new evaluation using distance sampling and GIS

Author: Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey
Subjects: education.field_of_study, geography, geography.geographical_feature_category, Distance sampling, Ecology, biology, Range (biology), Population, Endangered species, Massif, biology.organism_classification, Fishery, Habitat destruction, Habitat, Animal Science and Zoology, education, Saxicola dacotiae, Nature and Landscape Conservation
Abstract: SummaryThe status of the ‘Endangered’ Fuerteventura Stonechat Saxicola dacotiae, a western Palearctic single island endemic, was assessed 22 years after the first population estimate of 1,300–1,700 individuals was made by Bibby and Hill (1987). Using GIS and Distance Sampling methodologies, the population on Fuerteventura in 2008 was estimated at 1,035 birds (832–1,287) with the species more abundant on hillsides than in gullies. Within the island's three main massifs (i.e. north, west and south) the highest encounter rate was recorded in the northern massif. This study supports the category of ‘Endangered’ for this species, which does face the obvious threat from development, particularly in the south of the island. The species is also on the endangered list nationally (Spain) and in Europe but has not as yet been evaluated by the Canarian Government. I suggest, based on results of this study, that serious effort should be put in to improving knowledge of the distribution range of this endemic (either by modelling or by systematic visits to sites). An official monitoring programme should be developed and implemented with special attention paid to the three main mountain ranges of this island and particularly to the southern massif which is suffering the highest rate of habitat loss.
Published: 2009
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17. Habitat characteristics and seed crops used by Blue ChaffinchesFringilla teydeain winter: implications for conservation management

Author: Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey, Unai López-de-Heredia, Nikos Nanos, Luis Gil, José María Fernández-Palacios, and Pascual Gil Muñoz
Subjects: biology, Ecology, Endangered species, Fringilla teydea, biology.organism_classification, conservation management, Habitat, Pinus forest, gestión de la conservación, pinar, Seasonal breeder, Wildlife management, Tree cover, Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics, Nature and Landscape Conservation, Wildlife conservation
Abstract: Tree cover and seeds on the ground influence the occurrence of Blue Chaffinches during the non-breeding period. To study the feeding habitat selection of the common Tenerife Blue Chaffinch race during the nonbreeding period as a desperate measure to conserve the endangered Gran Canaria race, whose critical area was burnt in the summer of 2007. Basic statistics were used to test for differences between occupied sites (n = 35) and available representative sites (n = 35). Univariate classification tree models were applied to explore the relationship between a single response variable (presence–absence) and multiple explanatory variables and the relative importance of these. Pine seed availability was quantified on the trees (n = 70) and on the ground (n = 140; 1 × 1 m plots). We found a non-random feeding habitat selection by Blue Chaffinches on Tenerife. During the non-breeding period Blue Chaffinches selected those areas for feeding on pine seeds where the tree cover was higher than 38% (mature areas with tall and thick trees with good crops). When the tree cover was lower than 38%, the mean number of seeds on the ground influenced the presence of this finch (> 0.05 seeds per m2). This study highlights that Blue Chaffinches primarily select sheltered sites for feeding during the non-breeding period. The selection of less sheltered sites seems to be mediated by pine seed availability. Therefore, in this endemic forest system, perceived predation risk, food abundance and availability, and overall availability of safe foraging options are all possibly determining the winter feeding habitat selection. We recommend selective cuts in high-density pine stands to recreate those conditions that allow the pine trees to set seed and management aimed at creating a structure of dispersed small-area compartments with mature trees that provide food and shelter. The installation of artificial feeders seems to be a post-fire priority action for the conservation of the Gran Canaria race. Excmo. Cabildo Insular de Tenerife
Published: 2009
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18. Use of mitochondrial and nuclear genes to infer the origin of two endemic pigeons from the Canary Islands

Author: Michael Wink, Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey, Javier Gonzalez, Guillermo Delgado Castro, and Carola Berger
Subjects: Columba bollii, Mitochondrial DNA, Nuclear gene, Phylogenetic tree, biology, Cytochrome b, Lineage (evolution), food and beverages, Zoology, chemical and pharmacologic phenomena, biology.organism_classification, Maximum parsimony, Phylogenetics, parasitic diseases, psychological phenomena and processes
Abstract: DNA nucleotide sequences from two mitochondrial genes (cytochrome b and NADH dehydrogenase subunit 2) and the nuclear intron 7 of β-fibrinogen were obtained to infer the phylogenetic origin of the two endemic Canarian pigeons: Bolle’s Pigeon (Columba bollii) and Laurel Pigeon (C. junoniae). Phylogenetic analyses of mitochondrial and nuclear genes based on maximum parsimony, maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference all converged into a congruent topology: C. bollii clusters together with the Wood Pigeon (C. palumbus) which is common in Europe and Asia, while C. junoniae was found near the base of the clade that includes other species of the genus Columba from the Old World. Laurel Pigeon probably represents an old lineage that might have colonized the Canary Islands a long time ago (20 My) while Bolle’s Pigeon might have arrived on the archipelago much later during the Upper Miocene (5 My).
Published: 2008
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19. Phylogenetic differentiation of Sylvia species (Aves: Passeriformes) of the Atlantic islands (Macaronesia) based on mitochondrial DNA sequence data and morphometrics

Author: Michael Wink, Christian Dietzen, Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey, and Guillermo Delgado Castro
Subjects: Genetic divergence, Morphometrics, Atlantic Islands, Phylogeography, Taxon, Cytochrome b, Zoology, Taxonomy (biology), Sardinian warbler, Biology, biology.organism_classification, Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics
Abstract: Sequences of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene (1063 bp) of Sylvia species from Macaronesia (Canary Islands, Madeira, Azores), Europe, and North Africa revealed new insights into the phylogeography of these taxa. Subspecific distinctiveness for Sardinian warblers (Sylvia melanocephala) from the Canary Islands was rejected on the basis of very low genetic divergence, distribution of haplotypes, and high variation in morphometrics. Furthermore, blackcaps (Sylvia atricapilla) from Madeira, Canary Islands, and the Azores were not genetically distinct, whereas morphometrics were highly variable. Differences in morphometrics in both Sardinian warbler and blackcap are caused rather by migratory behaviour and ecological traits than by phylogeny. Tentative data obtained in a small sample of spectacled warblers (Sylvia conspicillata) also suggest a low degree of differentiation between Sylvia conspicillata orbitalis (Canary Islands) and Sylvia conspicillata conspicillata (Mediterranean basin). At least for the Sardinian warbler and blackcap, the genetic data suggest a recent range expansion and chronologically different colonization events to the Atlantic islands.
Published: 2008
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20. Evidence from DNA nucleotide sequences and ISSR profiles indicates paraphyly in subspecies of the Southern Grey Shrike (Lanius meridionalis)

Author: Guillermo Delgado Castro, Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey, Michael Wink, and Javier Gonzalez
Subjects: Paraphyly, Lanius meridionalis, biology, Phylogenetic tree, Phylogenetics, Evolutionary biology, Ecology, Cytochrome b, Lanius, Subspecies, biology.organism_classification, Maximum parsimony
Abstract: We obtained DNA sequence data from mitochondrial (cytochrome b) and nuclear genes (myoglobin and ornithine decarboxylase) to reconstruct the phylogenetic relationships among eight species of shrikes (Lanius). Phylogenetic analyses based on maximum parsimony, maximum likelihood and Bayesian inference all converged into a congruent topology and defined several well-supported clades. Our multi-gene approach based on nucleotide sequences from fast-evolving and conserved genes strongly supported the paraphyly of Southern Grey Shrikes (Lanius meridionalis). The Canary Islands subspecies (L. m. koenigi) differed significantly from its European counterpart (L. m. meridionalis). Furthermore, the genetic distinctiveness of L. m. koenigi was confirmed by ISSR genomic fingerprinting. By contrast, we did not find evidence to distinguish the Canarian Southern Grey Shrike from L. m. algeriensis on the African mainland (Tunisia), and therefore these two taxa may be considered as synonymous. Together, they correspond to a separate species. The origin of the taxa investigated in this study might have originated about 6 Mya at the Miocene/Pliocene boundary when a remarkable worldwide faunal turnover and global vegetation change occurred. The Lanius genus represents a complex and taxonomically challenging group that requires additional research.
Published: 2008
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21. Sexual size dimorphism and moult in the Plain SwiftApus unicolor

Author: Eduardo Garcia‐Del‐Rey, Andrew G. Gosler, Javier Gonzalez, and Michael Wink
Subjects: Sexual dimorphism, Apus, Wing, biology, Discriminant function analysis, Ecology, Zoology, Animal Science and Zoology, Sexing, Plain swift, biology.organism_classification, Moulting
Abstract: The biometrics and moult of swifts are poorly known, yet represent important aspects of their breeding biology. In this study we investigated moult and used molecular sexing to characterise sexual size dimorphisms in the Plain Swift Apus unicolor. In contrast to previous work based on skin specimens, males were significantly larger than females with respect to wing length (2.0 mm difference) and tail length. The sexes did not differ in body mass. We derived a discriminant function by binary logistic regression to separate the sexes using wing, bill and tail length; the function was accurate in assigning 70% of the birds to their correct sex. Moult data obtained from 30 birds suggested that almost 25% of individuals overlapped breeding with the start of moult (estimate: 16 August ± 20 days) and that the progress of primary-feather moult was slow and initiated from at least two moult centres. Further studies are needed to investigate moult in relation to migratory strategy in this swift species.
Published: 2008
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22. Species-level divergences in multiple functional traits between the two endemic subspecies of Blue Chaffinches Fringilla teydea in Canary Islands

Author: Anna M. Kearns, Even Stensrud, Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey, Jarl Andreas Anmarkrud, Jan T. Lifjeld, Joseph E. J. Cooper, Robert F. Lachlan, Lars Erik Johannessen, Terje Laskemoen, Pascual Calabuig, Arild Johnsen, and Gunnhild Marthinsen
Subjects: 0106 biological sciences, 0301 basic medicine, Morphometrics, biology, Allopatric speciation, Zoology, Reproductive isolation, Fringilla teydea, Subspecies, Mating system, biology.organism_classification, 010603 evolutionary biology, 01 natural sciences, 03 medical and health sciences, Monophyly, 030104 developmental biology, Evolutionary biology, Animal Science and Zoology, Sperm competition
Abstract: Background One of the biggest challenges in avian taxonomy is the delimitation of allopatric species because their reproductive incompatibility cannot be directly studied in the wild. Instead, reproductive incompatibility has to be inferred from multiple, divergent character sets that indicate a low likelihood of allopatric populations amalgamating upon secondary contact. A set of quantitative criteria for species delimitation has been developed for avian taxonomy. Results Here, we report a broad multi-trait comparison of the two insular subspecies of the Blue Chaffinch Fringilla teydea, endemic to the pine forests of Tenerife (ssp. teydea) and Gran Canaria (ssp. polatzeki) in the Canary Islands. We found that the two taxa were reciprocally monophyletic in their whole mitogenomes and two Z chromosome introns. The genetic distance in mitogenomes indicates around 1 Mya of allopatric evolution. There were diagnostic differences in body morphometrics, song and plumage reflectance spectra, whose combined divergence score (=11) exceeds the threshold level (=7) set for species delimitation by Tobias et al. (Ibis 152:724–746, 2010). Moreover, we found a marked divergence in sperm lengths with little range overlap. Relatively long sperm with low intra- and intermale CV compared to other passerines suggest a mating system with high levels of sperm competition (extrapair paternity) in these taxa. Conclusion The large and diagnostic divergences in multiple functional traits qualify for species rank, i.e., Tenerife Blue Chaffinch (Fringilla teydea) and Gran Canaria Blue Chaffinch (Fringilla polatzeki). We encourage a wider use of sperm traits in avian taxonomy because sperm divergences might signal reproductive incompatibility at the postcopulatory prezygotic stage, especially in species with sperm competition.
Published: 2016

23. The breeding biology of the endemic Berthelot's Pipit Anthus berthelotii in a harsh oceanic island environment (Tenerife, Canary Islands)

Author: Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey and Will Cresswell
Subjects: Avian clutch size, biology, Nest, Ecology, Meadow pipit, biology.animal, Foraging, Anthus berthelotii, biology.organism_classification, Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics, Passerine, Predation, Pipit
Abstract: We describe the density, breeding and foraging ecology of the Berthelot's Pipit ( Anthus berthelotii ), an endemic passerine to the Atlantic islands, in the semi-arid coastal scrub of Tenerife. Furthermore, we analyse the effects of temperature and rainfall in the onset of reproduction and the behaviour (nest site and foraging site selection). The average density of the Pipit (using DISTANCE methodology) in the semi-arid coastal scrub was 7.1 birds 10ha –1 , and the overall density estimate in grassland was 3.3 birds 10ha –1 . The Pipit bred early (mean average first-egg laying date 12 February) and in response to rainfall (but not temperature). By the Mayfield method, the probability of the nests surviving the egg stage was 0.77 and of and the nests surviving the chick stage 0.67 — assuming an incubation period of 13 days and a chick stage of 12.5 days — based on the European average for the similar-sized Meadow Pipit Anthus pratensis . Overall nest survival pooling stages were 0.51. The Pipits had a low clutch size (3.3 eggs, range of 2–4). Nest damage by heavy rainstorms was the major cause of nest failures (three out of five failures). The Pipits nested preferentially in grass with relatively low densities of Euphorbia balsamifera bushes. Birds selected grassy areas as their main foraging site but also preferred to forage on large rocks during nesting: caterpillars were the main food items (14 out of 17 prey captures). Ostrich 2007, 78(3): 583–589
Published: 2007
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24. Phylogeography of the blue tit (Parus teneriffae-group) on the Canary Islands based on mitochondrial DNA sequence data and morphometrics

Author: Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey, Michael Wink, Christian Dietzen, and Guillermo Delgado Castro
Subjects: Morphometrics, Parus, Mitochondrial DNA, geography, geography.geographical_feature_category, biology, Ecology, Zoology, Subspecies, biology.organism_classification, Monophyly, Phylogeography, Taxon, Archipelago
Abstract: An analysis of the sequences of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene (1005 bp) of the Parus teneriffae-group from the Canary Islands and North Africa revealed new insights into the phylogeography of this taxon. The origin of the radiation on the Canarian Archipelago was apparently one of the central islands—Tenerife or Gran Canaria. The populations on El Hierro (P. t. ombriosus) and La Palma (P. t. palmensis) represent distinct monophyletic lineages. Blue tits from Gran Canaria are genetically distinct from those of La Gomera and Tenerife (P. t. teneriffae), which supports the results of other studies and suggests the existence of an—until now—undescribed taxon there. In contrast, the populations on the eastern islands of Fuerteventura and Lanzarote (P. t. degener) could not be distinguished from North African blue tits (P. t. ultramarinus), and these populations should be subsumed under the subspecies ultramarinus. Taxonomic recommendations based on these results include the distinction of the northern European P. caeruleus from P. teneriffae, including blue tits from North Africa and the Canary Islands, the treatment of degener and ultramarinus as synonymous (P. teneriffae ultramarinus) and a new blue tit taxon on the island of Gran Canaria (P. t. hedwigii nov. ssp.), which is formally described. The genetic results are in parts supported by bioacoustic and morphological data.
Published: 2007
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25. Canary Island great spotted woodpecker (Dendrocopos major) has distinct mtDNA

Author: Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey, Michael Wink, Guillermo Delgado, and Javier Gonzalez
Subjects: Genetics, Mitochondrial DNA, biology, Phylogenetic tree, Phylogenetics, Range (biology), Genetic variation, Dendrocopos major, Zoology, Woodpecker, biology.organism_classification, Dendrocopos
Abstract: We have analyzed nucleotide sequences of the mitochondrial cytochrome b (cytb) and NADH dehydrogenase subunit 2 (nd2) genes to elucidate the phylogenetic status (genetic variation) of Canary Island populations of great spotted woodpeckers (Dendrocopos major) that are on the western fringe of the distribution range. Based on these two genes, differences are found between a clade from the Canaries and the rest of the range studied. No differences were observed within the two races found on this archipelago.
Published: 2007
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26. Variable effects of laying date on clutch size in the Canary Island Blue Tits (Cyanistes teneriffae)

Author: Eduardo Garcia-Del-Rey, Christopher M. Perrins, Will Cresswell, and Andrew G. Gosler
Subjects: Avian clutch size, biology, Ecology, Cyanistes teneriffae, Animal Science and Zoology, biology.organism_classification, Snow, Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics
Abstract: (Perrins1979) is one of the most extensively studied species inthe world (Cramp & Perrins 1993), traits affecting itslife history have been little studied in the Canary Islands(Garcia-del-Rey 2003), where the species is unusual intwo major respects. First, it shows considerable systematicvariation (Snow & Perrins 1998). On this oceanic archipelagoat least four (possibly ﬁve, Christian Dietzen
Published: 2006
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27. Population size and habitat selection of the Fuerteventura Blue Tit (Parus caeruleus degener)

Author: Will Cresswell and Eduardo Garcia-Del-Rey
Subjects: Habitat, Population size, Zoology, Biology, Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics, Selection (genetic algorithm), Parus caeruleus degener
Published: 2006
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28. Biometrics, ageing, sexing and moult of the Blue ChaffinchFringilla teydea teydeaon Tenerife (Canary Islands)

Author: Andrew G. Gosler and Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey
Subjects: Sexual dimorphism, Fringilla, Ecology, Seasonal breeder, Animal Science and Zoology, Myrica faya, Fringilla teydea, Biology, Adenocarpus, Subspecies, biology.organism_classification, Mist net
Abstract: The Blue Chaffinch Fringilla teydea is one of a few Palearctic species for which biometric data are lacking from the field; we address this issue here. Blue Chaffinches were caught by mist net, at ten sites on Tenerife (Canary Islands), and measured. Data on biometrics and moult using standard methods are presented, and observations on mass variation in relation to time of day and body size are reported for the first time. Wing length, bill length, bill depth & tail were greater in adults and first year birds than juveniles whilst tarsus and mass were the same. The species shows a clear sexual dimorphism in size except for bill length. The duration of primary moult was estimated to be 66 days for adults. For first year birds (in their second-calendar year), the mean starting date of primary moult was 25 days earlier than adults and was completed after 109 days. The Blue Chaffinch Fringilla teydea is endemic to the western Canary Islands of Gran Canaria (subspecies polatzeki, Hartert 1905) and Tenerife (nominate teydea, Webb et al 1842) (Cramp & Perrins 1994). It is a more robust and longer-legged species than the Chaffinch Fringilla coelebs (about 10% bigger) (Cramp & Perrins 1994) but, as in that species, both races are sexually dimorphic in colour; the male of the nominate race is slaty grey-blue, the female drab olive-brown, but males from Gran Canaria differ in the presence of prominent white tips to the median and greater coverts (Clement et al 1993), and in their smaller body size. Juveniles are similar to adult females in both subspecies (Cramp & Perrins 1994). Virtually confined to the pine forest, which ranges from c 800-2,000 m (Ceballos & Ortuno 1951) on both islands (Bannerman 1963), on Tenerife this finch selects the shrub layer of Adenocarpus sp. when breeding and seems to forage mainly on Myrica faya seeds during the non-breeding season, and on pine seeds during the breeding season. (Garcia-del-Rey pers obs). However, the Gran Canaria race is red-listed as endangered because there are only about 200 individuals left in the wild
Published: 2005
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29. High seed dispersal ability of Pinus canariensis in stands of contrasting density inferred from genotypic data

Author: Nikos Nanos, Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey, Paula Guzmán, Rosana López, Unai López de Heredia, Pascual Gil-Muñoz, Luis Gil, Martin Venturas, and Spanish Ministry of Science, Canary Islands Government, Cabildos of Tenerife and Gran Canaria
Subjects: biology, Ecology, Seed dispersal, Bayesian inference, Soil Science, Forestry, Introduced species, Canary Islands, biology.organism_classification, microsatellites, Gene flow, gene shadow model, Pinus canariensis, parentage analysis, Biological dispersal, lcsh:SD1-669.5, lcsh:Forestry, Endemism, Spatial analysis, Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics, Woody plant
Abstract: Aim of the study: Models that combine parentage analysis from molecular data with spatial information of seeds and seedlings provide a framework to describe and identify the factors involved in seed dispersal and recruitment of forest species. In the present study we used a spatially explicit method (the gene shadow model) in order to assess primary and effective dispersal in Pinus canariensis.Area of study: Pinus canariensis is endemic to the Canary Islands (Spain). Sampling sites were a high density forest in southern slopes of Tenerife and a low density stand in South Gran Canaria. Materials and methods: We fitted models based on parentage analysis from seeds and seedlings collected in two sites with contrasting stand density, and then compared the resulting dispersal distributions.Main results: The results showed that: 1) P. canariensis has a remarkable dispersal ability compared to other pine species; 2) there is no discordance between primary and effective dispersals, suggesting limited secondary dispersal by animals and lack of Janzen-Connell effect; and 3) low stand densities enhance the extent of seed dispersal, which was higher in the low density stand.Research highlights: The efficient dispersal mechanism of P. canariensis by wind inferred by the gene shadow model is congruent with indirect measures of gene flow, and has utility in reconstructing past demographic events and in predicting future distribution ranges for the species.Keywords: Bayesian inference; Canary Islands; gene shadow model; microsatellites; parentage analysis.
Published: 2015

30. Clutch-size variation in Western Palaearctic secondary hole-nesting passerine birds in relation to nest box design

Author: Anne E. Goodenough, Alexis S. Chaine, Martyn J. Stenning, Jacques Blondel, Shelley A. Hinsley, Philipp Heeb, Erkki Korpimäki, Olli J. Loukola, Anne Charmantier, Tore Slagsvold, Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey, Paul Isenmann, Carla S. Pimentel, Aya Goldshtein, Arne Lundberg, Jean Charles Bouvier, Andrew F. Russell, Zihad Bouslama, Ilze Priedniece, Jordi Camprodon, Janne T. Seppänen, Markku Orell, Alexandr Artemyev, Camillo Cusimano, Judith Morales-Fernaz, Peter N. Ferns, Vladimír Remeš, Juan Moreno, Frank Adriaensen, János Török, Xavier Morin, Ian R. Hartley, Ruedi G. Nager, Toni Laaksonen, Marcel M. Lambrechts, Christopher M. Perrins, Tapio Eeva, Rimvydas Juškaitis, Seppo Rytkönen, Luís P. da Silva, Arie J. van Noordwijk, Rianne Pinxten, Hugo Robles, Juan Carlos Senar, Bruno Faivre, Piotr Tryjanowski, Andrew G. Gosler, Tapio Solonen, Arnaud Grégoire, Jerzy Bańbura, Alberto Sorace, Staffan Jacob, Sven G. Nilsson, Heinz Richner, Motti Charter, Clotilde Biard, Blandine Doligez, Wiesaw Walankiewicz, Anders Pape Møller, Claire Doutrelant, Cezary Mitrus, Mikael von Numers, Raivo Mänd, Marcel Eens, Lars Gustafsson, Ana Cláudia Norte, Santiago Merino, Mariusz Cichoń, Mikko Mönkkönen, Esa Lehikoinen, Francesco Cecere, Dorota Czeszczewik, Bernard Leclercq, Antero Järvinen, Anna Dubiec, Wojciech Kania, Jan-Åke Nilsson, Indrikis Krams, Iga Góźdź, Philippe Perret, Marie Claude Quidoz, Mark C. Mainwaring, Jukka T. Forsman, Bruno Massa, Tomasz D. Mazgajski, Emilio Barba, Ecologie Systématique et Evolution (ESE), Université Paris-Sud - Paris 11 (UP11)-AgroParisTech-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Evolutionary Ecology Group, University of Antwerp (UA), Institute of Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences [Moscow] (RAS), Department of Experimental Zoology & Evolutionary Biology, Łódź University of Technology, Terrestrial Vertebrates Research Unit 'Cavanilles', University of Valencia-Institute of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology, Laboratoire Ecologie et évolution, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université Pierre et Marie Curie - Paris 6 (UPMC)-École normale supérieure - Paris (ENS Paris), Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL), Centre d’Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive (CEFE), Université Paul-Valéry - Montpellier 3 (UPVM)-Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA)-Centre international d'études supérieures en sciences agronomiques (Montpellier SupAgro)-École pratique des hautes études (EPHE), Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université de Montpellier (UM)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD [France-Sud])-Institut national d’études supérieures agronomiques de Montpellier (Montpellier SupAgro), Institut national d'enseignement supérieur pour l'agriculture, l'alimentation et l'environnement (Institut Agro)-Institut national d'enseignement supérieur pour l'agriculture, l'alimentation et l'environnement (Institut Agro), Research Laboratory 'Ecology of Terrestrial and Aquatic Systems', University Badji Mokhtar, Unité de recherche Plantes et Systèmes de Culture Horticoles (PSH), Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA), Biodiversity Department, Centre de Ciència i Tecnologia Forestal de Catalunya (CTFC), Station d’Ecologie Expérimentale du CNRS à Moulis (SEEM), Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier (UT3), Université Fédérale Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées-Université Fédérale Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), University of Haifa [Haifa], Society for the Protection of Nature, Université de Lausanne (UNIL), Institute of Environmental Sciences, Uniwersytet Jagielloński w Krakowie = Jagiellonian University (UJ), Stazione Inanellamento c/o Dipartimento SEN-FIMIZO, Università di Palermo, Department of Zoology, Siedlce University of Natural Sciences and Humanities, Evolution, adaptation et comportement, Département écologie évolutive [LBBE], Laboratoire de Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive - UMR 5558 (LBBE), Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1 (UCBL), Université de Lyon-Université de Lyon-Institut National de Recherche en Informatique et en Automatique (Inria)-VetAgro Sup - Institut national d'enseignement supérieur et de recherche en alimentation, santé animale, sciences agronomiques et de l'environnement (VAS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1 (UCBL), Université de Lyon-Université de Lyon-Institut National de Recherche en Informatique et en Automatique (Inria)-VetAgro Sup - Institut national d'enseignement supérieur et de recherche en alimentation, santé animale, sciences agronomiques et de l'environnement (VAS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Laboratoire de Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive - UMR 5558 (LBBE), Université de Lyon-Université de Lyon-Institut National de Recherche en Informatique et en Automatique (Inria)-VetAgro Sup - Institut national d'enseignement supérieur et de recherche en alimentation, santé animale, sciences agronomiques et de l'environnement (VAS)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Museum and Institute of Zoology, Polska Akademia Nauk = Polish Academy of Sciences (PAN), Department of Biology (Ethology), Section of Ecology, University of Turku, Biogéosciences [UMR 6282] [Dijon] (BGS), Université de Bourgogne (UB)-AgroSup Dijon - Institut National Supérieur des Sciences Agronomiques, de l'Alimentation et de l'Environnement-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), School of Biosciences [Cardiff], Cardiff University, Department of Biology, University of Oulu, Departamento de Ecología, Universidad de La Laguna [Tenerife - SP] (ULL), Tel Aviv University [Tel Aviv], Department of Natural and Social Sciences, University of Gloucestershire, Edward Grey Institute of Field Ornithology-Institute of Human Sciences, Evolutionary Biology Centre, Uppsala University, Lancaster Environment Centre, Lancaster University, Evolution et Diversité Biologique (EDB), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier (UT3), Université Fédérale Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées-Université Fédérale Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées, The Lodge, RSPB, Kilpisjarvi Biological Station, Institute of Ecology of Nature Research Centre, Ornithological Station, Polska Akademia Nauk = Polish Academy of Sciences (PAN)-Museum and Institute of Zoology, Institute of Ecology & Earth Sciences, University of Tartu, Departamento de Ecología Evolutiva, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas [Madrid] (CSIC)-Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (MNCN), Rzeszow University, Department of Biological and Environmental Science [Jyväskylä Univ] (JYU), University of Jyväskylä (JYU), Institute of Biodiversity, Animal Health & Comparative Medicine, University of Glasgow, Animal Ecology, Lund University [Lund], Department of Life Sciences, University of Coimbra [Portugal] (UC), Centro de Estudos Florestais, Universidade de Lisboa (ULISBOA)-Instituto Superior de Agronomia, Latvian Fund for Nature, Laboratory of Ornithology, Palacky University Olomouc, Institute of Ecology & Evolution (IEE), University of Bern, Unidad Asociada CSIC de Ecología Evolutiva y de la Conducta, Nat-Museu de Ciències Naturals de Barcelona, Department of Biosciences [Oslo], Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences [Oslo], University of Oslo (UiO)-University of Oslo (UiO), Luontotutkimus Solonen Oy, SROPU, School of Life Sciences, University of Sussex, Behavioral Ecology Group, Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE), Institute of Zoology, Poznan University of Life Sciences, Netherlands Institute of Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology - NIOO-KNAW (NETHERLANDS), Environmental and Marine Biology, Åbo Academy University, Study supported by Academy of Finland (Project Number 265859), by the Spanish Research Council-CSIC, by the European Social Fund (programme 'Junta para la Ampliacion de Estudios'), by OTKA (Project Number 75618) and by Fundacion Alfonso Martin Escudero and Xunta de Galicia (Angeles Alvarino program and Plan I2C postdoctoral grant)., Ecologie Systématique et Evolution ( ESE ), Université Paris-Sud - Paris 11 ( UP11 ) -AgroParisTech-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique ( CNRS ), University of Antwerp ( UA ), Russian Academy of Sciences [Moscow] ( RAS ), Ecologie et évolution, École normale supérieure - Paris ( ENS Paris ) -Université Pierre et Marie Curie - Paris 6 ( UPMC ) -Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique ( CNRS ), Centre d’Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive ( CEFE ), Institut de Recherche pour le Développement ( IRD [France-Sud] ) -Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique ( CNRS ) -Université de Montpellier ( UM ) -Institut national de la recherche agronomique [Montpellier] ( INRA Montpellier ) -École pratique des hautes études ( EPHE ) -Centre international d'études supérieures en sciences agronomiques ( Montpellier SupAgro ) -Université Paul-Valéry - Montpellier 3 ( UM3 ) -Institut national d’études supérieures agronomiques de Montpellier ( Montpellier SupAgro ), Unité Plantes et Systèmes de Culture Horticoles ( PSH ), Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique ( INRA ), Forest Technology Center of Catalonia, Station d'Ecologie Expérimentale du CNRS, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique ( CNRS ), University of Lausanne, Jagiellonian University [Krakow] ( UJ ), Laboratoire de Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive ( LBBE ), Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1 ( UCBL ), Université de Lyon-Université de Lyon-Institut National de Recherche en Informatique et en Automatique ( Inria ) -Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique ( CNRS ), Polska Akademia Nauk ( PAN ), Biogéosciences [Dijon] ( BGS ), Université de Bourgogne ( UB ) -AgroSup Dijon - Institut National Supérieur des Sciences Agronomiques, de l'Alimentation et de l'Environnement-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique ( CNRS ), School of Bioscience, Universidad de la Laguna, Evolution et Diversité Biologique ( EDB ), Institut de Recherche pour le Développement ( IRD ) -Université Paul Sabatier - Toulouse 3 ( UPS ) -Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique ( CNRS ), Polska Akademia Nauk ( PAN ) -Museum and Institute of Zoology, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas [Spain] ( CSIC ) -Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales, Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Jyväskylä, University of Coimbra [Portugal] ( UC ), Instituto Superior de Agronomia-University of Lisbon, Palacky University, Institute of Ecology & Evolution ( IEE ), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo ( UiO ), Eötvös Loránd University ( ELTE ), Animal Population Biology, Animal Ecology (AnE), Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD [France-Sud])-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-École pratique des hautes études (EPHE)-Université de Montpellier (UM)-Institut national d’études supérieures agronomiques de Montpellier (Montpellier SupAgro)-Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA)-Centre international d'études supérieures en sciences agronomiques (Montpellier SupAgro)-Université Paul-Valéry - Montpellier 3 (UM3), Jagiellonian University [Krakow] (UJ), Polska Akademia Nauk (PAN), Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Université de Bourgogne (UB)-AgroSup Dijon - Institut National Supérieur des Sciences Agronomiques, de l'Alimentation et de l'Environnement, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier (UT3), Polska Akademia Nauk (PAN)-Museum and Institute of Zoology, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas [Spain] (CSIC)-Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (MNCN), Møller, AP, Adriaensen, F, Artemyev, A, Bańbura, J, Barba, E, Biard, C, Blondel, J, Bouslama, Z, Bouvier, JC, Camprodon, J, Cecere, C, Chaine, A, Charmantier, A, Charter, M, Cichoń, M, Cusimano, C, Czeszczewik, D, Doligez, B, Doutrelant, C, Dubiec, A, Eens, M, Eeva, T, Faivre, B, Ferns, PN, Forsman, JT, García-del-Rey, E, Goldshtein, A, Goodenough, AE, Gosler, AG, Góźdź, I, Grégoire, A, Gustafsson, L, Hartley, IR, Heeb, P, Hinsley, SA, Isenmann, P, Jacob, S, Järvinen, A, Juškaitis, R, Kania, W, Korpimäki, E, Krams, I, Laaksonen, T, Leclercq, B, Lehikoinen, E, Loukola, O, Lundberg, A, Mainwaring, MC, Mänd, R, Massa, B, Mazgajski, TD, Merino, S, Mitrus, C, Mönkkönen, M, Morales-Fernaz, J, Moreno, J, Morin, X, Nager, RG, Nilsson, JA, Nilsson, SG, Norte, AC, Orell, M, Perret, P, Perrins, CM, Pimentel, CS, Pinxten, R, Priedniece, I, Quidoz, MC, Remeš, V, Richner, H, Robles, H, Russell, A, Rytkönen, S, Senar, JC, Seppänen, JT, Pascoal da Silva, L, Slagsvold, T, Solonen, T, Sorace, A, Stenning, MJ, Török, J, Tryjanowski, P, van Noordwijk, AJ, von Numers, M, Walankiewicz, W, Lambrechts, MM, École normale supérieure - Paris (ENS-PSL), Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université Pierre et Marie Curie - Paris 6 (UPMC)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Université Paul-Valéry - Montpellier 3 (UPVM)-Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique (INRA)-Centre international d'études supérieures en sciences agronomiques (Montpellier SupAgro)-École Pratique des Hautes Études (EPHE), Université de Toulouse (UT)-Université de Toulouse (UT)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Université de Lausanne = University of Lausanne (UNIL), Università degli studi di Palermo - University of Palermo, Biogéosciences [UMR 6282] (BGS), Université de Bourgogne (UB)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Tel Aviv University (TAU), Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales [Madrid] (MNCN), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas [Madrid] (CSIC)-Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas [Madrid] (CSIC), Universidade de Lisboa = University of Lisbon (ULISBOA)-Instituto Superior de Agronomia [Lisboa] (ISA), Universidade de Lisboa = University of Lisbon (ULISBOA), Museu de Ciències Naturals de Barcelona, European Commission, and Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (España)
Subjects: 0106 biological sciences, Avian clutch size, Nest box floor area, habitat, Nest boxmaterial, 010603 evolutionary biology, 01 natural sciences, 010605 ornithology, [ SDV.EE ] Life Sciences [q-bio]/Ecology, environment, Nest, biology.animal, nest box material, Nest box, Biology, Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics, ComputingMilieux_MISCELLANEOUS, Geographic location, Parus, [SDV.EE]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Ecology, environment, [ SDE.BE ] Environmental Sciences/Biodiversity and Ecology, Latitude, biology, Ecology, Ecological Modeling, [SDV.BA]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Animal biology, longitude, Cyanistes, Ficedula, nest box floor area, latitude, 15. Life on land, biology.organism_classification, Bird nest, Passerine, Habitat, Chemistry, Settore AGR/11 - Entomologia Generale E Applicata, Longitude, geographic location, international, [SDE.BE]Environmental Sciences/Biodiversity and Ecology, Hole nesting, natural holes, nest boxes, reaction norm
Abstract: Møller, A.P. [et al.], Secondary hole-nesting birds that do not construct nest holes themselves and hence regularly breed in nest boxes constitute important model systems for field studies in many biological disciplines with hundreds of scientists and amateurs involved. Those research groups are spread over wide geographic areas that experience considerable variation in environmental conditions, and researchers provide nest boxes of varying designs that may inadvertently introduce spatial and temporal variation in reproductive parameters. We quantified the relationship between mean clutch size and nest box size and material after controlling for a range of environmental variables in four of the most widely used model species in the Western Palaearctic: great tit Parus major, blue tit Cyanistes caeruleus, pied flycatcher Ficedula hypoleuca and collared flycatcher F. albicollis from 365 populations and 79 610 clutches. Nest floor area and nest box material varied non-randomly across latitudes and longitudes, showing that scientists did not adopt a random box design. Clutch size increased with nest floor area in great tits, but not in blue tits and flycatchers. Clutch size of blue tits was larger in wooden than in concrete nest boxes. These findings demonstrate that the size of nest boxes and material used to construct nest boxes can differentially affect clutch size in different species. The findings also suggest that the nest box design may affect not only focal species, but also indirectly other species through the effects of nest box design on productivity and therefore potentially population density and hence interspecific competition. © 2014 The Authors. Methods in Ecology and Evolution © 2014 British Ecological Society., J. Morales by the Spanish Research Council-CSIC and the European Social Fund (programme Junta para la Ampliación de Estudios).
Published: 2014
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31. Effects of thinning on seed rain, regeneration and understory vegetation in a Pinus canariensis plantation (Tenerife, Canary Islands)

Author: Javier Méndez, Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey, José María Fernández-Palacios, and Rüdiger Otto
Subjects: Diversity, Diversidad, Thinning, Agroforestry, Regeneración, Crown (botany), fungi, Biodiversity, food and beverages, Forestry, Understory, Vegetation, Management, Monitoring, Policy and Law, Biology, biology.organism_classification, Basal area, Agronomy, Seedling, Pinus canariensis, Regeneration, Nature and Landscape Conservation
Abstract: Stand density management in even-aged coniferous plantations may increase biodiversity and enhance natural tree regeneration. Thinning of pine plantations has only recently been started on the Canary Islands, yet the ecological effects of this treatment are relatively unknown. Our objective was to investigate the impact of thinning on pine seed rain, natural pine regeneration and diversity of understory vegetation in Pinus canariensis plantations. Seven years after thinning, we sampled 60-year old plantations thinned by 60% of basal area, unthinned stands and adjacent semi-natural old-growth forests. Thinning significantly increased pine seed rain to levels similar to semi-natural stands. This is probably a result of fast crown development and enhanced cone production due to the immediate release of resources and reduction in competition. In contrast, plantations with the highest tree densities had very low seed production, limiting pine regeneration. Seed rain showed seasonal fluctuations with clear summer peaks of seed release. Thinning also significantly increased seedling, sapling and juvenile densities. However, thinned plantations still differed from old-growth forests in seedling and juvenile densities. Thinning promoted understory plant diversity, including typical endemic pine forest species, without triggering plant invasion, which is of great conservation interest. This study provides evidence that heavy thinning represents an important management tool to enhance naturalization and local biodiversity of Canary pine plantations, common in large areas of this Archipelago.
Published: 2012

32. Avian mortality due to power lines in the Canary Islands with special reference to the steppe-land birds

Author: Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey and Juan Antonio Rodriguez-Lorenzo
Subjects: geography, Distance sampling, geography.geographical_feature_category, biology, Range (biology), Steppe, Ecology, Biodiversity, biology.organism_classification, Chlamydotis undulata, Animal ecology, biology.animal, Archipelago, Seabird, Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics, Taxonomy
Abstract: Biodiversity is being lost worldwide at an increased rate particularly as the result of human activities and infrastructure. Avian mortality through collision with power lines has been an important topic in animal ecology research, but studies of this kind have never been undertaken in the Canary Islands, a volcanic archipelago located near the northwest African coast that has important seabird colonies, several endemic bird species and endemic races of steppe-land birds of conservation concern. During two contrasting periods in 2008 (breeding vs post-breeding), a total of 366 km of power lines were surveyed on this archipelago covering the entire distributional range of the most important steppe-land bird species (i.e. 232 km, Fuerteventura; 134 km, Lanzarote). In all, 310 carcasses representing 23 families and 26 species were detected. We estimated with distance Sampling that 25.5% and 6.3% of individuals of the total population of Houbara bustards, Chlamydotis undulata fuertaventurae, and Eurasian ston...
Published: 2011

33. Spatiotemporal variation of a Pinus seed rain available for an endemic finch in an insular environment

Author: Rüdiger Otto, Unai López-de-Heredia, Pascual Gil Muñoz, Nikos Nanos, José María Fernández-Palacios, Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey, and Luis Gil
Subjects: education.field_of_study, biology, Ecology, Population, Lluvia de semillas, Sowing, food and beverages, Fringilla teydea, Management, Monitoring, Policy and Law, biology.organism_classification, Implicaciones de conservación, Abundance (ecology), Germination, Pinus canariensis, Seed rain, Spatial variability, Myrica faya, Conservation implications, education, Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics, Seed trap, Nature and Landscape Conservation
Abstract: A major goal of avian ecological research is to determine how distribution and abundance of preferred resources available influence population dynamics and contribute to understand life-history characteristics. Food is widely considered the ultimate factor influencing these traits. We studied, with seed traps, the spatiotemporal variability of Pinus canariensis seed rain during 2007–2008, as a means to explain why a post-dispersal seed predator of conservation concern, the endemic blue chaffinch Fringilla teydea, can adjust its annual life cycle with this variation in an insular environment. Generalized linear mixed models and geostatistical tools were used. Results highlight that temperature and relative humidity are important predictors of seed release rates. Additionally, a high temporal variation was detected in seed abundance (i.e., peaks of massive seed release during the summer months, intermediate values in the autumn, and minimum release rates in winter and spring). Finally, withinstand spatial variation in seed flux was surprisingly large with the most productive microsites receiving three to four times more seeds than the least productive ones. Pine seeds showed a high protein value and a low germination rate. Based on these findings, we suggest that the fortunes of the blue chaffinch should be intimately related to spatiotemporal annual P. canariensis seed crops, temperature acting as a proximate cue, and food availability as the ultimate factor. For the endangered blue chaffinch population on Gran Canaria, we recommend, until more data are available, improving the seed supply during the winter season, either artificially (feeders) or naturally (planting Myrica faya shrubs).
Published: 2011

34. Breeding status of the Ruddy Shelduck Tadorna ferruginea at Fuerteventura, Canary Islands: natural colonisation of two habitat types on an oceanic island

Author: Juan Antonio Rodriguez-Lorenzo and Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey
Subjects: education.field_of_study, Arboreal locomotion, Ruddy shelduck, biology, Ecology, Population, Vegetation, Anatidae, biology.organism_classification, Brood, Colonisation, Geography, Habitat, education, Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics
Abstract: During the breeding season of 2008 a total of 24–30 female Ruddy Shelduck Tadorna ferruginea with brood were counted at two habitat types (reservoirs and natural gullies). The population was relatively stable from 1994–2002, with a likely increase afterwards. Generally, the island breeding distribution comprises the north and mid part of Fuerteventura. Breeding ducks were mainly concentrated in man-made reservoirs, the most important site was Los Molinos Reservoir with 40–42% of the island population, but single pairs also occurred in gullies with flourishing saline water and lush shrubby and arboreal fringing vegetation. We recommend that special attention should be paid by the local authorities to breeding areas outside the Important Bird Areas for this island (e.g. Catalina Garcia Reservoir, the second-most important breeding location for this Anatidae) and some other sites in gullies. OSTRICH 2010, 81(2): 93–96
Published: 2010

35. Regeneration niche of the Canarian juniper: the role of adults, shrubs and environmental conditions

Author: Rüdiger Otto, Juan D. Delgado, José María Fernández-Palacios, Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey, José Ramón Arévalo, and Bertil Krüsi
Subjects: 0106 biological sciences, Forest management, ved/biology.organism_classification_rank.species, microhabitat, Canary Islands, Woodland, 010603 evolutionary biology, 01 natural sciences, Shrub, Islas Canarias, [SDV.SA.SF]Life Sciences [q-bio]/Agricultural sciences/Silviculture, forestry, regeneración, Micro-habitat, Abiotic component, Herbivore, Ecology, biology, ved/biology, Forestry, 15. Life on land, biology.organism_classification, 580: Pflanzen (Botanik), Habitat, regeneration, Juniperus turbinata ssp. canariensis, Juniper, GLM, 010606 plant biology & botany, Woody plant
Abstract: Canarian Juniper woodlands, now very scarce, are rich in endemic and endangered plants. However, many aspects of juniper regeneration are almost unknown. This paper relates occurrence and abundance of recruits of Juniperus turbinata ssp. canariensis to (1) small-scale soil characteristics; (2) vegetation cover; and (3) distance to conspecific adults in two contrasting juniper stands in the eastern mountains of Tenerife.We used non-parametric classification trees and generalised linear models (GLM) to evaluate the effect and importance of each explanatory variable on the occurrence of juniper saplings. Sapling density, vitality and growth rate, as well as fruit production by adult trees, but neither cone density on the ground nor sapling size, varied significantly with respect to slope orientation, representing environmental stress. Within each stand, distance to nearest adult tree was the most important variable explaining the spatial distribution of juniper saplings and availability of seeds in cones. Additionally, saplings were positively associated with shrub cover at the microsite-level, but not with spiny shrub cover. Soil depth and rock cover had a weak negative effect on sapling establishment, but only at the south-facing site and in the open space microhabitat. Results suggest that recruitment of Canarian juniper is facilitated by microhabitats offered by adults and shrubs. The key factors affecting recruitment are thought to be (1) favourable microenvironmental conditions and (2) high ambient seed availability. Browsing intensity in recent decades was very low. The presence of spiny shrubs did not favour juniper establishment. Facilitation therefore appears to result from amelioration of abiotic conditions rather than from protection against herbivory. Comunidad Europea
Published: 2010
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36. Effects of wildfire on endemic breeding birds in a Pinus canariensis forest of Tenerife, Canary Islands

Author: Luis Gil, José María Fernández-Palacios, Rüdiger Otto, Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey, and Pascual Gil Muñoz
Subjects: Regulus regulus teneriffae, Incendios forestales, Ecology, biology, Aves reproductoras, Cyanistes teneriffae, Phylloscopus canariensis, Fringilla teydea, Woodpecker, biology.organism_classification, Fire, Breeding birds, Pinus canariensis, Dendrocopos major, Ecología del ecosistema, Species richness, Community ecology, Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics
Abstract: Fire is a key ecological force in pine forests worldwide, and faunal responses to this disturbance have been a major topic of ecology, yet little is known for oceanic island environments. Using line transects we surveyed the bird community of a natural Pinus canariensis forest burned in the summer of 2007 on Tenerife, Canary Islands, Spain. Our goal was to identify important environmental variables and the thresholds that influenced the pattern of bird abundance at the community, foraging guild, and species-specific level. Models were constructed by means of regression trees and cross validation applying the 1-SE rule. Mixed results were observed and only 2 species were clearly affected by fire severity. Overall, total bird abundance, total species richness, and total bird diversity were positively influenced by low, very low, and moderate canopy fire severity, respectively, and the presence of either Erica or Myrica shrubs. Consequently, high canopy fire severity had an overall negative effect on bird community characteristics. Abundance of Myrica shrubs affected positively general ground foragers such as common blackbird (Turdus merula cabrerae) and Canary Islands chiffchaff (Phylloscopus canariensis), a canopy forager. The number of thin trees was important for canopy foragers such as goldcrest (Regulus regulus teneriffae) and African blue tit (Cyanistes teneriffae teneriffae), but also for a bark forager, the great spotted woodpecker (Dendrocopos major canariensis). European robin (Erithacus rubecula superbus) and the ubiquitous endemic blue chaffinch (Fringilla teydea teydea) were influenced by low and moderate canopy fire severity, respectively. We recommend that land managers incorporate these results into future post-fire management plans. Priority post-fire actions should be directed toward the protection and conservation of the endemic blue chaffinch, a species of conservation concern on the nearby island of Gran Canaria.
Published: 2010

37. Intra-annual variation in habitat choice by an endemic woodpecker: Implications for forest management and conservation

Author: Eduardo Garcia-del-Rey, Pascual Gil Muñoz, and José María Fernández-Palacios
Subjects: biology, Ecology, Tenerife, Selección de habitat, Forest management, Canary Islands, Conservation, Ecología forestal, Woodpecker, biology.organism_classification, Habitat selection, Snag, Management, Islas Canarias, Habitat, Dendrocopos major canariensis, Pinus canariensis, Forest ecology, Conservación, Dendrocopos major, Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics, Nature and Landscape Conservation, Woody plant
Abstract: The Canary Islands great spotted woodpecker Dendrocopos major canariensis is an endemic bird restricted to the Pinus canariensis forests of Tenerife and Gran Canaria. Classification tree models were applied to explore the relationship of the occurrence of this picid and habitat variables between two contrasting periods (breeding vs. non-breeding seasons) and for the entire annual cycle. During the reproductive period the availability of mature trees (DBH > 60 cm), and snags (dead trees), for nesting and roosting, characterize the breeding territory. Outside the breeding season the choice of locations was driven by a tree cover larger than 28.5% and the presence of trees taller than 8.5mon average, a pattern explained by the availability of pine seeds in the cones of well-developed canopies, and less so by predation risk. Overall, during the annual cycle, well-developed canopy sites influenced the presence of this picidae (tree cover > 38%) and on more open sites ( 60 cm) became the second most important predictor of occurrence.We suggest that food abundance and availability could be the ultimate factor explaining the intra-annual variation observed, with the availability of snags being an important factor during nesting. In the range of this endemic, we recommend selective cuts in pine plantations, to allow the trees to set seed and improve their crops, minimizing the elimination of snags, and killing some large pine trees if the priority is to expand the distributional range of the woodpecker. Sociedad Ornitológica Canaria
Published: 2009

38. High seed dispersal ability of Pinus canariensis in stands of contrasting density inferred from genotypic data

Author: Unai López de Heredia, Nikos Nanos, Eduardo García-del-Rey, Paula Guzmán, Rosana López, Martin Venturas, Pascual Gil Muñoz, and Luis Gil
Subjects: Bayesian inference, Canary Islands, gene shadow model, microsatellites, parentage analysis, Forestry, SD1-669.5
Abstract: Aim of the study: Models that combine parentage analysis from molecular data with spatial information of seeds and seedlings provide a framework to describe and identify the factors involved in seed dispersal and recruitment of forest species. In the present study we used a spatially explicit method (the gene shadow model) in order to assess primary and effective dispersal in Pinus canariensis. Area of study: Pinus canariensis is endemic to the Canary Islands (Spain). Sampling sites were a high density forest in southern slopes of Tenerife and a low density stand in South Gran Canaria. Materials and methods: We fitted models based on parentage analysis from seeds and seedlings collected in two sites with contrasting stand density, and then compared the resulting dispersal distributions. Main results: The results showed that: 1) P. canariensis has a remarkable dispersal ability compared to other pine species; 2) there is no discordance between primary and effective dispersals, suggesting limited secondary dispersal by animals and lack of Janzen-Connell effect; and 3) low stand densities enhance the extent of seed dispersal, which was higher in the low density stand. Research highlights: The efficient dispersal mechanism of P. canariensis by wind inferred by the gene shadow model is congruent with indirect measures of gene flow, and has utility in reconstructing past demographic events and in predicting future distribution ranges for the species.
Published: 2015
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