Čejka chocholatá (Vanellus vanellus) -- modelový druh pro výzkum prekociálních problémů bahňáků ( Charadrii)

Precociality has large energy demands on a freshly hatched chick which must start to feed itself and face environmental factors more than altricial nestlings. The Northern Lapwing (Vanellus vanellus) is a suitable model species for presenting the precocial problems of shorebirds (Charadrii), a typical precocial group of birds. A better understanding of the lapwing chick's problems in different habitats will deepen our knowledge about ecological constraints and adaptations of precocial shorebirds and, at the same time can be very helpful for determining the rules of effective conservation of endangered species. The chick size, growth, condition and survival are influenced by egg volume but also by the quality of the parents during the 35 day period that the chick needs to achieve fledging. A Lapwing chick's mortality is highest during the first 10 days of its life due to all of the further mentioned factors, which are even stronger in the critical and delicate period of the chick's life after hatching. Lapwing chicks forage non-selectively on the most abundant and available types of prey found on the soil surface, in soft mud or shallow water. Their diet consists of various types of invertebrates, particularly earthworms, beetles and other groups of insects. The proportion of particular food...