Effects of food supplementation and habitat selection on timing of Lesser Kestrel breeding. (Notes)

Numerous experimental studies providing extra food have concluded that food availability at the beginning of the breeding season constrains the start of egg-laying for female birds (Food Supply Hypothesis) because supplemented females usually lay earlier than nonsupplemented ones. This conclusion has recently been questioned because food addition studies may be confounded by ordered habitat selection. Ordered habitat selection occurs when territories or nests provided with extra food are chosen by individuals of higher quality that may be able to initiate breeding early, regardless of food supply (Habitat Selection Hypothesis). To test these two hypotheses, we performed an experiment using the Lesser Kestrel (Falco naumanni). To reveal effects of ordered habitat selection, extra food was provided to half of the nests in two colonies in which the other nests remained unsupplemented (mixed colonies). We provided extra food to all nests in two colonies (all-fed colonies) and to no nests in three colonies (all-unfed colonies). In these colonies, ordered habitat selection could not occur because all nests received equal treatment. In mixed colonies, fed pairs laid earlier than unfed ones. In contrast to the prediction of the Habitat Selection Hypothesis, there was no significant difference in mean laying date between unfed pairs of mixed colonies and pairs in all-unfed colonies, or between fed pairs of mixed colonies and pairs in all-fed colonies. Moreover, laying date was significantly earlier in all-fed than in all-unfed colonies. Therefore, the results support the Food Supply Hypothesis and refute the Habitat Selection Hypothesis. Key words: egg laying; Falco naumanni; food limitation; food supply; habitat selection; laying date; Lesser Kestrel; Spain; supplementary food; timing of breeding.