Non‐lethal effects of predation in birds
2008/01/01 by Will Cresswell, WILL CRESSWELL · 33 citations
Agricultural and Biological Sciences · Environmental Science · #Plant and animal studies #Animal Behavior and Reproduction #Avian ecology and behavior
paper · doi:10.1111/j.1474-919x.2007.00793.x
Abstract
Predators can affect individual fitness and population and community processes through lethal effects (direct consumption or ‘density’ effects), where prey is consumed, or through non‐lethal effects (trait‐mediated effects or interactions), where behavioural compensation to predation risk occurs, such as animals avoiding areas of high predation risk. Studies of invertebrates, fish and amphibians have shown that non‐lethal effects may be larger than lethal effects in determining the behaviour, condition, density and distribution of animals over a range of trophic levels. Although non‐lethal effects have been well described in the behavioural ecology of birds (and also mammals) within the context of anti‐predation behaviour, their role relative to lethal effects is probably underestimated. Birds show many behavioural and physiological changes to reduce direct mortality from predation and these are likely to have negative effects on other aspects of their fitness and population dynamics, as well as affecting the ecology of their own prey and their predators. As a consequence, the effects of predation in birds are best measured by trade‐offs between maximizing instantaneous survival in the presence of predators and acquiring or maintaining resources for long‐term survival or reproduction. Because avoiding predation imposes foraging costs, and foraging behaviour is relatively easy to measure in birds, the foraging–predation risk trade‐off is probably an effective framework for understanding the importance of non‐lethal effects, and so the population and community effects of predation risk in birds and other animals. Using a trade‐off approach allows us to predict better how changes in predator density will impact on population and community dynamics, and how animals perceive and respond to predation risk, when non‐lethal effects decouple the relationship between predator density and direct mortality rate. The trade‐off approach also allows us to identify where predation risk is structuring communities because of avoidance of predators, even when this results in no observable direct mortality rate.
Citations
Cited by
- More than mortality: Consequences of human activity on migrating birds extend beyond direct mortality
- Superpredator proximity and landscape characteristics alters nest site selection and breeding success of a subordinate predator
- Changing Flight and Flocking Dynamics of Homing Pigeons ( Columba livia d .) Over Heterogeneous Landscapes
- Sensory basis of vigilance behavior in birds: Synthesis and future prospects
- Sparrowhawk movement, calling, and presence of dead conspecifics differentially impact blue tit (Cyanistes caeruleus) vocal and behavioral mobbing responses
- Breeding biology of the African Pygmy Falcon: long-term variation and seasonal decline in breeding performance of an arid zone raptor
- A landscape-based approach to design flower blocks may reduce mammalian predator activity and protect ground-nesting farmland birds
- In the Shadow of Man: Behavioral Changes in Japanese Pika (Ochotona hyperborea yesoensis) due to Human Presence at Mount Highashi‐Nupukaushi‐Nupuri, Hokkaido, Japan
- How should prey animals respond to uncertain threats? [europepmc]
- Manipulating individual state during migration provides evidence for carry-over effects modulated by environmental conditions. [europepmc]
- Too risky to settle: avian community structure changes in response to perceived predation risk on adults and offspring. [europepmc]
- I'll take the low road: the evolutionary underpinnings of visually triggered fear. [europepmc]
- When the birds go unheard: highway noise disrupts information transfer between bird species. [europepmc]
- Rodent-avoidance, topography and forest structure shape territory selection of a forest bird. [europepmc]
- The adaptive value of habitat preferences from a multi-scale spatial perspective: insights from marsh-nesting avian species. [europepmc]
- Sparrowhawk movement, calling, and presence of dead conspecifics differentially impact blue tit ( Cyanistes caeruleus ) vocal and behavioral mobbing responses. [europepmc]
- Predator arrival elicits differential dispersal, change in age structure and reproductive performance in a prey population. [europepmc]
- Direct and indirect effects of chemical contaminants on the behaviour, ecology and evolution of wildlife. [europepmc]
- Mallard resource selection trade-offs in a heterogeneous environment during autumn and winter. [europepmc]
- How Do Trait-Mediated Non-lethal Effects of Predation Affect Population-Level Performance of Mosquitoes? [europepmc]
- Response time of an avian prey to a simulated hawk attack is slower in darker conditions, but is independent of hawk colour morph. [europepmc]
- Assessing factors associated with changes in the numbers of birds visiting gardens in winter: Are predators partly to blame? [europepmc]
- Variation in behavioral traits of two frugivorous mammals may lead to differential responses to human disturbance. [europepmc]
- Sex-specific costs of reproduction on survival in a long-lived seabird. [europepmc]
- Extensive daily movement rates measured in territorial arctic foxes. [europepmc]
- Contrasting effects of the COVID-19 lockdown on urban birds' reproductive success in two cities. [europepmc]
- Semi-intensive shrimp farms as experimental arenas for the study of predation risk from falcons to shorebirds. [europepmc]
- Incidence of shark-inflicted bite injuries on Australian snubfin ( Orcaella heinsohni ) and Australian humpback ( Sousa sahulensis ) dolphins in coastal waters off east Queensland, Australia. [europepmc]
- The Impact of Predation Risks on the Development and Fecundity of Bactrocera dorsalis Hendel. [europepmc]
- The Japanese tits evaluate threat level based on the posture of a predator. [europepmc]
- Antipredator responses of bats during short boreal nights with variable climatic conditions. [europepmc]
- Torpor use in response to predation risk in a small, free-living bird. [europepmc]
- Changing Flight and Flocking Dynamics of Homing Pigeons ( Columba livia d .) Over Heterogeneous Landscapes. [europepmc]
Related