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Parent-offspring recognition in thick-billed murres (Aves: Alcidae)
1Department of Biology, Queen's University
Animal Behaviour
|December 16, 1998
Summary
Parent thick-billed murres (Uria lomvia) recognize their chicks by call, with recognition developing early in life. Parental acceptance of foreign chicks declines as they age, indicating a critical window for recognition.
Area of Science:
- Ornithology
- Animal Behavior
- Bioacoustics
Background:
- Parent-offspring recognition is crucial for species survival.
- Previous studies on the common murre (Uria aalge) suggested vocal recognition between parents and chicks.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the development of parent-offspring recognition in the thick-billed murre (Uria lomvia).
- To determine the age at which chicks can discriminate parental calls.
- To assess parental recognition of chick vocalizations.
Main Methods:
- Field experiments involving cross-fostering of chicks (N=73).
- Simultaneous-choice auditory playback experiments with chicks.
- Vocalization presentation experiments with adult birds and fledging-age chicks.
Main Results:
- Parental acceptance of foreign chicks decreased significantly with chick age.
- Chicks as young as 3 days old could discriminate between parental and non-parental calls.
- Adult thick-billed murres showed stronger responses to their own chicks' calls compared to familiar conspecific chicks.
Conclusions:
- Parent-offspring recognition in thick-billed murres is primarily based on vocal cues.
- Both parents and chicks develop recognition abilities early in the nesting period.
- Findings support the hypothesis of vocal recognition in parent-offspring interactions within alcids.
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