Coprophagy in Dunnocks (Prunella modularis): A Frequent Behavior in Females, Infrequent in Males, and Very Unusual in Nestlings

Coprophagy by breeding birds, whereby parents eat the feces of their nestlings, is a common but rarely studied behavior. By eating feces, breeding parents may recycle nutrients. In many passerines, eating feces also reduces breeders' time away from the nest, saving energy and increasing broodin...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:The Wilson journal of ornithology 2017-09, Vol.129 (3), p.615-620
Main Authors: Lamb, Simon D., Taylor, Helen R., Holtmann, Benedikt, Santos, Eduardo S. A., Tamayo, Jaime H., Johnson, Sheri L., Nakagawa, Shinichi, Lara, Carlos E.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Age
Animal behavior
Animal breeding
Animal parental behavior
Animal parental behaviour
Animal reproduction
Birds
Breeding
Carotenoids
Coprophagy
Dunnock
Energy conservation
Faeces
fecal sac
Feces
Females
Food and nutrition
Hypotheses
Males
Mineral nutrients
Monogamy
Nutrients
Nutritional aspects
Observations
Parental behavior in animals
parental care
Parents
Polyandry
Predation
Prunella modularis
Recycling
Reproductive behaviour
Sexes
SHORT COMMUNICATIONS
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Summary:Coprophagy by breeding birds, whereby parents eat the feces of their nestlings, is a common but rarely studied behavior. By eating feces, breeding parents may recycle nutrients. In many passerines, eating feces also reduces breeders' time away from the nest, saving energy and increasing brooding time. Here, we report the proportion of individuals that display coprophagy in a population of Dunnocks, Prunella modularis, in Dunedin (New Zealand), and evaluate whether coprophagy varies between sexes, and between two mating systems (monogamy and polyandry). We find that females consume fecal sacs significantly more frequently than males. We also find a non-significant trend for monogamous females to eat feces more often than polyandrous females. We conclude that two hypotheses – parental-nutritional and economical-disposal – could explain the differences in coprophagy between sexes. Our results also suggest that male Dunnocks may engage in coprophagy to recycle nutrients rather than for saving energy. Finally, we describe a novel observation of a nestling being fed with its own feces by an adult male.
ISSN:1559-4491
1938-5447
DOI:10.1676/16-059.1