ASSESSMENT OF THE SIGNAL VALUE OF A PLUMAGE ORNAMENTATION IN GREAT TITS PARUS MAJOR IN TERRITORIAL MALES USING 3D PRINTED MODELS

2022-8-31
Avşar , Alican
Both genetic and environmental factors determine coloration of bird feathers. Great tits, Parus major, have several characteristics controlled by genetics and environment regarding ornamentation. The black tie is one of them regarding the area, width, and coloration, and the black color of the feathers is due to the melanin pigment. Several lines of evidence suggest that the black tie of great tits has a function in signaling. Great tits with larger black ties were shown to be more active in nest defense, and they performed closer approaches to the intruder in case of an encounter. Furthermore, black tie size was shown to be a signal of dominance between males, and it brought priority to achieve food sources in wintering flocks. In the present study, we evaluated the role of the black tie in territorial interactions between males during breeding season when birds have already established territo- ries. For this purpose, we performed playback experiments using 3D printed great tit models with narrow and wide ties as well as a negative control (a monochrome gray 3D model). This latter condition was to confirm that the models painted as great tits are indeed perceived as conspecific individuals. Our results showed that there is no overall difference in aggression with respect to tie area of 3D models, suggesting that black tie might not function as a signal in territo- rial interactions. Surprisingly, our control model did not elicit a significantly different aggressive response than the great tit models. This suggests caution in the interpreta- tion of the results and underlines the need to include controls in experimental designs with 3D models.

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Citation Formats
A. Avşar, “ASSESSMENT OF THE SIGNAL VALUE OF A PLUMAGE ORNAMENTATION IN GREAT TITS PARUS MAJOR IN TERRITORIAL MALES USING 3D PRINTED MODELS,” M.S. - Master of Science, Middle East Technical University, 2022.