THE INFLUENCE OF FOOD ON REPRODUCTIVE STRATEGIES IN A MONOGAMOUS KINGFISHER (CHLOROCERYLE AMAZONA)

Amazon Kingfisher (Chloroceryle amazona) Science Article 1

abstract

We examined the influence of food accessibility on the reproductive behavior of the Amazon Kingfisher (Chloroceryle amazona) in Panama. Both sexes invested equally in nest building, but females incubated the eggs more often than males. Foraging performance (time elapsed between successful dives) differed between mates because they often used different foraging patches within the breeding territory. Male foraging performance was significantly correlated to fish biomass sampled from preferred foraging patches. Furthermore, the level of a male’s foraging determined the number of fish he fed to his mate: more successful foragers courtship-fed their mates more fish than less successful males. In turn, the rate of courtship feeding influenced whether a female would lay eggs and the date of laying. Pre-laying foraging performance of both sexes was a predictor of the number of fish fed to nestlings. We conclude that disparities in the amount of food delivered to ovulating females by males, and to nestlings by both parents, are determined by the distribution of food within the territory.

WILLIAM JAMES DAVIS DOUGLAS J. GRAHAM, The Auk: Vol. 108, No. 4, October-December, 1991

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