The study was conducted in the Lake Karaś reserve (N Poland), where the density of Willow Warblers in osier and birch thickets reached 28.7–33.3 p/10 ha. Collar rings were used to collect the food brought to the nestlings. 487 food samples were collected from 26 nests, comprising 2573 food items. 167 of the samples were from females (652 individual food items), 95 from males (616 food items). The nestlings were fed mainly on Arthropoda (94.6%) and Mollusca (5.4%). The dominant food items were Diptera (29.8%), Homoptera (28.7%), Ephemeroptera (10.5%), Araneida (7.6%) and Trichoptera (6.5%). The composition of the dominant food items and the average mass of food deliveries changed markedly with nestling growth. The types of food brought by each sex also varied significantly. Males brought heavier portions of food consisting of larger numbers of lighter prey. However, the composition of these portions was not as diverse as those brought by females. This may be related to differences between males and females in their respective territories and foraging techniques.
How to translate text using browser tools
1 July 2004
Food of the Willow Warbler Phylloscopus trochilus Nestlings: Differences Related to the Age of Nestlings and Sex of Feeding Parents
Krupa Małgorzata
B. E. Arvidson
1984. The relation between male song territory and the foraging areas of male and female Willow Warblers Phylloscopus trochilus.
Var Fagelvärld 63: 107–112. Google Scholar
J. Bańbura
,
P. Perret
,
J. Blondel
,
A. Sauvages
,
M.-J. Galan
,
M. M. Lambrechts
2001. Sex differences in parental care in a Corsican Blue Tit Parus caeruleus population. Ardea 89: 517–526. Google Scholar
G. Bjoernstad
,
J. T. Lifjeld
1996. Male parental care promotes early fledging in an open-nester, the Willow Warbler Phylloscopus trochilus.
Ibis 138: 229–235. Google Scholar
Z. Bogucki
1964. [Studies of the food content of small songbirds during the breeding season]. Ekol. pol., ser B. 10: 100–105. Google Scholar
S. I. Bozhko
1958. [Materials on warblers breeding and feeding in a park in suburban Leningrad]. Vestnik Leningr. gos. Univ. 15: 81–92. Google Scholar
P. A. Brodman
,
H.-U. Reyer
1999. Nestling provisioning in Water Pipits Anthus spinoletta: do parents go for specific nutrients or profitable prey? Oecologia 120: 506–514. Google Scholar
R. G. B. Brown
1963. The behaviour of the Willow Warbler in continuous daylight. Ibis 105: 63–75. Google Scholar
S. Cramp (ed.).
1992. The Birds of Western Palearctic. Vol. VII. Oxford Univ. Press. Google Scholar
N. N. Danilov
,
V. N. Ryzhanovskiy
,
V. K. Ryabitsev
1984. [Birds of Yamal]. Moskva. Google Scholar
M. Dornbusch
1981. Die Ernährung einiger Kleinvogelarten in Kiefernjungbe-stockungen. Beitr. Vogelkd. 27: 73–99. Google Scholar
A. D. Evans
,
K. W. Smith
,
D. L. Buckingham
,
J. Evans
1997. Seasonal variation in breeding performance and nestling diet of Cirl Buntings Emberiza cirlus in England. Bird Study 44: 66–79. Google Scholar
L. Kleinschmidt
2001. [The breeding ecology of the Whinchat Saxicola rubetra (Linnaeus 1758) in the Warminsko-Mazurski Region]. Ph. D. thesis, University of Gdańsk. Google Scholar
H. N. Kluijver
1933. Bijdrage tot de biologie en de ecologie van der spreeuw (Sturnus vulgaris L.) gedurende zijn voortplantingtijd — Versl. Meded. Plantewziektenk. Wageningen, 69: 1–145. Google Scholar
R. Krupa
2001. [The breeding biology of the Bluethroat Luscinia svecica cyanecula (Wolf 1810) in the Karaś Lake reserve]. Ph. D. thesis, University of Gdańsk. Google Scholar
R. Krupa
,
L. Kleinschmidt
,
M. Krupa
2000. [Avifauna, teriofauna, herpetofauna and lepidopterofauna in the Karaś Lake nature reserve]. Department of Environmental Protection and Agriculture of the Warminsko-Mazurski Region, Olsztyn. Google Scholar
P. Kuusisto
1941. Studien über die Ökologie und tagesrhytmik von Philloscopus trochilus acredula (L) mit besonderer Berücksichtigung der Brutbiologie. Acta Zool. Fennica 31: 1–120. Google Scholar
R. Mackowicz
1970. Biology of the Woodlark Lullula arborea L. 1758 (Aves) in the Rzepin Forest (Western Poland). Acta zool. cracov. 15: 61–160. Google Scholar
R. Markowski
,
K. Żółkoś
,
J. Bloch
2000. [The current flora and plants on the land of the Karaś Lake nature reserve]. Department of Environmental Protection and Agriculture of the Warminsko-Mazurski Region, Olsztyn. Google Scholar
J. Moreno
1987. Parental care in the Wheatear Oenanthe oenanthe: effects of nestling age and brood size. Ornis Scand. 18: 291–301. Google Scholar
L. Naef-Daenzer
,
B. Naef-Daenzer
,
R. G. Nager
2000. Prey selection and foraging performance of breeding Great Tits Parus major in relation to food availability. J. Avian Biol. 31: 206–214. Google Scholar
R. Neergaard
,
B. A. Arvidson
1995. Polygyny in the Willow Warbler Phylloscopus trochilus in Swedish Lapland. Ibis 137: 64–69. Google Scholar
K. G. K. Nyström
1991. On sex-specific foraging in the Willow Warbler, Phylloscopus trochilus.
Can. J. Zool. 69: 462–470. Google Scholar
I. V. Prokofieva
1973. [The food of the warblers in the forests of the Leningrad region]. Biol. Nauki 4: 22–29. Google Scholar
C. M. Rauter
,
P. A. Brodmann
,
H.-U. Reyer
2000. Provisioning behaviour in relation to food availability and nestling food demand in the Water Pipit Anthus spinoletta.
Ardea 88: 81–90. Google Scholar
V. K. Ryabitsev
,
S. V. Shutov
,
V. N. Ol'shvang
1980. [Analysis of concrete relations of Willow Warbler and Eversmann's Warbler (with comments on the specifity of ecosystems)]. Ekologiya 11: 83–92. Google Scholar
S. Rytkonen
,
K. Koivulla
,
M. Orell
1996. Pattern of per-brood and per-offspring provisioning efforts in the Willow Tit Parus montanus.
J. Avian Biol. 27: 21–30. Google Scholar
M. Schönfeld
1982. Der Fitislaubsänger Phylloscopus trochilus.
Die Neue Brehm-Bücherei. Wittenberg. Google Scholar
K. Schultze-Hagen
,
H. Flinks
,
A. Dyrcz
1989. Brutzeitliche Beutewahl beim Seggenrohrsänger Acrocephalus paludicola.
J. Ornithol. 130: 251–255. Google Scholar
D. Sejberg
,
S. Bensch
,
D. Hasselquist
2000. Nestling provisioning in polygynous Great Reed Warblers Acrocephalus arundinaceus: do males bring larger prey to compensate for fewer nest visits? Behav. Ecol. Sociobiol. 47: 213–219. Google Scholar
H. Temrin
,
A. Brodin
,
O. Akerström
,
S. Stenius
1997. Parental investment in monogamous pairs of Wood Warblers Phylloscopus sibilatrix.
J. Ornithol. 138: 93–101. Google Scholar
J. Tiainen
1983. Ecological energetics of nestling growth Willow Warbler Phylloscopus trochilus.
Ann. Zool. Fennici 20: 13–24. Google Scholar
J. H. Zar
1996. Biostatistical analysis. Prentice-Hall, Englewood Cliffs. New Jersey. Google Scholar
Acta Ornithologica
Vol. 39 • No. 1
July 2004
Vol. 39 • No. 1
July 2004
age-related differences
food composition
nestling diet
parental provisioning
Phylloscopus trochilus
Willow Warbler