The Experts below are selected from a list of 300 Experts worldwide ranked by ideXlab platform
P J B Slater - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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song tutor choice by zebra finches in Aviaries
Animal Behaviour, 1995Co-Authors: Nigel I Mann, P J B SlaterAbstract:Abstract The social interactions and song learning of young male zebra finches, Taeniopygia guttata , were studied in two Aviaries, each containing four breeding pairs and several other adult males. Half of the adults were of the fawn morph and half of the chestnut-flanked white. Seventeen young males were reared, and each tended to learn most of its song from one adult. They showed a strong tendency to learn song elements from males of the same morph as their father and, within that morph, the father tended to be the preferred tutor. Most learnt from the male with which they maintained greatest proximity. No relationship was found between song learning and the song length or singing rate of individual adults, or with various aspects of social behaviour, such as allopreening or aggression. No young bird was seen to be fed by an adult other than one of its parents; most of the young continued to associate more with their siblings than with other juveniles after independence, and there was some evidence that siblings that associated most closely developed most similar song characteristics. Differences in social relationships and in song learning from some earlier studies may stem from the greater space available in the Aviaries used here.
Manfred Gahr - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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behavioural and physiological effects of population density on domesticated zebra finches taeniopygia guttata held in Aviaries
Physiology & Behavior, 2012Co-Authors: Hanneke Poot, Andries Ter Maat, Lisa Trost, Ingrid Schwabl, R F Jansen, Manfred GahrAbstract:Abstract Zebra Finches ( Taeniopygia guttata ) are highly social and monogamous birds that display relatively low levels of aggression and coordinate group life mainly by means of vocal communication. In the wild, small groups may congregate to larger flocks of up to 150–350 birds. Little is known, however, about possible effects of population density on development in captivity. Investigating density effects on physiology and behaviour might be helpful in identifying optimal group size, in order to optimise Zebra Finch wellbeing. A direct effect of population density on development and reproduction was found: birds in lower density conditions produced significantly more and larger (body mass, tarsus length) surviving offspring than birds in high density conditions. Furthermore, offspring in low density Aviaries produced slightly longer song motifs and more different syllables than their tutors, whereas offspring in high density Aviaries produced shorter motifs and a smaller or similar number of different syllables than their tutors. Aggression levels within the populations were low throughout the experiment, but the number of aggressive interactions was significantly higher in high density Aviaries. Baseline corticosterone levels did not differ significantly between high- and low density Aviaries for either adult or offspring birds. On day 15 post hatching, brood size and baseline corticosterone levels were positively correlated. On days 60 and 100 post hatching this correlation was no longer present. The results of this study prove that population density affects various aspects of Zebra Finch development, with birds living in low population density conditions having an advantage over those living under higher population density conditions.
Nigel I Mann - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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song tutor choice by zebra finches in Aviaries
Animal Behaviour, 1995Co-Authors: Nigel I Mann, P J B SlaterAbstract:Abstract The social interactions and song learning of young male zebra finches, Taeniopygia guttata , were studied in two Aviaries, each containing four breeding pairs and several other adult males. Half of the adults were of the fawn morph and half of the chestnut-flanked white. Seventeen young males were reared, and each tended to learn most of its song from one adult. They showed a strong tendency to learn song elements from males of the same morph as their father and, within that morph, the father tended to be the preferred tutor. Most learnt from the male with which they maintained greatest proximity. No relationship was found between song learning and the song length or singing rate of individual adults, or with various aspects of social behaviour, such as allopreening or aggression. No young bird was seen to be fed by an adult other than one of its parents; most of the young continued to associate more with their siblings than with other juveniles after independence, and there was some evidence that siblings that associated most closely developed most similar song characteristics. Differences in social relationships and in song learning from some earlier studies may stem from the greater space available in the Aviaries used here.
Andrew M Janczak - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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rearing laying hens in Aviaries reduces fearfulness following transfer to furnished cages
Frontiers in Veterinary Science, 2016Co-Authors: Margrethe Brantsaeter, Fernanda M Tahamtani, Rachel Orritt, Christine J Nicol, Tane Beate Hansen, Andrew M JanczakAbstract:Appropriate rearing is essential for ensuring the welfare and productivity of laying hens. Early experience has the potential to affect the development of fearfulness. This study tested whether rearing in Aviaries, as opposed to cages, reduces the fearfulness of laying hens after transfer to furnished cages. Fear responses were recorded as avoidance of a novel object in the home cage. Lohmann Selected Leghorns were reared in an aviary system or conventional rearing cages and then transported to furnished cages at 16 weeks, before the onset of lay. Observations of a selection of birds were conducted at 19 (N = 50) and 21 (N = 48) weeks of age selected from 50 and 48 independent cages. At 19 and 21 weeks, cage-reared birds showed higher levels of fearfulness indicated by spending more time away from the novel object compared to aviary-reared birds. These results suggest that rearing in an enriched aviary environment reduces fearfulness up to the fifth week after transfer to a new housing system, compared to rearing in cages.
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does rearing laying hens in Aviaries adversely affect long term welfare following transfer to furnished cages
PLOS ONE, 2014Co-Authors: Fernanda M Tahamtani, Tone Beate Hansen, Rachel Orritt, Christine J Nicol, Andrew M JanczakAbstract:This study tests the hypothesis that hens that are reared in Aviaries but produce in furnished cages experience poorer welfare in production than hens reared in caged systems. This hypothesis is based on the suggestion that the spatial restriction associated with the transfer from Aviaries to cages results in frustration or stress for the aviary reared birds. To assess the difference in welfare between aviary and cage reared hens in production, non-beak trimmed white leghorn birds from both rearing backgrounds were filmed at a commercial farm that used furnished cage housing. The videos were taken at 19 and 21 weeks of age, following the birds' transition to the production environment at 16 weeks. Videos were analysed in terms of the performance of aversion-related behaviour in undisturbed birds, comfort behaviour in undisturbed birds, and alert behaviour directed to a novel object in the home cage. A decrease in the performance of the former behaviour and increase in the performance of the latter two behaviours indicates improved welfare. The results showed that aviary reared birds performed more alert behaviour near to the object than did cage reared birds at 19 but not at 21 weeks of age (P = 0.03). Blood glucose concentrations did not differ between the treatments (P>0.10). There was a significant difference in mortality between treatments (P = 0.000), with more death in aviary reared birds (5.52%) compared to cage birds (2.48%). The higher mortality of aviary-reared birds indicates a negative effect of aviary rearing on bird welfare, whereas the higher duration of alert behavior suggests a positive effect of aviary rearing.
Ivan Meeus - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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varroa destructor macula like virus lake sinai virus and other new rna viruses in wild bumblebee hosts bombus pascuorum bombus lapidarius and bombus pratorum
Journal of Invertebrate Pathology, 2016Co-Authors: Laurian Parmentier, Guy Smagghe, Dirk C De Graaf, Ivan MeeusAbstract:Abstract Pollinators such as bumblebees (Bombus spp.) are in decline worldwide which poses a threat not only for ecosystem biodiversity but also to human crop production services. One main cause of pollinator decline may be the infection and transmission of diseases including RNA viruses. Recently, new viruses have been discovered in honeybees, but information on the presence of these in wild bumblebees is largely not available. In this study, we investigated the prevalence of new RNA viruses in Bombus species, and can report for the first time Varroa destructor Macula-like virus (VdMLV) and Lake Sinai virus (LSV) infection in multiple wild bumblebee hosts of Bombus pascuorum, Bombus lapidarius and Bombus pratorum. We sampled in 4 locations in Flanders, Belgium. Besides, we confirmed Slow bee paralysis virus (SBPV) in wild bumblebees, but no positive samples were obtained for Big Sioux river virus (BSRV). Secondly, we screened for the influence of apiaries on the prevalence of these viruses. Our results indicated a location effect for the prevalence of VdMLV in Bombus species, with a higher prevalence in the proximity of honeybee apiaries mainly observed in one location. For LSV, the prevalence was not different in the proximity or at a 1.5 km-distance of apiaries, but we reported a different isolate with similarities to LSV-2 and “LSV-clade A” as described by Ravoet et al. (2015), which was detected both in Apis mellifera and Bombus species. In general, our results indicate the existence of a disease pool of new viruses that seems to be associated to a broad range of Apoidae hosts, including multiple Bombus species.
