Nestling testosterone is associated with begging behaviour and fledging success in the pied flycatcher, Ficedula hypoleuca.

Males respond to female begging signals of need: a handicapping experiment in the pied flycatcher, Ficedula hypoleuca

Species divergence in offspring begging intensity: difference in need or manipulation of parents?

Conflicts over the delivery and sharing of food among family members are expected to lead to evolution of exaggerated offspring begging for food. Coevolution between offspring begging intensity and parent response depends on the genetic architecture of the traits involved. Given a genetic correlation between offspring begging intensity and parental response, there may be fast and arbitrary dive...

Fitness of two competing species of flycatchers and their hybrids in term of nestling growth

Speciation can be seen as the establishment of reproductive barriers among species. Hybrid zones provide us with an ideal situation to study the process of speciation because the evolution of reproductive isolation is still in progress. Hybrids usually suffer reduced fitness (i.e. leading to post-zygotic isolation) although they may have higher or similar fitness as the parental species in some...

High Prevalence of Hematozoa in Nestlings of a Passerine Species, the Pied Flycatcher (Ficedula Hypoleuca)

While this may be true in many passerines, mainly ground-nesting species with short fledgling periods, we show here that prevalences may be detected as early as 13 days of age in a cavity-nesting passerine. Prevalences and intensities of hematozoa in nestling birds may merit further study, as both parameters are relatively easy to quantify in smears of peripheral blood in bird species such as t...

Responses to Reduced Industrial Metal Emissions: An Ecotoxicological Study on Pied Flycatcher (Ficedula hypoleuca, Aves)

Metals have been used by humans for thousands of years, and this has resulted in increased concentrations in the biosphere. The environment around pointsources, such as mines and smelters, are of particular concern, as metals may accumulate to high concentrations, and potentially reach levels toxic to the local flora and fauna. This thesis focuses on the effects on pied flycatcher populations o...