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Effects of multimodal warning siglals of Tritomegas sexmaculatus on reactions of bird predators
Binderová, Jana ; Exnerová, Alice (advisor) ; Kleisner, Karel (referee)
Aposematic animals advertise their defensive mechanisms to potential predators using warning signals. Signalling through more than one sensory pathway is called multimodal warning display. Most experimental studies of aposematism have been focused on the effect of a particular warning signal rather than on importance of multimodal signalling. Focusing on the multimodal signalling of real prey is the best way how to understand its effect in nature. The present study is focused on comparing the effect of multimodal warning display of insect prey with its particular warning signals on two species of bird predators. Multimodal warning signalisation of the burrowing bug, Tritomegas sexmaculatus consists of visual (black and white coloration), chemical (odour, possibly taste) and acoustic (stridulation) signals. We compared reactions of wild-caught great tit (Parus major) and blue tit (Cyanistes caeruleus) to three types of bugs with different warning displays. The non-manipulated bugs displayed multimodally, the brown painted bugs had their warning coloration manipulated and the dealatized bugs couldn't emit acoustic signals. The wild-caught birds of both species avoided all types of bugs. In an experiment with naive hand reared great tits we compared their reactions to non-manipulated and dealatized bugs. Naive...
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Antipredatory function of flash display in Heteroptera (case of Coreus marginatus)
Pipek, Pavel ; Exnerová, Alice (advisor) ; Kleisner, Karel (referee)
1 Abstract Aim of the present study was to test antipredatory function of fulguration (or flash display), which means sudden exposition of conspicous body part on otherwise cryptic animal during escape. Adult squash bugs (Coreus marginatus; Heteroptera) were used as model prey, while as model predator served two species of passerine birds - blue tit (Cyanistes caerulus) and great tit (Parus major). Three approaches were undertaken. Test of palatability should have assessed the efficiency of squash bug chemical defence against bird predators. Experiment was carried out in experimental cage without interference of experimenter and without occurrence of fulguration. The results show that chemical defense of squash bug is less efficient than defense of other species of true bugs (Pyrrhocoris apterus, Graphosoma lineatum) and that the efficiency differs between two generations of squash bugs. In the test of efficiency of fulguration, the prey was forced by experimenter to fly in response to bird attack. Blue tits attacked the immobile prey more often than the flying and fulgurating one, but the same relation wasn't significant with great tits. The latencies of birds' returns to the bugs that landed after fulguration wasn't influenced by colour of the bugs' abdomen. Third experiment consisted of computer...
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Mimetic complex of Central European red-and-black bugs (Heteroptera)
Hotová Svádová, Kateřina ; Exnerová, Alice (advisor) ; Žďárek, Jan (referee) ; Krištín, Anton (referee)
Aposematic animals signal to the predators their unprofitability (e.g. unpalatability, toxicity) Predators have either innate bias against warning signals or they have to learn to avoid aposematic prey. Aposematic species with similar warning signals profit from their resemblance and form mimetic complexes. Theoretically, there are five types of mimetic relations between species within the mimetic complex: Batesian, quasi-Batesian, quasi- Müllerian, Müllerian and super-Müllerian. Classification of mimetic relations depends on the level of mutual resemblance, and presence, type and efficiency of defensive mechanisms. Central European red-and-black true bugs (Heteroptera) were used as a model of mimetic complex in my Ph.D. thesis. We used six species of passerine birds. The species differ in body size, preferred food and reactions toward aposematic red-and-black prey and non- aposematic brown-painted prey. Although the diet of some passerine birds may include true bugs, there is evidence that birds mostly avoid aposematic species. In the first paper included in the thesis, we found that mimetic complexes may be predator dependent. There are differences in the extent of Batesian-Müllerian mimetic complexes and in the relations among the species involved. In the second paper, we analysed reactions of...
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Neophobia, neophilia, and dietary conservatism in birds
Beranová, Eliška ; Hotová Svádová, Kateřina (referee) ; Exnerová, Alice (advisor)
Birds` reactions towards novelty are demonstrated by two significant processes - neophobia and neophilia. These reactions often vary according to specific type of novel stimulus. Differences in levels of neophobia and neophilia enable birds to deal with potential costs and benefits arising from encountering a novel stimulus. Reactions towards novelty in birds may vary between different species as well as within them. In between species variability in levels of neophobia/neophilia may be related to dietary strategy and lifestyle. Differences in neophobia/neophilia of an individual bird may be related to sex, age, and personality. Long-term avoidance of novel food - dietary conservatism may follow the initial food neophobia. Again it varies a lot between species as well as within them. Key words: neophobia, neophilia, dietary conservatism, novel stimulus, novel object, novel food
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