Boyd Deep Canyon Desert Research Center

08 Apr, 01 AM - 10 Apr, 09 AM

Costa?s Hummingbird, Calypte costae, is found in arid environments with extreme temperature variation. The extreme environment may impact developmental stressors that interfere with the development of song, in which these stressed males may produce songs that differ from that of individuals raised in less challenging environments. Song that is reflective of early developmental conditions should function as an honest advertisement of health, attractiveness, and male quality. I will examine Costa?s Hummingbird song in two parts: (1) the correlation between male song, morphology and behavioral characters, and (2) individual variation in song over the breeding season. I will also examine individual male behaviors through daily time-budget, aggression, and defense in comparison to available nectar resources within a territory. I predict that the following correlates of song measures will be higher in larger males: song bout rate, amplitude (loudness), peak, and maximum frequency. The mean and the variance of the inter-click interval in the upsweep of the song will be lower in larger males. Furthermore, larger males will hold larger territories with more nectar rich plants, and they will be more aggressive at defending these territory. Research will be conducted at Boyd Deep Canyon Research Center, Riverside County, California. The results from this research will lead to a better understanding of the function of song in Costa?s Hummingbird. Additionally, this research will advance our understanding of song evolution in the genus Calypte and, more generally, of avian song evolution.

Visit #23537 @Boyd Deep Canyon Desert Research Center

Approved

Under Project # 19608 | Research

Correlates of Costa's Hummingbird, Calypte costae, song

graduate_student - California State University (CSU), Fullerton

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Uyen Tran Apr 8 - 10, 2011 (3 days)

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Mayhew housing facilities 1 Apr 8 - 10, 2011
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