PUB - Publikationen an der Universität Bielefeld

A previous study of begging in Cory’s Shearwaters (Calonectris diomedea) found that chicks convey information about their body condition through the number and rate of begging calls uttered during a feeding session. Parents delivered larger meals when chicks begged more intensely. Here we test whether acoustic properties of begging calls of Cory’s Shearwaters are related to body condition of chicks, and whether parents are responsive to changes in acoustic parameters. Acoustic parameters, which were analyzed using semi-automatic call contour analysis, included the duration of calls and silent intervals, the minimum, mean and maximum frequency in a call and the number of frequency peaks within a call. We found that, in contrast to the number and rate of begging calls, acoustic parameters did not reflect chick body condition, and were not correlated with the meal size delivered by the attending adults.