Behavioral Correlations Associated with Fear of Humans Differ between Rural and Urban Burrowing Owls

Behavioral studies are fundamental to understanding how animal populations face global change. Although much research has centered upon the idea that individuals can adaptively modify their behaviors to cope with environmental changes, recent evidence supports the existence of individual differences...

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Authors: Carrete, Martina, Tella, José Luis
Format: article
Status:Published version
Publication Date:2017
Country:España
Institution:Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC)
Repository:DIGITAL.CSIC. Repositorio Institucional del CSIC
OAI Identifier:oai:digital.csic.es:10261/156866
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/10261/156866
Access Level:Open access
Keyword:Antipredator behaviour
Exploration behavior
Flight initiation distance
Neophily
Personalities
Risk-taking
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spelling Behavioral Correlations Associated with Fear of Humans Differ between Rural and Urban Burrowing OwlsCarrete, MartinaTella, José LuisAntipredator behaviourExploration behaviorFlight initiation distanceNeophilyPersonalitiesRisk-takingBehavioral studies are fundamental to understanding how animal populations face global change. Although much research has centered upon the idea that individuals can adaptively modify their behaviors to cope with environmental changes, recent evidence supports the existence of individual differences in suites of correlated behaviors. However, little is known about how selection can change these behavioral structures in populations subject to different environmental constraints. The colonization of urban environments by birds has been related to their inter-individual variability in their fear of humans, measured as their flight initiation distance to an approaching human, such that urban life would select for fearless individuals. This behavior has been demonstrated to be heritable and highly consistent throughout the adult lifespan of burrowing owls (Athene cunicularia). Here, we experimentally assessed, in field conditions, whether urban life involves changes in other behaviors such as exploration and antipredatory response through their correlation with fear of humans. Breeding urban birds were more fearless toward humans and were quicker to explore a new food resource and defend their nests from predators than their rural counterparts. However, while fear of humans positively correlated with exploration and antipredatory response in the rural population, it only correlated with exploration in the urban one. Predator release in urban environments could relax—and even counterselect—antipredator behaviors, thus dismantling the behavioral correlation existent in natural populations. Altogether, our results suggest that rural and urban animals may differ in some behavioral aspects, may be as a consequence of the selection processes acting during the colonization of urban areas as well as the different ecological environments encountered by individuals.Peer reviewedFrontiers MediaConsejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas [https://ror.org/02gfc7t72]201720172017info:eu-repo/semantics/articlehttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_6501Publisher's versioninfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersionhttp://hdl.handle.net/10261/156866reponame:DIGITAL.CSIC. Repositorio Institucional del CSICinstname:Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC)Ingléshtpp://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fevo.2017.00054Síinfo:eu-repo/semantics/openAccessoai:digital.csic.es:10261/1568662026-05-22T06:33:51Z
dc.title.none.fl_str_mv Behavioral Correlations Associated with Fear of Humans Differ between Rural and Urban Burrowing Owls
title Behavioral Correlations Associated with Fear of Humans Differ between Rural and Urban Burrowing Owls
spellingShingle Behavioral Correlations Associated with Fear of Humans Differ between Rural and Urban Burrowing Owls
Carrete, Martina
Antipredator behaviour
Exploration behavior
Flight initiation distance
Neophily
Personalities
Risk-taking
title_short Behavioral Correlations Associated with Fear of Humans Differ between Rural and Urban Burrowing Owls
title_full Behavioral Correlations Associated with Fear of Humans Differ between Rural and Urban Burrowing Owls
title_fullStr Behavioral Correlations Associated with Fear of Humans Differ between Rural and Urban Burrowing Owls
title_full_unstemmed Behavioral Correlations Associated with Fear of Humans Differ between Rural and Urban Burrowing Owls
title_sort Behavioral Correlations Associated with Fear of Humans Differ between Rural and Urban Burrowing Owls
dc.creator.none.fl_str_mv Carrete, Martina
Tella, José Luis
author Carrete, Martina
author_facet Carrete, Martina
Tella, José Luis
author_role author
author2 Tella, José Luis
author2_role author
dc.contributor.none.fl_str_mv Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas [https://ror.org/02gfc7t72]
dc.subject.none.fl_str_mv Antipredator behaviour
Exploration behavior
Flight initiation distance
Neophily
Personalities
Risk-taking
topic Antipredator behaviour
Exploration behavior
Flight initiation distance
Neophily
Personalities
Risk-taking
description Behavioral studies are fundamental to understanding how animal populations face global change. Although much research has centered upon the idea that individuals can adaptively modify their behaviors to cope with environmental changes, recent evidence supports the existence of individual differences in suites of correlated behaviors. However, little is known about how selection can change these behavioral structures in populations subject to different environmental constraints. The colonization of urban environments by birds has been related to their inter-individual variability in their fear of humans, measured as their flight initiation distance to an approaching human, such that urban life would select for fearless individuals. This behavior has been demonstrated to be heritable and highly consistent throughout the adult lifespan of burrowing owls (Athene cunicularia). Here, we experimentally assessed, in field conditions, whether urban life involves changes in other behaviors such as exploration and antipredatory response through their correlation with fear of humans. Breeding urban birds were more fearless toward humans and were quicker to explore a new food resource and defend their nests from predators than their rural counterparts. However, while fear of humans positively correlated with exploration and antipredatory response in the rural population, it only correlated with exploration in the urban one. Predator release in urban environments could relax—and even counterselect—antipredator behaviors, thus dismantling the behavioral correlation existent in natural populations. Altogether, our results suggest that rural and urban animals may differ in some behavioral aspects, may be as a consequence of the selection processes acting during the colonization of urban areas as well as the different ecological environments encountered by individuals.
publishDate 2017
dc.date.none.fl_str_mv 2017
2017
2017
dc.type.none.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/article
http://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_6501
Publisher's version
info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion
format article
status_str publishedVersion
dc.identifier.none.fl_str_mv http://hdl.handle.net/10261/156866
url http://hdl.handle.net/10261/156866
dc.language.none.fl_str_mv Inglés
language_invalid_str_mv Inglés
dc.relation.none.fl_str_mv htpp://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fevo.2017.00054
Sí
dc.rights.none.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
eu_rights_str_mv openAccess
dc.publisher.none.fl_str_mv Frontiers Media
publisher.none.fl_str_mv Frontiers Media
dc.source.none.fl_str_mv reponame:DIGITAL.CSIC. Repositorio Institucional del CSIC
instname:Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC)
instname_str Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC)
reponame_str DIGITAL.CSIC. Repositorio Institucional del CSIC
collection DIGITAL.CSIC. Repositorio Institucional del CSIC
repository.name.fl_str_mv
repository.mail.fl_str_mv
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score 15,812429

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