Eggshell Removal By Laughing Gulls

Montevecchi, William A. (1976) Eggshell Removal By Laughing Gulls. Bird-Banding, 47 (2). pp. 129-135. ISSN 0006-3630

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Abstract

After hatching of their young many birds either cat eggshells or remove them from the nest. This and other nest sanitation behavior,such as defecation flights from the nest and the ingestion or disposal of nestling excrement, arc found among a variety of birds (Blair and Tucker, 1941; Nethersole-Thompsona nd Nethersole-Thompson, 1942). With some exceptions, e.g., Kittiwakcs (Rissa tridactyla; Cullen, 1957), Sandwich Terns (Sterna sandvicensis; Cullen, 1960; Crozc, 1970), Royal Terns (S. m. maxima; Bucklcy and Bucklcy, 1972), most Laridae tend to remove eggshells from their nests. Tinbergen et al. (1962) concluded that in Black-headed Gulls (Larus ridibundus) eggshell disposal represents a behavioral component of camouflage, i.e., removing conspicuous objects(white shell membranes)that might attract avian predators to the nest. The present experiment investigated the responsiveness of Laughing Gulls (Larus atticilia) over the course of a nesting cycle to an eggshell on the nest rim.

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