TY - JOUR
T1 - Brain size and resource specialisation predict long-term population trends in British birds
AU - Shultz, S
AU - Bradbury, RB
AU - Evans, KL
AU - Gregory, RD
AU - Blackburn, Timothy
PY - 2005/11/7
Y1 - 2005/11/7
N2 - Large-scale population declines have been documented across many faunal assemblages. However, there is much variation in population trends for individual species, and few indications of which specific ecological and behavioural characteristics are associated with such trends. We used the British Common Birds Census (1968-1995) to identify specific traits associated with long-term abundance trends in UK farmland birds. Two factors, resource specialization and relative brain size, were significantly associated with population trend, such that species using atypical resources and with relatively small brains were most likely to have experienced overall declines. Further analyses of specific brain components indicated that the relative size of the telencephalon, the part of the brain associated with problem solving and complex behaviours, and the brain stem might be better predictors of population trend than overall brain size. These results suggest that flexibility in resource use and behaviour are the most important characteristics for determining a species' ability to cope with large-scale habitat changes.
AB - Large-scale population declines have been documented across many faunal assemblages. However, there is much variation in population trends for individual species, and few indications of which specific ecological and behavioural characteristics are associated with such trends. We used the British Common Birds Census (1968-1995) to identify specific traits associated with long-term abundance trends in UK farmland birds. Two factors, resource specialization and relative brain size, were significantly associated with population trend, such that species using atypical resources and with relatively small brains were most likely to have experienced overall declines. Further analyses of specific brain components indicated that the relative size of the telencephalon, the part of the brain associated with problem solving and complex behaviours, and the brain stem might be better predictors of population trend than overall brain size. These results suggest that flexibility in resource use and behaviour are the most important characteristics for determining a species' ability to cope with large-scale habitat changes.
KW - brain architecture
KW - behavioural flexibility
KW - farmland birds
KW - British Common Birds Census
KW - niche position
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=27244438223&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1098/rspb.2005.3250
DO - 10.1098/rspb.2005.3250
M3 - Article
C2 - 16191644
SN - 1471-2954
SN - 1471-2970
VL - 272
SP - 2305
EP - 2311
JO - Royal Society of London. Proceedings B. Biological Sciences
JF - Royal Society of London. Proceedings B. Biological Sciences
IS - 1578
ER -