Chick development in free-living great tits Parus major in relation to calcium availability and egg composition.

Content Provider	Semantic Scholar
Author	Tilgar, Vallo Mand, Raivo Kilgas, Priit Reynolds, Stephen J.
Copyright Year	2005
Abstract	Evidence from a number of avian studies suggests that limitation of exogenous calcium (Ca) may reduce egg quality and retard nestling growth. However, it is poorly understood whether reduction in chick growth in Ca-poor areas is due to insufficient intake of dietary Ca or caused by maternal Ca limitation mediated through subtle changes in composition of eggs. In this study, we provide new evidence that Ca availability during egg formation may indeed affect egg composition and influence chick development of the great tit Parus major at early developmental stages. Ca-supplemented birds breeding in base-poor pine forests produced eggs with elevated yolk Ca concentration compared with controls, while no such effect of supplementation was detected in case of eggshell thickness. Nestling tarsus length in the first half of the nestling period was positively influenced by both yolk dry mass and yolk Ca concentration. The effect of supplementary Ca did not persist throughout the nestling period; initial effects of egg components disappeared as nestlings aged. We conclude that apparently normal eggs may harbor poor nutrient and mineral conditions for chick growth. Such subtle changes in composition of eggs can depress chick growth, especially in harsh years.
File Format	PDF HTM / HTML
DOI	10.1086/430690
Alternate Webpage(s)	https://www.etis.ee/File/DownloadPublic/a6a137f3-3067-4ada-be61-eae02df2cca9?name=Fail_2005_PBZ_Tilgar+et+al.pdf&type=application/pdf
PubMed reference number	15957113
Alternate Webpage(s)	https://doi.org/10.1086/430690
Journal	Medline
Volume Number	78
Issue Number	4
Journal	Physiological and biochemical zoology : PBZ
Language	English
Access Restriction	Open
Content Type	Text
Resource Type	Article