Using 3D printed eggs to examine the egg-rejection behaviour of wild birds
The coevolutionary relationships between brood parasites and their hosts are often studied by examining the egg rejection behaviour of host species using artificial eggs. However, the traditional methods for producing artificial eggs out of plasticine, plastic, wood, or plaster-of-Paris are laboriou...
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todo:paper_21678359_v2015_n5_p_Igic2023-10-03T16:39:38Z Using 3D printed eggs to examine the egg-rejection behaviour of wild birds Igic, B. Nunez, V. Voss, H.U. Croston, R. Aidala, Z. López, A.V. Van Tatenhove, A. Holford, M.E. Shawkey, M.D. Hauber, M.E. 3D printing American robin Artificial egg Brood parasitism Cowbird Egg rejection Experimental techniques Molothrus ater Turdus migratorius American robin Article artificial egg behavioral science bird breeding decision making egg egg colour egg rejection behaviour egg shell female Molothrus ater nonhuman parasitism photography stimulus response three dimensional printing Aves Molothrus Molothrus ater Turdus migratorius The coevolutionary relationships between brood parasites and their hosts are often studied by examining the egg rejection behaviour of host species using artificial eggs. However, the traditional methods for producing artificial eggs out of plasticine, plastic, wood, or plaster-of-Paris are laborious, imprecise, and prone to human error. As an alternative, 3D printing may reduce human error, enable more precise manipulation of egg size and shape, and provide a more accurate and replicable protocol for generating artificial stimuli than traditional methods. However, the usefulness of 3D printing technology for egg rejection research remains to be tested. Here, we applied 3D printing technology to the extensively studied egg rejection behaviour of American robins, Turdus migratorius. Eggs of the robin's brood parasites, brownheaded cowbirds, Molothrus ater, vary greatly in size and shape, but it is unknown whether host egg rejection decisions differ across this gradient of natural variation. We printed artificial eggs that encompass the natural range of shapes and sizes of cowbird eggs, painted themto resemble either robin or cowbird egg colour, and used them to artificially parasitize nests of breeding wild robins. In line with previous studies, we show that robins accept mimetically coloured and reject non-mimetically coloured artificial eggs. Although we found no evidence that subtle differences in parasitic egg size or shape affect robins' rejection decisions, 3D printing will provide an opportunity for more extensive experimentation on the potential biological or evolutionary significance of size and shape variation of foreign eggs in rejection decisions.We provide a detailed protocol for generating 3D printed eggs using either personal 3D printers or commercial printing services, and highlight additional potential future applications for this technology in the study of egg rejection. © 2015 Igic et al. JOUR info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.5/ar http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12110/paper_21678359_v2015_n5_p_Igic |
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Universidad de Buenos Aires |
| institution_str |
I-28 |
| repository_str |
R-134 |
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Biblioteca Digital - Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales (UBA) |
| topic |
3D printing American robin Artificial egg Brood parasitism Cowbird Egg rejection Experimental techniques Molothrus ater Turdus migratorius American robin Article artificial egg behavioral science bird breeding decision making egg egg colour egg rejection behaviour egg shell female Molothrus ater nonhuman parasitism photography stimulus response three dimensional printing Aves Molothrus Molothrus ater Turdus migratorius |
| spellingShingle |
3D printing American robin Artificial egg Brood parasitism Cowbird Egg rejection Experimental techniques Molothrus ater Turdus migratorius American robin Article artificial egg behavioral science bird breeding decision making egg egg colour egg rejection behaviour egg shell female Molothrus ater nonhuman parasitism photography stimulus response three dimensional printing Aves Molothrus Molothrus ater Turdus migratorius Igic, B. Nunez, V. Voss, H.U. Croston, R. Aidala, Z. López, A.V. Van Tatenhove, A. Holford, M.E. Shawkey, M.D. Hauber, M.E. Using 3D printed eggs to examine the egg-rejection behaviour of wild birds |
| topic_facet |
3D printing American robin Artificial egg Brood parasitism Cowbird Egg rejection Experimental techniques Molothrus ater Turdus migratorius American robin Article artificial egg behavioral science bird breeding decision making egg egg colour egg rejection behaviour egg shell female Molothrus ater nonhuman parasitism photography stimulus response three dimensional printing Aves Molothrus Molothrus ater Turdus migratorius |
| description |
The coevolutionary relationships between brood parasites and their hosts are often studied by examining the egg rejection behaviour of host species using artificial eggs. However, the traditional methods for producing artificial eggs out of plasticine, plastic, wood, or plaster-of-Paris are laborious, imprecise, and prone to human error. As an alternative, 3D printing may reduce human error, enable more precise manipulation of egg size and shape, and provide a more accurate and replicable protocol for generating artificial stimuli than traditional methods. However, the usefulness of 3D printing technology for egg rejection research remains to be tested. Here, we applied 3D printing technology to the extensively studied egg rejection behaviour of American robins, Turdus migratorius. Eggs of the robin's brood parasites, brownheaded cowbirds, Molothrus ater, vary greatly in size and shape, but it is unknown whether host egg rejection decisions differ across this gradient of natural variation. We printed artificial eggs that encompass the natural range of shapes and sizes of cowbird eggs, painted themto resemble either robin or cowbird egg colour, and used them to artificially parasitize nests of breeding wild robins. In line with previous studies, we show that robins accept mimetically coloured and reject non-mimetically coloured artificial eggs. Although we found no evidence that subtle differences in parasitic egg size or shape affect robins' rejection decisions, 3D printing will provide an opportunity for more extensive experimentation on the potential biological or evolutionary significance of size and shape variation of foreign eggs in rejection decisions.We provide a detailed protocol for generating 3D printed eggs using either personal 3D printers or commercial printing services, and highlight additional potential future applications for this technology in the study of egg rejection. © 2015 Igic et al. |
| format |
JOUR |
| author |
Igic, B. Nunez, V. Voss, H.U. Croston, R. Aidala, Z. López, A.V. Van Tatenhove, A. Holford, M.E. Shawkey, M.D. Hauber, M.E. |
| author_facet |
Igic, B. Nunez, V. Voss, H.U. Croston, R. Aidala, Z. López, A.V. Van Tatenhove, A. Holford, M.E. Shawkey, M.D. Hauber, M.E. |
| author_sort |
Igic, B. |
| title |
Using 3D printed eggs to examine the egg-rejection behaviour of wild birds |
| title_short |
Using 3D printed eggs to examine the egg-rejection behaviour of wild birds |
| title_full |
Using 3D printed eggs to examine the egg-rejection behaviour of wild birds |
| title_fullStr |
Using 3D printed eggs to examine the egg-rejection behaviour of wild birds |
| title_full_unstemmed |
Using 3D printed eggs to examine the egg-rejection behaviour of wild birds |
| title_sort |
using 3d printed eggs to examine the egg-rejection behaviour of wild birds |
| url |
http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.12110/paper_21678359_v2015_n5_p_Igic |
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