The significance of double broods in the coal tit Parus ater breeding in a montane coniferous forest in central Spain

Full article

Published:

Volume 40(2), December 1993. Pages 155-161.

Language:

English

Keywords:

breeding, clutch size, double-brooding, Parus ater, seasonal variation.

Abstract:

The reproduction of Parus ater was studied in central Spain during 1989. The incubation period decreased with laying date and with clutch size. The proportion of Coal Tit pairs with second broods was 21.3%. Double-brooded pairs showed a seasonal pattern of increase and then decrease in clutch size, with a mid-season peak while the clutch size of single-brooded pairs showed a seasonal decline. Clutch size of second clutches was negatively related to the duration of the interbrood interval. The interbrood interval was not related with brood size of first brood.