https://doi.org/10.4081/rio.2023.693
The European laurel Laurus nobilis berries in the diet of the blackbird Turdus merula
Submitted: 25 May 2023
Accepted: 3 June 2023
Published: 9 November 2023
Accepted: 3 June 2023
Abstract Views: 988
PDF: 334
Publisher's note
All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.
All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.
Authors
The feeding activity of frugivorous birds is influenced by the selection criteria for berry size. European laurel (Laurus nobilis), a dioecious species with high lipid and protein content in its berries, is dispersed by blackbird (Turdus merula). This study aimed to investigate the relationship between berry size and feeding behavior of blackbird. Field data was collected in a botanical park near Rome (Italy) and included seed collection, observation of regurgitation events, and bird population surveys. The volume and shape index of berries and seeds were measured, and statistical analyses were performed. The results showed a positive linear correlation between berry and seed volume. Blackbird selectively consumed larger berries, resulting in a higher percentage of pericarp as an energy resource. The birds exhibited a bimodal strategy, feeding on both large ellipsoidal and large round berries, which had a higher percentage of pericarp. The shape index of berries and seeds showed a significant difference between the control collection and those consumed by blackbird. The findings suggest a case of coevolution, with the plant optimizing seed dispersal by offering berries of different sizes to accommodate the feeding behavior of blackbird. This study provides insights into the ecological relationship between frugivorous birds and plants, highlighting the role of berry size in seed dispersal strategies.
Downloads
Download data is not yet available.
Citations
PlumX Metrics
PlumX Metrics provide insights into the ways people interact with individual pieces of research output (articles, conference proceedings, book chapters, and many more) in the online environment. Collectively known as PlumX Metrics, these metrics are divided into five categories to help make sense of the huge amounts of data involved and to enable analysis by comparing like with like.
Almazán-Núñez R. C., Alvarez-Alvarez E. A., Sierra-Morales P. & Rodríguez-Godínez R., 2021 – Fruit size and structure of zoochorous trees: Identifying drivers for the foraging preferences of fruit-eating birds in a Mexican successional dry forest. Animals, 11 (12), 3343.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11123343
Bidwell R. G. S., 1978 – Fisiologia vegetale. Piccin Editore, Padova.
Brichetti P. & Fracasso G., 2022 – The birds of Italy. 3 Cisticolidae - Icteridae. Edizioni Belvedere, Latina.
Calvario E. & Fraticelli F., 1986 – Rubia peregrina berries in the winter food of Robins Erithacus rubecula. Avocetta, 10 (2-3): 115-118.
Farina A., 1982 – Bird community of Mediterranean Forest of Migliarino (Pisa - Central Italy). Avocetta, 6 (2): 75-81.
Ferry C. & Frochot B., 1958 – Une méthode pour dénombrer les oiseaux nicheurs. Revue d’Écologie - La Terre et la Vie, 2: 85-102.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3406/revec.1958.4170
Filibeck G., 2006 – Notes on the distribution of Laurus nobilis L. (Lauraceae) in Italy. Webbia, 61 (1): 45-56.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/00837792.2006.10670794
Foster S. A. & Janson C. H., 1985 – The relationship between seed size and establishment conditions in tropical woody plants. Ecology, 66 (3): 773-780.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/1940538
Fuzessy L. F., Janson C. & Silveira F. A., 2018 – Effects of seed size and frugivory degree on dispersal by Neotropical frugivores. Acta Oecologica, 93: 41-47.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.actao.2018.10.004
Hampe A., 2003 – Frugivory in European Laurel: how extinct seed dispersers have been substituted. Bird Study, 50 (3): 280-284.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/00063650309461320
Hartley P. H. T., 1954 – Wild fruits in the diet of British thrushes. A study in the ecology of closely allied species. British Birds, 47 (1): 97-107.
Herrera C. M., 1981a – Fruit variation and competition for dispersers in natural populations of Smilax aspera. Oikos, 36 (1): 51-58.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/3544378
Herrera C. M., 1981b – Datos sobre la dieta frugívora del Mirlo (Turdus merula) en dos localidades del sur de España. Doñana, Acta Vertebrata, 8: 306-310.
Herrera C. M., 1981c – Are tropical fruits more rewarding to dispersers than temperate ones? American Naturalist, 118 (6): 896-907.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1086/283882
Herrera C. M., 1982 – Seasonal variation in the quality of fruits and diffuse coevolution between plants and avian dispersers. Ecology, 63 (3): 773-785.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/1936798
Herrera C. M., 1984 – Adaptation to frugivory of Mediterranean avian seed dispersers. Ecology, 65 (2): 609-617.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/1941423
Herrera C. M., 1987 – Vertebrate-dispersed plants of the Iberian Peninsula: a study of fruit characteristics. Ecological Monographs, 57 (4): 305-331.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/2937089
Howe H. F. & Vande Kerckhove G. A., 1979 – Fecundity and seed dispersal of a tropical tree. Ecology, 60 (1): 180-189.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/1936479
Howe H. F. & Vande Kerckhove G. A., 1980 – Nutmeg dispersal by tropical birds. Science, 210 (4472): 925-927.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1126/science.210.4472.925
Howe H. F. & Vande Kerckhove G. A., 1981 – Removal of Wild Nutmeg (Virola surinamensis) crops by birds. Ecology, 62 (4): 1093-1106.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/1937007
Jordano P., 1985 – El ciclo annual de los Passeriformes frugívoros en el matorral mediterráneo del sur de España: importancia de su invernada y variaciones interanuales. Ardeola, 32 (1): 69-94.
Kidson R. & Westoby M., 2000 – Seed mass and seedling dimensions in relation to seedling establishment. Oecologia, 125 (1): 11-17.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/PL00008882
Levey D. J. & Grajal A., 1991 – Evolutionary implications of fruit-processing limitations in Cedar Waxwings. American Naturalist, 138 (1): 171-189.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1086/285210
Mason D. S., Baruzzi C. & Lashley M. A., 2022 – Passive directed dispersal of plants by animals. Biological Reviews, 97 (5): 1908-1929.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/brv.12875
McKey D., 1975 – The ecology of coevolved seed dispersal systems. In: Coevolution of animals and plants. Gilbert L. E. & Raven P. H. (eds.). University of Texas Press: 159-191.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.7560/710313-009
Messeder J. V. S., Guerra T. J., Pizo M. A., Blendinger P. G. & Silveira F. A. O., 2022 – Seed dispersal ecology in neotropical Melastomataceae. In: Systematics, evolution, and ecology of Melastomataceae. Goldenberg R., Michelangeli F. A. & Almeda F. (eds). Springer: 735-759.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-99742-7_33
Murray K. G., Winnet-Murray K., Cromie E. A., Minor M. & Meyers E., 1993 – The influence of seed packaging and fruit color on feeding preferences of American Robins. Vegetatio, 107/108: 217-226.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00052224
Pesotskaya V. V, Chaplygina A. B., Shupova T. V. & Kratenko R. I., 2020 – Fruit and berry plants of forest belts as a factor of species diversity of ornithofauna during the breeding season and autumn migration period. Biosystems Diversity, 28 (3): 290-297.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.15421/012038
Pignatti S., 1982 – Flora d’Italia. Edagricole, Bologna.
Ricklefs R. E., 1981 – Ecologia. Zanichelli, Bologna.
Sari A. O., Oguz B. & Bilgic A., 2006 – Breaking seed dormancy of laurel (Laurus nobilis L.). New Forestes, 31 (3): 403-408.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11056-005-8678-8
Silvertown J. W., 1981 –Seed size, life span, and germination date as coadapted features of plant life history. American Naturalist, 118 (6): 860-864.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1086/283876
Simms E., 1978 – British Thrushes. Collins, London.
Snow B. & Snow D. W., 1988 – Birds and berries. Poyser, Calton.
Snow D. W., 1958 – A study of Blackbirds. George Allen & Unwin, London. Snow D. W., 1971 – Evolutionary aspects of fruit-eating in birds. Ibis, 113 (2): 194-202.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1474-919X.1971.tb05144.x
Snow D. W., 1987 – The Blackbird. Shire Natural History, 13.
Soler M., Pérez-Gonzales A. & Soler J. J., 1991 – Regimen alimenticio del Mirlo comun (Turdus merula) en el sureste de la peninsula Iberica durante el periodo otoño-invierno. Doñana, Acta Vertebrata, 18 (1): 133-148.
Sorace A., 1990 – Aspetti della nicchia trofica del Merlo Turdus merula in un parco urbano. Avocetta, 14 (2): 119-128.
Sorace A., 2000 – L’avifauna svernante nella Riserva WWF di Monte Arcosu (Sardegna). Rivista italiana di Ornitologia, 70 (2): 149-158.
Sorensen A. E., 1981 – Interactions between birds and fruit in a temperate woodland. Oecologia, 50: 242-249.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00348046
Sorensen A. E., 1984 – Nutrition, energy and passage time: experiments with fruit preference in European Blackbirds Turdus merula. Journal of Animal Ecology, 53 (2): 545-557.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/4533
Spina F. & Volponi S., 2008 – Atlante della migrazione degli uccelli in Italia. 2. Passeriformi. Ministero dell’Ambiente e della Tutela del Territorio e del Mare, Istituto Superiore per la Protezione e la Ricerca Ambientale (ISPRA), Roma.
Théry M., 1989 – Consommation des fruits et dissémination des graines par le merle noir (Turdus merula L.) en zone périurbaine sous climat tempéré. Acta Oecologica, Oecologia Applicata, 10: 271-285.
Trotta M., 2010 – Le comunità ornitiche svernanti nelle formazioni boschive della riserva naturale di Decima-Malafede: analisi del biennio 2009-2010. Alula, 17 (1-2): 1-9.
Tumpa K., Vidaković A., Drvodelić D., Šango M., Idžojtić M., Perković I. & Poljak I., 2021 – The effect of seed size on germination and seedling growth in sweet chestnut (Castanea sativa Mill.). Forests, 12 (7), 858. <https://doi.org/10.3390/f12070858>
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/f12070858
Westoby M., Jurado E. & Lishman M., 1992 – Comparative evolutionary ecology of seed size. Tree, 7 (11): 368-372.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/0169-5347(92)90006-W
Wheelwright N. T., 1985 – Fruit size, gape width, and the diets of fruit-eating birds. Ecology, 66 (3): 808-818.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/1940542
Witmer M. C., 1998 – Do seeds hinder digestive processing of fruit pulp? Implications for plant/frugivore mutualisms. Auk, 115 (2): 319-326.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.2307/4089190
How to Cite
Bulgarini, F., & Fraticelli, F. (2023). The European laurel <i>Laurus nobilis</i> berries in the diet of the blackbird <i>Turdus merula</i>. Rivista Italiana Di Ornitologia, 93(2). https://doi.org/10.4081/rio.2023.693
Copyright (c) 2023 Fabrizio Bulgarini, Fulvio Fraticelli
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
PAGEPress has chosen to apply the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC 4.0) to all manuscripts to be published.
Similar Articles
- Corrado Battisti, Aldo Boano, Michele Cento, Amedeo Circosta, Sergio Muratore, Waders (Aves, Charadriiformes) in a Mediterranean remnant wetland: a year-round pilot study evidences contrasting patterns in diversity metrics , Rivista Italiana di Ornitologia: Vol. 85 No. 1 (2015)
- Adrián Barrero, Julia Gómez-Catasús, Daniel Bustillo-de la Rosa, Juan Traba, Julia Zurdo, Margarita Reverter, First documented case of Tawny Pipit Anthus campestris nest parasitism by common cuckoo Cuculus canorus in Spanish steppes , Rivista Italiana di Ornitologia: Vol. 92 No. 2 (2022)
- Elena Alexandrovna Artemyeva, Yellow Wagtails (Passeriformes, Motacillidae) are indicators of steppe and meadow landscapes , Rivista Italiana di Ornitologia: Vol. 94 No. 1 (2024)
- Al Vrezec, Tomaž Mihelič, The Ural owl, Strix uralensis macroura, in Slovenia: an overview of current knowledge on species ecology , Rivista Italiana di Ornitologia: Vol. 82 No. 1-2 (2012)
- Pietro Giovacchini, Marco Dragonetti, Fausto Corsi, Fabrizio Farsi, Winter presence of Stone Curlew, Burhinus oedicnemus, in Grosseto province monitored by playback , Rivista Italiana di Ornitologia: Vol. 82 No. 1-2 (2012)
- Walter Guenzani, Fabio Saporetti, Unmanaged forest and bird community: a study in north-western Lombardy , Rivista Italiana di Ornitologia: Vol. 82 No. 1-2 (2012)
- Corrado Battisti, Bird assemblages on a Mediterranean sandy beach: a yearly study , Rivista Italiana di Ornitologia: Vol. 84 No. 1 (2014)
- Tiziano Londei, Association of Pica magpies with grazing ungulates: a clue to the genus’ origins , Rivista Italiana di Ornitologia: Vol. 87 No. 2 (2017)
- Roberto G. Valle, Habitat selection and hatching success of the Common Sandpiper Actitis hypoleucos in Italy , Rivista Italiana di Ornitologia: Vol. 94 No. 1 (2024)
- Corrado Battisti, Veridiana Barucci, Valeria Concettini, Giuseppe Dodaro, Francesca Marini, Breeding birds of ‟Nomentum” nature reserve (central Italy): a forest remnant landscape surrounded by an agro-urbanized matrix , Rivista Italiana di Ornitologia: Vol. 92 No. 1 (2022)
You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.