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Biology (Basel)

Title:		Attraction to Smelly Food in Birds: Insectivorous Birds Discriminate between the Pheromones of Their Prey and Those of Non-Prey Insects
Author(s):		Amo L; Saavedra I;
Address:		"Departamento de Ecologia Evolutiva, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (MNCN-CSIC), C/Jose Gutierrez Abascal, 2, E-28006 Madrid, Spain. Area of Biodiversity and Conservation, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, c/Tulipan s/n., E-28933 Madrid, Spain"
Journal Title:		Biology (Basel)
Year:		2021
Volume:		20211008
Issue:		10
Page Number:		-
DOI:		10.3390/biology10101010
ISSN/ISBN:		2079-7737 (Print) 2079-7737 (Electronic) 2079-7737 (Linking)
Abstract:		"Natural selection has favored the evolution of different capabilities that allow animals to obtain food-e.g., the development of senses for improving prey/food detection. Among these senses, chemical sense is possibly the most ancient mechanism used by organisms for environmental assessment. Comparative studies suggest the prime role of foraging ecology in the evolution of the olfactory apparatus of vertebrates, including birds. Here, we review empirical studies that have shown birds' abilities to detect prey/food via olfaction and report the results of a study aiming to analyze the specificity of eavesdropping on prey pheromones in insectivorous birds. In a field study, we placed artificial larvae and a dispenser with one of three treatments-prey (Operopthera brumata) pheromones, non-prey (Rhynchophorus ferrugineus) pheromones, or a control unscented dispenser-on the branches of Pyrenean oak trees (Quercus pyrenaica). We then measured the predation rate of birds on artificial larvae. Our results show that more trees had larvae with signs of avian predation when they contained a prey pheromone dispenser than when they contained a non-prey pheromone dispenser or an unscented dispenser. Our results indicate that insectivorous birds can discriminate between the pheromones emitted by their prey and those emitted by non-prey insects and that they only exhibit attraction to prey pheromones. These results highlight the potential use of insectivorous birds in the biological control of insect pests"
Keywords:		avian olfaction foraging insect pheromones insectivorous birds predator-prey interactions prey chemical cues;
Notes:		"PubMed-not-MEDLINEAmo, Luisa Saavedra, Irene eng PGC2018-095070-B-I00/Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovacion y Universidades/ Switzerland 2021/10/24 Biology (Basel). 2021 Oct 8; 10(10):1010. doi: 10.3390/biology10101010"