10.5061/DRYAD.0VT4B8H0F
Montgomerie, Robert
0000-0003-4701-4525
Queen's University
Birkhead, Tim
University of Sheffield
Cox, Amelia
Environment and Climate Change Canada
Thompson, Jamie
0000-0003-0048-7886
University of Sheffield
Exceptional variation in the appearance of Common Murre eggs reveals their
potential as identity signals
Dryad
dataset
2021
FOS: Biological sciences
Uria aalge
Bird eggs
colour pattern
individual recognition
Common murre
Common guillemot
maculation
Leverhulme Trust
https://ror.org/012mzw131
RPG-2015-221
Science and Engineering Research Council
https://ror.org/00zgdb249
RGPIN/05711-2014
2022-03-30T00:00:00Z
2022-03-30T00:00:00Z
en
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.6400109
https://doi.org/10.1093/ornithology/ukab049
318513 bytes
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CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication
We studied the ground colors and maculations of 161 Common Murre (Uria
aalge) eggs laid by 43 females in 3 small breeding groups on the cliffs of
Skomer Island, Wales, in 2016–2018. Both the colors and maculations varied
much more among than within females, providing quantitative evidence for
the egg traits that might facilitate the parents’ ability to identify
their own eggs on the crowded breeding ledges where the density is
typically ~20 eggs m–2. Ground colors had a trimodal distribution of hue
values (whitish to pale brown, pale blue, or vivid blue-green) and
maculations ranged from none to complex squiggles and blotches. The eggs
laid by each female in different years were similar to one another, and
replacement eggs laid by females within years were also more similar to
their first egg than to other eggs in the same breeding group. Egg
appearance did not differ among the 3 breeding groups that we studied. Our
findings thus support anecdotal observations that, within and between
years, female Common Murres lay eggs that have similar ground colors and
maculations. We do not, however, find evidence that there is much
difference among the eggs laid in different parts of a colony.
Photographs of eggs under standardized conditions in the field. Analyzed
colors and some simple maculation metrics from digital photographs.
See README file.