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American Flamingos (Phoenicopterus ruber) resting their necks to the left (closest to camera) and right. Anderson et al. (2009) have demonstrated both individual and population-level lateral preferences for right neck-resting. Photo by M. J. Anderson.
Context in source publication
Context 1
... laterality serves some social function, one would expect to obtain evidence of population level lateral preferences in flamingos. When flamingos rest, they typically lay their heads on their backs. To achieve this positioning, they are forced to curve their necks to either the right or left of their center of gravity (in the shape of an 'S'; Fig. 1). In an observational study of flamingos conducted at the Philadelphia Zoo, Anderson et al. (2009) recently demonstrated both individual and population-level lateral prefer- ences for resting the neck to the right. Further stud- ies revealed that those birds that preferred to rest their necks to the left, differing from the majority of ...
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Citations
... In this study, we used remote behavioural observations made via a live-streaming webcam to investigate the trade-offs in avian behaviour. Webcams have become a valuable tool in the study of animal behaviour, as they allow behavioural observations to be made without disturbance to focal individuals and without the need for researchers to be physically present at study sites [11][12][13][14][15]. We selected two common waterbirds as our focal species, the mute swan (Cygnus olor) and whooper swan (Cygnus cygnus). ...
... Our work demonstrates how remotely-collected data can be used to investigate fundamental questions in behavioural research. Such remote data collection provides a number of advantages to behavioural scientists, including reduced impacts of disturbance on focal animals, reduced carbon footprint associated with repeated visits to observation sites, and greater accessibility for scientists who cannot physically travel to study sites [11][12][13][14][15]. Remote methods can also offer a means to collect data during the Covid-19 pandemic, which has curtailed the ability of researchers to visit field sites to undertake traditional methods of in-person data collection [63]. ...
Individual animals engage in many behaviours which are mutually exclusive, and so where individuals increase the duration of time spent on one type of behavioural activity, this must be offset by a corresponding decrease in at least one other type of behaviour. To understand the variation observed in animal behaviour, researchers need to know how individuals trade-off these mutually-exclusive behaviours within their time-activity budget. In this study, we used remotely collected behavioural observations made from a live-streaming webcam to investigate trade-offs in the behaviour of two bird species, the mute swan (Cygnus olor) and whooper swan (Cygnus cygnus). For both species, we tested for correlations in the duration of time spent on key mutually exclusive behaviours: aggression, foraging, maintenance , and resting. We detected a negative association between aggression and resting behaviours in both species, indicating that increased aggression is achieved at the expense of resting behaviour. In contrast, there was no apparent trade-off between aggression and foraging, aggression and maintenance, or maintenance and resting. Foraging and resting behaviours were negatively correlated in both species, highlighting a trade-off between these distinct modes of behaviour. A trade-off between foraging and maintenance behaviours was detected for the sedentary mute swans, but not the migratory whooper swans. Our findings show how birds can trade-off their time investments in mutually exclusive behaviours within their time-activity budgets. Moreover, our study demonstrates how remotely-collected data can be used to investigate fundamental questions in behavioural research.
... However, surprisingly little research has used data from webcams [9]. Examples include behavioural studies [9][10][11] and studies of breeding biology [12,13]. Although webcams at nests can potentially provide detailed information on species diets, few studies have used this approach [14]. ...
Citizen science is increasingly contributing to ecology and conservation research, mostly by the extensive collection of field data. Although webcams attract numerous observers, they have been underused in this respect. We used prey delivery records deposited by citizen scientists in an internet forum linked to webcams to explore the diet composition and food provisioning in a forest-dwelling raptor of conservation concern, the Lesser Spotted Eagle ( Clanga pomarina ). Four pairs were studied throughout the breeding season. Most of the identified prey items were mammals (62.1%), followed by frogs (31.2%), birds (6.6%) and fish (0.1%). Among mammals, voles accounted for 84.6%, moles 12.1%, water voles 2.4% and weasels 0.4%. Frogs were the most frequently detected prey item in the spring, with a slight increase towards the end of the season, the proportion of mammals increased during the breeding season, and birds were hunted mostly in the middle of the breeding season. However, exact temporal patterns differed between nests. The food delivery rate of males increased over time but decreased somewhat before fledging the young. Females started hunting in mid-summer and their rapidly increasing effort compensated for a reduced male hunting intensity. The data collected by citizen scientists via webcams reflected the general patterns detected in earlier studies, supporting the reliability of crowd-sourced web-based data collection in avian foraging ecology.
... When a flamingo behavior is cited in ecology or morphology papers, precise descriptions are often lacking (Mascitti and Kravetz 2002;Chang and Ting 2017). Despite all behavioral categories being represented in this review, some categories have been more frequently described in the literature, like maintenance behaviors (Anderson 2009;Anderson et al. 2011;Anderson and Ialeggio 2014;Anderson and Laughlin 2014;Anderson et al. 2018a, b) and social behaviors (Jaslow et al. 1997;Hughes 2015;Rose and Croft 2015;Freeman et al. 2016;Rose 2016). This is probably due to two main reasons: (1) these behaviors are more frequent; therefore, more easily observed, and (2) these behaviors are more prone to draw attention from researchers and the public because of the distinctive body displays performed by the animals in maintenance and social behaviors categories. ...
We provide a systematic review of the current scope of published behavioral research on flamingos (Phoenicopteridae), to answer the following questions: (1) what is the profile of ethology and behavioral research on flamingos, (2) which are the behaviors displayed by flamingos already observed and described in nature and captivity, and (3) what are the prospects in the ethological research of the group? Eighty-eight studies, from 1978 to 2020, met our inclusion criteria and were analyzed. Most involved maintenance and social behaviors in the context of ecology and welfare. Furthermore, most studies were performed on animals in captivity and controlled conditions, but there was a recent trend of studies in the field, mainly in South America and the Caribbean. The most studied species were greater and American flamingos, but there is a recent rise in studies on Chilean and Andean flamingos in Latin America. Most ethological studies on this group included quantitative analyses, ignoring a more qualitative perspective of the individuals' displays. Behavior description can also help in comparative studies between flamingo species and other water birds. Expanding research to Andean, James's, and lesser flamingos is a priority, since their populations are more vulnerable. Ethological research can help identify the threats and measure the impacts on these species, which can be useful for setting up management plans and conservation actions to mitigate the damage and avoid extinction.
... Webcams have been shown previously to be useful tools in behavioural studies, which allow remote collection of data with limited disturbance to the focal birds (e.g. Anderson et al. 2011;Schulwitz et al. 2018). During winter months in 2018/2019 (November 2018-February 2019, inclusive) and 2019/2020 (November 2019-December 2019, inclusive), webcam footage from WWT Slimbridge was watched for 1 h on an average of 7.5 days per month at either 08:30 a.m. to 09:30 a.m. ...
Background
Our understanding of any impacts of swans on other waterbirds (including other swans), and potential effects on waterbird community structure, remain limited by a paucity of fundamental behavioural and ecological data, including which species swans interact aggressively with and how frequently such interactions occur.
Methods
Behavioural observations of aggression by swans and other waterbirds in winters 2018/2019 and 2019/2020, were carried out via live-streaming webcams at two wintering sites in the UK. All occurrence sampling was used to identify all aggressive interactions between conspecific or heterospecifics individuals, whilst focal observations were used to record the total time spent by swans on aggressive interactions with other swans. Binomial tests were then used to assess whether the proportion of intraspecific aggressive interactions of each species differed from 0.5 (which would indicate equal numbers of intraspecific and interspecific interactions). Zero-inflated generalized linear mixed effects models (ZIGLMMs) were used to assess between-individual variation in the total time spent by swans on aggressive interactions with other swans.
Results
All three swan species were most frequently aggressive towards, and received most aggression from, their conspecifics. Our 10-min focal observations showed that Whooper ( Cygnus cygnus ) and Bewick’s Swans ( C. columbianus bewickii ) spent 13.8 ± 4.7 s (means ± 95% CI) and 1.4 ± 0.3 s, respectively, on aggression with other swans. These durations were equivalent to 2.3% and 0.2% of the Whooper and Bewick’s Swan time-activity budgets, respectively. Model selection indicated that the time spent in aggressive interactions with other swans was best-explained by the number of other swans present for Whooper Swans, and an interactive effect of time of day and winter of observation for Bewick’s Swans. However, the relationship between swan numbers and Whooper Swan aggression times was not strong ( R ² = 19.3%).
Conclusions
Whilst swans do exhibit some aggression towards smaller waterbirds, the majority of aggression by swans is directed towards other swans. Aggression focused on conspecifics likely reflects greater overlap in resource use, and hence higher potential for competition, between individuals of the same species. Our study provides an example of how questions relating to avian behaviour can be addressed using methods of remote data collection such as live-streaming webcams.
... In addition, other authors investigated the lateralization of the necklooping behaviour: when resting flamingos curve their long neck to the right or the left, lying the head along their back, making a loop on one side of the body (Figure 1b) (Johnson & Cézilly, 2007;Vidal et al., 2018). Evidence of a right bias in neck-looping position has been found in Caribbean flamingos (Anderson & Ialeggio, 2013;Anderson, Williams, & Bono, 2010;Anderson, Williams, & O'Brien, 2009;Anderson, Urbine, Wilson, & Calabro, 2011; and wild lesser flamingos (Phoeniconaias minor) (Anderson, 2009). However, other authors failed to detect a right-side preference for neck looping in wild greater flamingos (Vidal et al., 2018), Chilean flamingos (Anderson & Laughlin, 2014), Caribbean flamingos (Anderson & Robinson-Drummer, 2015) and American flamingos (Hughes, Cauthen, & Driscoll, 2014) (Table 1). ...
... On the other hand, when considering only greater flamingos, a significant preference for curving the neck to the right when resting was reported. This finding is consistent with previous research highlighting a rightward neck-looping preference during resting in wild lesser flamingos (Anderson, 2009) and zoo Caribbean flamingos (Anderson & Ialeggio, 2013;Anderson et al., , 2011Anderson et al., 2009;Williams & Anderson, 2012). The lateralization in neck resting in these species might serve a social function similar to that described for foraging/stamping behaviour. ...
Many studies have highlighted evidence of lateralized behaviours in vertebrates and invertebrates, indicating that cerebral lateralization might not be uniquely human. Flamingos, as highly social species, might represent an interesting model in the study of lateralization, as this trait appears to be useful in gregarious animals. This study aims to investigate the presence of lateralized behaviours in zoo flamingos. The subjects of this study were 41 greater flamingos (Phoenicopterus roseus) and 29 Chilean flamingos (Phoenicopterus chilensis). Ten 20-minute observation sessions per subject were carried out, using focal animal sampling method. Bouts of side preferences were recorded for foraging, neck resting and preening. Moreover, bouts and duration of leg use for postural support during unipedal standing (leg stance) were also collected. Results highlighted a group-level right-side preference for foraging in the whole sample as well as within each species. Within greater flamingos, group-level right-side preferences were also reported for neck resting and leg stance. Differences between the two flocks were found, with greater flamingos displaying right preferences to a greater extent than Chilean flamingos. Males showed a more pronounced right preference than females for some categories. This study adds to previous literature highlighting the presence of group-level behavioural lateralization in flamingos.
... While there is very little evidence to support the existence of unipedal resting support leg preferences in flamingos (see above), multiple flamingo populations have evidenced significant lateral preferences in regards to their directional preference for curving their necks (i.e., neck-resting or neck-looping) when resting with their heads on their backs (Anderson, Williams, & O'Brien, 2009;Anderson, 2009;Anderson, Urbine, Wilson & Calabro, 2011;Anderson, Reeves, & Foster, in press). Anderson, Williams, and O'Brien (2009) gathered 40 once per day, instantaneous scan sampling observations (Altmann, 1974) of the Philadelphia Zoo Caribbean flamingos during which it was noted whether a flamingo was active, resting with its neck curved to its right, or resting with it neck curved to its left. ...
... Indeed, the preference became clear when the behavior was tracked over time, and it might not have evidenced itself if one were to have simply taken a single snapshot of the resting flock (cf. Anderson et al., 2011). ...
... Moreover, the lateral preferences in the Philadelphia flock have shown to be related to some other behaviors displayed by these birds (see below for more info; Anderson & Ialeggio, 2014), which is consistent with the conclusion that they are the result of underlying hemispheric dominance. Finally, lateral neckresting preferences have been observed in some other flamingo populations (Anderson, 2009;Anderson et al., 2011;Anderson, Reeves, & Foster, in press). ...
Following a brief introduction to the typical daily activity patterns of flamingos, this chapter reviews various findings and phenomena related to the resting behaviors of these iconic birds. In addition to a description of flamingo resting behavior, this chapter discusses the social nature of resting, laterality in flamingo resting behavior, unihemispheric slow-wave sleep, and factors influencing the occurrence of unipedal and bipedal resting. Also discussed are some suggestions for future research.
... Much previous research has suggested that flamingos display side preferences (i.e., laterality) in resting behavior such that when tracked over time they show a preference for curving their necks to their right when resting with their heads on their backs (e.g., Anderson, Williams, & O'Brien, 2009). While the behavior is not all or none and any one flamingo can be observed on any given instance resting its neck to either the right or the left, significant lateral preferences have been demonstrated both at the individual level (e.g., Anderson et al., 2009;Anderson & Ialeggio, 2013), with individual flamingos displaying side preferences for neckresting when their behavior is tracked over time, as well as at the population level (e.g., Anderson, 2009;Anderson et al., 2009;Anderson, Williams, & Bono, 2010;Anderson, Urbine, Wilson, & Calabro, 2011;Willams & Anderson, 2012;Anderson & Ialeggio, 2013;Reeves, Foster, Insalaco, Blum, & Anderson, 2013), with most flamingos generally preferring to neck-rest to the right. ...
... Caribbean Flamingos at the Philadelphia Zoo (Philadelphia, PA, USA) were found to have both individual-and flock-level behavioral lateralization for curving the neck to the right when resting with their heads on their backs (Anderson, Williams, & O"Brien, 2009). Some evidence of a similar population-level preference has been found in a wild flock of Lesser Flamingos (Anderson, 2009) as well as in a different flock of captive Caribbean flamingos (Anderson, Urbine, Wilson, & Calabro, 2011) (although both of these latter studies employed webcams and were thus not able to examine individual-level preferences). In another study of the captive Caribbean flamingo flock at the Philadelphia Zoo, their lateralized behavior was found to be related to social cohesion and aggression, with birds that displayed the opposite lateralization (neck-resting to the left) being more likely to be involved in aggressive interactions . ...
Lateralization is defined as a behavior or mental process displayed by an animal in which there is a distinctive side preference. Caribbean flamingos have been shown to display lateralization in neck resting behavior (Anderson, Williams, & O‟Brien, 2009), and relationships between this side preference and aggression (Anderson, Williams, & Bono, 2010) and pair-bonding (Williams & Anderson, 2012) have been previously found. The present study investigated whether Caribbean flamingos display lateral behavioral preferences in foot scratching and two types of stamp-feeding behavior, and examined the relationship, if any, between these lateral behaviors and both pair-bonding and aggression. Four of the birds displayed an individual-level lateral preference on one of the two feeding behaviors. Foot scratching preference was related to age such that older birds tended to utilize the right foot more for scratching. Results also suggested that birds who scratch with the left foot are more likely to be involved in, to be targeted in, and to lose fights, suggesting that lateral foot usage during scratching may be somehow related to social behaviors in this species, but as significant lateral scratching preferences were not found, such results must be viewed with caution. The lateral feeding behaviors did not appear to be significantly related to social cohesion.
... Laterality (i.e., side preferences in brain and behavior) is a frequently observed phenomenon present in many vertebrate species (for review see Rogers 1989;Rogers & Andrew 2002;Vallortigara & Rogers 2005), including flamingos. Indeed, evidence has been put fourth suggesting the existence of lateral behavioral preferences in two of the world's six flamingo species: Caribbean flamingos Anderson et al. 2011;Anderson & Ialeggio 2014;Peluso & Anderson 2014;Anderson et al. in press) and Lesser flamingos (Anderson, 2009). In particular, these studies have investigated the tendency of flamingos to curve their long necks to either the right or the left of their center of gravity when resting with their heads on their backs (a typical flamingo resting behavior) and have suggested that when lateral neck-resting preferences are tracked over time most flamingos generally tend to prefer to rest their necks to the right (e.g., Anderson et al. 2009). ...
... In particular, these studies have investigated the tendency of flamingos to curve their long necks to either the right or the left of their center of gravity when resting with their heads on their backs (a typical flamingo resting behavior) and have suggested that when lateral neck-resting preferences are tracked over time most flamingos generally tend to prefer to rest their necks to the right (e.g., Anderson et al. 2009). Although the preference is not all or none, and any flamingo appears able to rest its neck to either the right or left on any given instance, significant preferences for rightward neck-resting have been shown both for individual birds (i.e., individual-level lateral preferences) (e.g., Anderson et al. 2009;, as well as the majority of the flock (i.e., a population-level lateral preference) (e.g., Anderson et al. 2009;Anderson 2009;Anderson et al. 2011;Anderson et al. in press). Interestingly, the lateral neck-resting tendencies of Caribbean flamingos held at the Philadelphia Zoo (where this behavior has been most extensively investigated) have been shown to be related to both agonistic behavior ) and pair-bonding , with those flamingos preferring to rest their necks to the left being more likely to be involved in instances of aggression (as either aggressor or target) than those preferring the right , and those birds with stronger pair-bonds generally displaying neck-resting tendencies that were more similar to that of their most preferred partner than did those with weaker pair-bonds . ...
Two studies examined laterality, social behavior, and the influence of temperature on unipedal
resting in several captive flocks of Chilean flamingos. Study 1 observed a small flock of Chilean
flamingos at Elmwood Park Zoo (Norristown, PA, USA) and collected on-site weather
data, while Study 2 employed a live online webcam to observe the Chilean flamingo flock at
Houston Zoo (Houston, TX, USA) and obtained local weather data via an additional online
source. Consistent with the idea of a thermoregulatory function of unipedal resting (cf. Anderson
& Williams, 2010), both studies provided evidence of a negative relationship between
temperature and the percentage of resting birds engaging in unipedal resting, such that more
resting birds were seen engaging in unipedal resting on cooler days, and Study 2 evidenced
that Chilean flamingos are more likely to engage in unipedal resting while resting in water
than on land. Study 1 evidenced a relationship between agonistic behavior and pair-bonding,
such that birds with a higher ratio of wins during aggressive encounters displayed stronger
bonds with their preferred partners and were also more “desirable” to potential partners. Both
studies failed to obtain evidence of lateral preferences in neck-resting or in unipedal resting
support leg, suggesting a possible species difference between Chilean flamingos and Caribbean
flamingos (cf. Anderson et al., 2009) in terms of lateral neck-resting preferences. Given the
methodological limitations of the present studies, however, additional research is necessary to
further investigate this possibility.
... One solution to both the problem of reactivity in the animals and the lack of obtainable subjects is to utilise webcams to observe animals within zoos or potentially in the wild as well. This method was utilised by Anderson (2009) as well as Anderson et al. (2011) to investigate resting behavior in flamingos however we have yet to employ such technology to study social interactions. Using webcams to view animal populations around the world could add to the validity of studies whose previous focus only included one particular flock. ...
This study sought to examine the relationship between weather and aggression in Caribbean flamingos by utilising a novel observation method. Previous research has shown evidence of increased levels of aggression during periods of warmer weather in a wide range of species including humans. We observed the captive flock of Caribbean flamingos at the Smithsonian National Zoological Park (Washington, DC, USA) by means of a web cam, and correlated the observed instances of aggression with eight different weather variables gathered via www.weather.com. Results evidenced significant positive correlations between aggression and several variables including: temperature [r (38) = 0.31, P = 0.048], "feels like" [r (38) = 0.31, P = 0.049], and UV-index [r (38) = 0.35, P = 0.025]; and a multiple linear regression (stepwise) suggested that UV-index is a significant predictor of aggressive instances, thus highlighting the relationship between such environmental factors and flamingo aggression. Evidence has been found of a relationships between UV light and aggression in other species, and the results of the present study suggest a similar relationship in flamingos. Employing webcams may allow researchers to obtain larger samples to be included in the study of aggression or to examine this and other behaviors in a wider variety of captive animals.
