Ecología y evolución de las interacciones parásito de cría- hospedadorun estudio longitudinal con individuos marcados

Zusammenfassung

Avian brood parasites and their hosts provide an ideal system for studying coevolution. The system consisting of Great Spotted Cuckoos Clamator glandarius and their Magpie Pica pica host provides clear support for the effect of brood parasitism on the reproductive success of hosts and on the evolution of host defensive mechanisms designed to counteract the negative effects of parasitism. However, long-term studies using marked birds addressing issues related to patterns of host use by parasites and defense mechanisms in hosts are still very scarce. Here, we use cross-sectional and longitudinal studies to review the evolution of defensive mechanisms against parasitism and patterns of parasitism in a population of Magpies and Great Spotted Cuckoos. Our results show the importance of long-term studies of individual birds when attempting to characterize patterns of parasitism and the expression of phenotypic traits and defensive behavior at population level. Our findings suggest that brood parasitism can be structured within host populations, and provide support for the possible influence of external abiotic factors as potential elements determining the co-evolutionary dynamics of parasite-host interactions. In addition, we demonstrate that ontogeny may play a key role in the expression of host defenses. In conclusion, the study of structured parasitism, climatic factors and ontogeny, whose importance can only be quantified by performing individual-based, long-term studies, provides intriguing and deeper perspectives for understanding the ecology and evolution of avian brood parasites and their hosts.