Effect of acute stressor on reproductive behavior differs between urban and rural birds

The life-history trade-off between self-maintenance and reproduction posits that investment in one function decreases investment in the other. Manipulating the costs and benefits of functions involved in a trade-off may alter this interaction. Here we ask whether investment in self-maintenance during a stress response alters territorial behavior in wild Dark-eyed Juncos and whether rural and urban birds, which are known to differ in the magnitude of the stress response (greater in rural), also differ in the degree to which stress reduces territorial behavior. In rural and urban habitats, we measured territorial behavior using song playback, followed by either an acute stressor (capture and collection of a blood sample) or a nonstressful control situation. The following day, we again measured territorial behavior, predicting greater reduction in territorial behavior in individuals exposed to the stressor but a lesser reduction in territorial behavior in the urban as compared to the rural...