Flexible Responses to Stage-Specific Offspring Threats

We used this data to test whether in the face of a threat, parents with dependent offspring had an integrated response across offspring development stages or whether responses were flexible based on degree of threat. Data was collected in the field by monitoring nest boxes of Carolina chickadees. Incubation was monitored with iButtons and raw iButton data is provided (one file for each nest). We found that parents respond to offspring threat by decreasing clutch size when house wrens (the threat) are present. However, parents do not change any strategies later in the breeding attempt: nestling stage length and provisioning rates are not different among chickadees deposed to unexposed to house wrens.