Nest predation and climate change as drivers of alternative reproductive tactics in a migratory species

Alternative reproductive tactics enable individuals to choose a reproductive tactic relative to their status and prevailing environmental conditions in a way that increases their fitness. Conspecific brood parasitism, in which females lay eggs in nests of conspecifics, is one example of such behaviour. It has been proposed that when prospects for successful nesting are low and/or costs of reproduction are high, females employ tactics of low cost such as non-breeding and parasitic laying. When environmental conditions are ideal and prospects for success high, females can increase their reproductive effort above typical nesting by laying parasitic eggs prior to initiating their own nest.  

Methods
Here, I used this flexible life-history strategy concept and long-term (1994-2022) population level data of the common goldeneye (Bucephala clangula) to study how the rate of parasitic laying varies in relation to variation in nest predation risk and in the timing and length of the breeding season, the latter being measured by the timing of ice breakup.