Ryder Diaz, ISNS Contributor
Date: 09 April 2013 Time: 05:23 PM ET
(ISNS) -- One bird
species may have advice on how to get its dads to take a more active role in
parenting: mothers should build a snazzy crib.
Female blue tits that construct bigger nests and decorate
them with fragrant plants have male partners that are more willing to invest in
raising chicks, Spanish researchers report in the journal Behavioral Ecology.
A big, well-decorated home may send a signal to males
about the health of their partners, said Gustavo Tomás of the Estación
Experimental de Zonas Áridas in Madrid
Females in many animal species are often believed to be
the picky sex when it comes to choosing a mate. That’s because females usually
devote more time and energy than males to raising their offspring.
A female blue tit – which is about the size of an adult
hand, from beak to tail – picks her partner based on his colorful blue and
yellow plumage and the sweetness of his song. The better looking and sounding a
mate, the better the chances he won’t be teeming with parasites and that the
couple will have healthy chicks.
But the research team found that males might also judge
their mates.
“It was traditionally thought that only males need to show
of their quality,” said Tomás. “Now we’re revealing it’s not that simple. It’s
an interaction between sexes.“
Different bird species divide the work of building nests
in different ways. Female blue tits work alone to build nests, although
males may add feathers later on. That means the nest may provide a window to
the female's health.
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