þÿ<html xmlns:o="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" xmlns:w="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:word" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40"> <head> <meta name=Title content="FERNS, P"> <meta name=Keywords content=""> <meta http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; charset=unicode"> <meta name=ProgId content=Word.Document> <meta name=Generator content="Microsoft Word 11"> <meta name=Originator content="Microsoft Word 11"> <link rel=File-List href="37_1_85-92_files/filelist.xml"> <title>FERNS, P</title> <!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:DocumentProperties> <o:Author>ec</o:Author> <o:Template>Normal</o:Template> <o:LastAuthor>Benjamin Saenz</o:LastAuthor> <o:Revision>2</o:Revision> <o:TotalTime>1</o:TotalTime> <o:Created>2009-10-12T16:54:00Z</o:Created> <o:LastSaved>2009-10-12T16:54:00Z</o:LastSaved> <o:Pages>1</o:Pages> <o:Words>215</o:Words> <o:Characters>1226</o:Characters> <o:Company>Environment Canada</o:Company> <o:Lines>10</o:Lines> <o:Paragraphs>2</o:Paragraphs> <o:CharactersWithSpaces>1505</o:CharactersWithSpaces> <o:Version>11.1280</o:Version> </o:DocumentProperties> <o:OfficeDocumentSettings> <o:PixelsPerInch>96</o:PixelsPerInch> <o:TargetScreenSize>800x600</o:TargetScreenSize> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:PunctuationKerning/> </w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--> <style> <!-- /* Font Definitions */ @font-face {font-family:"Times New Roman"; panose-1:0 2 2 6 3 5 4 5 2 3; mso-font-charset:0; mso-generic-font-family:auto; mso-font-pitch:variable; mso-font-signature:50331648 0 0 0 1 0;} /* Style Definitions */ p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal {mso-style-parent:""; margin:0in; margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:12.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:EN-GB; mso-fareast-language:EN-GB;} table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-parent:""; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman";} @page Section1 {size:8.5in 11.0in; margin:1.0in 1.25in 1.0in 1.25in; mso-header-margin:35.4pt; mso-footer-margin:35.4pt; mso-paper-source:0;} div.Section1 {page:Section1;} --> </style> </head> <body bgcolor=white lang=EN-US style='tab-interval:.5in'> <div class=Section1> <p class=MsoNormal><span lang=EN-GB>FERNS, P.N. &amp; ROSS-SMITH, V.H. 2009. Function of colored bill tips, stripes and spots in breeding gulls. <i>Marine Ornithology</i></span><span lang=EN-GB> 37: 85-92.<o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class=MsoNormal><span lang=EN-GB><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></span></p> <p class=MsoNormal><span lang=EN-GB>We used independent contrasts analysis to investigate the function of differently colored tips, spots and stripes on the beaks of adult gulls. We combined continuous and categorical variables set out in an Open Document Format spreadsheet (available as Appendix 1 at the <i>Marine Ornithology </i></span><span lang=EN-GB>website) that can be adapted for similar analyses in other contexts. Our results show that a uniformly colored bill occurs in species with a small adult body size and a relatively large egg size (average egg length </span><span lang=EN-GB style='font-family:Symbol; mso-char-type:symbol;mso-symbol-font-family:Symbol'><span style='mso-char-type: symbol;mso-symbol-font-family:Symbol'>»</span></span><span lang=EN-GB> 14% of body length), whereas a red gonys spot occurs in those with a large body size and a relatively small egg size (average egg length </span><span lang=EN-GB style='font-family:Symbol;mso-char-type:symbol;mso-symbol-font-family:Symbol'><span style='mso-char-type:symbol;mso-symbol-font-family:Symbol'>»</span></span><span lang=EN-GB> 12% of body length). Both a differently colored bill tip and a black stripe on the bill occur in species with adult body and egg lengths of intermediate size (average egg length </span><span lang=EN-GB style='font-family: Symbol;mso-char-type:symbol;mso-symbol-font-family:Symbol'><span style='mso-char-type:symbol;mso-symbol-font-family:Symbol'>»</span></span><span lang=EN-GB> 13% of body length). Egg length also increases more quickly per unit increase in body length in species of intermediate size than in the other groups. Patterned beaks may thus have evolved to focus the pecking response of chicks which are relatively small at hatching in relation to their parents, red spots being present in cases where the size difference is greatest. Such adaptations would have enabled adult gulls to evolve larger body sizes, without their eggs and chicks having to increase in size to the same extent.</span></p> <p class=MsoNormal><span lang=EN-GB><![if !supportEmptyParas]>&nbsp;<![endif]><o:p></o:p></span></p> </div> </body> </html>