ArticleScientific reports2016
Darwin's finches treat their feathers with a natural repellent.
Article in Scientific reports, 2016. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 12 papers.
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Who cites it
12 citing papers in PubMed, 61 citations in OpenAlex.
- Innovations in invasive parasite control: enhancing nest treatment techniques to combat the threat of the avian vampire flyFrontiers in conservation science · 2025Article
- Intraspecific Competition Promotes Oviposition During Host Egg Incubation in the Parasitic FlyEcology and evolution · 2025Article
- Molecular genetic foundation of a sex-linked tailless trait in Hongshan chicken by whole genome data analysis.Poultry science · 2024Article
- Active self-treatment of a facial wound with a biologically active plant by a male Sumatran orangutan.Scientific reports · 2024Article
- Persistence of the invasive bird-parasitic fly Philornis downsi over the host interbreeding period in the Galapagos Islands.Scientific reports · 2022Article
- Female in-nest attendance predicts the number of ectoparasites in Darwin's finch species.Proceedings. Biological sciences · 2021Article
- Behavior of the Avian ParasiteJournal of insect behavior · 2021Article
- Evidence for rapid downward fecundity selection in an ectoparasite (Philornis downsi) with earlier host mortality in Darwin's finches.Journal of evolutionary biology · 2020Article
- Genetic admixture predicts parasite intensity: evidence for increased hybrid performance in Darwin's tree finches.Royal Society open science · 2019Article
- Population dynamics of an invasive bird parasite, Philornis downsi (Diptera: Muscidae), in the Galapagos Islands.PloS one · 2019Article
- Anti-parasite behaviour of birds.Philosophical transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological sciences · 2018Review
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Authors and funding
12 authors at 6 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
Abstract
Darwin's finches are highly innovative. Recently we recorded for the first time a behavioural innovation in Darwin's finches outside the foraging context: individuals of four species rubbed leaves of the endemic tree Psidium galapageium on their feathers. We hypothesised that this behaviour serves to repel ectoparasites and tested the repellency of P. galapageium leaf extracts against parasites that negatively affect the fitness of Darwin's finches, namely mosquitoes and the invasive hematophagous fly Philornis downsi. Mosquitoes transmit pathogens which have recently been introduced by humans and the larvae of the fly suck blood from nestlings and incubating females. Our experimental evidence demonstrates that P. galapageium leaf extracts repel both mosquitoes and adult P. downsi and also inhibit the growth of P. downsi larvae. It is therefore possible that finches use this plant to repel ectopoarasites.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.