Egg predation is the one of the main costs of brood desertion in many ectothermic animals. When stressful environmental conditions constrain parental activities to only some periods of the day, the combination of physical ...

In temperate regions, the populations of Aedes aegypti (L.) remain in the egg stage during the cold season. The ability of these eggs to survive until the next favorable season is affected by several mortality factors, ...

Predation of eggs and embryos is one of the reasons of early mortality in anurans, and it is known that embryos of several amphibian species can accelerate its hatching, as a mechanism to reduce predation risk. Several ...

Selection for crypsis in varying environments has long been established as the main evolutionary force promoting the huge variation in avian egg coloration. In several avian species, variation in egg coloration exists, but ...

Capsule: Studies of nest predation using artificial nests need to consider the effect of egg size on the types of predator that are detected. Aims: To estimate the nest predation rate in the Patagonian temperate forest and ...

Although the benefits of maternal care have been investigated in many species, the caring role of males in species with exclusive paternal care has received less attention. We experimentally quantified the protective role ...

Egg attendance imposes costs on parents, including decreased food intake and increased mortality risks. By concentrating parental activities when egg predation is greater and abiotic conditions are less stressful, parents ...

Although many characteristics of the egg sacs of spiders likely evolved to reduce the effect of parasites and predators that attack their eggs, many parasite and predator insects have become specialized on spider eggs. ...