Distribution of Parental Investment and Sibling Competition in the Herring Gull, Larus Argentatus

Herring gulls, Larus argentatus, typically lay three eggs. The third laid egg is smaller, hatches later, and hatches a lighter, smaller chick than the first two. The third hatched chick also has a lower chance of survival. Observations of parent-chick and chick-chick interactions were conducted at two Ontario sites in the Great Lakes to determine whether and how parents might behaviorally bias investment in their chicks after the incubation …