摘要 : 1. Breeding birds increase their fitness by synchronizing their production of chicks with a peak of food abundance. Synchronization is primarily achieved by varying first egg date, but yearly temperature variations may delay or ac... 展开 1. Breeding birds increase their fitness by synchronizing their production of chicks with a peak of food abundance. Synchronization is primarily achieved by varying first egg date, but yearly temperature variations may delay or accelerate the food peak after the first egg has been laid. We tested the extent to which great tits (Parus major L.) can strategically change their synchronization of hatch date with the food peak after the first egg has been laid by changing clutch size, laying interval and the amount of incubation. We also tested whether these possible synchronization change mechanisms resulted in changes in breeding success, because if the food peak is late relative to first egg date, we would predict more of the population to have larger clutches and/or a hatch date synchronous with the food peak date. 收起