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Ma D, Ma L, Komdeur J. Temperature Variation Regulates the Trade-Off Between Pre- and Post-Hatching Investment in a Burying Beetle. INSECTS 2025; 16:378. [PMID: 40332889 PMCID: PMC12028126 DOI: 10.3390/insects16040378] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2025] [Revised: 03/25/2025] [Accepted: 03/31/2025] [Indexed: 05/08/2025]
Abstract
Understanding how organisms respond to temperature variation is essential for assessing and predicting their resilience and vulnerability to environmental and climate changes. Here, using a biparental care burying beetle (Nicrophorus vespilloides), we tested whether and how parental investment in carcass preparation and ambient temperature interact to influence subsequent parental care behaviour and reproductive success. We employed a 3 × 2 factorial experiment, manipulating the levels of parental investment in carcass preparation (Reduced, Control, and Elevated) and ambient temperatures (benign: 20 °C and harsh: 23 °C) in breeding pairs. We found the following: (1) Irrespective of ambient temperature, males in the Reduced group decreased their pre-hatching care. (2) Across all investment groups, both sexes under higher temperature reduced post-hatching care. (3) Carcass-preparation investment and ambient temperature interactively influenced reproductive success. Overall, the harsh temperature decreased reproductive success. Furthermore, beetle pairs experiencing reduced carcass-preparation investment produced fewer eggs and lighter broods, while those experiencing elevated carcass-preparation investment produced smaller and lighter broods. Our findings provide new insights into how temperature variation affects parental investment strategies and enhance our understanding of the phenotypic plasticity in reproductive strategies that animals employ to cope with climate change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Donghui Ma
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), University of Groningen, 9712 CP Groningen, The Netherlands; (D.M.); (J.K.)
| | - Long Ma
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), University of Groningen, 9712 CP Groningen, The Netherlands; (D.M.); (J.K.)
- GIGA-Neurosciences, Interdisciplinary Center for Biomedical Research (GIGA-Institute), University of Liège, 4000 Liège, Belgium
| | - Jan Komdeur
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), University of Groningen, 9712 CP Groningen, The Netherlands; (D.M.); (J.K.)
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2
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Malik TG, Tsai MT, Jarrett BJM, Sun SJ. Heat stress effects on offspring compound across parental care. Proc Biol Sci 2025; 292:20250026. [PMID: 40041959 PMCID: PMC11881022 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2025.0026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/06/2025] [Revised: 02/03/2025] [Accepted: 02/04/2025] [Indexed: 05/12/2025] Open
Abstract
Heatwaves associated with climate change threaten biodiversity by disrupting behaviours like parental care. While parental care may buffer populations from adverse environments, studies show mixed results, possibly due to heat stress affecting different care components. We investigated how heat stress impacts parental care and offspring performance in the burying beetle Nicrophorus nepalensis under control (17.8°C) and heat stress (21.8°C) conditions. We focused on two critical periods: pre-hatching care (carcass preparation) and post-hatching care (offspring provisioning). To disentangle the vulnerability of these parental care components to heat stress, we reciprocally transferred carcasses prepared under control or heat stress to females breeding under both conditions. Heatwaves affecting only one care period did not alter reproduction, but when both pre- and post-hatching periods experienced heatwaves, reproductive success declined. Females exhibited higher energy expenditure during provisioning, evidenced by greater body mass loss. Notably, heat stress had long-lasting effects on offspring via carcass preparation, resulting in smaller adult size and higher mortality. These results highlight the complexity of environmental stressors on parental care, suggesting that different care components may respond differently to heat stress, and thus need to be examined separately to better understand how parental care responds to, and buffers against, temperature stress.
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3
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Bladon EK, Pascoal S, Kilner RM. Can recent evolutionary history promote resilience to environmental change? Behav Ecol 2024; 35:arae074. [PMID: 39431165 PMCID: PMC11486917 DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arae074] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2023] [Revised: 06/28/2024] [Accepted: 09/23/2024] [Indexed: 10/22/2024] Open
Abstract
Principles of social evolution have long been used retrospectively to interpret social interactions, but have less commonly been applied predictively to inform conservation and animal husbandry strategies. We investigate whether differences in developmental environment, facilitated by divergent social conditions, can predict resilience to environmental change. Upon exposure to harsh novel environments, populations that previously experienced more benign social environments are predicted either to suffer fitness losses (the "mutation load hypothesis" and "selection filter hypothesis") or maintain fitness (the "beneficial mutation hypothesis"). We tested these contrasting predictions using populations of burying beetles Nicrophorus vespilloides we had evolved experimentally for 45 generations under contrasting social environments by manipulating the supply of post-hatching parental care. We exposed sexually immature adults from each population to varying heat stress and measured the effect on survival and reproduction. The greater the level of parental care previously experienced by a population, the better its survival under heat stress during sexual maturation. Although this is consistent with the "beneficial mutation hypothesis," it is also possible that populations that had evolved without post-hatching care were simply more prone to dying during maturation, regardless of their thermal environment. Overall, we suggest that stochastic genetic variation, probably due to founder effects, had a stronger influence on resilience. We discuss the implications for translocation and captive breeding programs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eleanor K Bladon
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge, CB2 3EJ, United Kingdom
| | - Sonia Pascoal
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge, CB2 3EJ, United Kingdom
- Department of Haematology, University of Cambridge, Long Road, Cambridge, CB2 0PT, United Kingdom
| | - Rebecca M Kilner
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge, CB2 3EJ, United Kingdom
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4
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Malik TG, Jarrett BJM, Sun SJ. The effect of experimental warming on reproductive performance and parental care in the burying beetle Nicrophorus nepalensis. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2024; 11:240653. [PMID: 39386988 PMCID: PMC11461049 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.240653] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/23/2024] [Revised: 06/13/2024] [Accepted: 09/09/2024] [Indexed: 10/12/2024]
Abstract
Rising temperatures can adversely affect parental care and reproductive performance across a range of taxa. However, the warming impact is contingent upon understanding how temperature affects the spectrum of parental behaviours and their interplay. Here, we assessed how temperature affects parental care and reproductive success in the burying beetle, Nicrophorus nepalensis, which exhibits complex parental care behaviours. We exposed breeding pairs of N. nepalensis, to three temperature regimes (18°C, 20°C and 22°C) and assessed changes in parental care, and the subsequent development and growth of their offspring. Our findings show that 22°C disrupts carcass nest building by the parents and results in smaller clutches. Moreover, no eggs successfully hatched in the 22°C treatment. A milder increase to 20°C did not affect the hatching rate but resulted in smaller broods and lighter offspring, even when considering brood size, suggesting a change in post-hatching care quality. Our research suggests that warming may weakly affect parental care but has strong detrimental effects on offspring performance. These findings highlight the necessity of investigating the effect of ambient temperature across a diversity of traits and behaviours and across a range of life-history stages to fully assess species vulnerability in the face of future climate change.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tanzil Gaffar Malik
- International Degree Program in Climate Change and Sustainable Development, National Taiwan University, Taipei10617, Taiwan
| | - Benjamin J. M. Jarrett
- School of Environmental & Natural Sciences, Bangor University, Bangor, GwyneddLL57 2UR, UK
| | - Syuan-Jyun Sun
- International Degree Program in Climate Change and Sustainable Development, National Taiwan University, Taipei10617, Taiwan
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5
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Potticary AL, Belk MC, Creighton JC, Ito M, Kilner R, Komdeur J, Royle NJ, Rubenstein DR, Schrader M, Shen S, Sikes DS, Smiseth PT, Smith R, Steiger S, Trumbo ST, Moore AJ. Revisiting the ecology and evolution of burying beetle behavior (Staphylinidae: Silphinae). Ecol Evol 2024; 14:e70175. [PMID: 39170054 PMCID: PMC11336061 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.70175] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2024] [Revised: 07/24/2024] [Accepted: 07/29/2024] [Indexed: 08/23/2024] Open
Abstract
Investigating fundamental processes in biology requires the ability to ground broad questions in species-specific natural history. This is particularly true in the study of behavior because an organism's experience of the environment will influence the expression of behavior and the opportunity for selection. Here, we provide a review of the natural history and behavior of burying beetles of the genus Nicrophorus to provide the groundwork for comparative work that showcases their remarkable behavioral and ecological diversity. Burying beetles have long fascinated scientists because of their well-developed parenting behavior, exhibiting extended post-hatching care of offspring that varies extensively within and across taxa. Despite the burgeoning success of burying beetles as a model system for the study of behavioral evolution, there has not been a review of their behavior, ecology, and evolution in over 25 years. To address this gap, we leverage a developing community of researchers who have contributed to a detailed knowledge of burying beetles to highlight the utility of Nicrophorus for investigating the causes and consequences of social and behavioral evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ahva L. Potticary
- Department of BiologyNorthern Michigan UniversityMarquetteMichiganUSA
- Department of EntomologyUniversity of GeorgiaAthensGeorgiaUSA
| | - Mark C. Belk
- Department of BiologyBrigham Young UniversityProvoUtahUSA
| | - J. Curtis Creighton
- Department of Biological SciencesPurdue University NorthwestHammondIndianaUSA
| | - Minobu Ito
- Department of Environmental ScienceToho UniversityFunabashiChibaJapan
| | | | - Jan Komdeur
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life SciencesUniversity of GroningenGroningenThe Netherlands
| | - Nick J. Royle
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, Faculty of Environment, Science & the EconomyUniversity of ExeterCornwallUK
| | - Dustin R. Rubenstein
- Department of Ecology, Evolution and Environmental BiologyColumbia UniversityNew York CityNew YorkUSA
| | - Matthew Schrader
- Department of BiologySewanee, The University of the SouthSewaneeTennesseeUSA
| | | | - Derek S. Sikes
- University of Alaska Museum and Department of Biology and WildlifeUniversity of Alaska FairbanksFairbanksAlaskaUSA
| | - Per T. Smiseth
- Institute of Ecology and EvolutionThe University of EdinburghEdinburghUK
| | - Rosemary Smith
- Department of Biological SciencesIdaho State UniversityPocatelloIdahoUSA
- Rocky Mountain Biological LaboratoryCrested ButteColoradoUSA
| | - Sandra Steiger
- Department of Evolutionary Animal EcologyUniversity of BayreuthBayreuthGermany
| | - Stephen T. Trumbo
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary BiologyUniversity of ConnecticutWaterburyConnecticutUSA
| | - Allen J. Moore
- Department of EntomologyUniversity of GeorgiaAthensGeorgiaUSA
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6
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Jarrett BJM, Mashoodh R, Issar S, Pascoal S, Rebar D, Sun SJ, Schrader M, Kilner RM. Selection on the joint actions of pairs leads to divergent adaptation and coadaptation of care-giving parents during pre-hatching care. Proc Biol Sci 2024; 291:20240876. [PMID: 38864319 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2024.0876] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2023] [Accepted: 05/15/2024] [Indexed: 06/13/2024] Open
Abstract
The joint actions of animals in partnerships or social groups evolve under both natural selection from the wider environment and social selection imposed by other members of the pair or group. We used experimental evolution to investigate how jointly expressed actions evolve upon exposure to a new environmental challenge. Our work focused on the evolution of carrion nest preparation by pairs of burying beetles Nicrophorus vespilloides, a joint activity undertaken by the pair but typically led by the male. In previous work, we found that carrion nest preparation evolved to be faster in experimental populations without post-hatching care (No Care: NC lines) than with post-hatching care (Full Care: FC lines). Here, we investigate how this joint activity evolved. After 15 generations of experimental evolution, we created heterotypic pairs (NC females with FC males and NC males with FC females) and compared their carrion nest making with homotypic NC and FC pairs. We found that pairs with NC males prepared the nest more rapidly than pairs with FC males, regardless of the female's line of origin. We discuss how social coadaptations within pairs or groups could act as a post-mating barrier to gene flow.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin J M Jarrett
- School of Environmental and Natural Sciences, Bangor University , Bangor, UK
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge , Cambridge, UK
- Department of Biology, Lund University , Lund, Sweden
| | - Rahia Mashoodh
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge , Cambridge, UK
| | - Swastika Issar
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge , Cambridge, UK
| | - Sonia Pascoal
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge , Cambridge, UK
| | - Darren Rebar
- Department of Biological Sciences, Emporia State University , Emporia, KS, USA
| | - Syuan-Jyun Sun
- International Degree Program in Climate Change and Sustainable Development, National Taiwan University , Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Matthew Schrader
- Department of Biology, University of the South , Sewanee, TN, USA
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7
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Detection of reproductive trade-offs is influenced by resource availability and maintenance: an experimental study in the burying beetle (Nicrophorus vespilloides). Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-022-03184-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Life-history theory predicts trade-offs between investment in current versus future reproduction. However, many studies find no or even positive correlations among these traits. The absence of the trade-off may result from resource availability, as it influences resource allocation to different traits. In addition, since large amounts of resources require additional effort in processing, resource maintenance may affect the detection of reproductive trade-offs. Here, we carried out two breeding attempts to assess the effects of resource availability and maintenance on reproductive trade-offs for both sexes in the burying beetle (Nicrophorus vespilloides). In the first breeding attempt, we simultaneously manipulated carcass size (small versus large) and carcass preparation (non-prepared versus prepared). In the second breeding attempt, we provided parents with same-sized, non-prepared carcasses. For both breeding attempts, we monitored the main and interactive effects of carcass size and carcass preparation on parental effort and reproductive outcome. In the first breeding attempt, males gained more weight and provided more care as carcass size increased, whereas females gained more weight but did not change their care. In addition, when breeding on non-prepared versus prepared carcasses, both parents provided more care and gained more weight. In the second breeding attempt, with increased investment for the first breeding, parents did not show decreased investment for the second brood, vice versa. In contrast, males breeding on large or non-prepared carcasses gained more weight during the first breeding attempt, then provided more care in subsequent reproduction. There were no differences in subsequent female care among different treatments.
Significance statement
Resource availability and resource maintenance may affect the detection of reproductive trade-offs. Here, we simultaneously manipulated carcass size and carcass preparation to assess these effects. This is the first time that the effects of resource availability and resource maintenance on reproductive trade-offs have been separated in burying beetles. Our findings suggest that despite the increased costs of parental care and resource maintenance, parents breeding on large or non-prepared carcasses gained more benefits in terms of increased body weight by staying longer and feeding more from the carcasses. Such benefits gained during the first breeding attempt offset the costs of current reproduction to some degree and masked the reproductive trade-off between current and future reproduction in terms of parental care. These findings enhance the understanding of the effects of resource availability and maintenance on reproductive trade-offs.
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8
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Rebar D, Halliwell C, Kemp R, Kilner RM. Experimental evolution of a more restrained clutch size when filial cannibalism is prevented in burying beetles
Nicrophorus vespilloides. Ecol Evol 2022; 12:e8829. [PMID: 35441005 PMCID: PMC9012908 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.8829] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2022] [Revised: 03/28/2022] [Accepted: 03/28/2022] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
The overproduction of offspring is commonly associated with high hatching failure and a mechanism for dispensing with surplus young. We used experimental evolution of burying beetle populations Nicrophorus vespilloides to determine causality in these correlations. We asked does eliminating the mechanism for killing “spare” offspring cause the evolution of a more restrained clutch size and consequently select for reduced hatching failure? N. vespilloides typically overproduces eggs but kills 1st instar larvae through partial filial cannibalism during brood care. We established replicate evolving populations that either could practice filial cannibalism (Full Care) or could not, by removing parents before their young hatched (No Care). After 20+ generations of experimental evolution, we measured clutch size and hatching success. We found that No Care females produced fewer eggs than Full Care females when allowed to breed on a small corpse, a finding not explained by differences in female quality. On larger corpses, females from both populations laid similar numbers of eggs. Furthermore, hatching success was greater in the No Care populations on small corpses. Our results suggest that the adaptive overproduction of offspring depends on a mechanism for eliminating surplus young and that killing offspring, in turn, relaxes selection against hatching failure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Darren Rebar
- Department of Biological Sciences Emporia State University Emporia Kansas USA
| | - Chay Halliwell
- Department of Zoology University of Cambridge Cambridge UK
- Department of Animal and Plant Sciences University of Sheffield Sheffield UK
| | - Rachel Kemp
- Department of Zoology University of Cambridge Cambridge UK
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9
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Sahm J, Prang MA, Steiger S. Parent-offspring conflict and its outcome under uni-and biparental care. Sci Rep 2022; 12:1999. [PMID: 35132107 PMCID: PMC8821718 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-05877-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2021] [Accepted: 12/24/2021] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Conflicts over parental investment are predicted to be common among family members, especially between parents and their offspring. Parent-offspring conflict has been studied in many brood-caring organisms, but whether its outcome is closer to the parental or offspring optimum is usually unknown, as is whether the presence of a second parent, a caring male partner, can affect the outcome. Here, we manipulated the initial brood size of single and paired female burying beetles to examine how many offspring are necessary to maintain parental care in the current brood. We found that mothers continued to invest in small broods even if their reproductive output would have been higher if they had discontinued their care and produced a second brood instead. Consequently, our data suggests that the offspring have the upper hand in the conflict. However, our results further show that paired females laid a second egg clutch more often and produced more offspring than single females, suggesting that the presence of a male partner shifts the conflict outcome towards the parental optimum. This latter result not only is a novel aspect of parent-offspring theory, but also represents an additional factor that might explain the evolution of biparental care.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jacqueline Sahm
- Department of Evolutionary Animal Ecology, University of Bayreuth, Universitätsstraße 30, 95447, Bayreuth, Germany.
| | - Madlen A Prang
- Department of Evolutionary Animal Ecology, University of Bayreuth, Universitätsstraße 30, 95447, Bayreuth, Germany
| | - Sandra Steiger
- Department of Evolutionary Animal Ecology, University of Bayreuth, Universitätsstraße 30, 95447, Bayreuth, Germany
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10
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Ma L, Versteegh MA, Hammers M, Komdeur J. Sex-specific influence of communal breeding experience on parenting performance and fitness in a burying beetle. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2022; 9:211179. [PMID: 35223054 PMCID: PMC8847889 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.211179] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2021] [Accepted: 01/20/2022] [Indexed: 06/14/2023]
Abstract
Communal breeding, wherein multiple conspecifics live and reproduce together, may generate short-term benefits in terms of defence and reproduction. However, its carry-over effects remain unclear. We experimentally tested the effects of communal breeding on parental care and reproduction in burying beetles (Nicrophorus vespilloides), which use carcasses as breeding resources and provide parental care to offspring. We subjected individuals to communal or non-communal breeding (i.e. pair breeding) during their first breeding event and to non-communal breeding during their second breeding event. We measured the parental care of individuals and of groups and the reproductive success of groups during both breeding events. In communal groups, large individuals became dominant and largely monopolized the carcass, whereas small individuals (i.e. subordinates) had restricted access to the carcass. At the first breeding event, large males in communal groups spent more time providing care than large males in non-communal groups, whereas such an effect was not observed for large females and small individuals. Reproductive successes were similar in communal and non-communal groups, indicating no short-term benefits of communal breeding in terms of reproduction. Compared with males from non-communal groups, males originating from communal groups produced a larger size of brood during their second breeding event, whereas such an effect was not observed for females. Our results demonstrate the sex-specific effects of communal breeding experience on parenting performance and fitness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Long Ma
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), University of Groningen, 9712 CP Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Maaike A. Versteegh
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), University of Groningen, 9712 CP Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Martijn Hammers
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), University of Groningen, 9712 CP Groningen, The Netherlands
- Aeres University of Applied Sciences, Arboretum West 98, 1325 WB Almere, The Netherlands
| | - Jan Komdeur
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), University of Groningen, 9712 CP Groningen, The Netherlands
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11
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Evolutionary change in the construction of the nursery environment when parents are prevented from caring for their young directly. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2021; 118:2102450118. [PMID: 34819363 PMCID: PMC8640939 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2102450118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 09/10/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Parental care can be partitioned into traits that involve direct engagement with offspring and traits that are expressed as an extended phenotype and influence the developmental environment, such as constructing a nursery. Here, we use experimental evolution to test whether parents can evolve modifications in nursery construction when they are experimentally prevented from supplying care directly to offspring. We exposed replicate experimental populations of burying beetles (Nicrophorus vespilloides) to different regimes of posthatching care by allowing larvae to develop in the presence (Full Care) or absence of parents (No Care). After only 13 generations of experimental evolution, we found an adaptive evolutionary increase in the pace at which parents in the No Care populations converted a dead body into a carrion nest for larvae. Cross-fostering experiments further revealed that No Care larvae performed better on a carrion nest prepared by No Care parents than did Full Care larvae. We conclude that parents construct the nursery environment in relation to their effectiveness at supplying care directly, after offspring are born. When direct care is prevented entirely, they evolve to make compensatory adjustments to the nursery in which their young will develop. The rapid evolutionary change observed in our experiments suggests there is considerable standing genetic variation for parental care traits in natural burying beetle populations-for reasons that remain unclear.
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12
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Sun SJ, Kilner RM. Temperature stress induces mites to help their carrion beetle hosts by eliminating rival blowflies. eLife 2020; 9:e55649. [PMID: 32755542 PMCID: PMC7431131 DOI: 10.7554/elife.55649] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2020] [Accepted: 08/04/2020] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Ecological conditions are known to change the expression of mutualisms though the causal agents driving such changes remain poorly understood. Here we show that temperature stress modulates the harm threatened by a common enemy, and thereby induces a phoretic mite to become a protective mutualist. Our experiments focus on the interactions between the burying beetle Nicrophorus vespilloides, an associated mite species Poecilochirus carabi and their common enemy, blowflies, when all three species reproduce on the same small vertebrate carrion. We show that mites compete with beetle larvae for food in the absence of blowflies, and reduce beetle reproductive success. However, when blowflies breed on the carrion too, mites enhance beetle reproductive success by eating blowfly eggs. High densities of mites are especially effective at promoting beetle reproductive success at higher and lower natural ranges in temperature, when blowfly larvae are more potent rivals for the limited resources on the carcass.
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Affiliation(s)
- Syuan-Jyun Sun
- Department of Zoology, University of CambridgeCambridgeUnited Kingdom
- Institute of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, National Taiwan UniversityTaipeiTaiwan
| | - Rebecca M Kilner
- Department of Zoology, University of CambridgeCambridgeUnited Kingdom
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13
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Sun S, Horrocks NPC, Kilner RM. Conflict within species determines the value of a mutualism between species. Evol Lett 2019; 3:185-197. [PMID: 31007944 PMCID: PMC6457395 DOI: 10.1002/evl3.109] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2018] [Revised: 02/15/2019] [Accepted: 02/19/2019] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Mutually beneficial interactions between species play a key role in maintaining biodiversity and ecosystem function. Nevertheless, such mutualisms can erode into antagonistic interactions. One explanation is that the fitness costs and benefits of interacting with a partner species vary among individuals. However, it is unclear why such variation exists. Here, we demonstrate that social behavior within species plays an important, though hitherto overlooked, role in determining the relative fitness to be gained from interacting with a second species. By combining laboratory experiments with field observations, we report that conflict within burying beetles Nicrophorus vespilloides influences the fitness that can be gained from interacting with the mite Poecilochirus carabi. Beetles transport these mites to carrion, upon which both species breed. We show that mites help beetles win intraspecific contests for this scarce resource: mites raise beetle body temperature, which enhances beetle competitive prowess. However, mites confer this benefit only upon smaller beetles, which are otherwise condemned by their size to lose contests for carrion. Larger beetles need no assistance to win a carcass and then lose reproductive success when breeding alongside mites. Thus, the extent of mutualism is dependent on an individual's inability to compete successfully and singlehandedly with conspecifics. Mutualisms degrade into antagonism when interactions with a partner species start to yield a net fitness loss, rather than a net fitness gain. This study suggests that interactions with conspecifics determine where this tipping point lies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Syuan‐Jyun Sun
- Department of ZoologyUniversity of CambridgeCambridgeCB2 3EJUnited Kingdom
| | | | - Rebecca M. Kilner
- Department of ZoologyUniversity of CambridgeCambridgeCB2 3EJUnited Kingdom
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14
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A sustained change in the supply of parental care causes adaptive evolution of offspring morphology. Nat Commun 2018; 9:3987. [PMID: 30266903 PMCID: PMC6162320 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-018-06513-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2018] [Accepted: 09/06/2018] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Although cooperative social interactions within species are considered an important driver of evolutionary change, few studies have experimentally demonstrated that they cause adaptive evolution. Here we address this problem by studying the burying beetle Nicrophorus vespilloides. In this species, parents and larvae work together to obtain nourishment for larvae from the carrion breeding resource: parents feed larvae and larvae also self-feed. We established experimentally evolving populations in which we varied the assistance that parents provided for their offspring and investigated how offspring evolved in response. We show that in populations where parents predictably supplied more care, larval mandibles evolved to be smaller in relation to larval mass, and larvae were correspondingly less self-sufficient. Previous work has shown that antagonistic social interactions can generate escalating evolutionary arms races. Our study shows that cooperative interactions can yield the opposite evolutionary outcome: when one party invests more, the other evolves to invest less. The amount and predictability of parental care may influence the evolution of offspring traits. Here, the authors experimentally evolve burying beetles at different levels of parental care and find smaller mandibles and lower self-sufficiency in populations with more care.
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Jarrett BJM, Rebar D, Haynes HB, Leaf MR, Halliwell C, Kemp R, Kilner RM. Adaptive evolution of synchronous egg-hatching in compensation for the loss of parental care. Proc Biol Sci 2018; 285:20181452. [PMID: 30158310 PMCID: PMC6125895 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2018.1452] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2018] [Accepted: 08/07/2018] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Interactions among siblings are finely balanced between rivalry and cooperation, but the factors that tip the balance towards cooperation are incompletely understood. Previous observations of insect species suggest that (i) sibling cooperation is more likely when siblings hatch at the same time, and (ii) this is more common when parents provide little to no care. In this paper, we tested these ideas experimentally with the burying beetle, Nicrophorus vespilloides Burying beetles convert the body of a small dead vertebrate into an edible nest for their larvae, and provision and guard their young after hatching. In our first experiment, we simulated synchronous or asynchronous hatching by adding larvae at different intervals to the carrion-breeding resource. We found that 'synchronously' hatched broods survived better than 'asynchronously' hatched broods, probably because 'synchronous hatching' generated larger teams of larvae, that together worked more effectively to penetrate the carrion nest and feed upon it. In our second experiment, we measured the synchronicity of hatching in experimental populations that had evolved for 22 generations without any post-hatching care, and control populations that had evolved in parallel with post-hatching care. We found that larvae were more likely to hatch earlier, and at the same time as their broodmates, in the experimental populations that evolved without post-hatching care. We suggest that synchronous hatching enables offspring to help each other when parents are not present to provide care. However, we also suggest that greater levels of cooperation among siblings cannot compensate fully for the loss of parental care.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin J M Jarrett
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3EJ, UK
| | - Darren Rebar
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3EJ, UK
- Department of Biological Sciences, Emporia State University, Emporia, KS 66801, USA
| | - Hannah B Haynes
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3EJ, UK
| | - Miranda R Leaf
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3EJ, UK
| | - Chay Halliwell
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3EJ, UK
| | - Rachel Kemp
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3EJ, UK
| | - Rebecca M Kilner
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3EJ, UK
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Duarte A, Welch M, Swannack C, Wagner J, Kilner RM. Strategies for managing rival bacterial communities: Lessons from burying beetles. J Anim Ecol 2017; 87:414-427. [PMID: 28682460 PMCID: PMC5836980 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.12725] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2017] [Accepted: 06/11/2017] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Abstract
The role of bacteria in animal development, ecology and evolution is increasingly well understood, yet little is known of how animal behaviour affects bacterial communities. Animals that benefit from defending a key resource from microbial competitors are likely to evolve behaviours to control or manipulate the animal's associated external microbiota. We describe four possible mechanisms by which animals could gain a competitive edge by disrupting a rival bacterial community: "weeding," "seeding," "replanting" and "preserving." By combining detailed behavioural observations with molecular and bioinformatic analyses, we then test which of these mechanisms best explains how burying beetles, Nicrophorus vespilloides, manipulate the bacterial communities on their carcass breeding resource. Burying beetles are a suitable species to study how animals manage external microbiota because reproduction revolves around a small vertebrate carcass. Parents shave a carcass and apply antimicrobial exudates on its surface, shaping it into an edible nest for their offspring. We compared bacterial communities in mice carcasses that were either fresh, prepared by beetles or unprepared but buried underground for the same length of time. We also analysed bacterial communities in the burying beetle's gut, during and after breeding, to understand whether beetles could be "seeding" the carcass with particular microbes. We show that burying beetles do not "preserve" the carcass by reducing bacterial load, as is commonly supposed. Instead, our results suggest they "seed" the carcass with bacterial groups which are part of the Nicrophorus core microbiome. They may also "replant" other bacteria from the carcass gut onto the surface of their carrion nest. Both these processes may lead to the observed increase in bacterial load on the carcass surface in the presence of beetles. Beetles may also "weed" the bacterial community by eliminating some groups of bacteria on the carcass, perhaps through the production of antimicrobials themselves. Whether these alterations to the bacterial community are adaptive from the beetle's perspective, or are simply a by-product of the way in which the beetles prepare the carcass for reproduction, remains to be determined in future work. In general, our work suggests that animals might use more sophisticated techniques for attacking and disrupting rival microbial communities than is currently appreciated.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ana Duarte
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.,College of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Exeter, Cornwall, UK
| | - Martin Welch
- Department of Biochemistry, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Chris Swannack
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Josef Wagner
- Pathogen Genetics Programme, Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, Hinxton, UK
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Feeding upon and preserving a carcass: the function of prehatch parental care in a burying beetle. Anim Behav 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2017.07.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
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