1
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Pitt MD, Alhowiti NSS, Branston CJ, Carlon E, Boonekamp JJ, Dominoni DM, Capilla-Lasheras P. Environmental constraints can explain clutch size differences between urban and forest blue tits: Insights from an egg removal experiment. J Anim Ecol 2024. [PMID: 39219149 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.14171] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2024] [Accepted: 07/23/2024] [Indexed: 09/04/2024]
Abstract
Urban environments present novel ecological challenges to wild species. In birds, urban populations generally exhibit reduced clutch sizes compared to forest populations. However, whether smaller urban clutches are adaptive or a result of environmental constraints is unclear. To investigate these two hypotheses, we quantified the ability of urban and non-urban blue tits (Cyanistes caeruleus) to lay new eggs after an experimental manipulation aimed to increase egg production. We removed the first four eggs laid by urban and forest birds to test their ability to produce new eggs. If the urban environment imposes constraints on egg production, we predicted that urban birds would not lay new eggs. If the small clutches of urban birds are an adaptive response, we predicted they would lay new eggs to reach the optimal clutch size for the environment. Consistent with the environmental constraint hypothesis, our results suggest that urban females do not lay new eggs to the same extent as forest birds following egg removal. Forest birds laid approximately two new eggs after our experimental manipulation, while urban birds laid approximately 0.36 new eggs following egg removal. Our manipulation resulted in a brood reduction in the urban experimental nests, yet there was no difference in the number of fledged offspring between urban control and experimental nests. This suggests that females might be misjudging urban habitat quality and produce a clutch with more eggs than nestlings they can rear. Overall, our results suggest that environmental constraints could limit the number of eggs that urban females lay, generating urban versus non-urban differences in this trait.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mark D Pitt
- School of Biodiversity, One Health & Veterinary Medicine, Graham Kerr Building, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK
| | - Norah S S Alhowiti
- School of Biodiversity, One Health & Veterinary Medicine, Graham Kerr Building, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK
- Biology Department, Faculty of Science, University of Tabuk, Tabuk, Saudi Arabia
| | - Claire J Branston
- School of Biodiversity, One Health & Veterinary Medicine, Graham Kerr Building, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK
- School of Health and Life Sciences, University of the West of Scotland, Lanarkshire, UK
| | - Eugenio Carlon
- School of Biodiversity, One Health & Veterinary Medicine, Graham Kerr Building, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK
- Department of Environmental Science and Policy, Università Degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy
| | - Jelle J Boonekamp
- School of Biodiversity, One Health & Veterinary Medicine, Graham Kerr Building, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK
| | - Davide M Dominoni
- School of Biodiversity, One Health & Veterinary Medicine, Graham Kerr Building, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK
| | - Pablo Capilla-Lasheras
- School of Biodiversity, One Health & Veterinary Medicine, Graham Kerr Building, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK
- Bird Migration Unit, Swiss Ornithological Institute, Sempach, Switzerland
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2
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Mason C, Tschirren B, Hemmings N. Effects of female-specific selection for reproductive investment on male fertility traits. J Evol Biol 2024; 37:1113-1124. [PMID: 39110095 DOI: 10.1093/jeb/voae095] [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: 03/28/2024] [Revised: 07/05/2024] [Accepted: 08/02/2024] [Indexed: 08/29/2024]
Abstract
Despite sharing an autosomal genome, the often divergent reproductive strategies of males and females cause the selection to act in a sex-specific manner. Selection acting on one sex can have negative, positive, or neutral fitness consequences on the opposite sex. Here, we test how female-limited selection on reproductive investment in Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica) affects male fertility-related traits. Despite there being no difference in the size of males' testes from lines selected for high female reproductive investment (H-line) or low female reproductive investment (L-line), in both lines, the left testis had a greater volume of sperm-producing tissue. Since H-line females have a larger left-side restricted oviduct, this suggests a positive genetic correlation between male and female gonad function and that internal testis structure is a target of sexual selection. However, despite H-line males having previously been found to have greater fertilization success in a competitive scenario, we found little evidence of a difference between the lines in sperm number, motility, velocity, length, or the number of sperm that reached the ova. Precopulatory cues and/or the role of seminal fluid in sperm motility may thus be more likely to contribute to the H-line male fertilization advantage in this species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chloe Mason
- School of Biosciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, United Kingdom
| | - Barbara Tschirren
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn, United Kingdom
| | - Nicola Hemmings
- School of Biosciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, United Kingdom
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3
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D'Arpa SR, Gil D, Muriel J, Monclús R, Pérez-Rodríguez L, Martinez-Padilla J. Low evolutionary potential for blue-green egg colouration in a wild bird population. J Evol Biol 2024; 37:1035-1042. [PMID: 39031072 DOI: 10.1093/jeb/voae088] [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: 05/19/2022] [Revised: 06/26/2024] [Accepted: 07/19/2024] [Indexed: 07/22/2024]
Abstract
Exploring the evolutionary architecture of female sexual traits and their potential evolvability is important to understand their possible role as postmating sexual signals. Egg colouration has been proposed to be one of these postmating sexual signals, honestly advertising female quality in birds, especially in blue-green laying species. In this study, we used an animal model in a Bayesian framework to estimate the evolvability of multiple descriptors of blue-green egg colouration and egg size in a wild long-term monitored population of spotless starlings (Sturnus unicolor). Our results show low to moderate heritability (h2 = 0.31-0.44) for 3 egg colour descriptors (blue-green chroma, chroma, and lightness) and egg size. Using the coefficient of additive genetic variance (CVA) and the evolvability (IA) as proxies of evolutionary potential of all components of this trait, we found low values of CVA for all these variables, suggesting a small evolutionary potential of these phenotypic traits, contrasting to previous results reported in another blue-green egg laying species. Our results indicate a modest raw genetic material of this trait on which sexual selection can act upon and, therefore, a small probability for these traits to respond easily to selection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefania R D'Arpa
- Departamento de Ecología Evolutiva, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (CSIC), Madrid, Spain
| | - Diego Gil
- Departamento de Ecología Evolutiva, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (CSIC), Madrid, Spain
| | - Jaime Muriel
- Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos (IREC), CSIC-UCLM-JCCM, Ciudad Real, Spain
- Department of Biology, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
| | - Raquel Monclús
- Laboratoire d'Ethologie Expérimentale et Comparée, Université Sorbonne Paris Nord, Villetaneuse, France
| | - Lorenzo Pérez-Rodríguez
- Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos (IREC), CSIC-UCLM-JCCM, Ciudad Real, Spain
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4
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Wilson KM, Burley NT. Early-Life Silver Spoon Improves Survival and Breeding Performance of Adult Zebra Finches. Am Nat 2024; 204:73-95. [PMID: 38857346 DOI: 10.1086/730265] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/12/2024]
Abstract
AbstractDevelopmental plasticity allows organisms to increase the fit between their phenotype and their early-life environment. The extent to which such plasticity also enhances adult fitness is not well understood, however, particularly when early-life and adult environments differ substantially. Using a cross-factorial design that manipulated diet at two life stages, we examined predictions of major hypotheses-silver spoon, environmental matching, and thrifty phenotype-concerning the joint impacts of early-life and adult diets on adult morphology/display traits, survival, and reproductive allocation. Overall, results aligned with the silver spoon hypothesis, which makes several predictions based on the premise that development in poor-quality environments constrains adult performance. Males reared and bred on a low-protein diet had lower adult survivorship than other male treatment groups; females' survivorship was higher than males' and not impacted by early diet. Measures of allocation to reproduction primarily reflected breeding diet, but where natal diet impacted reproduction, results supported the silver spoon. Both sexes showed reduced expression of display traits when reared on a low-protein diet. Results accord with other studies in supporting the relevance of the silver spoon hypothesis to birds and point to significant ramifications of sex differences in early-life viability selection on the applicability/strength of silver spoon effects.
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5
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Fernández-Vizcaíno E, Mateo R, Fernández de Mera IG, Mougeot F, Camarero PR, Ortiz-Santaliestra ME. Transgenerational effects of triazole fungicides on gene expression and egg compounds in non-exposed offspring: A case study using Red-Legged Partridges (Alectoris rufa). THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2024; 926:171546. [PMID: 38479527 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.171546] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/08/2024] [Revised: 03/04/2024] [Accepted: 03/04/2024] [Indexed: 03/26/2024]
Abstract
Triazole fungicides are widely used to treat cereal seeds before sowing. Granivorous birds like the Red-legged Partridge (Alectoris rufa) have high exposure risk because they ingest treated seeds that remain on the field surface. As triazole fungicides can act as endocrine disruptors, affecting sterol synthesis and reproduction in birds several months after exposure, we hypothesized that these effects could also impact subsequent generations of exposed birds. To test this hypothesis, we exposed adult partridges (F0) to seeds treated at commercial doses with four different formulations containing triazoles as active ingredients (flutriafol, prothioconazole, tebuconazole, and a mixture of the latter two), simulating field exposure during late autumn sowing. During the subsequent reproductive season, two to four months after exposure, we examined compound allocation of steroid hormones, cholesterol, vitamins, and carotenoids in eggs laid by exposed birds (F1), as well as the expression of genes encoding enzymes involved in sterol biosynthesis in one-day-old chicks of this F1. One year later, F1 animals were paired again to investigate the expression of the same genes in the F2 chicks. We found changes in the expression of some genes for all treatments and both generations. Additionally, we observed an increase in estrone levels in eggs from partridges treated with flutriafol compared to controls, a decrease in tocopherol levels in partridges exposed to the mixture of tebuconazole and prothioconazole, and an increase in retinol levels in partridges exposed to prothioconazole. Despite sample size limitations, this study provides novel insights into the mechanisms of action of the previously observed effects of triazole fungicide-treated seeds on avian reproduction with evidence that the effects can persist beyond the exposure windows, affecting unexposed offspring of partridges fed with treated seeds. The results highlight the importance of considering long-term chronic effects when assessing pesticide risks to wild birds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elena Fernández-Vizcaíno
- Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos (IREC) CSIC-UCLM-JCCM, Ronda de Toledo 12, 13005 Ciudad Real, Spain.
| | - Rafael Mateo
- Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos (IREC) CSIC-UCLM-JCCM, Ronda de Toledo 12, 13005 Ciudad Real, Spain
| | - Isabel G Fernández de Mera
- Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos (IREC) CSIC-UCLM-JCCM, Ronda de Toledo 12, 13005 Ciudad Real, Spain
| | - François Mougeot
- Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos (IREC) CSIC-UCLM-JCCM, Ronda de Toledo 12, 13005 Ciudad Real, Spain
| | - Pablo R Camarero
- Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos (IREC) CSIC-UCLM-JCCM, Ronda de Toledo 12, 13005 Ciudad Real, Spain
| | - Manuel E Ortiz-Santaliestra
- Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos (IREC) CSIC-UCLM-JCCM, Ronda de Toledo 12, 13005 Ciudad Real, Spain
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6
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D'Amelio PB, Covas R, Ferreira AC, Fortuna R, Silva LR, Theron F, Rybak F, Doutrelant C. Benefits of Pair-Bond Duration on Reproduction in a Lifelong Monogamous Cooperative Passerine. Am Nat 2024; 203:576-589. [PMID: 38635359 DOI: 10.1086/729436] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/20/2024]
Abstract
AbstractLong-term social and genetic monogamy is rare in animals except birds, but even in birds it is infrequent and poorly understood. We investigated possible advantages of monogamy in a colonial, facultative cooperatively breeding bird from an arid, unpredictable environment, the sociable weaver (Philetairus socius). We documented divorce and extrapair paternity of 703 pairs over 10 years and separated effects of pair duration from breeding experience by analyzing longitudinal and cross-sectional datasets. Parts of the colonies were protected from nest predation, thereby limiting its stochastic and thus confounding effect on fitness measures. We found that 6.4% of sociable weaver pairs divorced and 2.2% of young were extrapair. Longer pair-bonds were associated with more clutches and fledglings per season and with reproducing earlier and later in the season, when snake predation is lower, but not with increased egg or fledgling mass or with nestling survival. Finally, the number of helpers at the nest increased with pair-bond duration. Results were similar for protected and unprotected nests. We suggest that long-term monogamy is associated with a better capacity for exploiting a temporally unpredictable environment and helps to form larger groups. These results can contribute to our understanding of why long-term monogamy is frequently associated with unpredictable environments and cooperation.
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7
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Meillère A, Buchanan KL, Eastwood JR, Mariette MM. Pre- and postnatal noise directly impairs avian development, with fitness consequences. Science 2024; 384:475-480. [PMID: 38662819 DOI: 10.1126/science.ade5868] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2022] [Accepted: 02/28/2024] [Indexed: 05/03/2024]
Abstract
Noise pollution is expanding at an unprecedented rate and is increasingly associated with impaired reproduction and development across taxa. However, whether noise sound waves are intrinsically harmful for developing young-or merely disturb parents-and the fitness consequences of early exposure remain unknown. Here, by only manipulating the offspring, we show that sole exposure to noise in early life in zebra finches has fitness consequences and causes embryonic death during exposure. Exposure to pre- and postnatal traffic noise cumulatively impaired nestling growth and physiology and aggravated telomere shortening across life stages until adulthood. Consistent with a long-term somatic impact, early life noise exposure, especially prenatally, decreased individual offspring production throughout adulthood. Our findings suggest that the effects of noise pollution are more pervasive than previously realized.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alizée Meillère
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Waurn Ponds, VIC 3216, Australia
- Doñana Biological Station EBD-CSIC, Seville, Spain
| | - Katherine L Buchanan
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Waurn Ponds, VIC 3216, Australia
| | - Justin R Eastwood
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Waurn Ponds, VIC 3216, Australia
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, VIC 3800, Australia
| | - Mylene M Mariette
- School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Deakin University, Waurn Ponds, VIC 3216, Australia
- Doñana Biological Station EBD-CSIC, Seville, Spain
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8
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Miller KD, Atkins Coleman AJ, O'Neil KL, Mueller AJ, Pell RD, Bowers EK. Individual Optimization of Reproductive Investment and the Cost of Incubation in a Wild Songbird. Am Nat 2024; 203:254-266. [PMID: 38306278 DOI: 10.1086/727967] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/04/2024]
Abstract
AbstractDespite avid interest in life history trade-offs and the costs of reproduction, evidence that increased parental allocation reduces subsequent breeding productivity is mixed. This uncertainty may be attributable to environmental heterogeneity in space and time, necessitating experiments across a range of ecological contexts. Over three breeding seasons, we cross-fostered clutches between nests to manipulate incubation duration in a wild population of Carolina wrens, a species in which only females incubate, to test for a cost of incubation on current and future reproduction. Prolonged incubation affected maternal productivity in a manner dependent on the current environment and initial investment in eggs, suggesting that incubation is optimized according to other components of reproduction and individual quality. Effects of incubation duration on foster nestling condition varied between years, being costly in one, beneficial in another, and neutral in the third. The proportion of young fledged, females' probability of breeding again within seasons, and subsequent clutch sizes all declined with increasing incubation effort-effects that became more pronounced as seasons progressed. Therefore, costs of incubation were almost entirely dependent on maternal quality and environmental variation, illustrating the importance of conducting experiments across a range of environmental settings for understanding the costs of reproduction and evolution of life histories.
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9
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Kar F, Nakagawa S, Noble DWA. Heritability and developmental plasticity of growth in an oviparous lizard. Heredity (Edinb) 2024; 132:67-76. [PMID: 37968348 PMCID: PMC10844306 DOI: 10.1038/s41437-023-00660-3] [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: 11/09/2022] [Revised: 10/28/2023] [Accepted: 10/29/2023] [Indexed: 11/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Selective processes act on phenotypic variation although the evolutionary potential of a trait relies on the underlying heritable variation. Developmental plasticity is an important source of phenotypic variation, but it can also promote changes in genetic variation, yet we have a limited understanding of how they are both impacted. Here, we quantified the influence of developmental temperature on growth in delicate skinks (Lampropholis delicata) and partitioned total phenotypic variance using an animal model fitted with a genomic relatedness matrix. We measured mass for 261 individuals (nhot = 125, ncold = 136) over 16 months (nobservations = 3002) and estimated heritability and maternal effects over time. Our results show that lizards reared in cold developmental temperatures had consistently higher mass across development compared to lizards that were reared in hot developmental temperatures. However, developmental temperature did not impact the rate of growth. On average, additive genetic variance, maternal effects and heritability were higher in the hot developmental temperature treatment; however, these differences were not statistically significant. Heritability increased with age, whereas maternal effects decreased upon hatching but increased again at a later age, which could be driven by social competition or intrinsic changes in the expression of variation as an individual's growth. Our work suggests that the evolutionary potential of growth is complex, age-dependent and not overtly affected by extremes in natural nest temperatures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fonti Kar
- School of Biological Earth and Environmental Sciences, Ecology and Evolution Research Centre, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Shinichi Nakagawa
- School of Biological Earth and Environmental Sciences, Ecology and Evolution Research Centre, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia
- Diabetes and Metabolism Division, Garvan Institute of Medical Research, 384 Victoria Street, Darlinghurst, Sydney, NSW, 2010, Australia
| | - Daniel W A Noble
- School of Biological Earth and Environmental Sciences, Ecology and Evolution Research Centre, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
- Division of Ecology and Evolution, Research School of Biology, The Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, Australia.
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10
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Capilla-Lasheras P, Wilson AJ, Young AJ. Mothers in a cooperatively breeding bird increase investment per offspring at the pre-natal stage when they will have more help with post-natal care. PLoS Biol 2023; 21:e3002356. [PMID: 37943730 PMCID: PMC10635431 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3002356] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2022] [Accepted: 09/29/2023] [Indexed: 11/12/2023] Open
Abstract
In many cooperative societies, including our own, helpers assist with the post-natal care of breeders' young and may thereby benefit the post-natal development of offspring. Here, we present evidence of a novel mechanism by which such post-natal helping could also have beneficial effects on pre-natal development: By lightening post-natal maternal workloads, helpers may allow mothers to increase their pre-natal investment per offspring. We present the findings of a decade-long study of cooperatively breeding white-browed sparrow-weaver, Plocepasser mahali, societies. Within each social group, reproduction is monopolized by a dominant breeding pair, and non-breeding helpers assist with nestling feeding. Using a within-mother reaction norm approach to formally identify maternal plasticity, we demonstrate that when mothers have more female helpers, they decrease their own post-natal investment per offspring (feed their nestlings at lower rates) but increase their pre-natal investment per offspring (lay larger eggs, which yield heavier hatchlings). That these plastic maternal responses are predicted by female helper number, and not male helper number, implicates the availability of post-natal helping per se as the likely driver (rather than correlated effects of group size), because female helpers feed nestlings at substantially higher rates than males. We term this novel maternal strategy "maternal front-loading" and hypothesize that the expected availability of post-natal help either allows or incentivizes helped mothers to focus maternal investment on the pre-natal phase, to which helpers cannot contribute directly. The potential for post-natal helping to promote pre-natal development further complicates attempts to identify and quantify the fitness consequences of helping.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pablo Capilla-Lasheras
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn, United Kingdom
- Current address: School of Biodiversity, One Health and Veterinary Medicine, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, United Kingdom
| | - Alastair J. Wilson
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn, United Kingdom
| | - Andrew J. Young
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn, United Kingdom
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11
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Weerawansha N, Wang Q, He XZ. Reproductive plasticity in response to the changing cluster size during the breeding period: a case study in a spider mite. EXPERIMENTAL & APPLIED ACAROLOGY 2023; 91:237-250. [PMID: 37651032 PMCID: PMC10562284 DOI: 10.1007/s10493-023-00834-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2023] [Accepted: 08/12/2023] [Indexed: 09/01/2023]
Abstract
Animals living in clusters should adjust their reproductive strategies to adapt to the social environment. Theories predict that the benefits of cluster living would outweigh the costs of competition. Yet, it is largely unknown how animals optimize their reproductive fitness in response to the changing social environment during their breeding period. We used Tetranychus ludeni Zacher, a haplodiploid spider mite, to investigate how the ovipositing females modified their life-history traits in response to the change of cluster size (i.e., aggregation and dispersal) with a consistent population density (1 ♀/cm2). We demonstrate that (1) after females were shifted from a large cluster (16 ♀♀) to small ones (1 ♀, 5 and 10 ♀♀), they laid fewer and larger eggs with a higher female-biased sex ratio; (2) after females were shifted from small clusters to a large one, they laid fewer and smaller eggs, also with a higher female-biased sex ratio, and (3) increasing egg size significantly increased offspring sex ratio (% daughters), but did not increase immature survival. The results suggest that (1) females fertilize more larger eggs laid in a small population but lower the fertilization threshold and fertilize smaller eggs in a larger population, and (2) the reproductive adjustments in terms of egg number and size may contribute more to minimize the mate competition among sons but not to increase the number of inhabitants in the next generation. The current study provides evidence that spider mites can manipulate their reproductive output and adjust offspring sex ratio in response to dynamic social environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nuwan Weerawansha
- School of Agriculture and Environment, Massey University, Private Bag 11222, Palmerston North, New Zealand
- Faculty of Animal Science and Export Agriculture, Uva Wellassa University of Sri Lanka, Passara Road, Badulla, 90000, Sri Lanka
| | - Qiao Wang
- School of Agriculture and Environment, Massey University, Private Bag 11222, Palmerston North, New Zealand
| | - Xiong Zhao He
- School of Agriculture and Environment, Massey University, Private Bag 11222, Palmerston North, New Zealand.
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12
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Mainwaring MC, Tobalske BW, Hartley IR. Born without a Silver Spoon: A Review of the Causes and Consequences of Adversity during Early Life. Integr Comp Biol 2023; 63:742-757. [PMID: 37280184 PMCID: PMC10805381 DOI: 10.1093/icb/icad061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2023] [Revised: 05/15/2023] [Accepted: 05/15/2023] [Indexed: 06/08/2023] Open
Abstract
A huge amount of research attention has focused on the evolution of life histories, but most research focuses on dominant individuals that acquire a disproportionate level of reproductive success, while the life histories and reproductive tactics of subordinate individuals have received less attention. Here, we review the links between early life adversity and performance during adulthood in birds, and highlight instances in which subordinate individuals outperform dominant conspecifics. Subordinate individuals are those from broods raised under high risk of predation, with low availability of food, and/or with many parasites. Meanwhile, the broods of many species hatch or are born asynchronously and mitigation of the asynchrony is generally lacking from variation in maternal effects such as egg size and hormone deposition or genetic effects such as offspring sex or parentage. Subordinate individuals employ patterns of differential growth to attempt to mitigate the adversity they experience during early life, yet they overwhelmingly fail to overcome their initial handicap. In terms of surviving through to adulthood, subordinate individuals employ other "suboptimal" tactics, such as adaptively timing foraging behaviors to avoid dominant individuals. During adulthood, meanwhile, subordinate individuals rely on "suboptimal" tactics, such as adaptive dispersal behaviors and competing for partners at optimal times, because they represent the best options available to them to acquire copulations whenever possible. We conclude that there is a gap in knowledge for direct links between early life adversity and subordination during adulthood, meaning that further research should test for links. There are instances, however, where subordinate individuals employ "suboptimal" tactics that allow them to outperform dominant conspecifics during adulthood.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mark C Mainwaring
- School of Natural Sciences, Bangor University, Bangor LL57 2DG, UK
- Field Research Station at Fort Missoula, Division of Biological Sciences, University of Montana, Missoula, MT, USA
| | - Bret W Tobalske
- Field Research Station at Fort Missoula, Division of Biological Sciences, University of Montana, Missoula, MT, USA
| | - Ian R Hartley
- Lancaster Environment Centre, Lancaster University, Lancaster LA1 4YQ, UK
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13
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Oro D, Waldrep C, Bertolero A, Genovart M. Drivers of resource allocation for breeding under variable environments in a bet hedger. Ecol Evol 2023; 13:e10485. [PMID: 37693935 PMCID: PMC10483097 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.10485] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2023] [Revised: 08/14/2023] [Accepted: 08/18/2023] [Indexed: 09/12/2023] Open
Abstract
The evolutionary theory of life histories predicts that there is a trade-off between survival and reproduction: since adult survival in long-lived organisms is high, then breeding investment is more variable and more dependent on conditions (e.g. food availability and individual experience). Clutch features influence fitness prospects, but how a bet hedger builds its clutch in temporally varying environments is quite unknown. Using 27-year data on 2847 clutches of known-age breeders, we analyse how Audouin's gulls (Larus audouinii), a species showing a combination of conservative and adaptive bet-hedging breeding strategies, can allocate energy by laying clutches and eggs of different sizes. Results show that both food availability and age influenced clutch size and total egg volume in a clutch. Interestingly, we found an interaction between food and age on egg parameters: total volume in two-egg clutches, laid mostly by younger breeders, did not significantly change with food availability and the quadratic pattern in clutch size over the range of ages was less marked as long as food conditions became harsher. With increased food, females invested more by building larger first eggs, whereas they were more conservative on second and third eggs. Furthermore, asymmetries in egg volume within three-egg clutches increased with food availability for old females. Egg size profiles of two-egg clutches suggest that gulls should exhibit progressive reduction of the size of the third egg before shifting to a two-egg clutch size. Food availability influenced all parameters studied, whereas age affected the amount of energy allocated for producing eggs (their size and number) but not the way of allocating those energies (i.e. asymmetries within the clutch). Despite the range of factors affecting the clutch, results suggest that females can allocate the amount of resources in a clutch optimally to increase their fitness under variable environments via bet-hedging.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Oro
- Centre d'Estudis Avançats de Blanes – CEAB (CSIC)BlanesSpain
| | - Cassidy Waldrep
- Centre d'Estudis Avançats de Blanes – CEAB (CSIC)BlanesSpain
- Department of BiologyMiami UniversityOxfordOhioUSA
- Department of BiologyUniversity of SaskatchewanSaskatoonCanada
| | - Albert Bertolero
- Associació Ornitològica Picampall de les Terres de l'Ebre, La GaleraAmpostaSpain
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14
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Zhu ZQ, Zi SM, Gao LF, Zhang XD, Liu FY, Wang Q, Du B. A diagnosis model of parental care: How parents optimize their provisioning strategy in brood reduction? Curr Zool 2023; 69:385-392. [PMID: 37614918 PMCID: PMC10443608 DOI: 10.1093/cz/zoac064] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/23/2022] [Accepted: 08/10/2022] [Indexed: 08/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Altricial birds often display biased preferences in providing parental care for their dependent offspring, especially during food shortages. During this process, such inflexible rules may result in provisioning errors. To demonstrate how parents optimize their provisioning strategies, we proposed a "diagnosis model" of parental care to posit that parents will undergo a diagnosis procedure to test whether selecting against some particular offspring based on phenotype is an optimal strategy. We tested this model in an asynchronous hatching bird, the Azure-winged Magpie Cyanopica cyanus, based on 10 years of data about demography and parental provisioning behaviors. Given their higher daily survival rates, core offspring (those hatched on the first day) merits an investment priority compared with their marginal brood mates (those hatched on later days). However, a marginal offspring also merited a priority if it displayed greater weight gain than the expected value at the early post-hatching days. Parents could detect such a marginal offspring via a diagnosis strategy, in which they provisioned the brood at the diagnosis stage by delivering food to every nestling that begged, then biased food toward high-value nestlings at the subsequent decision stage by making a negative response to the begging of low-value nestlings. In this provisioning strategy, the growth performance of a nestling became a more reliable indicator of its investment value than its hatching order or competitive ability. Our findings provide evidence for this "diagnosis model of parental care" wherein parents use a diagnosis method to optimize their provisioning strategy in brood reduction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhen-Qin Zhu
- School of Life Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou City, Gansu Province 730000, China
| | - Shu-Mei Zi
- College of Ecology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou City, Gansu Province 730000, China
| | - Li-Fang Gao
- School of Life Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou City, Gansu Province 730000, China
| | - Xiao-Dan Zhang
- School of Life Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou City, Gansu Province 730000, China
| | - Fang-Yuan Liu
- School of Life Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou City, Gansu Province 730000, China
| | - Qian Wang
- School of Life Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou City, Gansu Province 730000, China
| | - Bo Du
- School of Life Sciences, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou City, Gansu Province 730000, China
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15
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Martyka R, Skórka P. Do non-direct heterospecific cues of avian predator activity alter reproductive modes of a passerine bird? THE EUROPEAN ZOOLOGICAL JOURNAL 2023. [DOI: 10.1080/24750263.2023.2181988] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/06/2023] Open
Affiliation(s)
- R. Martyka
- Institute of Nature Conservation, Polish Academy of Sciences, Kraków, Poland
| | - P. Skórka
- Institute of Nature Conservation, Polish Academy of Sciences, Kraków, Poland
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16
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Ding P, Song Z, Liu Y, Székely T, Shi L, Turghan MA. Variations in the Reproductive Strategies of Different Charadrius alexandrinus Populations in Xinjiang, China. Animals (Basel) 2023; 13:2260. [PMID: 37508039 PMCID: PMC10376040 DOI: 10.3390/ani13142260] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2023] [Revised: 07/04/2023] [Accepted: 07/05/2023] [Indexed: 07/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Due to the influence of bio-geographical and environmental factors, as well as anthropogenic landscape features, organisms show different reproductive strategies among different populations. There is a lack of detailed information on the reproductive biology of Kentish plover Charadrius alexandrinus in arid lands in Central Asia. In this study, we summarized the characteristics of the reproductive biology of three geographically distinct plover populations in Aibi Lake in northwestern Xinjiang, Taitema Lake in southern Xinjiang and artificial reservoirs around Urumqi City in northern Xinjiang, based on 440 eggs from 158 nests observed and analyzed from April to July of 2019 and 2020. We found that there was no significant difference in clutch size among the three populations. However, the egg size of the Taitema Lake population was significantly larger than those of the other two populations, whilst the egg volume and clutch volume of the artificial reservoirs' populations were significantly larger than that of Aibi Lake. With the postponement of laying dates, the northern and northwestern populations showed the characteristics of a small clutch size and a relatively small egg size, respectively, and a decrease in reproductive output. The heavier female plovers in Taitema Lake laid eggs earlier, and there was a significantly positive correlation between female body mass and clutch size and egg size. The tarsometatarsus length of the female plovers was significantly positively correlated with the reproductive output in all three populations. The model selection results show that female body size and ambient temperature restrict the egg size and reproductive output of Kentish plovers, which is consistent with the upper limit hypothesis of the maternal condition and maternal constraint. Our data support the hypothesis that Kentish plovers show distinct flexibility in their breeding strategies to cope with the harsh natural environment in the arid lands of Xinjiang, China. The results of a relatively high average clutch size and average egg size imply that the saline wetlands of Western China are important breeding habitats for Kentish plovers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peng Ding
- College of Animal Sciences, Xinjiang Agricultural University, Urumqi 830052, China
| | - Zitan Song
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, School of Ecology, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China
| | - Yang Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Biocontrol, School of Ecology, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou 510275, China
| | - Tamás Székely
- Milner Centre for Evolution, Department of Biology and Biochemistry, University of Bath, Bath BA1 7AY, UK
- Department of Evolutionary Zoology, University of Debrecen, 4032 Debrecen, Hungary
| | - Lei Shi
- College of Animal Sciences, Xinjiang Agricultural University, Urumqi 830052, China
| | - Mardan Aghabey Turghan
- State Key Laboratory of Oasis and Desert Ecology, Xinjiang Institute of Ecology and Geography, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Urumqi 830011, China
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17
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Reyes-Contreras M, de Vries B, van der Molen JC, Groothuis TGG, Taborsky B. Egg-mediated maternal effects in a cooperatively breeding cichlid fish. Sci Rep 2023; 13:9759. [PMID: 37328515 PMCID: PMC10276030 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-35550-5] [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: 10/30/2022] [Accepted: 05/19/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Mothers can influence offspring phenotype through egg-mediated maternal effects, which can be influenced by cues mothers obtain from their environment during offspring production. Developing embryos use these components but have mechanisms to alter maternal signals. Here we aimed to understand the role of mothers and embryos in how maternal effects might shape offspring social phenotype. In the cooperatively breeding fish Neolamprologus pulcher different social phenotypes develop in large and small social groups differing in predation risk and social complexity. We manipulated the maternal social environment of N. pulcher females during egg laying by allocating them either to a small or a large social group. We compared egg mass and clutch size and the concentration of corticosteroid metabolites between social environments, and between fertilized and unfertilized eggs to investigate how embryos deal with maternal signalling. Mothers in small groups produced larger clutches but neither laid smaller eggs nor bestowed eggs differently with corticosteroids. Fertilized eggs scored lower on a principal component representing three corticosteroid metabolites, namely 11-deoxycortisol, cortisone, and 11-deoxycorticosterone. We did not detect egg-mediated maternal effects induced by the maternal social environment. We discuss that divergent social phenotypes induced by different group sizes may be triggered by own offspring experience.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Reyes-Contreras
- Division of Behavioural Ecology, Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Bern, Wohlenstrasse 50A, 3032, Hinterkappelen, Switzerland
| | - Bonnie de Vries
- The Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Science, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 7, 9747 AG, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - J C van der Molen
- Laboratorium Bijzondere Chemie, Cluster Endocrinologie and Metabole Ziekten, University Medical Center Groningen, 9700 RB, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - T G G Groothuis
- The Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Science, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 7, 9747 AG, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Barbara Taborsky
- Division of Behavioural Ecology, Institute of Ecology and Evolution, University of Bern, Wohlenstrasse 50A, 3032, Hinterkappelen, Switzerland.
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18
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Badger JJ, Bowen WD, den Heyer CE, Breed GA. Large offspring have enhanced lifetime reproductive success: Long-term carry-over effects of weaning size in gray seals ( Halichoerus grypus). Ecol Evol 2023; 13:e10095. [PMID: 37293121 PMCID: PMC10244896 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.10095] [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: 08/31/2022] [Revised: 04/13/2023] [Accepted: 04/25/2023] [Indexed: 06/10/2023] Open
Abstract
An individual's size in early stages of life may be an important source of individual variation in lifetime reproductive performance, as size effects on ontogenetic development can have cascading physiological and behavioral consequences throughout life. Here, we explored how size-at-young influences subsequent reproductive performance in gray seals (Halichoerus grypus) using repeated encounter and reproductive data on a marked sample of 363 females that were measured for length after weaning, at ~4 weeks of age, and eventually recruited to the Sable Island breeding colony. Two reproductive traits were considered: provisioning performance (mass of weaned offspring), modeled using linear mixed effects models; and reproductive frequency (rate at which a female returns to breed), modeled using mixed effects multistate mark-recapture models. Mothers with the longest weaning lengths produced pups 8 kg heavier and were 20% more likely to breed in a given year than mothers with the shortest lengths. Correlation in body lengths between weaning and adult life stages, however, is weak: Longer pups do not grow to be longer than average adults. Thus, covariation between weaning length and future reproductive performance appears to be a carry-over effect, where the size advantages afforded in early juvenile stages may allow enhanced long-term performance in adulthood.
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Affiliation(s)
- Janelle J. Badger
- Department of Biology and WildlifeUniversity of Alaska FairbanksFairbanksAlaskaUSA
- Present address:
Pacific Islands Fisheries Science CenterNational Oceanic and Atmospheric AdministrationHonoluluHawaiiUSA
| | - W. Don Bowen
- Department of Fisheries and Oceans CanadaBedford Institute of OceanographyDartmouthNova ScotiaCanada
| | - Cornelia E. den Heyer
- Department of Fisheries and Oceans CanadaBedford Institute of OceanographyDartmouthNova ScotiaCanada
| | - Greg A. Breed
- Department of Biology and WildlifeUniversity of Alaska FairbanksFairbanksAlaskaUSA
- Institute of Arctic BiologyUniversity of Alaska FairbanksFairbanksAlaskaUSA
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19
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Fortuna R, Paquet M, Biard C, Élard L, Ferreira AC, Leroux-Coyaux M, Parenteau C, Silva LR, Théron F, Covas R, Doutrelant C. Egg components and offspring survival vary with group size and laying order in a cooperative breeder. Oecologia 2023; 202:129-142. [PMID: 37148378 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-023-05379-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2022] [Accepted: 04/25/2023] [Indexed: 05/08/2023]
Abstract
Prenatal resource allocation to offspring can be influenced by maternal environment and offspring value, and affect offspring survival. An important pathway for flexible maternal allocation is via egg components such as nutrients and hormones. In cooperative breeders, females with helpers may increase resource allocation to eggs-'differential allocation'-or reduce it-'load-lightening'. Yet, helper effects on egg composition have been poorly studied. Moreover, it is unknown how helpers' presence modulates laying order effects on egg content and survival. Here, we investigated how maternal allocation varied with group size and laying order in the cooperatively breeding sociable weaver (Philetairus socius). We estimated interactive effects of helpers and laying order on allocation to egg mass, yolk nutrients-yolk mass, proteins, lipids, carotenoids, vitamin A and vitamin E-and hormones-testosterone, androstenedione, and corticosterone. Results concurred with the 'differential allocation' predictions. Females with more helpers produced later-laid eggs with heavier yolks and more lipids, and laid eggs overall richer in lipids. Proteins, antioxidants, and hormones were not found to vary with helper number. We then analyzed how helper number modulated laying order effects on survival. Females with more helpers did not specifically produce later-laid eggs with higher survival, but eggs laid by females with more helpers were overall more likely to fledge. These findings show that some egg components (yolk mass, lipids) can positively vary according to females' breeding group size, which may improve offspring fitness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rita Fortuna
- CIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Campus de Vairão, Universidade do Porto, 4485-661, Vairão, Portugal.
- Departamento de Biologia, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade do Porto, 4099-002, Porto, Portugal.
- BIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, CIBIO, Campus de Vairão, 4485-661, Vairão, Portugal.
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, CEFE, CNRS, Univ Montpellier, EPHE, IRD, 34293, Montpellier, France.
- Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics, Institutt for Biologi, NTNU, Trondheim, Norway.
| | - Matthieu Paquet
- Department of Ecology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, P.O. Box 7044, 75007, Uppsala, Sweden
- Institute of Mathematics of Bordeaux, University of Bordeaux, CNRS, Bordeaux INP, Talence, France
| | - Clotilde Biard
- Sorbonne Université, UPEC, CNRS, IRD, INRA, Institut d'Écologie et des Sciences de l'Environnement de Paris, IEES, 75005, Paris, France
| | - Loïc Élard
- Sorbonne Université, UPEC, CNRS, IRD, INRA, Institut d'Écologie et des Sciences de l'Environnement de Paris, IEES, 75005, Paris, France
| | - André C Ferreira
- CIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Campus de Vairão, Universidade do Porto, 4485-661, Vairão, Portugal
- BIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, CIBIO, Campus de Vairão, 4485-661, Vairão, Portugal
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, CEFE, CNRS, Univ Montpellier, EPHE, IRD, 34293, Montpellier, France
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Mathieu Leroux-Coyaux
- Sorbonne Université, UPEC, CNRS, IRD, INRA, Institut d'Écologie et des Sciences de l'Environnement de Paris, IEES, 75005, Paris, France
| | - Charline Parenteau
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, CNRS-La Rochelle Université, Villiers-en-Bois, France
| | - Liliana R Silva
- CIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Campus de Vairão, Universidade do Porto, 4485-661, Vairão, Portugal
- BIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, CIBIO, Campus de Vairão, 4485-661, Vairão, Portugal
| | - Franck Théron
- CIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Campus de Vairão, Universidade do Porto, 4485-661, Vairão, Portugal
- BIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, CIBIO, Campus de Vairão, 4485-661, Vairão, Portugal
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, CEFE, CNRS, Univ Montpellier, EPHE, IRD, 34293, Montpellier, France
| | - Rita Covas
- CIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Campus de Vairão, Universidade do Porto, 4485-661, Vairão, Portugal
- BIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, CIBIO, Campus de Vairão, 4485-661, Vairão, Portugal
- DST-NRF Centre of Excellence, FitzPatrick Institute, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Claire Doutrelant
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, CEFE, CNRS, Univ Montpellier, EPHE, IRD, 34293, Montpellier, France
- DST-NRF Centre of Excellence, FitzPatrick Institute, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
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20
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Javůrková VG, Mikšík I. New insights into the relationships between egg maternal components: the interplays between albumen steroid hormones, proteins and eggshell protoporphyrin. Comp Biochem Physiol A Mol Integr Physiol 2023; 279:111401. [PMID: 36781044 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2023.111401] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2022] [Revised: 02/08/2023] [Accepted: 02/08/2023] [Indexed: 02/13/2023]
Abstract
Recent studies have shown that the egg yolk maternal components, which are a mixture of substances that can affect the developing embryo, do not act separately but are interconnected and co-adapted. Surprisingly, no study to date has focused on the associations between maternally derived albumen steroids and albumen and eggshell compounds with pleiotropic effects. Eggshell pigment protoporphyrin (PROTO IX) should provide primary antimicrobial protection for eggs, but as a proven pro-oxidant, it may compromise female fitness. Abundant albumen proteins ovotransferrin (OVOTR) and lysozyme (LSM) have been shown to have antimicrobial, antioxidant, immunoregulatory and growth-regulatory roles. To investigate associations between albumen steroids and OVOTR, LSM and eggshell cuticle PROTO IX, we used chicken eggs with differently pigmented eggshells. We found that albumen steroid hormones were strongly intercorrelated. In addition, we revealed that albumen LSM and testosterone (T) were positively associated, while a negative association was found between albumen LSM and pregnenolone (P5). Eggshell cuticle PROTO IX was negatively associated with the concentration of albumen 17α-hydroxypregnenolone (17-OHP5). Finally, of all the hormones tested, only the concentration of albumen 17-OHP5 correlated negatively with egg volume and varied with eggshell colour and chicken breed. Although experimental evidence for the effect of maternal albumen steroids on avian developing embryo is still scarce, our study is the first to highlight co-variation and potential co-adjustment of maternally derived albumen steroids, proteins and eggshell cuticle pigment suggesting similar allocation mechanisms known for yolk maternal compounds with the potential to influence the avian embryo and offspring phenotype.
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Affiliation(s)
- Veronika Gvoždíková Javůrková
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 7, 9747 AG Groningen, The Netherlands; Institute of Vertebrate Biology of the Czech Academy of Sciences, Květná 8, 603 65 Brno, Czech Republic.
| | - Ivan Mikšík
- Department of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Chemical Technology, University of Pardubice, Studentská 573, 532 10 Pardubice, Czech Republic
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21
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Contrasting effects of cooperative group size and number of helpers on maternal investment in eggs and nestlings. Anim Behav 2023. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2023.01.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/02/2023]
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22
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Golawski A, Golawska S. Delayed egg-laying in Red-backed Shrike Lanius collurio in relation to increased rainfall in east-central Poland. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF BIOMETEOROLOGY 2023; 67:717-724. [PMID: 36881174 PMCID: PMC10070303 DOI: 10.1007/s00484-023-02450-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/21/2022] [Revised: 12/27/2022] [Accepted: 03/01/2023] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
Climate change has affected the breeding parameters of many animal species. In birds, most studies have focused on the effects of temperature on clutch phenology and clutch size. The long-term influence of other weather factors, including rainfall, on breeding parameters have been analysed much less often. Based on a 23-year dataset and 308 broods, we documented shifts in the timing of breeding, clutch size and mean egg volume in a long-distance migrant, the Red-backed Shrike Lanius collurio, from a central European population. We found a 5-day shift towards delayed breeding, but no differences in brood size or egg volume during those 23 years. The GLM analysis showed that the mean May temperature had a positive influence on the clutch initiation date, whereas the number of days with rain delayed laying. During the period 1999-2021, there was no change in the mean May temperature, but total precipitation and the number of days with rain in May increased. Thus, delayed nesting in this population was probably due to the increase in rainfall during this period. Our results provide a rare example of delayed nesting in birds in recent years. Predicted changes in the climate make it difficult to assess the long-term impact of global warming on the viability of Red-backed Shrike populations in east-central Poland.
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Affiliation(s)
- Artur Golawski
- Faculty of Sciences, Siedlce University of Natural Sciences and Humanities, Prusa 14, 08-110, Siedlce, Poland.
| | - Sylwia Golawska
- Faculty of Sciences, Siedlce University of Natural Sciences and Humanities, Prusa 14, 08-110, Siedlce, Poland
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23
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Virgin EE, Lewis EL, Lidgard AD, Kepas ME, Marchetti JR, Hudson SB, Smith GD, French SS. Egg viability and egg mass underlie immune tradeoffs and differences between urban and rural lizard egg yolk physiology. Gen Comp Endocrinol 2023; 337:114258. [PMID: 36870544 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygcen.2023.114258] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2022] [Revised: 01/25/2023] [Accepted: 02/27/2023] [Indexed: 03/06/2023]
Abstract
Urbanization can cause innumerable abiotic and biotic changes that have the potential to influence the ecology, behavior, and physiology of native resident organisms. Relative to their rural conspecifics, urban Side-blotched Lizard (Uta stansburiana) populations in southern Utah have lower survival prospects and maximize reproductive investment via producing larger eggs and larger clutch sizes. While egg size is an important predictor of offspring quality, physiological factors within the egg yolk are reflective of the maternal environment and can alter offspring traits, especially during energetically costly processes, such as reproduction or immunity. Therefore, maternal effects may represent an adaptive mechanism by which urban-dwelling species can persist within a variable landscape. In this study, we assess urban and rural differences in egg yolk bacterial killing ability (BKA), corticosterone (CORT), oxidative status (d-ROMs), and energy metabolites (free glycerol and triglycerides), and their association with female immune status and egg quality. Within a laboratory setting, we immune challenged urban lizards via lipopolysaccharide injection (LPS) to test whether physiological changes associated with immune system activity impacted egg yolk investment. We found urban females had higher mite loads than rural females, however mite burden was related to yolk BKA in rural eggs, but not urban eggs. While yolk BKA differed between urban and rural sites, egg mass and egg viability (fertilized vs. unfertilized) were strong predictors of yolk physiology and may imply tradeoffs exist between maintenance and reproduction. LPS treatment caused a decrease in egg yolk d-ROMs relative to the control treatments, supporting results from previous research. Finally, urban lizards laid a higher proportion of unfertilized eggs, which differed in egg yolk BKA, CORT, and triglycerides in comparison to fertilized eggs. Because rural lizards laid only viable eggs during this study, these results suggest that reduced egg viability is a potential cost of living in an urban environment. Furthermore, these results help us better understand potential downstream impacts of urbanization on offspring survival, fitness, and overall population health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Emily E Virgin
- Department of Biology, Utah State University, 5305 Old Main Hill, Logan, UT 84322, USA; Ecology Center, Utah State University, 5205 Old Main Hill, Logan, UT 84322, USA.
| | - Erin L Lewis
- Department of Biology, Utah State University, 5305 Old Main Hill, Logan, UT 84322, USA; Ecology Center, Utah State University, 5205 Old Main Hill, Logan, UT 84322, USA
| | - Audrey D Lidgard
- Department of Biology, Utah State University, 5305 Old Main Hill, Logan, UT 84322, USA
| | - Megen E Kepas
- Department of Biology, Utah State University, 5305 Old Main Hill, Logan, UT 84322, USA; Ecology Center, Utah State University, 5205 Old Main Hill, Logan, UT 84322, USA; Department of Biological Sciences, Utah Tech University, St. George, UT 84770, USA
| | - Jack R Marchetti
- Department of Biology, Utah State University, 5305 Old Main Hill, Logan, UT 84322, USA; Ecology Center, Utah State University, 5205 Old Main Hill, Logan, UT 84322, USA
| | - Spencer B Hudson
- Department of Biology, Utah State University, 5305 Old Main Hill, Logan, UT 84322, USA; Ecology Center, Utah State University, 5205 Old Main Hill, Logan, UT 84322, USA
| | - Geoffrey D Smith
- Department of Biological Sciences, Utah Tech University, St. George, UT 84770, USA
| | - Susannah S French
- Department of Biology, Utah State University, 5305 Old Main Hill, Logan, UT 84322, USA; Ecology Center, Utah State University, 5205 Old Main Hill, Logan, UT 84322, USA
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24
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Han B, Wei Q, Amiri E, Hu H, Meng L, Strand MK, Tarpy DR, Xu S, Li J, Rueppell O. The molecular basis of socially induced egg-size plasticity in honey bees. eLife 2022; 11:80499. [PMID: 36346221 PMCID: PMC9747152 DOI: 10.7554/elife.80499] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2022] [Accepted: 11/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Reproduction involves the investment of resources into offspring. Although variation in reproductive effort often affects the number of offspring, adjustments of propagule size are also found in numerous species, including the Western honey bee, Apis mellifera. However, the proximate causes of these adjustments are insufficiently understood, especially in oviparous species with complex social organization in which adaptive evolution is shaped by kin selection. Here, we show in a series of experiments that queens predictably and reversibly increase egg size in small colonies and decrease egg size in large colonies, while their ovary size changes in the opposite direction. Additional results suggest that these effects cannot be solely explained by egg-laying rate and are due to the queens' perception of colony size. Egg-size plasticity is associated with quantitative changes of 290 ovarian proteins, most of which relate to energy metabolism, protein transport, and cytoskeleton. Based on functional and network analyses, we further study the small GTPase Rho1 as a candidate regulator of egg size. Spatio-temporal expression analysis via RNAscope and qPCR supports an important role of Rho1 in egg-size determination, and subsequent RNAi-mediated gene knockdown confirmed that Rho1 has a major effect on egg size in honey bees. These results elucidate how the social environment of the honey bee colony may be translated into a specific cellular process to adjust maternal investment into eggs. It remains to be studied how widespread this mechanism is and whether it has consequences for population dynamics and epigenetic influences on offspring phenotype in honey bees and other species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bin Han
- Institute of Apicultural Research/Key Laboratory of Pollinating Insect Biology, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China.,Department of Biology, University of North Carolina Greensboro, Greensboro, United States
| | - Qiaohong Wei
- Institute of Apicultural Research/Key Laboratory of Pollinating Insect Biology, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Esmaeil Amiri
- Department of Biology, University of North Carolina Greensboro, Greensboro, United States.,Delta Research and Extension Center, Mississippi State University, Stoneville, United States
| | - Han Hu
- Institute of Apicultural Research/Key Laboratory of Pollinating Insect Biology, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Lifeng Meng
- Institute of Apicultural Research/Key Laboratory of Pollinating Insect Biology, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Micheline K Strand
- Biological and Biotechnology Sciences Branch, U.S. Army Research Office, DEVCOM-ARL, Baltimore, United States
| | - David R Tarpy
- Department of Applied Ecology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, Canada
| | - Shufa Xu
- Institute of Apicultural Research/Key Laboratory of Pollinating Insect Biology, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Jianke Li
- Institute of Apicultural Research/Key Laboratory of Pollinating Insect Biology, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing, China
| | - Olav Rueppell
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
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25
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Gaffard A, Pays O, Monceau K, Teixeira M, Bretagnolle V, Moreau J. Feeding on grains containing pesticide residues is detrimental to offspring development through parental effects in grey partridge. ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION (BARKING, ESSEX : 1987) 2022; 312:120005. [PMID: 35998772 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2022.120005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/03/2022] [Revised: 07/26/2022] [Accepted: 08/16/2022] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Numerous toxicological studies have shown that ingestion of pesticides can induce physiological stress in breeding birds, with adverse consequences on egg laying parameters and offspring quality through parental effects. However, previous studies do not mimic current levels of pesticide residues in typical landscapes, and they do not consider potential cocktail effects of pesticides as they occur in the wild. Herein, we explored whether realistic pesticide exposure affected reproduction parameters and offspring condition through parental effects in Grey partridge. We fed 24 breeding pairs with either seeds from conventional agriculture crops treated with various pesticides during cropping, or organic grains without pesticide residues as controls. The conventional and organic grain diets mimicked food options potentially encountered by wild birds in the field. The results showed that ingesting low pesticide doses over a long period had consequences on reproduction and offspring quality without altering mortality in parents or chicks. Compared with organic pairs, conventional pairs yielded smaller chicks at hatching that had a lower body mass index at 24 days old. Additionally, these chicks displayed lower haematocrit when body mass index was higher. Therefore, ingestion of conventional grains by parents resulted in chronic exposure to pesticide residues, even at low doses, and this had detrimental consequences on offspring. These results demonstrate a sublethal effect of pesticide residues through parental effects. The consequences of parental exposure on chicks might partly explain the decline in wild Grey partridge populations, which raises questions for avian conservation and demography if current agrosystem approaches are continued.
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Affiliation(s)
- Agathe Gaffard
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, UMR 7372, CNRS & La Rochelle Université, 79360, Villiers-en-Bois, France.
| | - Olivier Pays
- Univ Angers, BIODIVAG, 49000, Angers, France; REHABS International Research Laboratory, CNRS-Université Lyon 1-Nelson Mandela University, George Campus, Madiba Drive 6531, George, South Africa
| | - Karine Monceau
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, UMR 7372, CNRS & La Rochelle Université, 79360, Villiers-en-Bois, France
| | - Maria Teixeira
- UMR CNRS 6282 Biogéosciences, Université Bourgogne Franche-Comté, 6 Boulevard Gabriel, 21000, Dijon, France
| | - Vincent Bretagnolle
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, UMR 7372, CNRS & La Rochelle Université, 79360, Villiers-en-Bois, France; LTSER "Zone Atelier Plaine & Val de Sèvre", Villiers-en-Bois, 79360, France
| | - Jérôme Moreau
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, UMR 7372, CNRS & La Rochelle Université, 79360, Villiers-en-Bois, France; UMR CNRS 6282 Biogéosciences, Université Bourgogne Franche-Comté, 6 Boulevard Gabriel, 21000, Dijon, France
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26
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The breeding biology of erect-crested penguins, Eudyptes sclateri: Hormones, behavior, obligate brood reduction and conservation. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0275106. [PMID: 36223344 PMCID: PMC9555622 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0275106] [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: 06/08/2022] [Accepted: 09/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Erect-crested penguins are the least studied of all penguins. They breed on two isolated subantarctic island groups, the Antipodes and Bounty Islands. Sporadic nest counts indicate a dramatic decline in numbers of erect-crested penguins over the last 50 years. Here we present data from a study undertaken in 1998 on the breeding biology, behavior and hormones of erect-crested penguins. It represents, even today, by far the most detailed data available on this species. The penguins exhibited extreme reversed egg-size dimorphism, whereby the first-laid A-egg was much smaller than the second-laid B-egg. A-eggs were lost before (42.3%) or on (37.8%) the day the B-egg was laid, and none survived more than 7 days after that. The penguins were in a low state of reproductive readiness, as evidenced by low levels of copulation, fighting, and testosterone in males during the courtship/laying period when, curiously, plasma levels of testosterone were at least as high in females. The laying interval (5.4 days) is the longest recorded for any penguin species, and incubation was highly variable until clutch completion. Most nests (91.2%) contained no nesting material and eggs were laid directly onto the ground. A-eggs were lost mainly by rolling out of the nest. However, even when prevented from doing so by an experimental manipulation, A-eggs survived no longer than those in control nests. Testosterone levels in males increased after clutch completion, when they remained in attendance at the nest for up to 13 days, despite females assuming most of the incubation duties. The bills of males were significantly larger than those of females and probably help with guarding the nest. We discuss explanations for obligate brood reduction in crested penguins and the options for conservation in light of our census results, which indicate that this enigmatic penguin species could be in trouble.
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27
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Genovart M, Klementisová K, Oro D, Fernández-López P, Bertolero A, Bartumeus F. Inferring the age of breeders from easily measurable variables. Sci Rep 2022; 12:15851. [PMID: 36151237 PMCID: PMC9508115 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-19381-4] [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: 05/04/2022] [Accepted: 08/29/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Age drives differences in fitness components typically due to lower performances of younger and senescent individuals, and changes in breeding age structure influence population dynamics and persistence. However, determining age and age structure is challenging in most species, where distinctive age features are lacking and available methods require substantial efforts or invasive procedures. Here we explore the potential to assess the age of breeders, or at least to identify young and senescent individuals, by measuring some breeding parameters partially driven by age (e.g. egg volume in birds). Taking advantage of a long-term population monitored seabird, we first assessed whether age influenced egg volume, and identified other factors driving this trait by using general linear models. Secondly, we developed and evaluated a machine learning algorithm to assess the age of breeders using measurable variables. We confirmed that both younger and older individuals performed worse (less and smaller eggs) than middle-aged individuals. Our ensemble training algorithm was only able to distinguish young individuals, but not senescent breeders. We propose to test the combined use of field monitoring, classic regression analysis and machine learning methods in other wild populations were measurable breeding parameters are partially driven by age, as a possible tool for assessing age structure in the wild.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meritxell Genovart
- CEAB (CSIC), Carrer Accés Cala Sant Francesc, 14, 17300, Blanes, Catalonia, Spain. .,IMEDEA (CSIC-UIB), Miquel Marquès 21, 07190, Esporles, Balearic Islands, Spain.
| | | | - Daniel Oro
- CEAB (CSIC), Carrer Accés Cala Sant Francesc, 14, 17300, Blanes, Catalonia, Spain
| | - Pol Fernández-López
- CEAB (CSIC), Carrer Accés Cala Sant Francesc, 14, 17300, Blanes, Catalonia, Spain
| | - Albert Bertolero
- Associació Ornitològica Picampall de les Terres de l'Ebre, Amposta, Catalonia, Spain
| | - Frederic Bartumeus
- CEAB (CSIC), Carrer Accés Cala Sant Francesc, 14, 17300, Blanes, Catalonia, Spain.,CREAF, Cerdanyola del Vallès, 08193, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.,ICREA, Passeig Lluis Companys 23, 08010, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
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28
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Yurlov AK, Yurlova NI, Garyushkina MY, Selivanova MA, Doi H. Long-term observation of the egg and chick size in the nests of Larus ichthyaetus in Lake Chany, Russia. Sci Data 2022; 9:372. [PMID: 35768451 PMCID: PMC9243008 DOI: 10.1038/s41597-022-01454-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2021] [Accepted: 06/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
This data set describes the long-term observation and morphological study of the eggs of the great black-headed gull Larus ichthyaetus in the gull nesting colonies on the islands of Lake Chany. Lake Chany is located in the Baraba forest-steppe of the West Siberian Plain, Russia, between the Ob and Irtish rivers. Lake Chany is protected by the Ramsar Convention on the Wetlands of International Importance, indicating that the lake is an important site for migratory birds, including L. ichthyaetus. This dataset contains the size and fate of all eggs, as well as the size of hatched chicks in 1164 observed L. ichthyaetus nests from 1993 to 2003.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexander K Yurlov
- Institute of Systematics and Ecology of Animals, Siberian Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences, Frunze Str., 11, Novosibirsk, 630091, Russia
| | - Natalia I Yurlova
- Institute of Systematics and Ecology of Animals, Siberian Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences, Frunze Str., 11, Novosibirsk, 630091, Russia.
| | - Maria Yu Garyushkina
- Institute of Systematics and Ecology of Animals, Siberian Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences, Frunze Str., 11, Novosibirsk, 630091, Russia
| | - Marina A Selivanova
- Institute of Systematics and Ecology of Animals, Siberian Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences, Frunze Str., 11, Novosibirsk, 630091, Russia
| | - Hideyuki Doi
- Graduate School of Information Science, University of Hyogo, 7-1-28 Minatojima-minamimachi, Chuo-ku, Kobe, 650-0047, Japan
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29
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Hossain ME, Akter N. Further insights into the prevention of pulmonary hypertension syndrome (ascites) in broiler: a 65-year review. WORLD POULTRY SCI J 2022. [DOI: 10.1080/00439339.2022.2090305] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/17/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Md. Emran Hossain
- Department of Animal Science and Nutrition, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Chattogram Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Zakir Hossain Road, Khulshi, Bangladesh
| | - Nasima Akter
- Department of Dairy and Poultry Science, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Chattogram Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Zakir Hossain Road, Khulshi, Bangladesh
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30
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Jouanneau W, Léandri-Breton DJ, Corbeau A, Herzke D, Moe B, Nikiforov VA, Gabrielsen GW, Chastel O. A Bad Start in Life? Maternal Transfer of Legacy and Emerging Poly- and Perfluoroalkyl Substances to Eggs in an Arctic Seabird. ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY 2022; 56:6091-6102. [PMID: 34874166 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.1c03773] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
In birds, maternal transfer is a major exposure route for several contaminants, including poly- and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). Little is known, however, about the extent of the transfer of the different PFAS compounds to the eggs, especially for alternative fluorinated compounds. In the present study, we measured legacy and emerging PFAS, including Gen-X, ADONA, and F-53B, in the plasma of prelaying black-legged kittiwake females breeding in Svalbard and the yolk of their eggs. We aimed to (1) describe the contaminant levels and patterns in both females and eggs, and (2) investigate the maternal transfer, that is, biological variables and the relationship between the females and their eggs for each compound. Contamination of both females and eggs were dominated by linPFOS then PFUnA or PFTriA. We notably found 7:3 fluorotelomer carboxylic acid─a precursor of long-chain carboxylates─in 84% of the egg yolks, and provide the first documented finding of ADONA in wildlife. Emerging compounds were all below the detection limit in female plasma. There was a linear association between females and eggs for most of the PFAS. Analyses of maternal transfer ratios in females and eggs suggest that the transfer is increasing with PFAS carbon chain length, therefore the longest chain perfluoroalkyl carboxylic acids (PFCAs) were preferentially transferred to the eggs. The mean ∑PFAS in the second-laid eggs was 73% of that in the first-laid eggs. Additional effort on assessing the outcome of maternal transfers on avian development physiology is essential, especially for PFCAs and emerging fluorinated compounds which are under-represented in experimental studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- William Jouanneau
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé (CEBC), UMR 7372 CNRS - La Rochelle Université, 17031 La Rochelle, France
- Norwegian Polar Institute, Fram Centre, NO-9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Don-Jean Léandri-Breton
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé (CEBC), UMR 7372 CNRS - La Rochelle Université, 17031 La Rochelle, France
- Department of Natural Resource Sciences, McGill University, Ste Anne-de-Bellevue, Quebec H9X 3 V9, Canada
| | - Alexandre Corbeau
- ECOBIO (Ecosystèmes, biodiversité, évolution), UMR 6553 CNRS - Université de Rennes, 35000 Rennes, France
| | - Dorte Herzke
- NILU - Norwegian Institute for Air Research, Fram Centre, NO-9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | - Børge Moe
- NINA - Norwegian Institute for Nature Research, NO-7485 Trondheim, Norway
| | - Vladimir A Nikiforov
- NILU - Norwegian Institute for Air Research, Fram Centre, NO-9296 Tromsø, Norway
| | | | - Olivier Chastel
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé (CEBC), UMR 7372 CNRS - La Rochelle Université, 17031 La Rochelle, France
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31
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Fulmer AG, Hauber ME. A review of the cues used for rejecting foreign eggs from the nest by the Eurasian blackbird (
Turdus merula
). Ecol Evol 2022; 12:e8886. [PMID: 35571754 PMCID: PMC9077020 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.8886] [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: 03/07/2022] [Revised: 04/07/2022] [Accepted: 04/14/2022] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Avian brood parasitism is reproductively costly for hosts and selects for cognitive features enabling anti‐parasitic resistance at multiple stages of the host's breeding cycle. The true thrushes (genus Turdus) represent a nearly worldwide clade of potential hosts of brood parasitism by Cuculus cuckoos in Eurasia and Africa and Molothrus cowbirds in the Americas. The Eurasian blackbird (Turdus merula) builds an open‐cup nest and is common within much of the common cuckoo's (C. canorus) breeding range. While this thrush is known to be parasitized at most only at low rates by this cuckoo, the species is also a strong rejector of nonmimetic foreign eggs in the nest. Given their open‐cup nesting habits, we predict that Eurasian blackbirds primarily use visual cues in making a distinction between own and parasitically or experimentally inserted foreign eggs in the nest. We then provide a comprehensive and quantitative review of the literature on blackbird egg rejection studies. This review corroborates that vision is the primary sensory modality used by blackbirds in assessing eggs, but also brings attention to some other, less commonly studied cues which appear to influence rejection, including predator exposure, individual experience, stage of clutch completion, and maternal hormonal state. Blackbirds are also able to recognize and eject even highly mimetic eggs (including those of conspecifics) at a moderate rate, apparently relying on many of the same sensory cues. Although the cues involved in foreign egg recognition by Eurasian blackbirds do not appear specialized to nonmimetic cuckoo parasitism, we cannot differentiate between the possibility of egg rejection being selected by mostly conspecific parasitism or by the evolutionary ghost of a now‐extinct, mimetic cuckoo host‐race.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrew G. Fulmer
- Department of Psychology Fort Lewis College Durango Colorado USA
| | - Mark E. Hauber
- Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Behavior School of Integrative Biology University of Illinois Urbana‐Champaign Urbana Illinois USA
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32
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Guo Y, Lu X. Tibetan birds lay larger but fewer eggs in a clutch. Oecologia 2022; 198:1011-1018. [DOI: 10.1007/s00442-022-05159-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2021] [Accepted: 03/31/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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33
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Giraldo-Deck LM, Loveland JL, Goymann W, Tschirren B, Burke T, Kempenaers B, Lank DB, Küpper C. Intralocus conflicts associated with a supergene. Nat Commun 2022; 13:1384. [PMID: 35296671 PMCID: PMC8927407 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-022-29033-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/27/2021] [Accepted: 02/23/2022] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Chromosomal inversions frequently underlie major phenotypic variation maintained by divergent selection within and between sexes. Here we examine whether and how intralocus conflicts contribute to balancing selection stabilizing an autosomal inversion polymorphism in the ruff Calidris pugnax. In this lekking shorebird, three male mating morphs (Independents, Satellites and Faeders) are controlled by an inversion-based supergene. We show that in a captive population, Faeder females, who are smaller and whose inversion haplotype has not undergone recombination, have lower average reproductive success in terms of laying rate, egg size, and offspring survival than Independent females, who lack the inversion. Satellite females, who carry a recombined inversion haplotype and have intermediate body size, more closely resemble Independent than Faeder females in reproductive performance. We inferred that the lower reproductive output of Faeder females is most likely balanced by higher than average reproductive success of individual Faeder males. These findings suggest that intralocus conflicts may play a major role in the evolution and maintenance of supergene variants.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lina M Giraldo-Deck
- Research Group Behavioural Genetics and Evolutionary Ecology, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Eberhard-Gwinner-Str., 82319, Seewiesen, Germany.
| | - Jasmine L Loveland
- Research Group Behavioural Genetics and Evolutionary Ecology, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Eberhard-Gwinner-Str., 82319, Seewiesen, Germany
| | - Wolfgang Goymann
- Department of Behavioural Neurobiology, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Eberhard-Gwinner-Str., 82319, Seewiesen, Germany
| | - Barbara Tschirren
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn, TR10 9FE, UK
| | - Terry Burke
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, School of Biosciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, S10 2TN, UK
| | - Bart Kempenaers
- Department of Behavioural Ecology and Evolutionary Genetics, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Eberhard-Gwinner-Str., 82319, Seewiesen, Germany
| | - David B Lank
- Department of Biological Sciences, Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC, V5A 1S6, Canada.
| | - Clemens Küpper
- Research Group Behavioural Genetics and Evolutionary Ecology, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Eberhard-Gwinner-Str., 82319, Seewiesen, Germany.
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34
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Abstract
AbstractPhenotypic plasticity is an important mechanism that allows populations to adjust to changing environments. Early life experiences can have lasting impacts on how individuals respond to environmental variation later in life (i.e., individual reaction norms), altering the capacity for populations to respond to selection. Here, we incubated lizard embryos (Lampropholis delicata) at two fluctuating developmental temperatures (cold = 23 ºC + / − 3 ºC, hot = 29 ºC + / − 3 ºC, ncold = 26, nhot = 25) to understand how it affected metabolic plasticity to temperature later in life. We repeatedly measured individual reaction norms across six temperatures 10 times over ~ 3.5 months (nobs = 3,818) to estimate the repeatability of average metabolic rate (intercept) and thermal plasticity (slope). The intercept and the slope of the population-level reaction norm was not affected by developmental temperature. Repeatability of average metabolic rate was, on average, 10% lower in hot incubated lizards but stable across all temperatures. The slope of the thermal reaction norm was overall moderately repeatable (R = 0.44, 95% CI = 0.035 – 0.93) suggesting that individual metabolic rate changed consistently with short-term changes in temperature, although credible intervals were quite broad. Importantly, reaction norm repeatability did not depend on early developmental temperature. Identifying factors affecting among-individual variation in thermal plasticity will be increasingly more important for terrestrial ectotherms living in changing climate. Our work implies that thermal metabolic plasticity is robust to early developmental temperatures and has the capacity to evolve, despite there being less consistent variation in metabolic rate under hot environments.
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35
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Dehnen T, Arbon JJ, Farine DR, Boogert NJ. How feedback and feed-forward mechanisms link determinants of social dominance. Biol Rev Camb Philos Soc 2022; 97:1210-1230. [PMID: 35150197 DOI: 10.1111/brv.12838] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2021] [Revised: 01/27/2022] [Accepted: 01/28/2022] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
In many animal societies, individuals differ consistently in their ability to win agonistic interactions, resulting in dominance hierarchies. These differences arise due to a range of factors that can influence individuals' abilities to win agonistic interactions, spanning from genetically driven traits through to individuals' recent interaction history. Yet, despite a century of study since Schjelderup-Ebbe's seminal paper on social dominance, we still lack a general understanding of how these different factors work together to determine individuals' positions in hierarchies. Here, we first outline five widely studied factors that can influence interaction outcomes: intrinsic attributes, resource value asymmetry, winner-loser effects, dyadic interaction-outcome history and third-party support. A review of the evidence shows that a variety of factors are likely important to interaction outcomes, and thereby individuals' positions in dominance hierarchies, in diverse species. We propose that such factors are unlikely to determine dominance outcomes independently, but rather form part of feedback loops whereby the outcomes of previous agonistic interactions (e.g. access to food) impact factors that might be important in subsequent interactions (e.g. body condition). We provide a conceptual framework that illustrates the multitude potential routes through which such feedbacks can occur, and how the factors that determine the outcomes of dominance interactions are highly intertwined and thus rarely act independently of one another. Further, we generalise our framework to include multi-generational feed-forward mechanisms: how interaction outcomes in one generation can influence the factors determining interaction outcomes in the next generation via a range of parental effects. This general framework describes how interaction outcomes and the factors determining them are linked within generations via feedback loops, and between generations via feed-forward mechanisms. We then highlight methodological approaches that will facilitate the study of feedback loops and dominance dynamics. Lastly, we discuss how our framework could shape future research, including: how feedbacks generate variation in the factors discussed, and how this might be studied experimentally; how the relative importance of different feedback mechanisms varies across timescales; the role of social structure in modulating the effect of feedbacks on hierarchy structure and stability; and the routes of parental influence on the dominance status of offspring. Ultimately, by considering dominance interactions as part of a dynamic feedback system that also feeds forward into subsequent generations, we will understand better the factors that structure dominance hierarchies in animal groups.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tobit Dehnen
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Treliever Road, Penryn, TR10 9FE, U.K.,Department of Collective Behavior, Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior, Universitätsstraße 10, Konstanz, 78464, Germany.,Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, Zürich, 8057, Switzerland
| | - Josh J Arbon
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Treliever Road, Penryn, TR10 9FE, U.K
| | - Damien R Farine
- Department of Collective Behavior, Max Planck Institute of Animal Behavior, Universitätsstraße 10, Konstanz, 78464, Germany.,Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, Zürich, 8057, Switzerland.,Centre for the Advanced Study of Collective Behaviour, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstraße 10, Konstanz, 78464, Germany
| | - Neeltje J Boogert
- Centre for Ecology and Conservation, University of Exeter, Penryn Campus, Treliever Road, Penryn, TR10 9FE, U.K
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36
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Tablado Z, Bötsch Y, Powolny T, Massemin S, Zahn S, Jenni-Eiermann S, Jenni L. Effect of Human Disturbance on Bird Telomere Length: An Experimental Approach. Front Ecol Evol 2022. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2021.792492] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Human recreational activities increase worldwide in space and frequency leading to higher rates of encounter between humans and wild animals. Because wildlife often perceive humans as predators, this increase in human disturbance may have negative consequences for the individuals and also for the viability of populations. Up to now, experiments on the effects of human disturbance on wildlife have mainly focused on individual behavioral and stress-physiological reactions, on breeding success, and on survival. However, the effects on other physiological parameters and trans-generational effects remain poorly understood. We used a low-intensity experimental disturbance in the field to explore the impacts of human disturbance on telomere length in great tit (Parus major) populations and found a clear effect of disturbance on telomere length. Adult males, but not females, in disturbed plots showed shorter telomere lengths when compared to control plot. Moreover, variation in telomere length of adult great tits was reflected in the next generation, as we found a positive correlation between telomere length of the chicks and of their fathers. Given that telomere length has been linked to animal lifespan, our study highlights that activities considered to be of little concern (i.e., low levels of disturbance) can have a long-lasting impact on the physiology and survival of wild animals and their next generation.
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37
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Differential effects of steroid hormones on levels of broad-sense heritability in a wild bird: possible mechanism of environment × genetic variance interaction? Heredity (Edinb) 2022; 128:63-76. [PMID: 34921237 PMCID: PMC8733014 DOI: 10.1038/s41437-021-00490-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2021] [Revised: 11/27/2021] [Accepted: 11/30/2021] [Indexed: 01/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Genetic variation is one of the key concepts in evolutionary biology and an important prerequisite of evolutionary change. However, we know very little about processes that modulate its levels in wild populations. In particular, we still are to understand why genetic variances often depend on environmental conditions. One of possible environment-sensitive modulators of observed levels of genetic variance are maternal effects. In this study we attempt to experimentally test the hypothesis that maternally transmitted agents (e.g. hormones) may influence the expression of genetic variance in quantitative traits in the offspring. We manipulated the levels of steroid hormones (testosterone and corticosterone) in eggs laid by blue tits in a wild population. Our experimental setup allowed for full crossing of genetic and rearing effects with the experimental manipulation. We observed that birds treated with corticosterone exhibited a significant decrease in broad-sense genetic variance of tarsus length, and an increase in this component in body mass on the 2nd day post-hatching. Our study indicates, that maternally transmitted substances such as hormones may have measurable impact on the levels of genetic variance and hence, on the evolutionary potential of quantitative traits.
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Variation in Bird Eggs-Does Female Factor, Season, and Laying Order Impact the Egg Size, Pigmentation, and Eggshell Thickness of the Eggs of Capercaillie? Animals (Basel) 2021; 11:ani11123454. [PMID: 34944231 PMCID: PMC8697993 DOI: 10.3390/ani11123454] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2021] [Revised: 11/29/2021] [Accepted: 12/01/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Despite numerous studies, intra-species variation in bird eggs is still not well explained. In the presented studies, we investigated the possible sources of this variation: female factor, laying order, and season, using the following traits of Capercaillie eggs as an example: egg size and shape, eggshell lightness, and thickness. Samples were collected for three years from three Capercaillie breeding centres located in different parts of Poland, where birds are kept in conditions close to their natural habitat and have a similar diet. The obtained results showed no significant impact of laying order on egg size, shape, pigmentation, nor eggshell thickness. This indicates that the provided nutrition ensures an adequate supply of minerals for the entire laying period. Most results did not show statistically significant differences between eggs from different breeding centres, but in one breeding centre, eggshells had lighter pigmentation. We assume the observed differences may result from females' individual features or local environmental conditions. Egg traits were highly consistent for individual females, proving that visual identification can be useful in identifying the eggs of different females.
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Burnside RJ, Shaffer SA, Cuscó F, Rahman M, Scotland KM. Quantifying egg attendance behaviours of wild Asian houbara can improve artificial incubation outcomes. ENDANGER SPECIES RES 2021. [DOI: 10.3354/esr01157] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Artificial incubation is fundamental in ex situ avian conservation interventions for an increasing range of threatened species, but incubation parameters can differ between species. Both egg-turning angle and frequency are critical for successful embryonic development, but measuring these parameters in wild birds has historically been difficult. Using data-loggers inside artificial eggs that accurately record parental egg attendance behaviours, we quantified turning angles and rates throughout the incubation of 6 nesting wild Asian houbaras Chlamydotis macqueenii, a species bred in captivity in response to human over-exploitation. Wild females turned their eggs 0.6 times h-1 with a mean angle of 40.9° turn-1. Mimicking the patterns of wild birds (‘wild’ treatment), we applied a mean angular change of 40-50° turn once h-1 to artificially incubated eggs and compared this to eggs treated with an existing protocol (‘control’) of 120-130° per turn. Mean hatchability for the wild treatment (78.8%, n = 766) was similar to the control (76.6%, n = 1196). The wild treatment (n = 591) produced significantly heavier hatchlings (2.7%) than the control treatment (n = 893). However, chick growth rates (g d-1 and daily % mass change) and survival to Day 10 were not different between groups. The wild treatment demonstrates that turning angles affect embryo development and, perhaps, hatchability. Investigating natural incubation behaviours using egg-loggers and applying these patterns to artificial incubation appears efficacious to achieve optimal incubation protocols and reduce the need for ex situ trial and error refinement in conservation interventions of captive-bred threatened bird species.
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Affiliation(s)
- RJ Burnside
- School of Environmental Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norwich, Norfolk NR4 7TJ, UK
| | - SA Shaffer
- Department of Biological Sciences, San José State University, San Jose, CA 95192, USA
| | - F Cuscó
- School of Environmental Sciences, University of East Anglia, Norwich Research Park, Norwich, Norfolk NR4 7TJ, UK
| | - M Rahman
- Emirates Bird Breeding Center for Conservation, PO Box 17817, Al Ain, Abu Dhabi, UAE
| | - KM Scotland
- Emirates Bird Breeding Center for Conservation, PO Box 17817, Al Ain, Abu Dhabi, UAE
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First Year Survival of Hatchling Eastern Box Turtles (Terrapene carolina carolina) at Their Northern Range Limit in Michigan's Lower Peninsula. J HERPETOL 2021. [DOI: 10.1670/19-129] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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41
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Amininasab SM, Hosseini-Moosavi SM, Xu CC. Influence of breeding time, nest size, and egg size on the breeding success of the Common Moorhen Gallinula chloropus. ACTA OECOLOGICA 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.actao.2021.103779] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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42
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Cole BJ, Jordan D, LaCour-Roy M, O'Fallon S, Manaker L, Ternest JJ, Askew M, Garey D, Wiernasz DC. The benefits of being big and diverse: early colony survival in harvester ants. Ecology 2021; 103:e03556. [PMID: 34622941 DOI: 10.1002/ecy.3556] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2021] [Revised: 06/25/2021] [Accepted: 07/20/2021] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
In sessile organisms such as plants and benthic invertebrates, founding propagules typically suffer extremely high rates of mortality due to both extrinsic and intrinsic factors. Many social insect species share similarities with these groups, but factors influencing early colony survival are relatively unstudied. We used a field experiment to measure the importance of environmental quality relative to intrinsic colony properties in the harvester ant, Pogonomyrmex occidentalis, by monitoring the survival of 584 experimental colonies. We measured survival of transplanted colonies over four months in each of three years (2014-2016) at a site in western Colorado. Colony survival was primarily determined by colony features. Multiple mating by the queen and larger colony size at the time of transplant increased survival, but queen size, maternal lineage and the composition of plant species in the vicinity of the colony did not. Food supplementation increased survival significantly when natural food was scarce, but was not consistently beneficial, in contrast to predictions. Our results emphasize the general importance of rapid growth and early attainment of large size in the survival of sessile species. However, attributes specific to ants that are a consequence of their sociality also strongly affected survival. Colonies with multiply-mated queens were more likely to survive over a wide range of circumstances, highlighting the importance of this trait even at the early stages of colony life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Blaine J Cole
- Department of Biology and Biochemistry, University of Houston, Houston, Texas, 77204-5001, USA
| | - Dayne Jordan
- Department of Biology and Biochemistry, University of Houston, Houston, Texas, 77204-5001, USA
| | - Montrel LaCour-Roy
- Department of Biology and Biochemistry, University of Houston, Houston, Texas, 77204-5001, USA
| | - Sean O'Fallon
- Department of Biology and Biochemistry, University of Houston, Houston, Texas, 77204-5001, USA.,Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Los Angeles, California, 90095, USA
| | - Logan Manaker
- Department of Biology and Biochemistry, University of Houston, Houston, Texas, 77204-5001, USA
| | - John J Ternest
- Department of Biology and Biochemistry, University of Houston, Houston, Texas, 77204-5001, USA.,Department of Entomology and Nematology, University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida, 32608, USA
| | - Megan Askew
- Department of Biology and Biochemistry, University of Houston, Houston, Texas, 77204-5001, USA
| | - Daniel Garey
- Department of Biology and Biochemistry, University of Houston, Houston, Texas, 77204-5001, USA
| | - Diane C Wiernasz
- Department of Biology and Biochemistry, University of Houston, Houston, Texas, 77204-5001, USA
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Jiang Y, Jin L, Fu YQ, Liao WB. Association of social group with both life-history traits and brain size in cooperatively breeding birds. ANIM BIOL 2021. [DOI: 10.1163/15707563-bja10054] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Social group is associated with life-history traits and can predict brain size variation in cooperative primates and some other mammal groups, but such explicit relationships remain enigmatic in cooperatively breeding birds. Indeed, some compositions of social group in cooperative species (e.g., helper number and group size) would affect the fitness of breeders by providing alloparental care. Here, we conducted comparative tests of the relationship between the social group and both life-history traits and brain size across 197 species of cooperatively breeding birds using phylogenetically controlled comparative analyses. We did not find any correlations between helper numbers and both life-history traits and brain size. However, we found that maximum group size was positively associated with clutch size. Moreover, average group size has positive associations with body mass and relative brain size. Our findings suggest that helper numbers cannot promote variation in relative brain size, while larger groups may predict bigger brains in cooperatively breeding birds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ying Jiang
- Key Laboratory of Southwest China Wildlife Resources Conservation (Ministry of Education), China West Normal University, Nanchong, 637009, Sichuan, China
- Key Laboratory of Artificial Propagation and Utilization in Anurans of Nanchong City, China West Normal University, Nanchong, 637009, Sichuan, China
- Institute of Eco-adaptation in Amphibians and Reptiles, China West Normal University, Nanchong, 637009, Sichuan, China
| | - Long Jin
- Key Laboratory of Southwest China Wildlife Resources Conservation (Ministry of Education), China West Normal University, Nanchong, 637009, Sichuan, China
- Key Laboratory of Artificial Propagation and Utilization in Anurans of Nanchong City, China West Normal University, Nanchong, 637009, Sichuan, China
- Institute of Eco-adaptation in Amphibians and Reptiles, China West Normal University, Nanchong, 637009, Sichuan, China
| | - Yi Qiang Fu
- College of Life Science, Sichuan Normal University, Chengdu, 610101, Sichuan, China
| | - Wen Bo Liao
- Key Laboratory of Southwest China Wildlife Resources Conservation (Ministry of Education), China West Normal University, Nanchong, 637009, Sichuan, China
- Key Laboratory of Artificial Propagation and Utilization in Anurans of Nanchong City, China West Normal University, Nanchong, 637009, Sichuan, China
- Institute of Eco-adaptation in Amphibians and Reptiles, China West Normal University, Nanchong, 637009, Sichuan, China
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Stępniewski J, Halupka L, Czyż B. Eggs of little bitterns show high variation and their size increases with latitude. THE EUROPEAN ZOOLOGICAL JOURNAL 2021. [DOI: 10.1080/24750263.2021.1953159] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
| | - L. Halupka
- Ornithological Station, University of Wrocław, Wrocław, Poland
| | - B. Czyż
- Department of Behavioural Ecology, University of Wrocław, Wrocław, Poland
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Lefort KJ, Major HL, Bond AL, Diamond AW, Jones IL, Montevecchi WA, Provencher JF, Robertson GJ. Long-term stability in the volume of Atlantic Puffin (Fratercula arctica) eggs in the western North Atlantic. CAN J ZOOL 2021. [DOI: 10.1139/cjz-2020-0254] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
In the eastern North Atlantic, declines in the volume of Atlantic Puffin (Fratercula arctica (Linnaeus, 1758)) eggs have been associated with shifts in the marine ecosystem, such as changes in the abundance of forage fishes and increasing sea-surface temperatures. In the western North Atlantic, where similar shifts in oceanographic conditions and changes in the abundance of forage fishes have presumably occurred, trends in the volume of Atlantic Puffin eggs remain unknown. In this study, we investigate Atlantic Puffin egg volume in the western North Atlantic. We compiled 140 years (1877–2016) of egg volume measurements (n = 1805) and used general additive mixed-effects models to investigate temporal trends and regional variation. Our findings indicate that Atlantic Puffin egg volume differs regionally but has remained unchanged temporally in the western North Atlantic since at least the 1980s.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kyle J. Lefort
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of New Brunswick, Saint John, NB E2L 4L5, Canada
| | - Heather L. Major
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of New Brunswick, Saint John, NB E2L 4L5, Canada
| | - Alexander L. Bond
- Department of Biology, University of Saskatchewan, and Environment and Climate Change Canada, Saskatoon, SK S7N 3H5, Canada
| | - Antony W. Diamond
- Atlantic Laboratory for Avian Research, University of New Brunswick, Fredericton, NB E3B 5A3, Canada
| | - Ian L. Jones
- Department of Biology, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John’s, NL A1B 3X9, Canada
| | - William A. Montevecchi
- Departments of Psychology, Biology, and Ocean Sciences, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John’s, NL A1B 3X9, Canada
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Gauzere J, Walling CA, Pick JL, Watt K, Jack P, Morris A, Morris S, Pemberton JM. The role of maternally transferred antibodies in maternal performance in red deer. Ecol Lett 2021; 24:2065-2076. [PMID: 34245475 DOI: 10.1111/ele.13834] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2021] [Revised: 03/25/2021] [Accepted: 06/04/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Maternal effects are ubiquitous. Yet, the pathways through which maternal effects occur in wild mammals remain largely unknown. We hypothesise that maternal immune transfer is a key mechanism by which mothers can affect their offspring fitness, and that individual variation in maternally derived antibodies mainly depends on a mother's characteristics and the environmental conditions she experiences. To test this, we assayed six colostrum-derived antibodies in the plasma of 1447 neonates in a wild red deer population. Neonatal antibody levels were mainly affected by maternal genes, environmental variation and costs of prior reproductive investment. We found consistent heterogeneity in maternal performance across traits, with mothers producing the heaviest calves also having calves with more antibodies. Unexpectedly, antibody levels were not associated with calf survival. We provide a unique example of how evolutionary theory on maternal effects can be used to gain insight into the causes of maternal effects in wild populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julie Gauzere
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, EH9 3FL, UK
| | - Craig A Walling
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, EH9 3FL, UK
| | - Joel L Pick
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, EH9 3FL, UK
| | - Kathryn Watt
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, EH9 3FL, UK
| | - Penny Jack
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, EH9 3FL, UK
| | - Alison Morris
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, EH9 3FL, UK
| | - Sean Morris
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, EH9 3FL, UK
| | - Josephine M Pemberton
- Institute of Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, EH9 3FL, UK
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48
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Wilson KM, Burley NT. Female differential allocation in response to extrapair offspring and social mate attractiveness. Ecol Evol 2021; 11:7278-7291. [PMID: 34188812 PMCID: PMC8216983 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.7560] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2020] [Revised: 03/20/2021] [Accepted: 03/22/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Renewed debate over what benefits females might gain from producing extra-pair offspring emphasizes the possibility that apparent differences in quality between within-pair and extra-pair offspring are confounded by greater maternal investment in extra-pair offspring. Moreover, the attractiveness of a female's social mate can also influence contributions of both partners to a reproductive attempt. Here, we explore the complexities involved in parental investment decisions in response to extra-pair offspring and mate attractiveness with a focus on the female point of view. Adult zebra finches paired and reproduced in a colony setting. A male's early-life diet quality and his extra-pair reproductive success were used as metrics of his mating attractiveness. Females paired with males that achieved extra-pair success laid heavier eggs than other females and spent less time attending their nests than their mates or other females. Extra-pair nestlings were fed more protein-rich hen's egg than within-pair nestlings. Females producing extra-pair offspring had more surviving sons than females producing only within-pair offspring. Collectively, results show that females differentially allocate resources in response to offspring extra-pair status and their social mate's attractiveness. Females may also obtain fitness benefits through the production of extra-pair offspring.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kerianne M. Wilson
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary BiologyUniversity of CaliforniaIrvineCAUSA
- Evolution, Ecology and Organismal Biology DepartmentUniversity of CaliforniaRiversideCAUSA
| | - Nancy Tyler Burley
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary BiologyUniversity of CaliforniaIrvineCAUSA
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Cordero GA. Disentangling the correlated evolution of body size, life history, and ontogeny in miniaturized chelydroid turtles. Evol Dev 2021; 23:439-458. [PMID: 34037309 DOI: 10.1111/ede.12386] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2021] [Revised: 04/27/2021] [Accepted: 05/03/2021] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Organismal miniaturization is defined by a reduction in body size relative to a large ancestor. In vertebrate animals, miniaturization is achieved by suppressing the energetics of growth. However, this might interfere with reproductive strategies in egg-laying species with limited energy budgets for embryo growth and differentiation. In general, the extent to which miniaturization coincides with alterations in animal development remains obscure. To address the interplay among body size, life history, and ontogeny, miniaturization in chelydroid turtles was examined. The analyses corroborated that miniaturization in the Chelydroidea clade is underlain by a dampening of the ancestral growth trajectory. There were no associated shifts in the early sequence of developmental transformations, though the relative duration of organogenesis was shortened in miniaturized embryos. The size of eggs, hatchlings, and adults was positively correlated within Chelydroidea. A phylogenetically broader exploration revealed an alternative miniaturization mode wherein exceptionally large hatchlings grow minimally and thus attain diminutive adult sizes. Lastly, it is shown that miniaturized Chelydroidea turtles undergo accelerated ossification coupled with a ~10% reduction in shell bones. As in other vertebrates, the effects of miniaturization were not systemic, possibly owing to opposing functional demands and tissue geometric constraints. This underscores the integrated and hierarchical nature of developmental systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gerardo A Cordero
- Department of Geosciences, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
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50
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Sin SYW, Hoover BA, Nevitt GA, Edwards SV. Demographic History, Not Mating System, Explains Signatures of Inbreeding and Inbreeding Depression in a Large Outbred Population. Am Nat 2021; 197:658-676. [PMID: 33989142 DOI: 10.1086/714079] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
AbstractInbreeding depression is often found in small, inbred populations, but whether it can be detected in and have evolutionary consequences for large, wide-ranging populations is poorly known. Here, we investigate the possibility of inbreeding in a large population to determine whether mild levels of inbreeding can still have genetic and phenotypic consequences and how genomically widespread these effects can be. We apply genome-wide methods to investigate whether individual and parental heterozygosity is related to morphological, growth, or life-history traits in a pelagic seabird, Leach's storm-petrel (Oceanodroma leucorhoa). Examining 560 individuals as part of a multiyear study, we found a substantial effect of maternal heterozygosity on chick traits: chicks from less heterozygous (relatively inbred) mothers were significantly smaller than chicks from more heterozygous (noninbred) mothers. We show that these heterozygosity-fitness correlations were due to general genome-wide effects and demonstrate a correlation between heterozygosity and inbreeding, suggesting inbreeding depression. We used population genetic models to further show that the variance in inbreeding was probably due to past demographic events rather than the current mating system and ongoing mate choice. Our findings demonstrate that inbreeding depression can be observed in large populations and illustrate how the integration of genomic techniques and fieldwork can elucidate its underlying causes.
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