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van Iersel R, Boiten G, Pinxten R, Eens M. Untangling behaviours: independent expressions of female-female aggression and snake-like hissing in the blue tit (Cyanistes caeruleus). Sci Rep 2023; 13:16346. [PMID: 37770619 PMCID: PMC10539291 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-43652-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2023] [Accepted: 09/26/2023] [Indexed: 09/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Aggression plays a crucial role in deterring predators and securing resources to promote fitness. Nevertheless, studies focussing on female aggression remain scarce. In songbirds, aggression is prevalent during the breeding season, when same-sex individuals compete for limited resources. Additionally, females of some bird species exhibit snake-like hissing behaviour during incubation presumably to lower predation rates and improve fitness. Such behaviours may co-vary, forming a behavioural syndrome that could constrain trait expression. Here, we investigated a resident population of blue tits (Cyanistes caeruleus), to examine the repeatability and covariation of female-female aggression and hissing behaviour, aiming to determine if these constitute a behavioural syndrome. We quantified female-female aggression during simulated territorial intrusions and measured number of hissing calls in response to a simulated predator intrusion into the nest box. We found that both female-female aggression and hissing behaviour were repeatable traits, and that older females approached the intruder less. However, we found no evidence of covariation between female-female aggression and hissing behaviour. Thus, our findings suggest that female-female aggression and hissing behaviour, although both displayed in a nest defence context, are evolutionarily independent traits in the blue tit.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robin van Iersel
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610, Antwerp, Belgium.
| | - Gust Boiten
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610, Antwerp, Belgium
- Research Group Didactica, Antwerp School of Education, University of Antwerp, 2610, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Marcel Eens
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610, Antwerp, Belgium
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2
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Boiten G, van Iersel R, Pinxten R, Eens M. Females Are More Aggressive Than Males towards Same- and Opposite-Sex Intruders in the Blue Tit ( Cyanistes caeruleus). Animals (Basel) 2023; 13:ani13040585. [PMID: 36830372 PMCID: PMC9951734 DOI: 10.3390/ani13040585] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2023] [Revised: 02/03/2023] [Accepted: 02/06/2023] [Indexed: 02/11/2023] Open
Abstract
During the breeding season, aggression is expressed to gain access to resources such as territories and mates and protect offspring. Female aggressiveness has received much less attention than male aggressiveness, and few studies have examined female and male aggressiveness towards intruders of both sexes in the same species. We compared female and male aggressiveness towards same- and opposite-sex intruders during the egg-laying period in blue tits (Cyanistes caeruleus) using simulated territorial intrusions. For each sex, we examined the occurrence of different behavioural responses during agonistic encounters, and compared the intensity and individual consistency of intra- and inter-sexual aggression using same- and opposite-sex taxidermy mounts. Our results show that females are the more aggressive sex. Both sexes showed similar behaviours during simulated intrusions, although females were never observed singing and males never entered the nest box. In females, aggression was predominantly independent of the sex of the intruder, while males sang more from a distance during male-male encounters. The relative levels of aggression (pecking and perching on the mounts) during intra- and intersexual conflicts were consistent for females, but not for males. Females might be under stronger selection for aggressive phenotypes due to nest-hole competition and larger reproductive investments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gust Boiten
- Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, 2610 Antwerp, Belgium
- Correspondence:
| | - Robin van Iersel
- Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, 2610 Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, 2610 Antwerp, Belgium
- Research Group Didactica, Antwerp School of Education, University of Antwerp, 2610 Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Marcel Eens
- Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, 2610 Antwerp, Belgium
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3
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Vriend SJG, Grøtan V, Gamelon M, Adriaensen F, Ahola MP, Álvarez E, Bailey LD, Barba E, Bouvier JC, Burgess MD, Bushuev A, Camacho C, Canal D, Charmantier A, Cole EF, Cusimano C, Doligez BF, Drobniak SM, Dubiec A, Eens M, Eeva T, Erikstad KE, Ferns PN, Goodenough AE, Hartley IR, Hinsley SA, Ivankina E, Juškaitis R, Kempenaers B, Kerimov AB, Kålås JA, Lavigne C, Leivits A, Mainwaring MC, Martínez-Padilla J, Matthysen E, van Oers K, Orell M, Pinxten R, Reiertsen TK, Rytkönen S, Senar JC, Sheldon BC, Sorace A, Török J, Vatka E, Visser ME, Saether BE. Temperature synchronizes temporal variation in laying dates across European hole-nesting passerines. Ecology 2023; 104:e3908. [PMID: 36314902 PMCID: PMC10078612 DOI: 10.1002/ecy.3908] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2021] [Revised: 09/02/2022] [Accepted: 09/20/2022] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
Identifying the environmental drivers of variation in fitness-related traits is a central objective in ecology and evolutionary biology. Temporal fluctuations of these environmental drivers are often synchronized at large spatial scales. Yet, whether synchronous environmental conditions can generate spatial synchrony in fitness-related trait values (i.e., correlated temporal trait fluctuations across populations) is poorly understood. Using data from long-term monitored populations of blue tits (Cyanistes caeruleus, n = 31), great tits (Parus major, n = 35), and pied flycatchers (Ficedula hypoleuca, n = 20) across Europe, we assessed the influence of two local climatic variables (mean temperature and mean precipitation in February-May) on spatial synchrony in three fitness-related traits: laying date, clutch size, and fledgling number. We found a high degree of spatial synchrony in laying date but a lower degree in clutch size and fledgling number for each species. Temperature strongly influenced spatial synchrony in laying date for resident blue tits and great tits but not for migratory pied flycatchers. This is a relevant finding in the context of environmental impacts on populations because spatial synchrony in fitness-related trait values among populations may influence fluctuations in vital rates or population abundances. If environmentally induced spatial synchrony in fitness-related traits increases the spatial synchrony in vital rates or population abundances, this will ultimately increase the risk of extinction for populations and species. Assessing how environmental conditions influence spatiotemporal variation in trait values improves our mechanistic understanding of environmental impacts on populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefan J G Vriend
- Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics, Department of Biology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.,Department of Animal Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW), Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Vidar Grøtan
- Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics, Department of Biology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
| | - Marlène Gamelon
- Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics, Department of Biology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.,Laboratoire de Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive UMR 5558, CNRS, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Villeurbanne, France
| | - Frank Adriaensen
- Evolutionary Ecology Group, Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Markus P Ahola
- Environmental Research and Monitoring, Swedish Museum of Natural History, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Elena Álvarez
- Ecology of Terrestrial Vertebrates, 'Cavanilles' Institute of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology, University of Valencia, Valencia, Spain
| | - Liam D Bailey
- Department of Animal Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW), Wageningen, The Netherlands.,Department of Evolutionary Genetics, Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research (IZW) in the Forschungsverbund Berlin e.V, Berlin, Germany
| | - Emilio Barba
- Ecology of Terrestrial Vertebrates, 'Cavanilles' Institute of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology, University of Valencia, Valencia, Spain
| | | | - Malcolm D Burgess
- RSPB Centre for Conservation Science, Sandy, UK.,Centre for Research in Animal Behaviour, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK
| | - Andrey Bushuev
- Department of Vertebrate Zoology, Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
| | - Carlos Camacho
- Department of Biological Conservation and Ecosystem Restoration, Pyrenean Institute of Ecology (IPE-CSIC), Jaca, Spain
| | - David Canal
- Institute of Ecology and Botany, Centre for Ecological Research, Vácrátót, Hungary
| | | | - Ella F Cole
- Department of Zoology, Edward Grey Institute, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | | | - Blandine F Doligez
- Laboratoire de Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive UMR 5558, CNRS, Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Villeurbanne, France.,Department of Ecology and Genetics/Animal Ecology, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Szymon M Drobniak
- Institute of Environmental Sciences, Jagiellonian University, Krakow, Poland.,Evolution & Ecology Research Centre, School of Biological, Environmental and Earth Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Anna Dubiec
- Museum and Institute of Zoology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Marcel Eens
- Behavioural Ecology & Ecophysiology Group, Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Tapio Eeva
- Department of Biology, University of Turku, Turku, Finland.,Kevo Subarctic Research Institute, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
| | - Kjell Einar Erikstad
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA), FRAM High North Research Centre for Climate and the Environment, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Peter N Ferns
- Cardiff School of Biosciences, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - Anne E Goodenough
- School of Natural and Social Sciences, University of Gloucestershire, Cheltenham, UK
| | - Ian R Hartley
- Lancaster Environment Centre, Lancaster University, Lancaster, UK
| | | | - Elena Ivankina
- Zvenigorod Biological Station, Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
| | | | - Bart Kempenaers
- Department of Behavioural Ecology and Evolutionary Genetics, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Seewiesen, Germany
| | - Anvar B Kerimov
- Department of Vertebrate Zoology, Moscow State University, Moscow, Russia
| | - John Atle Kålås
- Department of Terrestrial Ecology, Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA), Trondheim, Norway
| | - Claire Lavigne
- INRAE, Plantes et Systèmes de culture Horticoles, Avignon, France
| | - Agu Leivits
- Department of Nature Conservation, Environmental Board, Saarde, Estonia
| | | | - Jesús Martínez-Padilla
- Department of Biological Conservation and Ecosystem Restoration, Pyrenean Institute of Ecology (IPE-CSIC), Jaca, Spain
| | - Erik Matthysen
- Evolutionary Ecology Group, Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Kees van Oers
- Department of Animal Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW), Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Markku Orell
- Ecology and Genetics Research Unit, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Research Group Didactica, Antwerp School of Education, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Tone Kristin Reiertsen
- Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA), FRAM High North Research Centre for Climate and the Environment, Tromsø, Norway
| | - Seppo Rytkönen
- Ecology and Genetics Research Unit, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Juan Carlos Senar
- Evolutionary and Behavioural Ecology Research Unit, Museu de Ciències Naturals de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Ben C Sheldon
- Department of Zoology, Edward Grey Institute, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Alberto Sorace
- Institute for Environmental Protection and Research, Rome, Italy
| | - János Török
- Behavioural Ecology Group, Department of Systematic Zoology and Ecology, Eötvös Loránd University (ELTE), Budapest, Hungary
| | - Emma Vatka
- Ecology and Genetics Research Unit, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland.,Ecological Genetics Research Unit, Organismal and Evolutionary Biology Research Programme, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Marcel E Visser
- Department of Animal Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW), Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Bernt-Erik Saether
- Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics, Department of Biology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
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Grunst AS, Grunst ML, Raap T, Pinxten R, Eens M. Anthropogenic noise and light pollution additively affect sleep behaviour in free-living birds in sex- and season-dependent fashions. Environ Pollut 2023; 316:120426. [PMID: 36273698 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2022.120426] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2022] [Revised: 09/25/2022] [Accepted: 10/10/2022] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Rapid anthropogenic transformation of environments exposes organisms to diverse disturbance factors, including anthropogenic noise pollution and artificial light at night (ALAN). These sensory pollutants interfere with acquisition of, and response to, environmental cues and can be perceived as stressors. Noise pollution and ALAN are often experienced simultaneously, and are thus likely to jointly affect organisms, either additively or interactively. Yet, combined effects of noise pollution and ALAN remain poorly elucidated. We studied combined effects of noise pollution and ALAN on the sleep behaviour of a free-living songbird, the great tit (Parus major). Sleep is widely conserved across animal taxa and fulfils essential functions, and research has demonstrated independent effects of both noise and ALAN on sleep. We measured noise and light levels at nest boxes and used infrared video-recording to assess sleep behaviour. Results did not support interactive effects of noise and ALAN. However, noise pollution and ALAN were both independently related to variation in sleep behaviour, in sex- and season-dependent fashions. Males, but not females, woke up and left the nest box ∼20 min later in the noisiest as compared to quietest environments (range: 44.2-79.4 dB), perhaps because males are more sensitive to acoustical cues that are masked by noise. Furthermore, as the season progressed from November to early March, birds woke up and left the nest box ∼35 min earlier relative to sunrise on territories with the lowest, but not the highest, light levels (range: 0.01-8.5 lux). Thus, the seasonal difference in sleep duration was dampened on light polluted territories. These effects could arise if ALAN interferes with birds' ability to sense and respond to increasing daylength, and could have fitness ramifications. Our study suggests that noise pollution and ALAN exert additive effects on sleep behaviour, and that these effects can be sex- and season-dependent.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrea S Grunst
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium; Littoral, Environnement et Sociétés (LIENSs), UMR 7266 CNRS-La Rochelle Université, 2 Rue Olympe de Gouges, FR-17000 La Rochelle, France.
| | - Melissa L Grunst
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium; Littoral, Environnement et Sociétés (LIENSs), UMR 7266 CNRS-La Rochelle Université, 2 Rue Olympe de Gouges, FR-17000 La Rochelle, France
| | - Thomas Raap
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium; Faculty of Social Sciences, Antwerp School of Education, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Marcel Eens
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium
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5
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Grunst ML, Grunst AS, Pinxten R, Eens G, Eens M. An Experimental Approach to Investigating Effects of Artificial Light at Night on Free-Ranging Animals: Implementation, Results, and Directions for Future Research. J Vis Exp 2022. [DOI: 10.3791/63381] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/31/2022] Open
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6
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Grunst AS, Grunst ML, Staes N, Thys B, Pinxten R, Eens M. Serotonin transporter (SERT) polymorphisms, personality and problem-solving in urban great tits. Sci Rep 2021; 11:24270. [PMID: 34930949 PMCID: PMC8688470 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-021-03466-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2021] [Accepted: 11/02/2021] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Understanding underlying genetic variation can elucidate how diversity in behavioral phenotypes evolves and is maintained. Genes in the serotonergic signaling pathway, including the serotonin transporter gene (SERT), are candidates for affecting animal personality, cognition and fitness. In a model species, the great tit (Parus major), we reevaluated previous findings suggesting relationships between SERT polymorphisms, neophobia, exploratory behavior and fitness parameters, and performed a first test of the relationship between single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in SERT and problem-solving in birds. We found some evidence for associations between SERT SNPs and neophobia, exploratory behavior and laying date. Furthermore, several SNPs were associated with behavioral patterns and success rates during obstacle removal problem-solving tests performed at nest boxes. In females, minor allele homozygotes (AA) for nonsynonymous SNP226 in exon 1 made fewer incorrect attempts and were more likely to problem-solve. In both sexes, there was some evidence that minor allele homozygotes (CC) for SNP84 in exon 9 were more likely to problem-solve. Only one SNP-behavior relationship was statistically significant after correcting for multiple comparisons, but several were associated with substantial effect sizes. Our study provides a foundation for future research on the genetic basis of behavioral and cognitive variation in wild animal populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrea S Grunst
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium.
- Littoral Environnement Et Sociétés, La Rochelle Université, La Rochelle, France.
| | - Melissa L Grunst
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
- Littoral Environnement Et Sociétés, La Rochelle Université, La Rochelle, France
| | - Nicky Staes
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
- Centre for Research and Conservation, Royal Zoological Society of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Bert Thys
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
- Faculty of Social Sciences, Antwerp School of Education, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Marcel Eens
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
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7
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Grunst ML, Grunst AS, Pinxten R, Eens M. Variable and consistent traffic noise negatively affect the sleep behavior of a free-living songbird. Sci Total Environ 2021; 778:146338. [PMID: 34030359 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.146338] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2020] [Revised: 03/03/2021] [Accepted: 03/04/2021] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Anthropogenic noise is a ubiquitous disturbance factor, which, owing to the extensive nature of transportation networks, and ability of sound waves to penetrate distances, has wide-reaching impacts on biological communities. Research effort on biological effects of anthropogenic noise is extensive, but has focused on waking behavior, and to our knowledge, no published experimental study exists on how noise affects sleep in free-living animals. Sleep plays vital functions in processes such as cellular repair and memory consolidation. Thus, understanding the potential for noise to disrupt sleep is a critical research objective. Whether different noise regimes exert distinct effects on behavior also remains poorly understood, as does intraspecific variation in noise sensitivity. To address these knowledge gaps, we used a repeated-measures field experiment involving broad-casting traffic noise recordings at great tit (Parus major) nest boxes over a series of consecutive nights. We evaluated whether increasing the temporal variability and amplitude of traffic noise increased deleterious effects on sleep behavior in free-living great tits, and whether individuals differed in the magnitude of responses. We found that traffic noise reduced sleep duration, proportion, and bout length, and induced birds to exit nest boxes earlier in the morning. There was some support for a stronger effect of more variable noise, and relative to lower amplitude noise, higher amplitude noise resulted in less and more fragmented sleep. Effects of noise on sleep duration were stronger in older adults, and substantial, repeatable variation existed in individual responses. We demonstrate for the first time that anthropogenic noise can have strong effects on sleep in free-living animals, which may have cascading effects on waking behavior, physiology and fitness. Results suggest that reducing the amplitude of traffic noise may be an effective mitigation strategy, and that differences in individual sensitivity are important to consider when evaluating effects of noise exposure. CAPSULE: Experimental exposure to temporally variable and consistent traffic noise negatively affected sleep behavior in a free-living songbird.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melissa L Grunst
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium.
| | - Andrea S Grunst
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium; Faculty of Social Sciences, Didactica Research Group, University of Antwerp, 2000 Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Marcel Eens
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
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8
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Grunst ML, Grunst AS, Pinxten R, Eens M. Little parental response to anthropogenic noise in an urban songbird, but evidence for individual differences in sensitivity. Sci Total Environ 2021; 769:144554. [PMID: 33477051 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.144554] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2020] [Revised: 12/08/2020] [Accepted: 12/13/2020] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Anthropogenic noise exposure has well-documented behavioral, physiological and fitness effects on organisms. However, whether different noise regimes evoke distinct responses has rarely been investigated, despite implications for tailoring noise mitigation policies. Urban animals might display low responsiveness to certain anthropogenic noise regimes, especially consistent noise (e.g. freeway noise), but might remain more sensitive to more diverse noise regimes. Additionally, whether individuals differ in noise sensitivity is a rarely explored issue, which is important to fully understand organismal responses to noise. To address these knowledge gaps, we used a field experiment to measure how urban great tits (Parus major) altered parental behaviors in response to two noise regimes: consistent freeway noise, and a diverse anthropogenic noise regime that incorporated variability in noise type and temporal occurrence. We also evaluated whether sex, age, or a well-described personality trait, novel environment exploration behavior, were associated with responses to noise, although our power to assess individual differences in responses was somewhat limited. We found no evidence for mean population-level changes in nestling provisioning behaviors during either noise treatment. However, despite this overall canalization of behavior, there was evidence for individual differences in noise sensitivity, particularly during the diverse noise treatment. Females and birds that explored a novel environment more rapidly (fast explorers) reduced nestling provisioning rate more relative to baseline levels than males and slow explorers during the diverse urban noise, but not during the consistent freeway noise. Furthermore, first year breeders and fast explorers displayed larger increases in latency to return to the nest box relative to baseline conditions during the diverse noise only. Results suggest that urban animal populations might become overall tolerant to anthropogenic noise, but that certain individuals within these populations nonetheless remain sensitive to certain types of noise exposure. CAPSULE: In an urban songbird, we found no population-level changes in nestling provisioning behavior during noise exposure, but did find evidence for individual differences in noise sensitivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melissa L Grunst
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium.
| | - Andrea S Grunst
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium; Faculty of Social Sciences, Didactica Research group, University of Antwerp, 2000 Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Marcel Eens
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
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9
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10
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Grunst AS, Grunst ML, Pinxten R, Eens M. Sources of individual variation in problem-solving performance in urban great tits (Parus major): Exploring effects of metal pollution, urban disturbance and personality. Sci Total Environ 2020; 749:141436. [PMID: 32841856 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2020.141436] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2020] [Revised: 07/28/2020] [Accepted: 07/31/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
Despite growing research effort, we have a limited understanding of how urban disturbance factors affect cognitive traits, such as innovative problem-solving. We performed an initial assessment of how metal pollution and urbanization levels on territories are related to problem-solving performance in urban great tits (Parus major), by presenting an obstacle removal test at nest boxes in three urban nest box populations that are exposed to different levels of metal pollution. We predicted that problem-solving capacity might be reduced within the most polluted population due to pollution-related neurological impairments. On the other hand, we predicted that problem-solving might positively correlate with urban disturbance levels on territories, because some past research suggests that problem-solving promotes persistence in urbanized habitats. We also assessed relationships between exploratory personality type, behavioral patterns during tests, and problem-solving performance, and examined the repeatability and fitness correlates of problem-solving. We found no evidence that behavioral patterns or problem-solving performance were related to metal exposure or exploratory personality, or that problem-solving promotes reproductive success. However, birds on territories exposed to more urban disturbance, as quantified by proximity to paths and roads, were more likely to problem-solve. Moreover, an aggressive problem-solving approach negatively predicted problem-solving success, and behavioral patterns during tests and problem-solving success were repeatable. Thus, rather than indicating negative effects of pollution or urban disturbance on problem-solving performance, our study provides preliminary support for the hypothesis that urbanization favors innovative problem-solving, and suggests that problem-solving could be associated with a personality dimension independent of exploratory personality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrea S Grunst
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium.
| | - Melissa L Grunst
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium; Faculty of Social Sciences, Didactica Research Group, University of Antwerp, 2000 Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Marcel Eens
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
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11
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Abstract
Abstract
Personality (i.e., among-individual variation in average behavior) often covaries with fitness, but how such personality–fitness relationships come about is poorly understood. Here, we explore potential mechanisms by which two female personality traits (female–female aggression and female nest defense as manifested by hissing behavior) were linked with annual reproductive success in a population of great tits (Parus major), a socially monogamous species with biparental care. We hypothesized that personality-related differences in reproductive success result from variation in reproductive decision (lay date, brood size) and/or parental provisioning rates. Relative support for these mechanisms was evaluated using path analysis on data collected in two successive years. We reveal that larger broods were provisioned at a higher rate by both parents and that female, but not male, provisioning rate was involved in the trade-off between offspring number (brood size) and fledgling mass. Among-individual variation in female aggression, via its association with female provisioning rate, was negatively linked to fledgling mass (i.e., indirect effect), yet only in one of the study years. Male provisioning rate did not influence these relationships. In contrast, among-individual variation in hissing behavior was directly and negatively linked with fledgling mass in both years, via an underlying mechanism that remains to be identified (i.e., direct effect). Together, our findings emphasize that personality–fitness relationships may come about via different mechanisms across personality traits and/or years, thereby illustrating additional complexity in how selection might act on and maintain among-individual variation in behavioral phenotypes in the wild.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bert Thys
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Marcel Eens
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, Wilrijk, Belgium
- Faculty of Social Sciences, Antwerp School of Education, University of Antwerp, Venusstraat 35, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Arne Iserbyt
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, Wilrijk, Belgium
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12
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Møller AP, Balbontín J, Dhondt AA, Adriaensen F, Artemyev A, Bańbura J, Barba E, Biard C, Blondel J, Bouvier J, Camprodon J, Cecere F, Charter M, Cichoń M, Cusimano C, Dubiec A, Doligez B, Eens M, Eeva T, Ferns PN, Forsman JT, Goldshtein A, Goodenough AE, Gosler AG, Gustafsson L, Harnist I, Hartley IR, Heeb P, Hinsley SA, Jacob S, Järvinen A, Juškaitis R, Korpimäki E, Krams I, Laaksonen T, Leclercq B, Lehikoinen E, Loukola O, Mainwaring MC, Mänd R, Massa B, Matthysen E, Mazgajski TD, Merino S, Mitrus C, Mönkkönen M, Nager RG, Nilsson J, Nilsson SG, Norte AC, von Numers M, Orell M, Pimentel CS, Pinxten R, Priedniece I, Remeš V, Richner H, Robles H, Rytkönen S, Senar JC, Seppänen JT, da Silva LP, Slagsvold T, Solonen T, Sorace A, Stenning MJ, Török J, Tryjanowski P, van Noordwijk AJ, Walankiewicz W, Lambrechts MM. Interaction of climate change with effects of conspecific and heterospecific density on reproduction. OIKOS 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/oik.07305] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Anders Pape Møller
- Ecologie Systematique Evolution, CNRS, AgroParisTech, Univ. Paris-Saclay Orsay Cedex France
- Ministry of Education Key Laboratory for Biodiversity Science and Ecological Engineering, College of Life Sciences, Beijing Normal Univ. Beijing PR China
| | | | | | | | - Alexandr Artemyev
- Inst. of Biology of the Karelian Research Centre, Russian Academy of Sciences (IB KRC RAS) Russia
| | - Jerzy Bańbura
- Dept of Experimental Zoology and Evolutionary Biology, Univ. of Łodź Łodź Poland
| | - Emilio Barba
- Terrestrial Vertebrates Research Unit ‘Cavanilles’, Inst. of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology, Univ. of Valencia Paterna Spain
| | - Clotilde Biard
- Sorbonne Univ., UPEC, Paris 7, CNRS, INRA, IRD, Inst. d'Écologie et des Sciences de l'Environnement de Paris, iEES Paris Paris France
| | - Jacques Blondel
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, CEFE UMR 5175 Montpellier France
| | | | - Jordi Camprodon
- Àrea de Biodiversitat, Grup de Biologia de la Conservació, Centre Tecnològic Forestal de Catalunya Solsona Spain
| | | | - Motti Charter
- Shamir Research Institute and Dept of Evolutionary and Environmental Biology, Univ. of Haifa Haifa Israel
| | - Mariusz Cichoń
- Jagiellonian Univ., Inst. of Environmental Sciences Krakow Poland
| | | | - Anna Dubiec
- CNRS, Dept of Biometry and Evolutionary Biology, Univ. de Lyon Villeurbanne France
| | - Blandine Doligez
- Museum and Inst. of Zoology, Polish Academy of Sciences Warsaw Poland
| | - Marcel Eens
- Dept of Biology, Univ. of Antwerp Antwerp Belgium
| | - Tapio Eeva
- Dept of Biology, Univ. of Turku Turku Finland
| | - Peter N. Ferns
- Cardiff Univ., School of Biosciences, Cardiff S Glam Wales
| | | | | | - Anne E. Goodenough
- Dept of Natural and Social Sciences, Univ. of Gloucestershire Cheltenham UK
| | - Andrew G. Gosler
- Dept of Zoology, Edward Grey Inst. of Field Ornithology and Inst. of Human Sciences Oxford UK
| | - Lars Gustafsson
- Dept of Ecology and Genetics/Animal Ecology, Evolutionary Biology Centre, Uppsala Univ. Uppsala Sweden
| | - Iga Harnist
- Museum and Inst. of Zoology, Polish Academy of Sciences Warsaw Poland
| | - Ian R. Hartley
- Lancaster Environment Centre, Lancaster Univ. Lancaster UK
| | - Philipp Heeb
- Laboratoire Évolution & Diversité Biologique, UPS Toulouse III Toulouse France
| | | | - Staffan Jacob
- Station d'Ecologie Théorique et Expérimentale Moulis France
| | | | | | | | - Indrikis Krams
- Univ. Tartu, Inst. of Ecology and Earth Sciences Tartu Estonia
| | | | | | | | - Olli Loukola
- Dept of Ecology and Genetics, Univ. of Oulu Finland
| | | | - Raivo Mänd
- Univ. Tartu, Inst. of Ecology and Earth Sciences Tartu Estonia
| | | | | | | | - Santiago Merino
- CSIC, Depto de Ecología Evolutiva Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales, Agencia Estatal Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas CSIC Madrid Spain
| | - Cezary Mitrus
- Dept of Vertebrate Ecology and Palaeontology, Wrocław Univ. of Environmental and Life Sciences Wrocław Poland
| | - Mikko Mönkkönen
- Univ. of Jyväskylä, Dept of Biological and Environmental Sciences, Univ. of Jyväskylä Finland
| | - Ruedi G. Nager
- Inst. of Biodiversity, Animal Health and Comparative Medicine, Univ. of Glasgow Glasgow UK
| | | | | | - Ana C. Norte
- MARE – Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre, Dept of Life Sciences, Univ. of Coimbra Coimbra Portugal
| | | | - Markku Orell
- Dept of Ecology and Genetics, Univ. of Oulu Finland
| | - Carla S. Pimentel
- Centro de Estudos Florestais, Instituto Superior de Agronomia, Univ. of Lisbon Lisbon Portugal
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Research Group, Dept of Biology, Wilrijk and Faculty of Social Sciences, Research Unit Didactica, Univ. of Antwerp Antwerp Belgium
| | | | - Vladimir Remeš
- Laboratory of Ornithology, Dept of Zoology, Palacky Univ. Olomouc Czech Republic
| | - Heinz Richner
- Univ. of Bern, Inst. of Ecology and Evolution (IEE) Bern Switzerland
| | - Hugo Robles
- Evolutionary Ecology Group (GIBE), Falculty of Sciences, Univ. of A Coruña A Coruña Spain
- Evolutionary Ecology Group (EVECO), Dept of Biology, Univ. of Antwerp Antwerp Belgium
| | | | - Juan Carlos Senar
- Unidad de Ecología Evolutiva y de la Conducta, Museu de Ciències Naturals de Barcelona Barcelona Spain
| | - Janne T. Seppänen
- Univ. of Jyväskylä, Dept of Biological and Environmental Sciences, Univ. of Jyväskylä Finland
| | - Luís P. da Silva
- CIBIO-InBIO, Research Center in Biodiversity and Genetic Resources, Univ. of Porto Vairão Portugal
| | | | | | | | | | - János Török
- Dept of Systematic Zoology and Ecology, ELTE Eötvös Lorand Univ. Budapest Hungary
| | | | | | | | - Marcel M. Lambrechts
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, CEFE UMR 5175, Campus CNRS Montpellier France
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Grunst ML, Grunst AS, Pinxten R, Eens M. Anthropogenic noise is associated with telomere length and carotenoid-based coloration in free-living nestling songbirds. Environ Pollut 2020; 260:114032. [PMID: 32006886 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2020.114032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/04/2019] [Revised: 12/09/2019] [Accepted: 01/21/2020] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Growing evidence suggests that anthropogenic noise has deleterious effects on the behavior and physiology of free-living animals. These effects may be particularly pronounced early in life, when developmental trajectories are sensitive to stressors, yet studies investigating developmental effects of noise exposure in free-living populations remain scarce. To elucidate the effects of noise exposure during development, we examined whether noise exposure is associated with shorter telomeres, duller carotenoid-based coloration and reduced body mass in nestlings of a common urban bird, the great tit (Parus major). We also assessed how the noise environment is related to reproductive success. We obtained long-term measurements of the noise environment, over a ∼24-h period, and characterized both the amplitude (measured by LAeq, LA90, LA10, LAmax) and variance in noise levels, since more stochastic, as well as louder, noise regimes might be more likely to induce stress. In our urban population, noise levels varied substantially, with louder, but less variable, noise characteristic of areas adjacent to a highway. Noise levels were also highly repeatable, suggesting that individuals experience consistent differences in noise exposure. The amplitude of noise near nest boxes was associated with shorter telomeres among smaller, but not larger, brood members. In addition, carotenoid chroma and hue were positively associated with variance in average and maximum noise levels, and average reflectance was negatively associated with variance in background noise. Independent of noise, hue was positively related to telomere length. Nestling mass and reproductive success were unaffected by noise exposure. Results indicate that multiple dimensions of the noise environment, or factors associated with the noise environment, could affect the phenotype of developing organisms, that noise exposure, or correlated variables, might have the strongest effects on sensitive groups of individuals, and that carotenoid hue could serve as a signal of early-life telomere length.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melissa L Grunst
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610, Wilrijk, Belgium.
| | - Andrea S Grunst
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610, Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610, Wilrijk, Belgium; Faculty of Social Sciences, Antwerp School of Education, Research Group Didactica, University of Antwerp, 2000, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Marcel Eens
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610, Wilrijk, Belgium
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Grunst ML, Raap T, Grunst AS, Pinxten R, Parenteau C, Angelier F, Eens M. Early-life exposure to artificial light at night elevates physiological stress in free-living songbirds ☆. Environ Pollut 2020; 259:113895. [PMID: 31926393 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2019.113895] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/13/2019] [Revised: 12/27/2019] [Accepted: 12/28/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Artificial light at night (ALAN) can disrupt adaptive patterns of physiology and behavior that promote high fitness, resulting in physiological stress and elevation of steroid glucocorticoids (corticosterone, CORT in birds). Elevated CORT may have particularly profound effects early in life, with the potential for enduring effects that persist into adulthood. Research on the consequences of early-life exposure to ALAN remains limited, especially outside of the laboratory, and whether light exposure affects CORT concentrations in wild nestling birds particularly remains to be elucidated. We used an experimental setup to test the hypothesis that ALAN elevates CORT concentrations in developing free-living birds, by exposing nestling great tits (Parus major) to ALAN inside nest boxes. We measured CORT in feathers grown over the timeframe of the experiment (7 nights), such that CORT concentrations represent an integrative metric of hormone release over the period of nocturnal light exposure, and of development. We also assessed the relationships between feather CORT concentrations, body condition, nestling size rank and fledging success. In addition, we evaluated the relationship between feather CORT concentrations and telomere length. Nestlings exposed to ALAN had higher feather CORT concentrations than control nestlings, and nestlings in poorer body condition and smaller brood members also had higher CORT. On the other hand, telomere length, fledging success, and recruitment rate were not significantly associated with light exposure or feather CORT concentrations. Results indicate that exposure to ALAN elevates CORT concentrations in nestlings, which may reflect physiological stress. In addition, the organizational effects of CORT are known to be substantial. Thus, despite the lack of an effect on telomere length and survivorship, elevated CORT concentrations in nestlings exposed to ALAN may have subsequent impacts on later-life fitness and stress sensitivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melissa L Grunst
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610, Wilrijk, Belgium.
| | - Thomas Raap
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610, Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Andrea S Grunst
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610, Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610, Wilrijk, Belgium; Faculty of Social Sciences, Didactica Research Group, University of Antwerp, 2000, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Charline Parenteau
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, CNRS-ULR, UMR 7372, Villiers en Bois, France
| | - Frédéric Angelier
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, CNRS-ULR, UMR 7372, Villiers en Bois, France
| | - Marcel Eens
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610, Wilrijk, Belgium
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Thys B, Pinxten R, Eens M. Does the tie fit the female? Melanin-based colouration, aggressive personality and reproductive investment in female great tits (Parus major). Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2020. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-020-2828-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
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16
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Grunst AS, Grunst ML, Bervoets L, Pinxten R, Eens M. Proximity to roads, but not exposure to metal pollution, is associated with accelerated developmental telomere shortening in nestling great tits. Environ Pollut 2020; 256:113373. [PMID: 31672366 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2019.113373] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2019] [Revised: 10/08/2019] [Accepted: 10/09/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Comprehensively understanding the factors affecting physiology and fitness in urban wildlife requires concurrently considering multiple stressors. To this end, we simultaneously assessed how metal pollution and proximity to roads affect body condition and telomere shortening between days 8 and 15 of age in nestling great tits (Parus major), a common urban bird. We employed a repeated-measures sampling design to compare telomere shortening and body condition between nestlings from four urban study sites south of Antwerp, Belgium, which are located at different distances from a metal pollution point source. In addition, we explored associations between metal exposure and telomere dynamics on the individual level by measuring blood concentrations of five metals/metalloids, of which lead, copper and zinc were present at concentrations above the limit of detection. To assess whether roadway-associated stressors (e.g. noise and air pollution) might affect nestling condition and telomere shortening, we measured the proximity of nest boxes to roads. Metal exposure was not associated with nestling telomere length or body condition, despite elevated blood lead concentrations close to the metal pollution source (mean ± SE = 0.270 ± 0.095 μg/g wet weight at the most polluted study site), suggesting that nestlings may have some capacity to detoxify metals. However, nestlings from nest boxes near roads exhibited more telomere shortening between days 8 and 15 of age, and shorter telomeres at day 15. Nestlings in poorer condition also had shorter telomeres, but proximity to the road was unrelated to body condition. Thus, nutritional stress is unlikely to mediate the relationship between proximity to roads and telomere length. Rather, proximity to roads could have affected telomere shortening by exposing nestlings to air or noise pollution. Our study highlights that traffic-related pollution, which is implicated in human health problems, might also affect urban wildlife.
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Affiliation(s)
- A S Grunst
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610, Wilrijk, Belgium.
| | - M L Grunst
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610, Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - L Bervoets
- Department of Biology, Systemic Physiological and Ecotoxicological Research Group, University of Antwerp, 2020, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - R Pinxten
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610, Wilrijk, Belgium; Faculty of Social Sciences, Antwerp School of Education, University of Antwerp, 2000, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - M Eens
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610, Wilrijk, Belgium
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Grunst ML, Grunst AS, Pinxten R, Bervoets L, Eens M. Carotenoid- but not melanin-based plumage coloration is negatively related to metal exposure and proximity to the road in an urban songbird. Environ Pollut 2020; 256:113473. [PMID: 31679871 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2019.113473] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2019] [Revised: 09/16/2019] [Accepted: 10/22/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Rapid urbanization is a global phenomenon that is increasingly exposing organisms to novel stressors. These novel stressors can affect diverse aspects of organismal function, including development of condition-dependent ornaments, which play critical roles in social and sexual selection. We investigated the relationship between metal pollution, proximity to roads, and carotenoid- and melanin-based plumage coloration in a common songbird, the great tit (Parus major). We studied populations located across a well-characterized metal pollution gradient and surrounded by roadway networks. Metal exposure and road-associated pollution could reduce carotenoid-based pigmentation by inducing oxidative stress or affecting habitat quality, but metals could also enhance melanin-based pigmentation, through effects on melanogenesis and testosterone concentrations. Using a large sample size (N > 500), we found that birds residing close to a point source for metals had reduced ultraviolet chroma, a component of carotenoid-based pigmentation. Moreover, birds with high feather metal concentrations had lower carotenoid chroma, hue, and ultraviolet chroma, with effects modified by age class. Birds residing closer to roads also had lower carotenoid chroma and hue. Melanin-based pigmentation showed high between-year repeatability, and no association with anthropogenic pollution. Results suggest that carotenoid-, but not melanin-, based pigmentation is negatively affected by multiple anthropogenic stressors. We are the first to demonstrate a negative association between roads and a plumage-based signaling trait, which could have important implications for sexual signaling dynamics in urban landscapes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melissa L Grunst
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610, Wilrijk, Belgium.
| | - Andrea S Grunst
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610, Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610, Wilrijk, Belgium; Faculty of Social Sciences, Didactica Research Group, University of Antwerp, 2000, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Lieven Bervoets
- Department of Biology, Systemic Physiological and Ecotoxicological Research Group, University of Antwerp, 2020, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Marcel Eens
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610, Wilrijk, Belgium
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Grunst AS, Grunst ML, Daem N, Pinxten R, Bervoets L, Eens M. An Important Personality Trait Varies with Blood and Plumage Metal Concentrations in a Free-Living Songbird. Environ Sci Technol 2019; 53:10487-10496. [PMID: 31373485 DOI: 10.1021/acs.est.9b03548] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Metal pollution is a global problem, which threatens to seriously disrupt behavioral patterns and health in humans and wildlife. Nonetheless, little is known regarding how exposure to metal pollution affects animal personalities, as defined by repeatable among individual differences in behavior. We used a large dataset to investigate the relationship between individual blood and feather metal concentrations and three personality traits (exploration behavior, territorial aggressiveness, and aggressiveness during nest defense) in great tits (Parus major), a model species for animal personality research. We previously demonstrated slower exploration behavior at highly polluted study sites, where exposure to lead, cadmium, and arsenic is high. Here, we demonstrate the across-year repeatability of exploration behavior and aggressiveness during nest defense, providing strong evidence for the existence of personalities in our populations. Furthermore, we demonstrate that individuals with high blood lead concentrations and high concentrations of multiple metals in the feathers exhibit slower exploration behavior but no differences in territorial aggressiveness or nest defense relative to less exposed birds. The mechanism underlying the relationship between metal exposure and exploration behavior remains to be determined but could involve neurotoxic effects. Our study highlights that metal pollution could have underappreciated effects on animal personalities, with implications for individual fitness and societal function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrea S Grunst
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group , University of Antwerp , 2610 Wilrijk , Belgium
| | - Melissa L Grunst
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group , University of Antwerp , 2610 Wilrijk , Belgium
| | - Natasha Daem
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group , University of Antwerp , 2610 Wilrijk , Belgium
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group , University of Antwerp , 2610 Wilrijk , Belgium
- Faculty of Social Sciences, Antwerp School of Education , University of Antwerp , 2000 Antwerp , Belgium
| | - Lieven Bervoets
- Department of Biology, Systemic Physiological and Ecotoxicological Research Group , University of Antwerp , 2020 Antwerp , Belgium
| | - Marcel Eens
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group , University of Antwerp , 2610 Wilrijk , Belgium
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Grunst ML, Raap T, Grunst AS, Pinxten R, Eens M. Artificial light at night does not affect telomere shortening in a developing free-living songbird: A field experiment: Artificial light at night and telomere dynamics. Sci Total Environ 2019; 662:266-275. [PMID: 30690361 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.12.469] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2018] [Revised: 12/18/2018] [Accepted: 12/30/2018] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
Artificial light at night (ALAN) is an increasingly pervasive anthropogenic disturbance factor. ALAN can seriously disrupt physiological systems that follow circadian rhythms, and may be particularly influential early in life, when developmental trajectories are sensitive to stressful conditions. Using great tits (Parus major) as a model species, we experimentally examined how ALAN affects physiological stress in developing nestlings. We used a repeated-measure design to assess effects of ALAN on telomere shortening, body mass, tarsus length and body condition. Telomeres are repetitive nucleotide sequences that protect chromosomes from damage and malfunction. Early-life telomere shortening can be accelerated by environmental stressors, and has been linked to later-life declines in survival and reproduction. We also assayed nitric oxide, as an additional metric of physiological stress, and determined fledging success. Change in body condition between day 8 and 15 differed according to treatment. Nestlings exposed to ALAN displayed a trend towards a decline in condition, whereas control nestlings displayed a trend towards increased condition. This pattern was driven by a greater increase in tarsus length relative to mass in nestlings exposed to ALAN. Nestlings in poorer condition and nestlings that were smaller than their nest mates had shorter telomeres. However, exposure to ALAN was unrelated to telomere shortening, and also had no effect on nitric oxide concentrations or fledging success. Thus, exposure to ALAN may not have led to sufficient stress to induce telomere shortening. Indeed, plasticity in other physiological systems could allow nestlings to maintain telomere length despite moderate stress. Alternatively, the cascade of physiological and behavioral responses associated with light exposure may have no net effect on telomere dynamics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melissa L Grunst
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium.
| | - Thomas Raap
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Andrea S Grunst
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium; Faculty of Social Sciences, Antwerp School of Education, University of Antwerp, 2000 Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Marcel Eens
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
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Thys B, Lambreghts Y, Pinxten R, Eens M. Nest defence behavioural reaction norms: testing life-history and parental investment theory predictions. R Soc Open Sci 2019; 6:182180. [PMID: 31183140 PMCID: PMC6502369 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.182180] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2018] [Accepted: 03/12/2019] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
Predation is the primary source of reproductive failure in many avian taxa and nest defence behaviour against predators is hence an important aspect of parental investment. Nest defence is a complex trait that might consistently differ among individuals (personality), while simultaneously vary within individuals (plasticity) according to the reproductive value of the offspring. Both complementary aspects of individual variation can influence fitness, but the causality of links with reproductive success remains poorly understood. We repeatedly tested free-living female great tits (Parus major) for nest defence (hissing) behaviour across the nesting cycle, by presenting them with a model predator. Hissing behaviour was highly repeatable but, despite population-level plasticity, we found no support for individual differences in plasticity. Path analysis revealed that repeatable differences in hissing behaviour had no direct effect on nest success or fledgling number. However, our best supported path-model showed that more fiercely hissing females laid smaller clutches, with clutch size in turn positively influencing fledgling number, suggesting that females are most likely facing a trade-off between investment in nest defence and reproduction. Strong stabilizing selection for optimal plasticity, in combination with life-history trade-offs, might explain the high repeatability of nest defence and its link with reproductive success.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bert Thys
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Yorick Lambreghts
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium
- Faculty of Social Sciences, Antwerp School of Education, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Marcel Eens
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium
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Grunst AS, Grunst ML, Pinxten R, Eens M. Personality and plasticity in neophobia levels vary with anthropogenic disturbance but not toxic metal exposure in urban great tits: Urban disturbance, metal pollution and neophobia. Sci Total Environ 2019; 656:997-1009. [PMID: 30625686 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.11.383] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2018] [Revised: 11/23/2018] [Accepted: 11/25/2018] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
Animal personalities, as defined by repeatable among individual differences in behavior, can vary across urbanization gradients. However, how urbanization affects personalities remains incompletely understood, especially because different urban stressors could affect personality traits in opposing ways, whereas most previous studies have considered only one urban disturbance factor. For instance, novel habitat features could favor reduced neophobia, whereas exposure to pollutants could increase risk sensitivity through neurotoxic or hormonal effects. To address this contingency, we studied object neophobia in four urban populations of great tits (Parus major) that vary in exposure to metal pollution and anthropogenic disturbance, as quantified by proximity to roads and pathways. We measured the return latency of incubating females when flushed from the nest and presented with up to two different novel objects, allowing quantification of behavioral repeatability and plasticity. To separate neophobia from sensitivity to disturbance, we also conducted baseline trials, in which females were flushed but no object was presented. We additionally measured exploration behavior and aggression (hissing) during nest defense, to explore whether suites of behaviors covary with urbanization, and examined whether neophobia affects reproductive success. Sensitivity to disturbance and neophobia were repeatable, and thus represent personality traits. Moreover, females occupying territories near roads and pathways had shorter return latencies during novel object but not baseline trials, suggesting a specific reduction in neophobia in disturbed areas. Plasticity in neophobia also increased with disturbance level. In contrast, metal exposure did not affect neophobia or sensitivity to disturbance, despite negatively correlating with exploration behavior. Neophobia correlated with exploration behavior, but not aggression or reproductive success. Results suggest that shifts in personality types in urbanized areas might involve specific reductions in neophobia, rather than general reductions in sensitivity to disturbance, and unexpectedly indicate no effect of toxic metals on risk sensitivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrea S Grunst
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium.
| | - Melissa L Grunst
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium; Faculty of Social Sciences, Antwerp School of Education, University of Antwerp, 2000 Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Marcel Eens
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
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22
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Raap T, Thys B, Grunst AS, Grunst ML, Pinxten R, Eens M. Personality and artificial light at night in a semi-urban songbird population: No evidence for personality-dependent sampling bias, avoidance or disruptive effects on sleep behaviour. Environ Pollut 2018; 243:1317-1324. [PMID: 30268982 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2018.09.037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2018] [Revised: 09/03/2018] [Accepted: 09/06/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Light pollution or artificial light at night (ALAN) is an increasing, worldwide challenge that affects many aspects of animal behaviour. Interestingly, the response to ALAN varies widely among individuals within a population and variation in personality (consistent individual differences in behaviour) may be an important factor explaining this variation. Consistent individual differences in exploration behaviour in particular may relate to the response to ALAN, as increasing evidence indicates its relation with how individuals respond to novelty and how they cope with anthropogenic modifications of the environment. Here, we assayed exploration behaviour in a novel environment as a proxy for personality variation in great tits (Parus major). We observed individual sleep behaviour over two consecutive nights, with birds sleeping under natural dark conditions the first night and confronted with ALAN inside the nest box on the second night, representing a modified and novel roosting environment. We examined whether roosting decisions when confronted with a camera (novel object), and subsequently with ALAN, were personality-dependent, as this could potentially create sampling bias. Finally, we assessed whether experimentally challenging individuals with ALAN induced personality-dependent changes in sleep behaviour. Slow and fast explorers were equally likely to roost in a nest box when confronted with either a camera or artificial light inside, indicating the absence of personality-dependent sampling bias or avoidance of exposure to ALAN. Moreover, slow and fast explorers were equally disrupted in their sleep behaviour when challenged with ALAN. Whether other behavioural and physiological effects of ALAN are personality-dependent remains to be determined. Moreover, the sensitivity to disturbance of different behavioural types might depend on the behavioural context and the specific type of challenge in question. In our increasingly urbanized world, determining whether the effects of anthropogenic stressors depend on personality type will be of paramount importance as it may affect population dynamics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Raap
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium.
| | - Bert Thys
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Andrea S Grunst
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Melissa L Grunst
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium; Faculty of Social Sciences, Antwerp School of Education, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Marcel Eens
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium
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Møller AP, Balbontín J, Dhondt AA, Remeš V, Adriaensen F, Biard C, Camprodon J, Cichoń M, Doligez B, Dubiec A, Eens M, Eeva T, Goodenough AE, Gosler AG, Gustafsson L, Heeb P, Hinsley SA, Jacob S, Juškaitis R, Laaksonen T, Leclercq B, Massa B, Mazgajski TD, Nager RG, Nilsson JÅ, Nilsson SG, Norte AC, Pinxten R, Robles H, Solonen T, Sorace A, van Noordwijk AJ, Lambrechts MM. Effects of interspecific coexistence on laying date and clutch size in two closely related species of hole-nesting birds. J Anim Ecol 2018; 87:1738-1748. [PMID: 30101503 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.12896] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2018] [Accepted: 08/05/2018] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Coexistence between great tits Parus major and blue tits Cyanistes caeruleus, but also other hole-nesting taxa, constitutes a classic example of species co-occurrence resulting in potential interference and exploitation competition for food and for breeding and roosting sites. However, the spatial and temporal variations in coexistence and its consequences for competition remain poorly understood. We used an extensive database on reproduction in nest boxes by great and blue tits based on 87 study plots across Europe and Northern Africa during 1957-2012 for a total of 19,075 great tit and 16,729 blue tit clutches to assess correlative evidence for a relationship between laying date and clutch size, respectively, and density consistent with effects of intraspecific and interspecific competition. In an initial set of analyses, we statistically controlled for a suite of site-specific variables. We found evidence for an effect of intraspecific competition on blue tit laying date (later laying at higher density) and clutch size (smaller clutch size at higher density), but no evidence of significant effects of intraspecific competition in great tits, nor effects of interspecific competition for either species. To further control for site-specific variation caused by a range of potentially confounding variables, we compared means and variances in laying date and clutch size of great and blue tits among three categories of difference in density between the two species. We exploited the fact that means and variances are generally positively correlated. If interspecific competition occurs, we predicted a reduction in mean and an increase in variance in clutch size in great tit and blue tit when density of heterospecifics is higher than the density of conspecifics, and for intraspecific competition, this reduction would occur when density of conspecifics is higher than the density of heterospecifics. Such comparisons of temporal patterns of means and variances revealed evidence, for both species, consistent with intraspecific competition and to a smaller extent with interspecific competition. These findings suggest that competition associated with reproductive behaviour between blue and great tits is widespread, but also varies across large spatial and temporal scales.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anders Pape Møller
- Ecologie Systematique Evolution, CNRS, AgroParisTech, Université Paris-Saclay, Orsay Cedex, France
| | - Javier Balbontín
- Departamento de Zoología, Facultad de Biología, Universidad de Sevilla, Sevilla, Spain
| | - André A Dhondt
- Laboratory of Ornithology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - Vladimir Remeš
- Laboratory of Ornithology, Department of Zoology, Palacky University, Olomouc, Czech Republic
| | - Frank Adriaensen
- Evolutionary Ecology Group, Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Clotilde Biard
- IEES-Paris - Institut d'Ecologie et des Sciences de l'Environnement, Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ Paris 06, UPEC, Paris, France
| | - Jordi Camprodon
- Àrea de Biodiversitat, Grup de Biologia de la Conservació, Centre Tecnològic Forestal de Catalunya, Solsona, Spain
| | - Mariusz Cichoń
- Institute of Environmental Sciences, Jagiellonian University, Krakow, Poland
| | - Blandine Doligez
- CNRS, Laboratoire de Biométrie et Biologie Evolutive, UMR 5558, Université Lyon 1, Université de Lyon, Villeurbanne Cedex, France
| | - Anna Dubiec
- Museum and Institute of Zoology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Marcel Eens
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology & Ecophysiology Group, Campus Drie Eiken, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Tapio Eeva
- Department of Biology, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
| | - Anne E Goodenough
- Department of Natural and Social Sciences, University of Gloucestershire, Cheltenham, UK
| | - Andrew G Gosler
- Department of Zoology, Edward Grey Institute of Field Ornithology & Institute of Human Sciences, Oxford, UK
| | - Lars Gustafsson
- Department of Animal Ecology, Evolutionary Biolpgy Centre, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - Philipp Heeb
- Laboratoire Évolution & Diversité Biologique, UPS Toulouse III, Toulouse, France
| | | | - Staffan Jacob
- Station d'Ecologie Expérimentale du CNRS à Moulis, USR CNRS 2936, Moulis, France
| | | | - Toni Laaksonen
- Section of Ecology, Department of Biology, University of Turku, Turku, Finland
| | | | - Bruno Massa
- Department of Agricultural, Food and Forest Sciences, Università di Palermo, Palermo, Italy
| | - Tomasz D Mazgajski
- Museum and Institute of Zoology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Ruedi G Nager
- Institute of Biodiversity, Animal Health & Comparative Medicine, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK
| | - Jan-Åke Nilsson
- Department of Biology, Evolutionary Ecology, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
| | - Sven G Nilsson
- Department of Biology, Biodiversity, Lund University, Lund, Sweden
| | - Ana C Norte
- Department of Life Sciences, Faculty of Sciences and Technology, MARE - Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre, University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology & Ecophysiology Group, Campus Drie Eiken, Antwerp, Belgium.,Faculty of Social Sciences, Didactica Research Group, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Hugo Robles
- Evolutionary Ecology Group (GIBE), Faculty of Sciences, University of A Coruña, A Coruña, Spain.,Evolutionary Ecology Group (EVECO), Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | | | | | | | - Marcel M Lambrechts
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, CEFE UMR 5175, Montpellier Cedex 5, France
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Grunst AS, Grunst ML, Thys B, Raap T, Daem N, Pinxten R, Eens M. Variation in personality traits across a metal pollution gradient in a free-living songbird. Sci Total Environ 2018; 630:668-678. [PMID: 29494975 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.02.191] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2017] [Revised: 01/26/2018] [Accepted: 02/16/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Anthropogenic contaminants could alter traits central to animal behavioral types, or personalities, including aggressiveness, boldness and activity level. Lead and other toxic metals are persistent inorganic pollutants that affect organisms worldwide. Metal exposure can alter behavior by affecting neurology, endocrinology, and health. However, the direction and magnitude of the behavioral effects of metal exposure remain equivocal. Moreover, the degree to which metal exposure simultaneously affects suites of correlated behavioral traits (behavioral syndromes) that are controlled by common mechanisms remains unclear, with most studies focusing on single behaviors. Using a model species for personality variation, the great tit (Parus major), we explored differences in multiple behavioral traits across a pollution gradient where levels of metals, especially lead and cadmium, are elevated close to a smelter. We employed the novel environment exploration test, a proxy for variation in personality type, and also measured territorial aggressiveness and nest defense behavior. At polluted sites birds of both sexes displayed slower exploration behavior, which could reflect impaired neurological or physiological function. Territorial aggression and nest defense behavior were individually consistent, but did not vary with proximity to the smelter, suggesting that metal exposure does not concurrently affect exploration and aggression. Rather, exploration behavior appears more sensitive to metal pollution. Effects of metal pollution on exploration behavior, a key animal personality trait, could have critical effects on fitness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrea S Grunst
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium.
| | - Melissa L Grunst
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Bert Thys
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Thomas Raap
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Natasha Daem
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium; Faculty of Social Sciences, Antwerp School of Education, University of Antwerp, 2000 Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Marcel Eens
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, 2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
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25
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Raap T, Pinxten R, Eens M. Cavities shield birds from effects of artificial light at night on sleep. J Exp Zool 2018; 329:449-456. [DOI: 10.1002/jez.2174] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2017] [Revised: 05/01/2018] [Accepted: 05/01/2018] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Raap
- Department of Biology; Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group; University of Antwerp; Wilrijk Belgium
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Department of Biology; Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group; University of Antwerp; Wilrijk Belgium
- Faculty of Social Sciences; Antwerp School of Education; University of Antwerp; Antwerp Belgium
| | - Marcel Eens
- Department of Biology; Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group; University of Antwerp; Wilrijk Belgium
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26
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Raap T, Pinxten R, Eens M. Artificial light at night causes an unexpected increase in oxalate in developing male songbirds. Conserv Physiol 2018; 6:coy005. [PMID: 29479432 PMCID: PMC5815018 DOI: 10.1093/conphys/coy005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2017] [Revised: 01/10/2018] [Accepted: 01/24/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Artificial light at night (ALAN) is a widespread and increasing environmental pollutant with known negative impacts on animal physiology and development. Physiological effects could occur through sleep disruption and deprivation, but this is difficult to quantify, especially in small developing birds. Sleep loss can potentially be quantified by using oxalate, a biomarker for sleep debt in adult humans and rats. We examined the effect of ALAN on oxalate in free-living developing great tits (Parus major) as effects during early-life could have long-lasting and irreversible consequences. Nestlings' physiology was quantified at baseline (= 13 days after hatching) and again after two nights of continued darkness (control) or exposure to ALAN (treatment). We found that ALAN increased oxalate levels but only in male nestlings, rather than decreasing it as was found in sleep-deprived humans and rats. Our results using developing birds differ strongly from those obtained with adult mammals. However, we used ALAN to reduce sleep while in rats forced movement was used. Finally, we used free-living opposed to laboratory animals. Whether oxalate is a reliable marker of sleep loss in developing great tits remains to be examined. Potentially the increase of oxalate in male nestlings was unrelated to sleep debt. Nonetheless, our results substantiate physiological effects of ALAN in developing animals and may provide a foundation for future work with free-living animals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Raap
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium
- Faculty of Social Sciences, Antwerp School of Education, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Marcel Eens
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium
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Raap T, Pinxten R, Eens M. Rigorous field experiments are essential to understand the genuine severity of light pollution and to identify possible solutions. Glob Chang Biol 2017; 23:5024-5026. [PMID: 28746741 DOI: 10.1111/gcb.13843] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Raap
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium
- Faculty of Social Sciences, Antwerp School of Education, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Marcel Eens
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium
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28
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Sun J, Raap T, Pinxten R, Eens M. Artificial light at night affects sleep behaviour differently in two closely related songbird species. Environ Pollut 2017; 231:882-889. [PMID: 28886533 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2017.08.098] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2017] [Revised: 08/21/2017] [Accepted: 08/29/2017] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Artificial light at night (ALAN) or light pollution is an increasing and worldwide problem. There is growing concern that because of the disruption of natural light cycles, ALAN may pose serious risks for wildlife. While ALAN has been shown to affect many aspects of animal behaviour and physiology, few studies have experimentally studied whether individuals of different species in the wild respond differently to ALAN. Here, we investigated the effect of ALAN on sleep behaviour in two closely related songbird species inhabiting the same study area and roosting/breeding in similar nest boxes. We experimentally exposed free-living great tits (Parus major) and blue tits (Cyanistes caeruleus) to artificial light inside their nest boxes and observed changes in their sleep behaviour compared to the previous night when the nest boxes were dark. In line with previous studies, sleep behaviour of both species did not differ under dark conditions. ALAN disrupted sleep in both great and blue tits. However, compared to blue tits, great tits showed more pronounced effects and more aspects of sleep were affected. Light exposed great tits entered the nest boxes and fell asleep later, woke up and exited the nest boxes earlier, and the total sleep amount and sleep percentage were reduced. By contrast, these changes in sleep behaviour were not found in light exposed blue tits. Our field experiment, using exactly the same light manipulation in both species, provides direct evidence that two closely related species respond differently to ALAN, while their sleep behaviour under dark conditions was similar. Our research suggests that findings for one species cannot necessarily be generalised to other species, even closely-related species. Furthermore, species-specific effects could have implications for community dynamics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiachen Sun
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology & Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, B-2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Thomas Raap
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology & Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, B-2610 Wilrijk, Belgium.
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology & Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, B-2610 Wilrijk, Belgium; Faculty of Social Sciences, Antwerp School of Education, University of Antwerp, Venusstraat 35, B-2000 Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Marcel Eens
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology & Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, B-2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
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Rivera-Gutierrez HF, Martens T, Pinxten R, Eens M. Learning speed is affected by personality and reproductive investment in a songbird. PLoS One 2017; 12:e0185410. [PMID: 29020028 PMCID: PMC5636094 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0185410] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2016] [Accepted: 09/12/2017] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Individuals from different taxa, including songbirds, differ consistently in behaviour and personality when facing different situations. Although our understanding of animal behaviour has increased, knowledge about between-individual differences in cognitive abilities is still limited. By using an experimental approach and a free-living songbird (Parus major) as a model, we attempted to understand between-individual differences in habituation to playbacks (as a proxy of learning speed), by investigating the role of personality, age and reproductive investment (clutch size). Pre-breeding males were tested for exploration (a proxy of personality) in standardized conditions. In addition, the same individuals were exposed to three playbacks in the field during incubation. Birds significantly moved less, stayed further away and overlapped less the playback with successive playback stimulation. While a decrease in the locomotor behaviour can be explained by personality, differences in habituation of overlapping were predicted by both reproductive investment and personality. Fast explorers habituated less. Moreover, males paired to females with larger clutches did not vary the intensity of overlapping. Since habituation requires information for recognition of non-threatening signals, personality may bias information gathering. While fast explorers may collect less information from the environment, slow explorers (reactive birds) seem to pay attention to environmental clues and collect detailed information. We provided evidence that the rate of habituation of behavioural responses, a proxy of cognitive abilities, may be affected by different factors and in a complex way.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hector Fabio Rivera-Gutierrez
- Grupo Ecología y Evolución de Vertebrados, Instituto de Biología, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Antioquia UdeA, Medellin, Colombia
- University of Antwerp, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, Campus Drie Eiken, Universiteitsplein 1, Wilrijk, Belgium
- * E-mail:
| | - Tine Martens
- University of Antwerp, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, Campus Drie Eiken, Universiteitsplein 1, Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- University of Antwerp, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, Campus Drie Eiken, Universiteitsplein 1, Wilrijk, Belgium
- University of Antwerp, Faculty of Social Sciences, Research unit Didactica, Venusstraat 35, Antwerp
| | - Marcel Eens
- University of Antwerp, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, Campus Drie Eiken, Universiteitsplein 1, Wilrijk, Belgium
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Casasole G, Raap T, Costantini D, AbdElgawad H, Asard H, Pinxten R, Eens M. Neither artificial light at night, anthropogenic noise nor distance from roads are associated with oxidative status of nestlings in an urban population of songbirds. Comp Biochem Physiol A Mol Integr Physiol 2017; 210:14-21. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpa.2017.05.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2017] [Revised: 04/21/2017] [Accepted: 05/04/2017] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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Dehnhard N, Jaspers VLB, Demongin L, Van den Steen E, Covaci A, Pinxten R, Crossin GT, Quillfeldt P, Eens M, Poisbleau M. Organohalogenated contaminants in plasma and eggs of rockhopper penguins: Does vitellogenin affect maternal transfer? Environ Pollut 2017; 226:277-287. [PMID: 28392239 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2017.03.071] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2017] [Revised: 03/17/2017] [Accepted: 03/29/2017] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Although many studies have investigated organohalogenated contaminants (OHCs) in yolk, little is known about the mechanisms and timing of transfer of OHCs from the female to the egg. Vitellogenin, a yolk precursor, has been suggested to play a role in this transport. We here report for the first time the temporal changes in OHC and an index of vitellogenin concentrations in female plasma from the pre-laying period to clutch completion in free-living birds: the southern rockhopper penguin (Eudyptes chrysocome chrysocome) breeding in the Falkland/Malvinas Islands. In addition, OHC concentrations in the corresponding clutches were analysed. OHC concentrations in female plasma and in the yolk of both the first (A-) and the second (B-)eggs followed a similar pattern, with hexachlorobenzene (HCB) > Σpolychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) > Σdichlorodiphenyltrichloroethanes (DDTs) > Σmethoxylated polybrominated diphenyl ethers (MeO-PBDEs) > Σchlordanes (CHLs) > Σpolybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) ≈ Σhexachlorocyclohexanes (HCHs). The higher concentrations of MeO-PBDEs compared to PBDEs indicate a diet containing naturally-produced MeO-PBDEs. All OHC compounds except for PBDEs increased from the pre-laying period to A-egg laying and subsequently declined from A-egg laying to B-egg laying, and female plasma vitellogenin showed the same pattern. For ΣPCBs and ΣMeO-PBDEs, we found positive correlations between female plasma during A-egg laying and both eggs, and for HCB between female plasma and A-eggs only. During pre-laying, only ΣMeO-PBDEs correlated between both eggs and female plasma, and no correlations between OHC concentrations in eggs and female plasma were found during B-egg laying, highlighting that maternal transfer of OHCs is time- and compound-specific. Finally, female vitellogenin concentrations did not significantly correlate with any OHC compounds in either female plasma or eggs, and our results therefore did not confirm the suggested role of vitellogenin in the maternal transfer of OHC molecules into their eggs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nina Dehnhard
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Campus Drie Eiken, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Antwerp (Wilrijk), Belgium.
| | - Veerle L B Jaspers
- Department of Biology, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Høgskoleringen 5, 7024 Trondheim, Norway
| | - Laurent Demongin
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Campus Drie Eiken, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Antwerp (Wilrijk), Belgium
| | - Evi Van den Steen
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Campus Drie Eiken, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Antwerp (Wilrijk), Belgium
| | - Adrian Covaci
- Toxicological Center, University of Antwerp, Campus Drie Eiken, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Antwerp (Wilrijk), Belgium
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Campus Drie Eiken, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Antwerp (Wilrijk), Belgium; Faculty of Social Sciences, Antwerp School of Education, University of Antwerp, Venusstraat 35, 2000 Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Glenn T Crossin
- Department of Biology, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
| | - Petra Quillfeldt
- Justus-Liebig University Gießen, Heinrich-Buff-Ring 38, 35392 Gießen, Germany
| | - Marcel Eens
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Campus Drie Eiken, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Antwerp (Wilrijk), Belgium
| | - Maud Poisbleau
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Campus Drie Eiken, Universiteitsplein 1, 2610 Antwerp (Wilrijk), Belgium
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Raap T, Pinxten R, Casasole G, Dehnhard N, Eens M. Ambient anthropogenic noise but not light is associated with the ecophysiology of free-living songbird nestlings. Sci Rep 2017; 7:2754. [PMID: 28584270 PMCID: PMC5459827 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-02940-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2016] [Accepted: 04/20/2017] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Urbanization is associated with dramatic increases in noise and light pollution, which affect animal behaviour, physiology and fitness. However, few studies have examined these stressors simultaneously. Moreover, effects of urbanization during early-life may be detrimental but are largely unknown. In developing great tits (Parus major), a frequently-used model species, we determined important indicators of immunity and physiological condition: plasma haptoglobin (Hp) and nitric oxide (NOx) concentration. We also determined fledging mass, an indicator for current health and survival. Associations of ambient noise and light exposure with these indicators were studied. Anthropogenic noise, light and their interaction were unrelated to fledging mass. Nestlings exposed to more noise showed higher plasma levels of Hp but not of NOx. Light was unrelated to Hp and NOx and did not interact with the effect of noise on nestlings’ physiology. Increasing levels of Hp are potentially energy demanding and trade-offs could occur with life-history traits, such as survival. Effects of light pollution on nestlings of a cavity-nesting species appear to be limited. Nonetheless, our results suggest that the urban environment, through noise exposure, may entail important physiological costs for developing organisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Raap
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium.
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium.,Faculty of Social Sciences, Antwerp School of Education, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Giulia Casasole
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Nina Dehnhard
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Marcel Eens
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium
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Messina S, Eens M, Casasole G, AbdElgawad H, Asard H, Pinxten R, Costantini D. Experimental inhibition of a key cellular antioxidant affects vocal communication. Funct Ecol 2017. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.12825] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Simone Messina
- Behavioural Ecology & Ecophysiology Group Department of Biology University of Antwerp Universiteitsplein 1 2610 Wilrijk Belgium
| | - Marcel Eens
- Behavioural Ecology & Ecophysiology Group Department of Biology University of Antwerp Universiteitsplein 1 2610 Wilrijk Belgium
| | - Giulia Casasole
- Behavioural Ecology & Ecophysiology Group Department of Biology University of Antwerp Universiteitsplein 1 2610 Wilrijk Belgium
| | - Hamada AbdElgawad
- Integrated Molecular Plant Physiology Research Department of Biology University of Antwerp Antwerp Belgium
- Department of Botany Faculty of Science University of Beni‐Suef Beni‐Suef62511 Egypt
| | - Han Asard
- Integrated Molecular Plant Physiology Research Department of Biology University of Antwerp Antwerp Belgium
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Behavioural Ecology & Ecophysiology Group Department of Biology University of Antwerp Universiteitsplein 1 2610 Wilrijk Belgium
- Faculty of Social Sciences Antwerp School of Education University of Antwerp Antwerp Belgium
| | - David Costantini
- Behavioural Ecology & Ecophysiology Group Department of Biology University of Antwerp Universiteitsplein 1 2610 Wilrijk Belgium
- UMR 7221 Muséum National d'Histoire Naturelle 7 rue Cuvier 75231 Paris Cedex 05 France
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Thys B, Eens M, Aerts S, Delory A, Iserbyt A, Pinxten R. Exploration and sociability in a highly gregarious bird are repeatable across seasons and in the long term but are unrelated. Anim Behav 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2016.11.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
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Raap T, Casasole G, Pinxten R, Eens M. Early life exposure to artificial light at night affects the physiological condition: An experimental study on the ecophysiology of free-living nestling songbirds. Environ Pollut 2016; 218:909-914. [PMID: 27531621 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2016.08.024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2016] [Revised: 08/04/2016] [Accepted: 08/06/2016] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
Light pollution or artificial light at night (ALAN) is increasingly recognised to be an important anthropogenic environmental pressure on wildlife, affecting animal behaviour and physiology. Early life experiences are extremely important for the development, physiological status and health of organisms, and as such, early exposure to artificial light may have detrimental consequences for organism fitness. We experimentally manipulated the light environment of free-living great tit nestlings (Parus major), an important model species in evolutionary and environmental research. Haptoglobin (Hp) and nitric oxide (NOx), as important indicators of immunity, health, and physiological condition, were quantified in nestlings at baseline (13 days after hatching) and after a two night exposure to ALAN. We found that ALAN increased Hp and decreased NOx. ALAN may increase stress and oxidative stress and reduce melatonin which could subsequently lead to increased Hp and decreased NOx. Haptoglobin is part of the immune response and mounting an immune response is costly in energy and resources and, trade-offs are likely to occur with other energetically demanding tasks, such as survival or reproduction. Acute inhibition of NOx may have a cascading effect as it also affects other physiological aspects and may negatively affect immunocompetence. The consequences of the observed effects on Hp and NOx remain to be examined. Our study provides experimental field evidence that ALAN affects nestlings' physiology during development and early life exposure to ALAN could therefore have long lasting effects throughout adulthood.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Raap
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium.
| | - Giulia Casasole
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium; Faculty of Social Sciences, Antwerp School of Education, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Marcel Eens
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium
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Casagrande S, Pinxten R, Zaid E, Eens M. Positive effect of dietary lutein and cholesterol on the undirected song activity of an opportunistic breeder. PeerJ 2016; 4:e2512. [PMID: 27761321 PMCID: PMC5068346 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.2512] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2016] [Accepted: 09/01/2016] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Song is a sexually selected trait that is thought to be an honest signal of the health condition of an individual in many bird species. For species that breed opportunistically, the quantity of food may be a determinant of singing activity. However, it is not yet known whether the quality of food plays an important role in this respect. The aim of the present study was to experimentally investigate the role of two calorie-free nutrients (lutein and cholesterol) in determining the expression of a sexually selected behavior (song rate) and other behaviors (locomotor activity, self-maintenance activity, eating and resting) in male zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata). We predicted that males supplemented with lutein and cholesterol would sing at higher rates than controls because both lutein and cholesterol have important health-related physiological functions in birds and birdsong mirrors individual condition. To control for testosterone secretion that may upregulate birdsong, birds were exposed to a decreasing photoperiod. Our results showed that control males down-regulated testosterone in response to a decreasing photoperiod, while birds treated with lutein or cholesterol maintained a constant singing activity. Both lutein- and cholesterol-supplemented groups sang more than control groups by the end of the experiment, indicating that the quality of food can affect undirected song irrespective of circulating testosterone concentrations. None of the other measured behaviors were affected by the treatment, suggesting that, when individuals have full availability of food, sexually selected song traits are more sensitive to the effect of food quality than other behavioral traits. Overall the results support our prediction that undirected song produced by male zebra finches signals access to high-quality food.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefania Casagrande
- Evolutionary Physiology Group, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Seewiesen, Germany; Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium; Faculty of Social Sciences, Antwerp School of Education, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Erika Zaid
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium; Department of Zoology, School of Life Sciences, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Marcel Eens
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp , Antwerp , Belgium
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Raap T, Casasole G, Costantini D, AbdElgawad H, Asard H, Pinxten R, Eens M. Artificial light at night affects body mass but not oxidative status in free-living nestling songbirds: an experimental study. Sci Rep 2016; 6:35626. [PMID: 27759087 PMCID: PMC5069498 DOI: 10.1038/srep35626] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2016] [Accepted: 10/04/2016] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
Artificial light at night (ALAN), termed light pollution, is an increasingly important anthropogenic environmental pressure on wildlife. Exposure to unnatural lighting environments may have profound effects on animal physiology, particularly during early life. Here, we experimentally investigated for the first time the impact of ALAN on body mass and oxidative status during development, using nestlings of a free-living songbird, the great tit (Parus major), an important model species. Body mass and blood oxidative status were determined at baseline (=13 days after hatching) and again after a two night exposure to ALAN. Because it is very difficult to generalise the oxidative status from one or two measures we relied on a multi-biomarker approach. We determined multiple metrics of both antioxidant defences and oxidative damage: molecular antioxidants GSH, GSSG; antioxidant enzymes GPX, SOD, CAT; total non-enzymatic antioxidant capacity and damage markers protein carbonyls and TBARS. Light exposed nestlings showed no increase in body mass, in contrast to unexposed individuals. None of the metrics of oxidative status were affected. Nonetheless, our study provides experimental field evidence that ALAN may negatively affect free-living nestlings' development and hence may have adverse consequences lasting throughout adulthood.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Raap
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Giulia Casasole
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - David Costantini
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Hamada AbdElgawad
- Department of Biology, Molecular Plant Physiology and Biotechnology Group, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
- Department of Botany, Faculty of Science, University of Beni-Suef, Beni-Suef, Egypt
| | - Han Asard
- Department of Biology, Molecular Plant Physiology and Biotechnology Group, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium
- Faculty of Social Sciences, Antwerp School of Education, University of Antwerp, Venusstraat 35, B-2000, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Marcel Eens
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium
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Raap T, Pinxten R, Eens M. Artificial light at night disrupts sleep in female great tits (Parus major) during the nestling period, and is followed by a sleep rebound. Environ Pollut 2016; 215:125-134. [PMID: 27179331 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2016.04.100] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2015] [Revised: 04/01/2016] [Accepted: 04/30/2016] [Indexed: 05/12/2023]
Abstract
Artificial light at night has been linked to a wide variety of physiological and behavioural consequences in humans and animals. Given that little is known about the impact of light pollution on sleep in wild animals, we tested how experimentally elevated light levels affected sleep behaviour of female songbirds rearing 10 day old chicks. Using a within-subject design, individual sleep behaviour was observed over three consecutive nights in great tits (Parus major), with females sleeping in a natural dark situation on the first and third night, whereas on the second night they were exposed to a light-emitting diode (1.6 lux). Artificial light in the nest box dramatically and significantly affected sleep behaviour, causing females to fall asleep later (95 min; while entry time was unaffected), wake up earlier (74 min) and sleep less (56%). Females spent a greater proportion of the night awake and the frequency of their sleep bouts decreased, while the length of their sleep bouts remained equal. Artificial light also increased begging of chicks at night, which may have contributed to the sleep disruption in females or vice versa. The night following the light treatment, females slept 25% more compared to the first night, which was mainly achieved by increasing the frequency of sleep bouts. Although there was a consistent pattern in how artificial light affected sleep, there was also large among-individual variation in how strongly females were affected. When comparing current results with a similar experiment during winter, our results highlight differences in effects between seasons and underscore the importance of studying light pollution during different seasons. Our study shows that light pollution may have a significant impact on sleep behaviour in free-living animals during the reproductive season, which may provide a potential mechanism by which artificial light affects fitness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Raap
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology & Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, B-2610, Wilrijk, Belgium.
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology & Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, B-2610, Wilrijk, Belgium; Faculty of Social Sciences, Antwerp School of Education, University of Antwerp, Venusstraat 35, B-2000, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Marcel Eens
- Department of Biology, Behavioural Ecology & Ecophysiology Group, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, B-2610, Wilrijk, Belgium
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Vaugoyeau M, Adriaensen F, Artemyev A, Bańbura J, Barba E, Biard C, Blondel J, Bouslama Z, Bouvier JC, Camprodon J, Cecere F, Charmantier A, Charter M, Cichoń M, Cusimano C, Czeszczewik D, Demeyrier V, Doligez B, Doutrelant C, Dubiec A, Eens M, Eeva T, Faivre B, Ferns PN, Forsman JT, García-Del-Rey E, Goldshtein A, Goodenough AE, Gosler AG, Grégoire A, Gustafsson L, Harnist I, Hartley IR, Heeb P, Hinsley SA, Isenmann P, Jacob S, Juškaitis R, Korpimäki E, Krams I, Laaksonen T, Lambrechts MM, Leclercq B, Lehikoinen E, Loukola O, Lundberg A, Mainwaring MC, Mänd R, Massa B, Mazgajski TD, Merino S, Mitrus C, Mönkkönen M, Morin X, Nager RG, Nilsson JÅ, Nilsson SG, Norte AC, Orell M, Perret P, Perrins CM, Pimentel CS, Pinxten R, Richner H, Robles H, Rytkönen S, Senar JC, Seppänen JT, Pascoal da Silva L, Slagsvold T, Solonen T, Sorace A, Stenning MJ, Tryjanowski P, von Numers M, Walankiewicz W, Møller AP. Interspecific variation in the relationship between clutch size, laying date and intensity of urbanization in four species of hole-nesting birds. Ecol Evol 2016; 6:5907-20. [PMID: 27547364 PMCID: PMC4983601 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.2335] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2016] [Revised: 06/20/2016] [Accepted: 06/23/2016] [Indexed: 01/20/2023] Open
Abstract
The increase in size of human populations in urban and agricultural areas has resulted in considerable habitat conversion globally. Such anthropogenic areas have specific environmental characteristics, which influence the physiology, life history, and population dynamics of plants and animals. For example, the date of bud burst is advanced in urban compared to nearby natural areas. In some birds, breeding success is determined by synchrony between timing of breeding and peak food abundance. Pertinently, caterpillars are an important food source for the nestlings of many bird species, and their abundance is influenced by environmental factors such as temperature and date of bud burst. Higher temperatures and advanced date of bud burst in urban areas could advance peak caterpillar abundance and thus affect breeding phenology of birds. In order to test whether laying date advance and clutch sizes decrease with the intensity of urbanization, we analyzed the timing of breeding and clutch size in relation to intensity of urbanization as a measure of human impact in 199 nest box plots across Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East (i.e., the Western Palearctic) for four species of hole‐nesters: blue tits (Cyanistes caeruleus), great tits (Parus major), collared flycatchers (Ficedula albicollis), and pied flycatchers (Ficedula hypoleuca). Meanwhile, we estimated the intensity of urbanization as the density of buildings surrounding study plots measured on orthophotographs. For the four study species, the intensity of urbanization was not correlated with laying date. Clutch size in blue and great tits does not seem affected by the intensity of urbanization, while in collared and pied flycatchers it decreased with increasing intensity of urbanization. This is the first large‐scale study showing a species‐specific major correlation between intensity of urbanization and the ecology of breeding. The underlying mechanisms for the relationships between life history and urbanization remain to be determined. We propose that effects of food abundance or quality, temperature, noise, pollution, or disturbance by humans may on their own or in combination affect laying date and/or clutch size.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marie Vaugoyeau
- Ecologie Systématique Evolution Université Paris-Sud, CNRS, Agro Paris Tech, Université Paris-Saclay Orsay France
| | - Frank Adriaensen
- Department of Biology Evolutionary Ecology Group University of Antwerp Antwerp Belgium
| | - Alexandr Artemyev
- Institute of Biology Karelian Research Centre Russian Academy of Sciences Petrozavodsk Russia
| | - Jerzy Bańbura
- Department of Experimental Zoology & Evolutionary Biology University of Lodź Lodź Poland
| | - Emilio Barba
- Terrestrial Vertebrates Research Unit "Cavanilles" Institute of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology University of Valencia Paterna Spain
| | - Clotilde Biard
- Université Pierre et Marie Curie Sorbonne universités UPMC Univ Paris 06, UPEC, Paris 7 CNRS, INRA, IRD, Institut d'Écologie et des Sciences de l'Environnement de Paris Paris France
| | - Jacques Blondel
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, Campus CNRS Montpellier France
| | - Zihad Bouslama
- Research Laboratory "Ecology of Terrestrial and Aquatic Systems" University Badji Mokhtar Annaba Algeria
| | | | - Jordi Camprodon
- Àrea de Biodiversitat Grup de Biologia de la Conservació Centre Tecnològic Forestal de Catalunya Solsona Spain
| | | | - Anne Charmantier
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, Campus CNRS Montpellier France
| | - Motti Charter
- University of Haifa Haifa Israel; Society for the Protection of Nature University of Lausanne Lausanne Switzerland
| | - Mariusz Cichoń
- Institute of Environmental Science Jagiellonian University Krakow Poland
| | - Camillo Cusimano
- Department of Agriculture and Forest Sciences Università di Palermo Palermo Italy
| | - Dorota Czeszczewik
- Department of Zoology Faculty of Natural Science Siedlce University of Natural Sciences and Humanities Siedlce Poland
| | - Virginie Demeyrier
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, Campus CNRS Montpellier France
| | - Blandine Doligez
- Department of Biometry & Evolutionary Biology University of Lyon 1 Villeurbanne France
| | - Claire Doutrelant
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, Campus CNRS Montpellier France
| | - Anna Dubiec
- Museum and Institute of Zoology Polish Academy of Sciences Warsaw Poland
| | - Marcel Eens
- Department of Biology Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group University of Antwerp Antwerp Belgium
| | - Tapio Eeva
- Section of Ecology Department of Biology University of Turku Turku Finland
| | - Bruno Faivre
- BioGéoSciences Université de Bourgogne Dijon France
| | | | | | - Eduardo García-Del-Rey
- Departamento de Ecología Facultad de Biología Universidad de La Laguna, San Cristóbal de La Laguna Tenerife Canary Islands Spain
| | | | - Anne E Goodenough
- Department of Natural and Social Sciences University of Gloucestershire Gloucestershire UK
| | - Andrew G Gosler
- Department of Zoology Edward Grey Institute of Field Ornithology & Institute of Human Sciences Oxford UK
| | - Arnaud Grégoire
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, Campus CNRS Montpellier France
| | - Lars Gustafsson
- Department of Animal Ecology Evolutionary Biology Centre Uppsala University Uppsala Sweden
| | - Iga Harnist
- Museum and Institute of Zoology Polish Academy of Sciences Warsaw Poland
| | - Ian R Hartley
- Lancaster Environment Centre Lancaster University Lancaster UK
| | - Philipp Heeb
- Laboratoire Évolution & Diversité Biologique UPS Toulouse III Toulouse France
| | | | - Paul Isenmann
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, Campus CNRS Montpellier France
| | - Staffan Jacob
- Laboratoire Évolution & Diversité Biologique UPS Toulouse III Toulouse France
| | - Rimvydas Juškaitis
- Institute of Ecology of Nature Research Centre Akademijos 2 Vilnius Lithuania
| | - Erkki Korpimäki
- Section of Ecology Department of Biology University of Turku Turku Finland
| | - Indrikis Krams
- Institute of Ecology & Earth Sciences University of Tartu Tartu Estonia
| | - Toni Laaksonen
- Section of Ecology Department of Biology University of Turku Turku Finland
| | - Marcel M Lambrechts
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, Campus CNRS Montpellier France
| | | | - Esa Lehikoinen
- Section of Ecology Department of Biology University of Turku Turku Finland
| | - Olli Loukola
- Department of Ecology University of Oulu Oulu Finland
| | - Arne Lundberg
- Department of Animal Ecology Evolutionary Biology Centre Uppsala University Uppsala Sweden
| | | | - Raivo Mänd
- Institute of Ecology & Earth Sciences University of Tartu Tartu Estonia
| | - Bruno Massa
- Department of Agriculture and Forest Sciences Università di Palermo Palermo Italy
| | - Tomasz D Mazgajski
- Museum and Institute of Zoology Polish Academy of Sciences Warsaw Poland
| | - Santiago Merino
- Departamento de Ecología Evolutiva Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales Agencia Estatal Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas Madrid Spain
| | - Cezary Mitrus
- Department of Zoology Rzeszów University Rzeszów Poland
| | - Mikko Mönkkönen
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, Campus CNRS Montpellier France; Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences University of Jyväskylä Jyväskylä Finland
| | - Xavier Morin
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, Campus CNRS Montpellier France
| | - Ruedi G Nager
- Institute of Biodiversity, Animal Health & Comparative Medicine University of Glasgow Glasgow UK
| | | | | | - Ana C Norte
- Department of Life SciencesInstitute of Marine ResearchUniversity of CoimbraCoimbraPortugal; Department of Life SciencesMARE - Marine and Environmental Sciences CentreUniversity of CoimbraCoimbraPortugal
| | - Markku Orell
- Department of Ecology University of Oulu Oulu Finland
| | - Philippe Perret
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, Campus CNRS Montpellier France
| | - Christopher M Perrins
- Department of Zoology Edward Grey Institute of Field Ornithology & Institute of Human Sciences Oxford UK
| | - Carla S Pimentel
- Centro de Estudos Florestais Instituto Superior de Agronomia University of Lisbon Lisbon Portugal
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Department of Biology Behavioural Ecology and Ecophysiology Group University of Antwerp Antwerp Belgium; Didactica Research Unit Faculty of Social Sciences University of Antwerp Antwerp Belgium
| | - Heinz Richner
- Institute of Ecology & Evolution (IEE) University of Bern Bern Switzerland
| | - Hugo Robles
- Department of Biology Evolutionary Ecology Group University of Antwerp Antwerp Belgium; Evolutionary Biology Group (GIBE) Falculty of Sciences University of A Coruña A Coruña Spain
| | | | - Juan Carlos Senar
- Unidad Asociada CSIC de Ecología Evolutiva y de la Conducta Nat-Museu de Ciències Naturals de Barcelona Barcelona Spain
| | | | - Luis Pascoal da Silva
- Department of Life Sciences Institute of Marine Research University of Coimbra Coimbra Portugal
| | - Tore Slagsvold
- Department of Biosciences University of Oslo Oslo Norway
| | | | | | | | - Piotr Tryjanowski
- Institute of Zoology Poznan University of Life Sciences Poznań Poland
| | | | - Wieslaw Walankiewicz
- Department of Zoology Faculty of Natural Science Siedlce University of Natural Sciences and Humanities Siedlce Poland
| | - Anders Pape Møller
- Ecologie Systématique Evolution Université Paris-Sud, CNRS, Agro Paris Tech, Université Paris-Saclay Orsay France
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Casagrande S, Pinxten R, Eens M. Honest Signaling and Oxidative Stress: The Special Case of Avian Acoustic Communication. Front Ecol Evol 2016. [DOI: 10.3389/fevo.2016.00052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
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de Jong B, Lens L, Amininasab SM, van Oers K, Darras VM, Eens M, Pinxten R, Komdeur J, Groothuis TGG. Effects of experimentally sustained elevated testosterone on incubation behaviour and reproductive success in female great tits (Parus major). Gen Comp Endocrinol 2016; 230-231:38-47. [PMID: 26996426 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygcen.2016.02.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2015] [Revised: 02/10/2016] [Accepted: 02/16/2016] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
In many seasonally breeding birds, female and male testosterone (T) levels peak at the start of the breeding season, coinciding with pair bonding and nesting activities. Shortly after the onset of egg laying, T levels slowly decline to baseline levels in both sexes, but more rapidly so in females. During this period, T in males may still function to facilitate territorial behaviour, mate guarding and extra pair copulations, either via short lasting peaks or elevated basal levels of the hormone. In some species, however, males become insensitive to increased T after the onset of egg laying. It has been postulated that in these species bi-parental care is essential for offspring survival, as T is known to inhibit paternal care. However, only very few studies have analysed this for females. As females are heavily involved in parental care, they too might become insensitive to T after egg laying. Alternatively, because territorial defence, mate guarding and extra pair copulations are expected to be less important for females than for males, they may not have had the need to evolve a mechanism to become insensitive to T during the period of maternal care, because their natural T levels are never elevated during this part of the breeding season anyway. We tested these alternative hypotheses in female great tits (Parus major). Male great tits have previously been shown to be insensitive to T after egg laying with regard to nestling feeding behaviour (but not song rate). When females had started nest building, we experimentally elevated their T levels up to the nestling feeding phase, and measured incubation behaviour (only females incubate) and reproductive success. T did not significantly affect nest building or egg laying behaviour, although egg laying tended to be delayed in T females. Females with experimentally enhanced T maintained lower temperature during incubation but did not spend less time incubating. This might explain the reduced hatching success of their eggs, smaller brood size and lower number of fledglings we found in this study. As in this species T-dependent behaviour by females during the phase of parental care is not needed, the results support the hypothesis that in this species the need for selection in favour of T-insensitivity did not occur.
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Affiliation(s)
- Berber de Jong
- Behavioural Biology, Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, P.O. Box 11103, 9700 CC Groningen, The Netherlands; Terrestrial Ecology Unit, Department Biology, Ghent University, BE-9000 Ghent, Belgium; Behavioural and Physiological Ecology, Groningen Institute for ELIFES, University of Groningen, P.O. Box 11103, 9700 CC Groningen, The Netherlands.
| | - Luc Lens
- Terrestrial Ecology Unit, Department Biology, Ghent University, BE-9000 Ghent, Belgium
| | - Seyed Mehdi Amininasab
- Behavioural and Physiological Ecology, Groningen Institute for ELIFES, University of Groningen, P.O. Box 11103, 9700 CC Groningen, The Netherlands; Department of Environmental Science, Behbahan Khatam Alanbia University of Technology, Iran
| | - Kees van Oers
- Department of Animal Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW), P.O. Box 50, 6700 AB Wageningen, The Netherlands
| | - Veerle M Darras
- Laboratory of Comparative Endocrinology, K.U. Leuven, Naamsestraat 61, B-3000 Leuven, Belgium
| | - Marcel Eens
- Behavioural Ecology & Ecophysiology Research Group, Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, B-2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Behavioural Ecology & Ecophysiology Research Group, Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, B-2610 Wilrijk, Belgium; Didactica Research Group, Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Antwerp, B-2000 Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Jan Komdeur
- Behavioural and Physiological Ecology, Groningen Institute for ELIFES, University of Groningen, P.O. Box 11103, 9700 CC Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Ton G G Groothuis
- Behavioural Biology, Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, P.O. Box 11103, 9700 CC Groningen, The Netherlands
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Lahaye SEP, Eens M, Darras VM, Pinxten R. Male-like testosterone levels inhibit oviposition in a female parrot: A breeding experiment in budgerigars. Curr Zool 2015. [DOI: 10.1093/czoolo/61.4.586] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
Studies in several songbird species have shown that treating females with the androgenic steroid hormone testosterone (T) can negatively affect female reproductive behaviors and breeding success. As the effects of T on females appear to be species-specific, it is not clear if similar effects of high T occur in non-songbird species. Here, we studied the effects of T supplementation on female reproductive behavior and oviposition in the budgerigar, Melopsittacus undulatus, a small monogamous parrot species with distinct sex differences in parental behavior. We experimentally increased T concentrations to male-like levels in T-treated females compared to controls and we allowed females to breed. We found no significant effects of treatment on the latency to enter the nestbox but T treatment significantly interfered with oviposition. Our results show that T-treated females were seven times less likely to produce a clutch than control females. As we found that T treatment had a strong inhibitory effect on oviposition, our results indicate that female budgerigars suffer fitness costs from male-like plasma T levels. Therefore, it may be possible that, also in non-songbird species, selection for higher T levels in males is constrained by a correlated response to selection which imposes fitness costs on females in terms of reproduction. Evaluating whether or not this is indeed the case requires further work combining different approaches to the study of the evolution of male and female testosterone levels.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Marcel Eens
- University of Antwerp, Research Group Ethology, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Veerle M. Darras
- KU Leuven, Laboratory of Comparative Endocrinology, B-3000 Louvain, Belgium
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- University of Antwerp, Research Group Ethology, Antwerp, Belgium
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Dehnhard N, Pinxten R, Demongin L, Van Camp J, Eens M, Poisbleau M. Relationships between female quality, egg mass and eggshell blue-green colouration in southern rockhopper penguins: a test of the sexual signalling hypothesis. Polar Biol 2015. [DOI: 10.1007/s00300-015-1742-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
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Lahaye SEP, Eens M, Iserbyt A, Groothuis TGG, de Vries B, Müller W, Pinxten R. Influence of mate preference and laying order on maternal allocation in a monogamous parrot species with extreme hatching asynchrony. Horm Behav 2015; 71:49-59. [PMID: 25870020 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2015.03.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/02/2014] [Revised: 03/09/2015] [Accepted: 03/13/2015] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
It is well established that in many avian species, prenatal maternal resource allocation varies both between and within clutches and may affect offspring fitness. Differential allocation of maternal resources, in terms of egg weight and yolk composition, may therefore allow the female to adjust brood reduction and to fine-tune reproductive investment in accordance with the expected fitness returns. The adaptive value of such maternal resource allocation is thought to be context-dependent as well as species-specific. We investigated the effects of female preference for her mate on the allocation of prenatal maternal resources in the budgerigar, Melopsittacus undulatus, a monogamous species of parrot that shows an extreme hatching asynchrony. We assessed mate preferences in a two-way preference test and allowed females two breeding rounds: one with the preferred and one with the non-preferred partner. We found no effect of preference on either latency to lay or clutch size, but females mated with the preferred partner laid eggs that contained significantly more yolk. Their eggs also contained significantly more androstenedione but not testosterone. Our results suggest that in this species, female preference may influence maternal resource allocation, and that the functional roles of each androgen in the yolk should be considered separately. In addition, we found a significant effect of laying order on egg and yolk weight as well as on yolk testosterone and androstenedione levels. These measures, however, did not change linearly with the laying order and render it unlikely that female budgerigars compensate for the extreme hatching asynchrony by adjusting within-clutch allocation of prenatal maternal resources.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefanie E P Lahaye
- Department of Biology, Research Group Ethology, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, Wilrijk, 2610 Antwerp, Belgium.
| | - Marcel Eens
- Department of Biology, Research Group Ethology, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, Wilrijk, 2610 Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Arne Iserbyt
- Department of Biology, Research Group Ethology, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, Wilrijk, 2610 Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Ton G G Groothuis
- Department of Behavioural Biology, Centre for Behaviour and Neurosciences, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 7, 9747 AG Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Bonnie de Vries
- Department of Behavioural Biology, Centre for Behaviour and Neurosciences, University of Groningen, Nijenborgh 7, 9747 AG Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Wendt Müller
- Department of Biology, Research Group Ethology, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, Wilrijk, 2610 Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Department of Biology, Research Group Ethology, University of Antwerp, Universiteitsplein 1, Wilrijk, 2610 Antwerp, Belgium; Institute for Education and Information Sciences, Research Unit Didactica, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
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Casagrande S, Pinxten R, Zaid E, Eens M. Birds receiving extra carotenoids keep singing during the sickness phase induced by inflammation. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2015. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-015-1916-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
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Costantini D, Casagrande S, Casasole G, AbdElgawad H, Asard H, Pinxten R, Eens M. Immunization reduces vocal communication but does not increase oxidative stress in a songbird species. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2015. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-015-1899-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
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Abstract
Many behavioural studies rely on playback experiments. While it is known that songbirds decrease behavioural responses after short-term repeated stimulation, long-term behavioural changes due to playbacks are unknown. We studied the response to playbacks in a free-living songbird in the long-term, while also studying the repeatability of the behaviour. Locomotor behaviour (a proxy of aggressiveness) decreased one year after first exposure to a single playback. Song response, however, remained consistent, suggesting that these two behaviours may provide different information. Locomotor behaviour was less repeatable than the song response to playback, the latter showing significant between-years repeatability. To the best of our knowledge, our study is the first to report long-term decrease in response to playbacks in a songbird, and that some aspects of the response to playback are repeatable. Similar studies in other species or populations of the great tit are important, to examine the generality of our findings.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hector Fabio Rivera-Gutierrez
- Grupo Ecología y Evolución de Vertebrados, Instituto de Biología, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Antioquia UdeA, Calle 70 No. 52-21, Medellin, Colombia
- University of Antwerp, Ethology Group, Campus Drie Eiken, Universiteitsplein 1, B-2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- University of Antwerp, Ethology Group, Campus Drie Eiken, Universiteitsplein 1, B-2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
- Institute for Education and Information Sciences, Research Unit Didactica, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Marcel Eens
- University of Antwerp, Ethology Group, Campus Drie Eiken, Universiteitsplein 1, B-2610 Wilrijk, Belgium
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49
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Casagrande S, Pinxten R, Zaid E, Eens M. Carotenoids, birdsong and oxidative status: administration of dietary lutein is associated with an increase in song rate and circulating antioxidants (albumin and cholesterol) and a decrease in oxidative damage. PLoS One 2014; 9:e115899. [PMID: 25549336 PMCID: PMC4280127 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0115899] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2014] [Accepted: 11/29/2014] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Despite the appealing hypothesis that carotenoid-based colouration signals oxidative status, evidence supporting the antioxidant function of these pigments is scarce. Recent studies have shown that lutein, the most common carotenoid used by birds, can enhance the expression of non-visual traits, such as birdsong. Nevertheless, the underlying physiological mechanisms remain unclear. In this study we hypothesized that male European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) fed extra lutein increase their song rate as a consequence of an improved oxidative status. Although birdsong may be especially sensitive to the redox status, this has, to the best of our knowledge, never been tested. Together with the determination of circulating oxidative damage (ROMs, reactive oxygen metabolites), we quantified uric acid, albumin, total proteins, cholesterol, and testosterone, which are physiological parameters potentially sensitive to oxidation and/or related to both carotenoid functions and birdsong expression. We found that the birds fed extra lutein sang more frequently than control birds and showed an increase of albumin and cholesterol together with a decrease of oxidative damage. Moreover, we could show that song rate was associated with high levels of albumin and cholesterol and low levels of oxidative damage, independently from testosterone levels. Our study shows for the first time that song rate honestly signals the oxidative status of males and that dietary lutein is associated with the circulation of albumin and cholesterol in birds, providing a novel insight to the theoretical framework related to the honest signalling of carotenoid-based traits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefania Casagrande
- Department of Biology, Ethology Group, University of Antwerp, Campus Drie Eiken, Antwerp, Belgium
- * E-mail:
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Department of Biology, Ethology Group, University of Antwerp, Campus Drie Eiken, Antwerp, Belgium
- Institute for Education and Information Sciences, Research Unit Didactica, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Erika Zaid
- Department of Biology, Ethology Group, University of Antwerp, Campus Drie Eiken, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Marcel Eens
- Department of Biology, Ethology Group, University of Antwerp, Campus Drie Eiken, Antwerp, Belgium
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50
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Møller AP, Adriaensen F, Artemyev A, Bańbura J, Barba E, Biard C, Blondel J, Bouslama Z, Bouvier JC, Camprodon J, Cecere F, Charmantier A, Charter M, Cichoń M, Cusimano C, Czeszczewik D, Demeyrier V, Doligez B, Doutrelant C, Dubiec A, Eens M, Eeva T, Faivre B, Ferns PN, Forsman JT, García-Del-Rey E, Goldshtein A, Goodenough AE, Gosler AG, Góźdź I, Grégoire A, Gustafsson L, Hartley IR, Heeb P, Hinsley SA, Isenmann P, Jacob S, Järvinen A, Juškaitis R, Korpimäki E, Krams I, Laaksonen T, Leclercq B, Lehikoinen E, Loukola O, Lundberg A, Mainwaring MC, Mänd R, Massa B, Mazgajski TD, Merino S, Mitrus C, Mönkkönen M, Morales-Fernaz J, Morin X, Nager RG, Nilsson JÅ, Nilsson SG, Norte AC, Orell M, Perret P, Pimentel CS, Pinxten R, Priedniece I, Quidoz MC, Remeš V, Richner H, Robles H, Rytkönen S, Senar JC, Seppänen JT, da Silva LP, Slagsvold T, Solonen T, Sorace A, Stenning MJ, Török J, Tryjanowski P, van Noordwijk AJ, von Numers M, Walankiewicz W, Lambrechts MM. Variation in clutch size in relation to nest size in birds. Ecol Evol 2014; 4:3583-95. [PMID: 25478150 PMCID: PMC4224533 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.1189] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2014] [Revised: 07/07/2014] [Accepted: 07/15/2014] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Nests are structures built to support and protect eggs and/or offspring from predators, parasites, and adverse weather conditions. Nests are mainly constructed prior to egg laying, meaning that parent birds must make decisions about nest site choice and nest building behavior before the start of egg-laying. Parent birds should be selected to choose nest sites and to build optimally sized nests, yet our current understanding of clutch size-nest size relationships is limited to small-scale studies performed over short time periods. Here, we quantified the relationship between clutch size and nest size, using an exhaustive database of 116 slope estimates based on 17,472 nests of 21 species of hole and non-hole-nesting birds. There was a significant, positive relationship between clutch size and the base area of the nest box or the nest, and this relationship did not differ significantly between open nesting and hole-nesting species. The slope of the relationship showed significant intraspecific and interspecific heterogeneity among four species of secondary hole-nesting species, but also among all 116 slope estimates. The estimated relationship between clutch size and nest box base area in study sites with more than a single size of nest box was not significantly different from the relationship using studies with only a single size of nest box. The slope of the relationship between clutch size and nest base area in different species of birds was significantly negatively related to minimum base area, and less so to maximum base area in a given study. These findings are consistent with the hypothesis that bird species have a general reaction norm reflecting the relationship between nest size and clutch size. Further, they suggest that scientists may influence the clutch size decisions of hole-nesting birds through the provisioning of nest boxes of varying sizes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anders P Møller
- Laboratoire Ecologie, Systematique et Evolution, UMR 8079 CNRS-Université Paris-Sud XI-AgroParisTech Batiment 362 Université Paris-Sud XI, Orsay Cedex, F-91405, France
| | - Frank Adriaensen
- Evolutionary Ecology Group, Department of Biology, University of Antwerp Campus CGB, Antwerp, B-2020, Belgium
| | - Alexandr Artemyev
- Russian Academy of Sciences, Karelian Research Centre, Instition of Biology Petrozavodsk, 185610, Russia
| | - Jerzy Bańbura
- Department of Experimental Zoology & Evolutionary Biology, University of Łodź Banacha 12/16, Łodź, 90-237, Poland
| | - Emilio Barba
- Terrestrial Vertebrates Research Unit "Cavanilles", Institute of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology, University of Valencia C/Catedrático José Beltran 2, Paterna, E-46980, Spain
| | - Clotilde Biard
- Laboratoire Ecologie-Evolution, UMR 7625, Equipe Ecophysiologie Evolutive - Evolutionary Ecophysiology Research Group, Université Pierre et Marie Curie - UPMC 7 quai Saint Bernard, case 237, Paris Cedex 05, F-75252, France
| | - Jacques Blondel
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, CEFE UMR 5175 Campus CNRS, 1919 route de Mende, Montpellier Cedex 5, F-34293, France
| | - Zihad Bouslama
- Research Laboratory "Ecology of Terrestrial and Aquatic Systems", University Badji Mokhtar Annaba, Algeria
| | - Jean-Charles Bouvier
- INRA, UR 1115, Plantes et Systèmes de culture Horticoles Avignon, F-84000, France
| | - Jordi Camprodon
- Àrea de Biodiversitat, Grup de Biologia de la Conservació, Centre Tecnològic Forestal de Catalunya Carretera de St. Llorenç de Morunys, km. 2, Solsona, E-25280, Spain
| | | | - Anne Charmantier
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, CEFE UMR 5175 Campus CNRS, 1919 route de Mende, Montpellier Cedex 5 F-34293, France
| | - Motti Charter
- University of Haifa Haifa, Israel ; Society for the Protection of Nature, University of Lausanne Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Mariusz Cichoń
- Institution of Environment Science, Jagiellonian University Krakow, Poland
| | - Camillo Cusimano
- Stazione Inanellamento c/o Dipartimento SEN-FIMIZO, Università di Palermo Palermo, Italy
| | - Dorota Czeszczewik
- Department of Zoology, Siedlce University of Natural Sciences and Humanities Prusa 12, Siedlce, PL-08-110, Poland
| | - Virginie Demeyrier
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, CEFE UMR 5175 Campus CNRS, 1919 route de Mende, Montpellier Cedex 5 F-34293, France
| | - Blandine Doligez
- Univ Lyon 1, Department of Biometry & Evolutionary Biology, CNRS UMR 5558 Villeurbanne, F-69622, France
| | - Claire Doutrelant
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, CEFE UMR 5175 Campus CNRS, 1919 route de Mende, Montpellier Cedex 5 F-34293, France
| | - Anna Dubiec
- Museum and Institute of Zoology, Polish Academy of Sciences Wilcza 64, Warsaw, PL-00-679, Poland
| | - Marcel Eens
- Campus Drie Eiken, Department of Biology (Ethology) Building C, Antwerp (Wilrijk), B-2610, Belgium
| | - Tapio Eeva
- Section of Ecology, Department of Biology, University of Turku Turku, FI-20014, Finland
| | - Bruno Faivre
- Université de Bourgogne, UMR CNRS 5561, BioGéoSciences 6 Boulevard Gabriel, Dijon, F-21000, France
| | - Peter N Ferns
- School of Bioscience, Cardiff University Cardiff, CF10 3AX, UK
| | - Jukka T Forsman
- Department of Biology, University of Oulu Oulu, FIN-90014, Finland
| | - Eduardo García-Del-Rey
- Departamento de Ecología, Facultad de Biología, Universidad de La Laguna La Laguna, E-38260, Spain
| | | | - Anne E Goodenough
- Department of Natural and Social Sciences, University of Gloucestershire Gloucestershire, GL50 4AZ, U.K
| | - Andrew G Gosler
- Department of Zoology, Edward Grey Institute of Field Ornithology & Institute of Human Sciences South Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3PS, U.K
| | - Iga Góźdź
- Museum and Institute of Zoology, Polish Academy of Sciences Wilcza 64, Warszawa, PL-00-679, Poland
| | - Arnaud Grégoire
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, CEFE UMR 5175 Campus CNRS, et Université de Montpellier II, 1919 route de Mende, Montpellier Cedex 5, F-34293, France
| | - Lars Gustafsson
- Department of Animal Ecology, Evolutionary Biology Centre, Uppsala University Uppsala, SE-75236, Sweden
| | - Ian R Hartley
- Lancaster Environment Centre, Lancaster University Lancaster, LA1 4YQ, U.K
| | - Philipp Heeb
- Laboratoire Évolution & Diversité Biologique, UPS Toulouse III, Bât 4R1, salle 122 118 route de Narbonne, Toulouse, F-31062, France
| | - Shelley A Hinsley
- CEH Wallingford Maclean Building, Crowmarsh Gifford, Oxfordshire, OX10 8BB, U.K
| | - Paul Isenmann
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, CEFE UMR 5175 Campus CNRS, 1919 route de Mende, Montpellier Cedex 5 F-34293, France
| | - Staffan Jacob
- Laboratoire Évolution & Diversité Biologique, UPS Toulouse III, Bât 4R1, salle 122 118 route de Narbonne, Toulouse F-31062, France
| | - Antero Järvinen
- University of Helsinki Kilpisjarvi Biological Station, P.O.Box 17, Helsinki, FIN-00014, Finland
| | - Rimvydas Juškaitis
- Institute of Ecology of Nature Research Centre Akademijos 2, Vilnius, LT-08412, Lithuania
| | - Erkki Korpimäki
- Section of Ecology, Department of Biology, University of Turku Turku FI-20014, Finland
| | - Indrikis Krams
- Institute of Ecology & Earth Sciences, University Tartu Tartu, EE-51014, Estonia
| | - Toni Laaksonen
- Section of Ecology, Department of Biology, University of Turku Turku FI-20014, Finland
| | - Bernard Leclercq
- Crx. St. Pierre 6 rue Morcueil, Fleurey Sur Ouche, F-21410, France
| | - Esa Lehikoinen
- Section of Ecology, Department of Biology, University of Turku Turku FI-20014, Finland
| | - Olli Loukola
- Department of Biology, University of Oulu Oulu, FI-90014, Finland
| | - Arne Lundberg
- Department of Ecology & Evolution, Uppsala University Uppsala, S-75236, Sweden
| | - Mark C Mainwaring
- Lancaster Environment Centre, Lancaster University Lancaster LA1 4YQ, U.K
| | - Raivo Mänd
- Department of Zoology, Institute of Ecology and Earth Sciences, University of Tartu 46 Vanemuise Str., Tartu, EE-51014, Estonia
| | - Bruno Massa
- Stazione Inanellamento c/o Dipartimento SEN-FIMIZO, Università di Palermo Palermo, Italy
| | - Tomasz D Mazgajski
- Museum and Institute of Zoology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Wilcza 64 Warszawa PL-00-679, Poland
| | - Santiago Merino
- Departamento de Ecología Evolutiva Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales, Agencia Estatal Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, CSIC C/José Gutiérrez Abascal 2, Madrid, E-28002, Spain
| | - Cezary Mitrus
- Department of Zoology, Rzeszów University Zelwerowicza 4, Rzeszów, PL-35-601, Poland
| | - Mikko Mönkkönen
- Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Jyväskylä POB 35, Jyväskylä, FIN-40014, Finland ; Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionelle & Evolutive, CNRS 1919 Route de Mende, Montpellier, France
| | - Judith Morales-Fernaz
- Ecología Evolutiva, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (CSIC) José Gutiérrez Abascal 2, Madrid, E-28006, Spain
| | - Xavier Morin
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, Campus CNRS 1919 route de Mende, Montpellier Cedex 5, F-34293, France
| | - Ruedi G Nager
- Institute of Biodiversity, Animal Health & Comparative Medicine, University of Glasgow Graham Kerr Building, Glasgow, G12 8QQ, U.K
| | - Jan-Åke Nilsson
- Ecology Building, Animal Ecology, Lund University Lund, SE-223 62, Sweden
| | - Sven G Nilsson
- Department of Biology, Biodiversity, Lund University Ecology Building, Lund, SE-223 62, Sweden
| | - Ana C Norte
- Department of Life Sciences, Institute of Marine Research, University of Coimbra Apartado 3046, Coimbra, PT-3001-401, Portugal
| | - Markku Orell
- Department of Biology, University of Oulu P.O. Box 3000, Oulu, FIN-90014, Finland
| | - Philippe Perret
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, CEFE UMR 5175 Campus CNRS, 1919 route de Mende, Montpellier Cedex 5 F-34293, France
| | - Carla S Pimentel
- Centro de Estudos Florestais, Instituto Superior de Agronomia, University of Lisbon Lisbon, 1349-017, Portugal
| | - Rianne Pinxten
- Campus Drie Eiken, Department of Biology (Ethology), Building C Antwerp (Wilrijk) B-2610, Belgium
| | - Ilze Priedniece
- Latvian Fund for Nature Dzirnavu Street 73-2, Riga, LV-1011, Latvia
| | - Marie-Claude Quidoz
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, CEFE UMR 5175 Campus CNRS, 1919 route de Mende, Montpellier Cedex 5 F-34293, France
| | - Vladimir Remeš
- Laboratory of Ornithology, Department of Zoology, Palacky University Olomouc, CZ-77146, Czech Republic
| | - Heinz Richner
- Institute of Ecology & Evolution (IEE), University of Bern Bern, CH-3012, Switzerland
| | - Hugo Robles
- Falculty of Sciences, Evolutionary Ecology Group (GIBE), University of A Coruña Campus Zapateira, A Coruña, E-15008, Spain ; Evolutionary Ecology Group (EVECO), Department of Biology, University of Antwerp Middelheimcampus, Groenenborgerlaan 171, Antwerp, B-2020, Belgium
| | - Seppo Rytkönen
- Department of Biology, University of Oulu P. O. Box 3000, Oulu, FIN-90014, Finland
| | - Juan Carlos Senar
- Unidad Asociada CSIC de Ecología Evolutiva y de la Conducta, Nat-Museu de Ciències Naturals de Barcelona Barcelona, Spain
| | - Janne T Seppänen
- Department of Biological and Environmental Science, University of Jyväskylä Jyväskylä, Finland
| | - Luís P da Silva
- Department Life Science, IMAR CMA, University Coimbra Coimbra, PT-3004517, Portugal
| | | | - Tapio Solonen
- Luontotutkimus Solonen Oy Neitsytsaarentie 7b B 147, Helsinki, FIN-00960, Finland
| | | | - Martyn J Stenning
- School of Life Sciences, University of Sussex Brighton, Sussex, BN1 9QG, U.K
| | - János Török
- Behavioral Ecology Group, Department of Systematic Zoology & Ecology, Eötvös Lorand University Budapest, H-1117, Hungary
| | - Piotr Tryjanowski
- Institute of Zoology, Poznan University of Life Sciences Wojska Polskiego 71 C, Poznań, PL-60-625, Poland
| | - Arie J van Noordwijk
- Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW) Doevendaalsesteg, 10, Wageningen, NL-6708 BP, the Netherlands
| | - Mikael von Numers
- Environmental and Marine Biology, Åbo Akademi University Artillerigatan 6, Biocity, Åbo, FI-20520, Finland
| | - Wiesław Walankiewicz
- Department of Zoology, Siedlce University of Natural Sciences and Humanities, Prusa 12 Siedlce PL-08-110, Poland
| | - Marcel M Lambrechts
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, CEFE UMR 5175 Campus CNRS, 1919 route de Mende, Montpellier Cedex 5 F-34293, France
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