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Fortuna R, Covas R, D'Amelio PB, Silva LR, Parenteau C, Bliard L, Rybak F, Doutrelant C, Paquet M. Interplay of cooperative breeding and predation risk on egg allocation and reproductive output. Behav Ecol 2024; 35:arae010. [PMID: 38486920 PMCID: PMC10939053 DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arae010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2023] [Revised: 01/21/2024] [Accepted: 02/27/2024] [Indexed: 03/17/2024] Open
Abstract
Predation risk can influence behavior, reproductive investment, and, ultimately, individuals' fitness. In high-risk environments, females often reduce allocation to reproduction, which can affect offspring phenotype and breeding success. In cooperative breeders, helpers contribute to feed the offspring, and groups often live and forage together. Helpers can, therefore, improve reproductive success, but also influence breeders' condition, stress levels and predation risk. Yet, whether helper presence can buffer the effects of predation risk on maternal reproductive allocation remains unstudied. Here, we used the cooperatively breeding sociable weaver Philetairus socius to test the interactive effects of predation risk and breeding group size on maternal allocation to clutch size, egg mass, yolk mass, and yolk corticosterone. We increased perceived predation risk before egg laying using playbacks of the adults' main predator, gabar goshawk (Micronisus gabar). We also tested the interactive effects of group size and prenatal predator playbacks on offspring hatching and fledging probability. Predator-exposed females laid eggs with 4% lighter yolks, but predator-calls' exposure did not clearly affect clutch size, egg mass, or egg corticosterone levels. Playback-treatment effects on yolk mass were independent of group size, suggesting that helpers' presence did not mitigate predation risk effects on maternal allocation. Although predator-induced reductions in yolk mass may decrease nutrient availability to offspring, potentially affecting their survival, playback-treatment effects on hatching and fledging success were not evident. The interplay between helper presence and predator effects on maternal reproductive investment is still an overlooked area of life history and physiological evolutionary trade-offs that requires further studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rita Fortuna
- CIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Campus de Vairão, Universidade do Porto, 4485-661, Vairão, Portugal
- Departamento de Biologia, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade do Porto, 4099-002, Porto, Portugal
- BIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, CIBIO, Campus de Vairão, 4485-661, Vairão, Portugal
- Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics, Institutt for Biologi, NTNU, 7491, Trondheim, Norway
| | - Rita Covas
- CIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Campus de Vairão, Universidade do Porto, 4485-661, Vairão, Portugal
- BIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, CIBIO, Campus de Vairão, 4485-661, Vairão, Portugal
- FitzPatrick Institute, DST-NRF Centre of Excellence, University of Cape Town, 7701, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Pietro B D'Amelio
- CEFE, Univ Montpellier, CNRS, EPHE, IRD, 34293, Montpellier, France
- Université Paris-Saclay, CNRS, Institut des Neurosciences Paris-Saclay, 91400, Saclay, France
| | - Liliana R Silva
- CIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Campus de Vairão, Universidade do Porto, 4485-661, Vairão, Portugal
- BIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, CIBIO, Campus de Vairão, 4485-661, Vairão, Portugal
| | - Charline Parenteau
- Centre d’Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, CNRS-La Rochelle Université, 79360, Villiers-en-Bois, France
| | - Louis Bliard
- Department of Evolutionary Biology & Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, CH-8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Fanny Rybak
- Université Paris-Saclay, CNRS, Institut des Neurosciences Paris-Saclay, 91400, Saclay, France
| | - Claire Doutrelant
- FitzPatrick Institute, DST-NRF Centre of Excellence, University of Cape Town, 7701, Cape Town, South Africa
- CEFE, Univ Montpellier, CNRS, EPHE, IRD, 34293, Montpellier, France
| | - Matthieu Paquet
- Institute of Mathematics of Bordeaux, University of Bordeaux, CNRS, Bordeaux INP, 33405, Talence, France
- Theoretical and Experimental Ecology Station (SETE), CNRS, 09200, Moulis, France
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2
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Beck KB, Farine DR, Firth JA, Sheldon BC. Variation in local population size predicts social network structure in wild songbirds. J Anim Ecol 2023; 92:2348-2362. [PMID: 37837224 PMCID: PMC10952437 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.14015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/06/2023] [Accepted: 09/19/2023] [Indexed: 10/15/2023]
Abstract
The structure of animal societies is a key determinant of many ecological and evolutionary processes. Yet, we know relatively little about the factors and mechanisms that underpin detailed social structure. Among other factors, social structure can be influenced by habitat configuration. By shaping animal movement decisions, heterogeneity in habitat features, such as vegetation and the availability of resources, can influence the spatiotemporal distribution of individuals and subsequently key socioecological properties such as the local population size and density. Differences in local population size and density can impact opportunities for social associations and may thus drive substantial variation in local social structure. Here, we investigated spatiotemporal variation in population size at 65 distinct locations in a small songbird, the great tit (Parus major) and its effect on social network structure. We first explored the within-location consistency of population size from weekly samples and whether the observed variation in local population size was predicted by the underlying habitat configuration. Next, we created social networks from the birds' foraging associations at each location for each week and examined if local population size affected social structure. We show that population size is highly repeatable within locations across weeks and years and that some of the observed variation in local population size was predicted by the underlying habitat, with locations closer to the forest edge having on average larger population sizes. Furthermore, we show that local population size affected social structure inferred by four global network metrics. Using simple simulations, we then reveal that much of the observed social structure is shaped by social processes. Across different population sizes, the birds' social structure was largely explained by their preference to forage in flocks. In addition, over and above effects of social foraging, social preferences between birds (i.e. social relationships) shaped certain network features such as the extent of realized social connections. Our findings thus suggest that individual social decisions substantially contribute to shaping certain social network features over and above effects of population size alone.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kristina B. Beck
- Department of Biology, Edward Grey InstituteUniversity of OxfordOxfordUK
| | - Damien R. Farine
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental StudiesUniversity of ZurichZurichSwitzerland
- Division of Ecology and Evolution, Research School of BiologyAustralian National UniversityCanberraAustralian Capital TerritoryAustralia
- Department of Collective BehaviourMax Planck Institute of Animal BehaviourKonstanzGermany
| | - Josh A. Firth
- Department of Biology, Edward Grey InstituteUniversity of OxfordOxfordUK
| | - Ben C. Sheldon
- Department of Biology, Edward Grey InstituteUniversity of OxfordOxfordUK
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3
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Beltrão P, Gomes ACR, Cardoso GC. Bullying as an advertisement of social dominance in common waxbills. Proc Biol Sci 2023; 290:20230206. [PMID: 37312555 PMCID: PMC10265017 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2023.0206] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2023] [Accepted: 05/25/2023] [Indexed: 06/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Bullying consists of preferentially attacking individuals lowest in the dominance hierarchy, and its functions are unclear because the most subordinate individuals do not pose social challenges to the aggressor. Instead, conflict is expected mostly between individuals of similar dominance rank or socially distant (i.e. weakly associated), among whom dominance relationships may not be well established. A possible function of bullying is that it may be used as a low-risk strategy of showing-off dominance to relevant third parties. To study this hypothesis, we monitored aggressions during feeding, the composition of audiences, dominance hierarchy and social network of common waxbills (Estrilda astrild) in an open-air mesocosm, and tested (i) whether their aggressions show a pattern of bullying, and (ii) whether audience effects influence aggressiveness. Waxbills showed bullying, most often attacking the lowest ranking individuals rather than socially distant individuals or those of similar dominance rank, and aggressions increased when the audience included socially distant individuals, indicating a signalling function of bullying. Showing-off dominance in the presence of socially distant individuals may be a strategy to manage dominance hierarchies, avoiding direct fights with potentially dangerous opponents in the audience. We suggest that bullying is a safe manner of managing dominance hierarchies, by signalling dominance status to potential opponents.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrícia Beltrão
- CIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Campus de Vairão, Universidade do Porto, 4485-661 Vairão, Portugal
- BIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, CIBIO, Campus de Vairão, 4485–661 Vairão, Portugal
| | - Ana Cristina R. Gomes
- CIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Campus de Vairão, Universidade do Porto, 4485-661 Vairão, Portugal
- BIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, CIBIO, Campus de Vairão, 4485–661 Vairão, Portugal
| | - Gonçalo C. Cardoso
- CIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Campus de Vairão, Universidade do Porto, 4485-661 Vairão, Portugal
- BIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, CIBIO, Campus de Vairão, 4485–661 Vairão, Portugal
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4
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Fortuna R, Paquet M, Biard C, Élard L, Ferreira AC, Leroux-Coyaux M, Parenteau C, Silva LR, Théron F, Covas R, Doutrelant C. Egg components and offspring survival vary with group size and laying order in a cooperative breeder. Oecologia 2023; 202:129-142. [PMID: 37148378 DOI: 10.1007/s00442-023-05379-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2022] [Accepted: 04/25/2023] [Indexed: 05/08/2023]
Abstract
Prenatal resource allocation to offspring can be influenced by maternal environment and offspring value, and affect offspring survival. An important pathway for flexible maternal allocation is via egg components such as nutrients and hormones. In cooperative breeders, females with helpers may increase resource allocation to eggs-'differential allocation'-or reduce it-'load-lightening'. Yet, helper effects on egg composition have been poorly studied. Moreover, it is unknown how helpers' presence modulates laying order effects on egg content and survival. Here, we investigated how maternal allocation varied with group size and laying order in the cooperatively breeding sociable weaver (Philetairus socius). We estimated interactive effects of helpers and laying order on allocation to egg mass, yolk nutrients-yolk mass, proteins, lipids, carotenoids, vitamin A and vitamin E-and hormones-testosterone, androstenedione, and corticosterone. Results concurred with the 'differential allocation' predictions. Females with more helpers produced later-laid eggs with heavier yolks and more lipids, and laid eggs overall richer in lipids. Proteins, antioxidants, and hormones were not found to vary with helper number. We then analyzed how helper number modulated laying order effects on survival. Females with more helpers did not specifically produce later-laid eggs with higher survival, but eggs laid by females with more helpers were overall more likely to fledge. These findings show that some egg components (yolk mass, lipids) can positively vary according to females' breeding group size, which may improve offspring fitness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rita Fortuna
- CIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Campus de Vairão, Universidade do Porto, 4485-661, Vairão, Portugal.
- Departamento de Biologia, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade do Porto, 4099-002, Porto, Portugal.
- BIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, CIBIO, Campus de Vairão, 4485-661, Vairão, Portugal.
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, CEFE, CNRS, Univ Montpellier, EPHE, IRD, 34293, Montpellier, France.
- Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics, Institutt for Biologi, NTNU, Trondheim, Norway.
| | - Matthieu Paquet
- Department of Ecology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, P.O. Box 7044, 75007, Uppsala, Sweden
- Institute of Mathematics of Bordeaux, University of Bordeaux, CNRS, Bordeaux INP, Talence, France
| | - Clotilde Biard
- Sorbonne Université, UPEC, CNRS, IRD, INRA, Institut d'Écologie et des Sciences de l'Environnement de Paris, IEES, 75005, Paris, France
| | - Loïc Élard
- Sorbonne Université, UPEC, CNRS, IRD, INRA, Institut d'Écologie et des Sciences de l'Environnement de Paris, IEES, 75005, Paris, France
| | - André C Ferreira
- CIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Campus de Vairão, Universidade do Porto, 4485-661, Vairão, Portugal
- BIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, CIBIO, Campus de Vairão, 4485-661, Vairão, Portugal
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, CEFE, CNRS, Univ Montpellier, EPHE, IRD, 34293, Montpellier, France
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Mathieu Leroux-Coyaux
- Sorbonne Université, UPEC, CNRS, IRD, INRA, Institut d'Écologie et des Sciences de l'Environnement de Paris, IEES, 75005, Paris, France
| | - Charline Parenteau
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, CNRS-La Rochelle Université, Villiers-en-Bois, France
| | - Liliana R Silva
- CIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Campus de Vairão, Universidade do Porto, 4485-661, Vairão, Portugal
- BIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, CIBIO, Campus de Vairão, 4485-661, Vairão, Portugal
| | - Franck Théron
- CIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Campus de Vairão, Universidade do Porto, 4485-661, Vairão, Portugal
- BIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, CIBIO, Campus de Vairão, 4485-661, Vairão, Portugal
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, CEFE, CNRS, Univ Montpellier, EPHE, IRD, 34293, Montpellier, France
| | - Rita Covas
- CIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Campus de Vairão, Universidade do Porto, 4485-661, Vairão, Portugal
- BIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, CIBIO, Campus de Vairão, 4485-661, Vairão, Portugal
- DST-NRF Centre of Excellence, FitzPatrick Institute, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Claire Doutrelant
- Centre d'Ecologie Fonctionnelle et Evolutive, CEFE, CNRS, Univ Montpellier, EPHE, IRD, 34293, Montpellier, France
- DST-NRF Centre of Excellence, FitzPatrick Institute, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
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5
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Dunning J, Burke T, Hoi Hang Chan A, Ying Janet Chik H, Evans T, Schroeder J. Opposite-sex associations are linked with annual fitness, but sociality is stable over lifetime. Behav Ecol 2023; 34:315-324. [PMID: 37192923 PMCID: PMC10183206 DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arac124] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2022] [Revised: 11/27/2022] [Accepted: 12/06/2022] [Indexed: 03/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Animal sociality, an individual's propensity to associate with others, has fitness consequences through mate choice, for example, directly, by increasing the pool of prospective partners, and indirectly through increased survival, and individuals benefit from both. Annually, fitness consequences are realized through increased mating success and subsequent fecundity. However, it remains unknown whether these consequences translate to lifetime fitness. Here, we quantified social associations and their link to fitness annually and over lifetime, using a multi-generational, genetic pedigree. We used social network analysis to calculate variables representing different aspects of an individual's sociality. Sociality showed high within-individual repeatability. We found that birds with more opposite-sex associates had higher annual fitness than those with fewer, but this did not translate to lifetime fitness. Instead, for lifetime fitness, we found evidence for stabilizing selection on opposite-sex sociality, and sociality in general, suggesting that reported benefits are only short-lived in a wild population, and that selection favors an average sociality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jamie Dunning
- Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, UK
| | - Terry Burke
- Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, School of Biosciences, The University of Sheffield, UK
| | - Alex Hoi Hang Chan
- Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, UK
- Centre for the Advanced Study of Collective Behaviour, University of Konstanz, Germany
- Max Plank Institute of Animal Behaviour, Germany
| | - Heung Ying Janet Chik
- Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences, University of Groningen, Netherlands
- School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University, Australia
| | - Tim Evans
- Center for Complexity Science, Imperial College London, UK
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6
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Experimental manipulation of food distribution alters social networks and information transmission across environments in a food-caching bird. Anim Behav 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2022.08.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/01/2022]
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7
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Beltrão P, Gomes ACR, Cardoso GC. Collective foraging: experimentally‐increased competition decreases group performance exploiting a permanent resource. Funct Ecol 2022. [DOI: 10.1111/1365-2435.14060] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Patrícia Beltrão
- CIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Campus de Vairão, Universidade do Porto, 4485‐661 Vairão Portugal
- BIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, CIBIO, Campus de Vairão, 4485‐661 Vairão Portugal
| | - Ana Cristina R. Gomes
- CIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Campus de Vairão, Universidade do Porto, 4485‐661 Vairão Portugal
- BIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, CIBIO, Campus de Vairão, 4485‐661 Vairão Portugal
| | - Gonçalo C. Cardoso
- CIBIO, Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos, InBIO Laboratório Associado, Campus de Vairão, Universidade do Porto, 4485‐661 Vairão Portugal
- BIOPOLIS Program in Genomics, Biodiversity and Land Planning, CIBIO, Campus de Vairão, 4485‐661 Vairão Portugal
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8
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Assessing social structure: a data-driven approach to define associations between individuals. Mamm Biol 2022; 102:551-566. [PMID: 36721404 PMCID: PMC9883313 DOI: 10.1007/s42991-022-00231-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2021] [Accepted: 01/16/2022] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Our interpretation of animal social structures is inherently dependent on our ability to define association criteria that are biologically meaningful. However, association thresholds are often based upon generalized preconceptions of a species' social behaviour, and the impact of using these arbitrary definitions has been largely overlooked. In this study we suggest a probability-based method for defining association thresholds using lagged identification rates on photographic records of identifiable individuals. This technique uses a simple model of emigration/immigration from photographable clusters to identify the time-dependent lag value between identifications of two individuals that corresponds to approximately 75% probability of being in close spatial proximity and likely associating. This lag value is then used as the threshold to define associations for social analyses. We applied the technique to a dataset of northern resident killer whales (Orcinus orca) in the Northeast Pacific and tested its performance against two arbitrary thresholds. The probabilistic association maximized the variation in association strengths at different levels of the social structure, in line with known social patterns in this population. Furthermore, variability in inferred social structure metrics generated by different association criteria highlighted the consequential effect of choosing arbitrary thresholds. Data-driven association thresholds are a promising approach to study populations without the need to subjectively define associations in the field, especially in societies with prominent fission-fusion dynamics. This method is applicable to any dataset of sequential identifications where it can be assumed that associated individuals will tend to be identified in close proximity. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s42991-022-00231-9.
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10
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Heinen VK, Benedict LM, Pitera AM, Sonnenberg BR, Bridge ES, Pravosudov VV. Social dominance has limited effects on spatial cognition in a wild food-caching bird. Proc Biol Sci 2021; 288:20211784. [PMID: 34784764 PMCID: PMC8596002 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2021.1784] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2021] [Accepted: 10/27/2021] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Social dominance has long been used as a model to investigate social stress. However, many studies using such comparisons have been performed in captive environments. These environments may produce unnaturally high antagonistic interactions, exaggerating the stress of social subordination and any associated adverse consequences. One such adverse effect concerns impaired cognitive ability, often thought to be associated with social subordination. Here, we tested whether social dominance rank is associated with differences in spatial learning and memory, and in reversal spatial learning (flexibility) abilities in wild food-caching mountain chickadees at different montane elevations. Higher dominance rank was associated with higher spatial cognitive flexibility in harsh environments at higher elevations, but not at lower, milder elevations. By contrast, there were no consistent differences in spatial learning and memory ability associated with dominance rank. Our results suggest that spatial learning and memory ability in specialized food-caching species is a stable trait resilient to social influences. Spatial cognitive flexibility, on the other hand, appears to be more sensitive to environmental influences, including social dominance. These findings contradict those from laboratory studies and suggest that it is critical to investigate the biological consequences of social dominance under natural conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Angela M. Pitera
- Department of Biology, University of Nevada Reno, Reno, NV 89557, USA
| | | | - Eli S. Bridge
- Oklahoma Biological Survey, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK 73019, USA
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11
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Constructing social networks from automated telemetry data: A worked example using within‐ and across‐group associations in cooperatively breeding birds. Methods Ecol Evol 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/2041-210x.13737] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
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12
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Heinen VK, Pitera AM, Sonnenberg BR, Benedict LM, Bridge ES, Farine DR, Pravosudov VV. Food discovery is associated with different reliance on social learning and lower cognitive flexibility across environments in a food-caching bird. Proc Biol Sci 2021; 288:20202843. [PMID: 34004135 PMCID: PMC8131126 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2020.2843] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2020] [Accepted: 04/26/2021] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Social learning is a primary mechanism for information acquisition in social species. Despite many benefits, social learning may be disadvantageous when independent learning is more efficient. For example, searching independently may be more advantageous when food sources are ephemeral and unpredictable. Individual differences in cognitive abilities can also be expected to influence social information use. Specifically, better spatial memory can make a given environment more predictable for an individual by allowing it to better track food sources. We investigated how resident food-caching chickadees discovered multiple novel food sources in both harsher, less predictable high elevation and milder, more predictable low elevation winter environments. Chickadees at high elevation were faster at discovering multiple novel food sources and discovered more food sources than birds at low elevation. While birds at both elevations used social information, the contribution of social learning to food discovery was significantly lower at high elevation. At both elevations, chickadees with better spatial cognitive flexibility were slower at discovering food sources, likely because birds with lower spatial cognitive flexibility are worse at tracking natural resources and therefore spend more time exploring. Overall, our study supported the prediction that harsh environments should favour less reliance on social learning.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Angela M. Pitera
- Department of Biology, University of Nevada Reno, Reno, NV 89557, USA
| | | | | | - Eli S. Bridge
- Oklahoma Biological Survey, University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK 73019, USA
| | - Damien R. Farine
- Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
- Department of Collective Behaviour, Max Planck Institute of Animal Behaviour, 78464 Konstanz, Germany
- Centre for the Advanced Study of Collective Behaviour, University of Konstanz, 78464 Konstanz, Germany
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13
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Fortuna R, Paquet M, Ferreira AC, Silva LR, Theron F, Doutrelant C, Covas R. Maternal allocation in relation to weather, predation and social factors in a colonial cooperative bird. J Anim Ecol 2021; 90:1122-1133. [PMID: 33550597 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.13438] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2020] [Accepted: 01/11/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Females may adjust prenatal allocation in relation to ecological conditions that affect reproductive success, such as weather conditions or predation risk. In cooperative breeders, helpers might also influence reproductive success, and previous studies suggest that females can lay smaller eggs or larger clutches when breeding with more helpers. Although recent work suggests that helper effects can vary according to climatic variables, how social and ecological factors interact to shape prenatal allocation is poorly understood. Here, we examine how ecological and social components of the breeding environment covary with egg mass and clutch size, using as a model the sociable weaver Philetairus socius, a colonial, cooperatively breeding passerine. The study spanned 9 years and included over 1,900 eggs from over 550 clutches. Our analyses combined natural variation in weather conditions (rainfall before each reproductive event) with a nest predator-exclusion experiment and continuous monitoring of the mother's social environment, allowing us to estimate how individual females adjust allocation to reproduction as their number of helpers varies. We found that egg mass varied consistently within females and did not clearly differ in relation to rainfall or predation risk. Contrary to previous studies, there was no evidence for plastic adjustments as females gained and lost helpers, and egg mass was instead better predicted by mother size and identity. Females laid larger clutches when breeding in environments where predation risk was experimentally reduced and after higher rainfall levels. Yet, there was no evidence for increasing clutch size as the number of helpers increased, nor for an interaction between helper effects and ecological factors. We conclude that while sociable weaver females can vary their clutch size, they show high individual consistency in egg mass. In addition, we found no evidence that females may maximize fitness through plastic prenatal allocation in relation to the number of helpers, or that the presence/absence of helper effects is modulated by rainfall levels or predation risk. These results challenge our current knowledge on some of the possible benefits of breeding with helpers and call for more long-term analyses on reproductive allocation adjustments in other cooperative systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rita Fortuna
- CIBIO-InBIO - Research Centre in Biodiversity and Genetic Resources, Vairão, Portugal
| | - Matthieu Paquet
- Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala, Sweden
| | - André C Ferreira
- CIBIO-InBIO - Research Centre in Biodiversity and Genetic Resources, Vairão, Portugal.,CEFE-UMR5175 CNRS - Université de Montpellier, Montpellier Cedex 5, France
| | - Liliana R Silva
- CIBIO-InBIO - Research Centre in Biodiversity and Genetic Resources, Vairão, Portugal
| | - Franck Theron
- CEFE-UMR5175 CNRS - Université de Montpellier, Montpellier Cedex 5, France
| | - Claire Doutrelant
- CEFE-UMR5175 CNRS - Université de Montpellier, Montpellier Cedex 5, France
| | - Rita Covas
- CIBIO-InBIO - Research Centre in Biodiversity and Genetic Resources, Vairão, Portugal.,Percy FitzPatrick Institute, DST-NRF Centre of Excellence, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
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14
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van der Marel A, Prasher S, Carminito C, O'Connell CL, Phillips A, Kluever BM, Hobson EA. A framework to evaluate whether to pool or separate behaviors in a multilayer network. Curr Zool 2021; 67:101-111. [PMID: 33654494 PMCID: PMC7901760 DOI: 10.1093/cz/zoaa077] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2020] [Accepted: 12/11/2020] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
A multilayer network approach combines different network layers, which are connected by interlayer edges, to create a single mathematical object. These networks can contain a variety of information types and represent different aspects of a system. However, the process for selecting which information to include is not always straightforward. Using data on 2 agonistic behaviors in a captive population of monk parakeets (Myiopsitta monachus), we developed a framework for investigating how pooling or splitting behaviors at the scale of dyadic relationships (between 2 individuals) affects individual- and group-level social properties. We designed 2 reference models to test whether randomizing the number of interactions across behavior types results in similar structural patterns as the observed data. Although the behaviors were correlated, the first reference model suggests that the 2 behaviors convey different information about some social properties and should therefore not be pooled. However, once we controlled for data sparsity, we found that the observed measures corresponded with those from the second reference model. Hence, our initial result may have been due to the unequal frequencies of each behavior. Overall, our findings support pooling the 2 behaviors. Awareness of how selected measurements can be affected by data properties is warranted, but nonetheless our framework disentangles these efforts and as a result can be used for myriad types of behaviors and questions. This framework will help researchers make informed and data-driven decisions about which behaviors to pool or separate, prior to using the data in subsequent multilayer network analyses.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Sanjay Prasher
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH, 45221, USA
| | - Chelsea Carminito
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH, 45221, USA
| | - Claire L O'Connell
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH, 45221, USA
| | - Alexa Phillips
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH, 45221, USA
| | - Bryan M Kluever
- United States Department of Agriculture, Wildlife Services, National Wildlife Research Center, Florida Field Station, Gainesville, FL, 32641, USA
| | - Elizabeth A Hobson
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati, OH, 45221, USA
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15
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Papageorgiou D, Farine DR. Multilevel Societies in Birds. Trends Ecol Evol 2020; 36:15-17. [PMID: 33131923 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2020.10.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2020] [Revised: 10/06/2020] [Accepted: 10/08/2020] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Danai Papageorgiou
- Max Planck Institute of Animal Behaviour, Department of Collective Behaviour, Universitätsstraße 10, Konstanz, 78457, Germany; Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstraße 10, Konstanz, 78457, Germany; Centre for the Advanced Study of Collective Behaviour, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstraße 10, Konstanz, 78457, Germany.
| | - Damien R Farine
- Max Planck Institute of Animal Behaviour, Department of Collective Behaviour, Universitätsstraße 10, Konstanz, 78457, Germany; Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstraße 10, Konstanz, 78457, Germany; Centre for the Advanced Study of Collective Behaviour, University of Konstanz, Universitätsstraße 10, Konstanz, 78457, Germany.
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