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Hodges KE, Mortimer NT, Vrailas-Mortimer AD, Sakaluk SK, Thompson CF. Connecting the dots: avian eggshell pigmentation, female condition and paternal provisioning effort. Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2020; 130:114-127. [PMID: 32394988 DOI: 10.1093/biolinnean/blaa002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2019] [Revised: 01/03/2020] [Accepted: 01/04/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Differences in avian eggshell pigmentation could be an honest signal of female quality that males use to inform their nestling provisioning effort. We investigated whether among-individual variation in protoporphyrin-based eggshell pigmentation in house wrens (Troglodytes aedon) reflects female fitness-associated traits and whether males use that information. Females laying lighter clutches were older and larger than females laying darker clutches. Nestlings hatching from lighter clutches had greater size-corrected mass on post-hatch day 11, a measure that strongly predicts survival and recruitment to the breeding population. To test whether male provisioning effort responds to clutch pigmentation, we used a reciprocal clutch cross-fostering design, swapping dark with light clutches and light with dark; in controls, we swapped light with light clutches and dark with dark. Shortly before hatching, clutches were returned to their original nest to avoid confounding effects of nestling quality on male provisioning. Contrary to the sexual selection hypothesis, clutch pigmentation had no effect on male provisioning. Males were probably able to observe eggshell pigmentation and thus had information about female quality, but they did not use this information to modulate their nestling provisioning. This may be because of constraints on species-specific reproductive opportunities, or because variation in eggshell protoporphyrin serves other functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kara E Hodges
- School of Biological Sciences, Illinois State University,Normal,IL,USA
| | - Nathan T Mortimer
- School of Biological Sciences, Illinois State University,Normal,IL,USA
| | | | - Scott K Sakaluk
- School of Biological Sciences, Illinois State University,Normal,IL,USA
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Holveck MJ, Guerreiro R, Perret P, Doutrelant C, Grégoire A. Eggshell coloration indicates female condition during egg-laying: a field experiment in blue tits. Biol J Linn Soc Lond 2019. [DOI: 10.1093/biolinnean/blz082] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Abstract
AbstractSeveral selection pressures may explain the evolution of avian eggshell coloration patterns. In cavity-nesting species, there are two main non-exclusive hypotheses. The sexually selected eggshell colour hypothesis proposes that eggshell coloration is a sexually selected signal of female and offspring quality used by males that influences paternal care or future re-mating decisions. The structural function hypothesis proposes that pigments help strengthen the eggshell and are present at higher levels and at the blunt end of the egg when females face calcium shortages. We tested whether eggshell coloration (brown spots on a white ground colour) in blue tits (Cyanistes caeruleus) could reliably indicate female condition at laying by forcing females to produce two consecutive clutches, thus increasing their reproductive costs. Three measures of eggshell coloration – the area covered by spots as well as white ground UV-chroma and brightness – changed between clutches; the fourth measure, spot distribution, did not. The changes were more dramatic in young and lower-quality females. All the measures varied with female quality (i.e. body condition and/or laying date). Overall, higher-quality females produced more colourful (larger, more concentrated spotted surface area; higher UV-chroma) and less bright (i.e. putatively more pigmented) eggshells, a result that is generally in line with past research. We found a clear empirical link between eggshell coloration and female condition in blue tits, an important step in determining whether eggshell coloration is a sexual signal, but which does not exclude a potential concomitant structural function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marie-Jeanne Holveck
- CEFE UMR 5175, Univ Montpellier, CNRS, Univ Paul Valéry Montpellier 3, EPHE, IRD, Montpellier, France
| | - Romain Guerreiro
- CEFE UMR 5175, Univ Montpellier, CNRS, Univ Paul Valéry Montpellier 3, EPHE, IRD, Montpellier, France
| | - Philippe Perret
- CEFE UMR 5175, CNRS, Univ Montpellier, Univ Paul Valéry Montpellier 3, EPHE, IRD, Montpellier, France
| | - Claire Doutrelant
- CEFE UMR 5175, CNRS, Univ Montpellier, Univ Paul Valéry Montpellier 3, EPHE, IRD, Montpellier, France
| | - Arnaud Grégoire
- CEFE UMR 5175, Univ Montpellier, CNRS, Univ Paul Valéry Montpellier 3, EPHE, IRD, Montpellier, France
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López-Idiáquez D, Vergara P, Fargallo JA, Martínez-Padilla J. Providing longer post-fledging periods increases offspring survival at the expense of future fecundity. PLoS One 2018; 13:e0203152. [PMID: 30199538 PMCID: PMC6130873 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0203152] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2018] [Accepted: 08/15/2018] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The cost of reproduction is a key concept in life-history trade-offs. However, our understanding of the reproductive costs is biased towards measures of reproductive effort obtained before offspring independence. During the post-fledging dependence period (PFDP), it is well known that parents feed and protect their offspring. However, the effort devoted to this reproductive activity has never been considered in the context of of the costs of reproduction. Moreover, the potential fitness benefits and costs for offspring and parents, respectively, of the duration of the PFDP are largely unknown. We estimated the duration of the PFDP over 5 years using wild common kestrels (Falco tinnunculus) and studied its association with survival probability and future parental reproductive performance. Our results show that longer PFDPs increase the survival probability of fledglings, probably due to the benefits obtained from parental care. In addition, we found that providing longer PFDPs was associated with reduced clutch sizes but not the number of fledglings in the subsequent breeding season in males. We suggest that increased parental expenditures on offspring during the PFDP may represent a potential cost of reproduction in breeding males.
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Affiliation(s)
- David López-Idiáquez
- Department of Evolutionary Ecology, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales, Madrid, Spain.,Department of Ecology, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Spain
| | - Pablo Vergara
- Department of Evolutionary Ecology, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales, Madrid, Spain
| | - Juan Antonio Fargallo
- Department of Evolutionary Ecology, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales, Madrid, Spain
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Hargitai R, Boross N, Nyiri Z, Eke Z. Biliverdin- and protoporphyrin-based eggshell pigmentation in relation to antioxidant supplementation, female characteristics and egg traits in the canary (Serinus canaria). Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2016. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-016-2214-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
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Thomas DB, Hauber ME, Hanley D, Waterhouse GIN, Fraser S, Gordon KC. Analysing avian eggshell pigments with Raman spectroscopy. J Exp Biol 2015; 218:2670-4. [DOI: 10.1242/jeb.124917] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2015] [Accepted: 06/18/2015] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Avian eggshells are variable in appearance, including colouration. Here we demonstrate that Raman spectroscopy can provide accurate diagnostic information about major eggshell constituents, including the pigments biliverdin and protoprophyrin IX. Eggshells pigmented with biliverdin showed a series of pigment-diagnostic Raman peaks under 785 nm excitation. Eggshells pigmented with protoporphyrin IX showed strong emission under 1064 nm and 785 nm excitation, whereas resonance Raman spectra (351 nm excitation) showed a set of protoporphyrin IX informative peaks characterisitic of protoporphyrin IX. As representative examples, we identified biliverdin in the olive green eggshells of elegant crested tinamous (Eudromia elegans) and in the blue eggshells of extinct upland moa (Megalapteryx didinus). This study encourages the wider use of Raman spectroscopy in pigment and colouration research and highlights the value of this technique for non-destructive analyses of museum eggshell specimens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel B. Thomas
- Institute of Natural and Mathematical Sciences, Massey University, Auckland 0632, New Zealand
| | - Mark E. Hauber
- Department of Psychology, Hunter College and the Graduate Center, The City University of New York, New York, NY 10065, USA
| | - Daniel Hanley
- Department of Zoology and Laboratory of Ornithology, Palacký University, Olomouc 77146, Czech Republic
| | | | - Sara Fraser
- Department of Chemistry, Dodd-Walls Centre, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand
| | - Keith C. Gordon
- Department of Chemistry, Dodd-Walls Centre, University of Otago, Dunedin, New Zealand
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Vergara P, Fargallo JA, Martínez-Padilla J. Genetic basis and fitness correlates of dynamic carotenoid-based ornamental coloration in male and female common kestrels Falco tinnunculus. J Evol Biol 2014; 28:146-54. [DOI: 10.1111/jeb.12553] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2014] [Accepted: 11/12/2014] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- P. Vergara
- Departamento de Ecología Evolutiva; Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales-CSIC; Madrid Spain
| | - J. A. Fargallo
- Departamento de Ecología Evolutiva; Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales-CSIC; Madrid Spain
| | - J. Martínez-Padilla
- Departamento de Ecología Evolutiva; Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales-CSIC; Madrid Spain
- Department of Ethology and Biodiversity Conservation; Estación Biológica de Doñana - CSIC; Sevilla Spain
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De Coster G, De Neve L, Lens L. Intraclutch variation in avian eggshell pigmentation: the anaemia hypothesis. Oecologia 2012; 170:297-304. [DOI: 10.1007/s00442-012-2304-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2011] [Accepted: 03/06/2012] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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Cucco M, Grenna M, Malacarne G. Female condition, egg shape and hatchability: a study on the grey partridge. J Zool (1987) 2012. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1469-7998.2012.00902.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- M. Cucco
- DISIT; University of Piemonte Orientale; Alessandria; Italy
| | - M. Grenna
- DISIT; University of Piemonte Orientale; Alessandria; Italy
| | - G. Malacarne
- DISIT; University of Piemonte Orientale; Alessandria; Italy
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Morales J, Velando A, Torres R. Biliverdin-based egg coloration is enhanced by carotenoid supplementation. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2010. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-010-1025-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
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