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Martinez V, Duran EMI, Kimmitt AA, Russell KE, Jill Heatley J, Grace JK. Chronic stress increases adaptive immune response over six weeks in the house sparrow, Passer domesticus. Gen Comp Endocrinol 2024; 358:114612. [PMID: 39293532 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygcen.2024.114612] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2024] [Revised: 09/04/2024] [Accepted: 09/13/2024] [Indexed: 09/20/2024]
Abstract
The vertebrate stress response enables an organism to shift energy towards activities that promote immediate survival when facing a threat to homeostasis, but it can also have detrimental effects on organismal health. Acute and chronic stressors generally have contrasting effects on immune responses, but the timeline of this transition between acute and chronic stressors and their effects on immune responses remains unclear. In this study, we investigate changes in immune markers in captive house sparrows (Passer domesticus) after exposure to normal laboratory conditions, an acute stressor, and chronic stressors for 42 days. Specifically, we examined changes in baseline and stress-induced corticosterone concentrations, body condition, heterophil/lymphocyte (H:L) ratio, hemolysis-hemagglutination, and wound healing. We found that individuals exposed to a single acute stressor had significantly higher stress-induced corticosterone concentrations 24 h after stressor exposure, however this effect was reversed after 48 h. Chronic stressor exposure resulted in generally stronger adaptive immune responses, demonstrated by higher baseline and stress-induced lysis, higher baseline hemagglutination, and slower wound healing. Within-trait correlations also increased with chronic stressor exposure, suggesting limitations on phenotypic plasticity. Most of the effects of chronic stressor exposure on immune markers strengthened over the 42 days of the experiment and differences between captivity-only and treatment groups were not apparent until approximately 20 days of chronic stressor exposure. These results highlight the importance of stressor duration in understanding the effects of chronic stressor exposure on immune responses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Viridiana Martinez
- Dept. of Ecology and Conservation Biology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
| | - Elena M I Duran
- Interdisciplinary Doctoral Degree Program in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
| | - Abigail A Kimmitt
- Dept. of Ecology and Conservation Biology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA; Dept. of Biology, Hofstra University, Hempstead, NY 11549, USA
| | - Karen E Russell
- Dept. of Veterinary Pathobiology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
| | - J Jill Heatley
- Dept. of Small Animal Clinical Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
| | - Jacquelyn K Grace
- Dept. of Ecology and Conservation Biology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA; Interdisciplinary Doctoral Degree Program in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA.
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Beaugeard E, Brischoux F, Angelier F. Light pollution affects activity differentially across breeding stages in an urban exploiter: An experiment in the house sparrow (Passer domesticus). ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION (BARKING, ESSEX : 1987) 2024; 351:124055. [PMID: 38692388 DOI: 10.1016/j.envpol.2024.124055] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2024] [Revised: 04/05/2024] [Accepted: 04/24/2024] [Indexed: 05/03/2024]
Abstract
Artificial Light At Night (ALAN) is a major urban perturbation, which can have detrimental effects on wildlife. Recent urban planning has led to an increased use of white light emission diodes (LEDs) in cities. However, little is known about the effects of this type of ALAN on wild vertebrates, especially during reproduction. We designed an experiment to test the impact of ALAN on the activity rhythms (daily time of first activity (TFA) and time of last activity (TLA)) of captive House sparrows (Passer domesticus) during several reproductive stages (from pre-breeding to post-breeding). We also tested the impact of ALAN on reproductive performance (laying date, clutch size, hatching and fledging success). Experimental birds were active earlier in the morning (earlier TFA) relative to controls although experimental and control birds did not differ in their TLA. The effect of ALAN on TFA was apparent during specific stages only (pre-breeding and chick-rearing stages), suggesting that sparrows actively adjust their activity in response to ALAN only during specific periods. This impact of ALAN on activity did not persist through the whole breeding season, suggesting that sparrows may habituate to ALAN. Alternatively, they may not be able to sustain a long-term increased activity in response to ALAN because of sleep deprivation and related physiological costs. Finally, we did not find any impact of ALAN on the reproductive performance of captive house sparrows held under optimal conditions. This suggests that ALAN may not be dramatically detrimental to the reproduction of this urban exploiter, at least when food availability is not constraining.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erika Beaugeard
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, UMR 7372, CNRS-LRU, 79360, Villiers en Bois, France
| | - François Brischoux
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, UMR 7372, CNRS-LRU, 79360, Villiers en Bois, France
| | - Frédéric Angelier
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, UMR 7372, CNRS-LRU, 79360, Villiers en Bois, France.
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Bernat-Ponce E, Gil-Delgado JA, Guardiola JV, López-Iborra GM. Eating in the city: Experimental effect of anthropogenic food resources on the body condition, nutritional status, and oxidative stress of an urban bioindicator passerine. JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL ZOOLOGY. PART A, ECOLOGICAL AND INTEGRATIVE PHYSIOLOGY 2023; 339:803-815. [PMID: 37422723 DOI: 10.1002/jez.2730] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2023] [Revised: 06/24/2023] [Accepted: 06/27/2023] [Indexed: 07/10/2023]
Abstract
Urban areas provide a constant and predictable supply of anthropogenic processed food. The House Sparrow (Passer domesticus Linnaeus, 1758), a declining urban bioindicator species, has recently been reported to have a high level of oxidative stress, with urban diet or pollutants proposed as the potential cause. In this study, we aimed to experimentally determine the effects of two urban trophic resource types (bar snack food leftovers and pet food) on sparrows' physical condition, plasma biochemical nutritional parameters, and blood oxidative status in captivity. To exclude the potential previous effect of urban pollutants, 75 House Sparrows were captured from a rural area in SE Spain and kept in outdoor aviaries. Individuals were exposed to one of three diet treatments: control diet (fruit, vegetables, poultry grain mixture), bar snack diet (ultra-processed snacks), or cat food diet (dry pellets) for 20 days. Blood samples were collected before and after diet treatments to analyze the relative change rates of 12 variables, including physical condition, nutritional status, and oxidant-antioxidant status. A principal component analysis was run to identify gradients of variables covariation, and Generalized Linear Mixed Models were used to determine the effect of diets on each selected PC and on raw variables. The bar snack diet led to signs of anemia and malnutrition, and females tended to lose body condition. The cat food diet increased oxidative stress indicators and protein catabolism. Unbalanced urban diets can affect the body condition and nutritional physiology of House Sparrows and may also induce oxidative stress despite the absence of environmental pollution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edgar Bernat-Ponce
- Department of Microbiology and Ecology/Terrestrial Vertebrates Ecology, Cavanilles Institute of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology, University of Valencia, Paterna, Valencia, Spain
| | - José A Gil-Delgado
- Department of Microbiology and Ecology/Terrestrial Vertebrates Ecology, Cavanilles Institute of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology, University of Valencia, Paterna, Valencia, Spain
| | - José V Guardiola
- Departamento de Ciencias del Mar y Biología Aplicada, Universidad de Alicante, Alicante, Spain
| | - Germán M López-Iborra
- Departamento de Ecología/IMEM Ramon Margalef, Universidad de Alicante, Alicante, Spain
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Barton MG, Henderson I, Border JA, Siriwardena G. A review of the impacts of air pollution on terrestrial birds. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2023; 873:162136. [PMID: 36775168 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.162136] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2022] [Revised: 02/05/2023] [Accepted: 02/05/2023] [Indexed: 06/18/2023]
Abstract
Air pollution has a ubiquitous impact on ecosystem functioning through myriad processes, including the acidification and eutrophication of soil and water, deposition of heavy metals and direct (and indirect) effects on flora and fauna. Describing the impacts of air pollution on organisms in the field is difficult because levels of exposure do not occur in a uniform manner across space and time, and species responses tend to be nuanced and difficult to isolate from other environmental stressors. However, given its far-reaching effects on human and ecosystem health, the impacts of air pollution on species are expected to be substantial, and could be direct or indirect, acting via a range of mechanisms. Here, we expand on previous reviews, to evaluate the existing evidence for the impacts of air pollution on avian species in the field, and to identify knowledge gaps to guide future research. We identified 203 studies that have investigated the impacts of air pollution (including nitrogen and heavy metal deposition) on wild populations of birds, considering 231 species from ten feeding guilds. The majority of studies (82 %) document at least one species trait leading to an overall fitness value that is negatively correlated with pollution concentrations, including deleterious effects on reproductive output, molecular (DNA) damage and overall survival, and effects on foraging behaviour, plumage colouration and body size that may show adaptation. Despite this broad range of trait effects, biases in the literature towards certain species (Parus major and Ficeluda hypoleuca), geographical regions (Western Europe) and pollutants (heavy metal deposition), mean that many unknowns remain in our current understanding of the impacts of air pollution on avian species. We discuss these findings in context of future work, and propose research approaches that could help to provide a more holistic understanding of how avian species are impacted by air pollution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Madeleine G Barton
- British Trust for Ornithology, The Nunnery, Thetford, Norfolk IP24 2PU, United Kingdom.
| | - Ian Henderson
- British Trust for Ornithology, The Nunnery, Thetford, Norfolk IP24 2PU, United Kingdom
| | - Jennifer A Border
- British Trust for Ornithology, The Nunnery, Thetford, Norfolk IP24 2PU, United Kingdom
| | - Gavin Siriwardena
- British Trust for Ornithology, The Nunnery, Thetford, Norfolk IP24 2PU, United Kingdom
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Joshi KK, Bhatt DC, Arya AK, Saini V. Population status of house sparrow (Passer domesticus L.) and its association with native bird species in and around Dehradun City of Uttarakhand, India. PROCEEDINGS OF THE INDIAN NATIONAL SCIENCE ACADEMY 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s43538-022-00112-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/14/2022]
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Correlation does not imply causation: decline of house sparrow overshadowed by electromagnetic radiation. Urban Ecosyst 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s11252-022-01227-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
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How many sparrows are there in a city of million people? Understanding the population of sympatric sparrows in the urban gradient of a tropical city in Southeast Asia. Urban Ecosyst 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s11252-022-01210-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
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Electromagnetic Pollution as a Possible Explanation for the Decline of House Sparrows in Interaction with Other Factors. BIRDS 2021. [DOI: 10.3390/birds2030024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
In recent decades, there has been a decline of the House Sparrow (Passer domesticus), mainly in European cities, and several hypotheses have been proposed that attempt to determine the causes of this rapid decline. Previous studies indicated that house sparrows were significantly negatively associated with increasing electromagnetic radiation and sparrows disappeared from areas most polluted. In addition, there are many studies on the impact of radiation on other bird and non-bird species, as well as numerous laboratory studies that demonstrated detrimental effects at electric field strength levels that can be found in cities today. Electromagnetic radiation is the most plausible factor for multiple reasons, including that this is the only one that affects the other hypotheses proposed so far. It is a type of pollution that affects productivity, fertility, decreases insects (chicken feed), causes loss of habitat, decreases immunity and can promote disease. Additionally, the recent sparrow decline matches the deployment of mobile telephony networks. Further, there are known mechanisms of action for non-thermal effects of electromagnetic radiation that may affect sparrows causing their decline. Thus, electromagnetic radiation must be seriously considered as a factor for house sparrows’ decline, probably in synergy with the other factors previously proposed.
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Differential Long-Term Population Responses of Two Closely Related Human-Associated Sparrow Species with Respect to Urbanization. BIRDS 2021. [DOI: 10.3390/birds2030017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Urban planning and management need long-term population level studies for evaluating how urbanization influences biodiversity. Firstly, we reviewed the current population trends of the House Sparrow (Passer domesticus) and the Eurasian Tree Sparrow (Passer montanus) in Europe, and evaluated the usefulness of citizens’ science projects to monitor these species in Finland. Secondly, we conducted a long-term (1991–2020) winter field study in 31 urban settlements along a 950 km north–south extent in Finland to study how latitude, weather and urbanization influence on sparrow’s growth rates. The House Sparrow is declining in 15 countries, and increasing in 5, whereas the Eurasian Tree Sparrow is declining in 12 and increasing in 9 European countries. The trend of the House Sparrow was significantly negative in continental Europe. However, the trend of the Eurasian Tree Sparrow was not significant. Both species have declined simultaneously in six countries, whereas in four countries, their trends are opposite. Citizen-based, long-term (2006–2020) winter season project data indicated that House Sparrow has decreased, whereas Eurasian Tree Sparrow has increased in Finland. However, the short-term (2013–2020) breeding season citizen-based project data did not indicate significant changes in the occupation rate of sparrows. Our long-term (1991–2020) field study indicated that wintering populations of the House Sparrow have decreased, whereas the Eurasian Tree Sparrows have both expanded their wintering range and increased their population size. Based on our winter count data, latitude and weather did not significantly influence the growth rates of sparrows. When the human population increased within the study plot, House Sparrow populations decreased, and vice versa. There was also a trend that a decreasing number of feeding sites has decreased the House Sparrow numbers. Urban-related factors did not influence the growth rate of the Eurasian Tree Sparrow. Our results indicate that the colonization of a new, even closely related species does not influence negatively on earlier urbanized species. It is probable that the niches of these sparrow species are different enough for allowing them to co-occur. The House Sparrow mainly nests on buildings, whereas the Eurasian Tree Sparrow can easily accept, e.g., nest boxes. Urban planning should take care of both the food availability and nest sites availability for both sparrow species.
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