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Benowitz-Fredericks ZM, Will AP, Pete SN, Whelan S, Kitaysky AS. Corticosterone release in very young siblicidal seabird chicks (Rissa tridactyla) is sensitive to environmental variability and responds rapidly and robustly to external challenges. Gen Comp Endocrinol 2024; 355:114545. [PMID: 38701975 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygcen.2024.114545] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2023] [Revised: 04/25/2024] [Accepted: 04/30/2024] [Indexed: 05/06/2024]
Abstract
In birds, patterns of development of the adrenocortical response to stressors vary among individuals, types of stressors, and species. Since there are benefits and costs of exposure to elevated glucocorticoids, this variation is presumably a product of selection such that animals modulate glucocorticoid secretion in contexts where doing so increases their fitness. In this study, we evaluated hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) activity in first-hatched free-living seabird nestlings that engage in intense sibling competition and facultative siblicide (black-legged kittiwakes, Rissa tridactyla). We sampled 5 day old chicks (of the ∼45 day nestling period), a critical early age when food availability drives establishment of important parent-offspring and intra-brood dynamics. We experimentally supplemented parents with food ("supplemented") and measured chick baseline corticosterone secretion and capacity to rapidly increase corticosterone in response to an acute challenge (handling and 15 min of restraint in a bag). We also used topical administration of corticosterone to evaluate the ability of chicks to downregulate physiologically relevant corticosterone levels on a short time scale (minutes). We found that 5 day old chicks are not hypo-responsive but release corticosterone in proportion to the magnitude of the challenge, showing differences in baseline between parental feeding treatments (supplemented vs non-supplemented), moderate increases in response to handling, and a larger response to restraint (comparable to adults) that also differed between chicks from supplemented and control nests. Topical application of exogenous corticosterone increased circulating levels nearly to restraint-induced levels and induced downregulation of HPA responsiveness to the acute challenge of handling. Parental supplemental feeding did not affect absorbance/clearance or negative feedback. Thus, while endogenous secretion of corticosterone in young chicks is sensitive to environmental context, other aspects of the HPA function, such as rapid negative feedback and/or the ability to clear acute elevations in corticosterone, are not. We conclude that 5 day old kittiwake chicks are capable of robust adrenocortical responses to novel challenges, and are sensitive to parental food availability, which may be transduced behaviorally, nutritionally, or via maternal effects. Questions remain about the function of such rapid, large acute stress-induced increases in corticosterone in very young chicks.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - A P Will
- World Wildlife Fund, US Arctic Program, United States; University of Alaska Fairbanks, Department of Biology and Wildlife, Institute of Arctic Biology, United States
| | - S N Pete
- Bucknell University, Department of Biology, 1 Dent Drive, Lewisburg, PA, United States
| | - S Whelan
- Institute for Seabird Research and Conservation, United States
| | - A S Kitaysky
- University of Alaska Fairbanks, Department of Biology and Wildlife, Institute of Arctic Biology, United States
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2
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Sauve D, Charmantier A, Hatch SA, Friesen VL. The magnitude of selection on growth varies among years and increases under warming conditions in a subarctic seabird. Evol Lett 2024; 8:56-63. [PMID: 38370550 PMCID: PMC10871900 DOI: 10.1093/evlett/qrad001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/29/2022] [Revised: 12/19/2022] [Accepted: 01/24/2023] [Indexed: 02/20/2024] Open
Abstract
Because of ongoing rapid climate change, many ecosystems are becoming both warmer and more variable, and these changes are likely to alter the magnitude and variability of natural selection acting on wild populations. Critically, changes and fluctuations in selection can impact both population demography and evolutionary change. Therefore, predicting the impacts of climate change depends on understanding the magnitude and variation in selection on traits across different life stages and environments. Long-term experiments in wild settings are a great opportunity to determine the impact of environmental conditions on selection. Here we examined variability in the strength of selection on size traits of nestling black-legged kittiwakes (Rissa tridactyla) in a 25-year study including a food supplementation experiment on Middleton Island in the Gulf of Alaska. Using mixed effect models, we examined the annual variability of stage-specific and resource-specific selection gradients across 25 years. We found that (a) larger and heavier hatchlings were the most likely to survive during early ontogeny, (b) non-food supplemented younger nestlings in a brood experienced the strongest selection, and (c) warmer conditions increased the magnitude of selection on nestling mass and affected non-food supplemented and second-hatched nestlings the most. Our results suggested that variable resource dynamics likely caused some of the changes in selection from year to year and that warming conditions increased the strength of selection on subarctic seabird growth. However, our experimental manipulation revealed that local environmental heterogeneity could buffer the selection expected from broader climatic changes. Consequently, understanding the interactive effects of local conditions and general changes in climate seems likely to improve our ability to predict future selection gradients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Drew Sauve
- Department of Biology, Queen’s University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada
| | | | - Scott A Hatch
- Institute for Seabird Research and Conservation, Anchorage, AK, United States
| | - Vicki L Friesen
- Department of Biology, Queen’s University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada
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3
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Romano A, Morganti M, Assandri G, Bazzi G, Corregidor-Castro A, Morinay J, Cecere JG, Pilastro A, Rubolini D. Sibling competition for food and kin selection in nestlings of a colonial raptor. Anim Behav 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2022.10.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
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4
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Catitti B, Grüebler MU, Kormann UG, Scherler P, Witczak S, van Bergen VS, Jenni-Eiermann S. Hungry or angry? Experimental evidence for the effects of food availability on two measures of stress in developing wild raptor nestlings. J Exp Biol 2022; 225:276255. [PMID: 35775647 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.244102] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/04/2022] [Accepted: 06/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Food shortage challenges the development of nestlings; yet, to cope with this stressor, nestlings can induce stress responses to adjust metabolism or behaviour. Food shortage also enhances the antagonism between siblings, but it remains unclear whether the stress response induced by food shortage operates via the individual nutritional state or via the social environment experienced. In addition, the understanding of these processes is hindered by the fact that effects of food availability often co-vary with other environmental factors. We used a food supplementation experiment to test the effect of food availability on two complementary stress measures, feather corticosterone (CORTf) and Heterophil/Lymphocyte-ratio (H/L) in developing red kite (Milvus milvus) nestlings, a species with competitive brood hierarchy. By statistically controlling for the effect of food supplementation on the nestlings' body condition, we disentangled the effects of food and ambient temperature on nestlings during development. Experimental food supplementation increased body condition, and both CORTf and H/L were reduced in nestlings of high body condition. Additionally, CORTf decreased with age in non-supplemented nestlings. H/L decreased with age in all nestlings and was lower in supplemented last-hatched nestlings compared to non-supplemented ones. Ambient temperature showed a negative effect on H/L. Our results indicate that food shortage increases the nestlings' stress levels through both, a reduced food intake affecting nutritional state and the nestlings' social environment. Thus, food availability in conjunction with ambient temperature shape between- and within-nest differences in stress load, which may have carry-over effects on behaviour and performance in further life-history stages.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benedetta Catitti
- Swiss Ornithological Institute, Seerose 1, 6204 Sempach, Switzerland.,Department of Environmental Systems Science, ETH Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Martin U Grüebler
- Swiss Ornithological Institute, Seerose 1, 6204 Sempach, Switzerland
| | - Urs G Kormann
- Swiss Ornithological Institute, Seerose 1, 6204 Sempach, Switzerland
| | - Patrick Scherler
- Swiss Ornithological Institute, Seerose 1, 6204 Sempach, Switzerland
| | - Stephanie Witczak
- Swiss Ornithological Institute, Seerose 1, 6204 Sempach, Switzerland.,Department of Evolutionary Biology and Environmental Studies, University of Zurich, Switzerland
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5
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Brood sex ratio modulates the effects of extra food on parental effort and sibling competition in a sexually dimorphic raptor. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2021. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-021-02970-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/16/2023]
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6
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Dickins DW. “Punishing” pecks and “siblicidal” pecks in kittiwake (Rissa tridactyla) chicks. LEARNING AND MOTIVATION 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.lmot.2020.101695] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
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7
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Pineaux M, Merkling T, Danchin E, Hatch S, Duneau D, Blanchard P, Leclaire S. Sex and hatching order modulate the association between MHC-II diversity and fitness in early-life stages of a wild seabird. Mol Ecol 2020; 29:3316-3329. [PMID: 32654215 DOI: 10.1111/mec.15551] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/11/2019] [Revised: 07/04/2020] [Accepted: 07/06/2020] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
Abstract
Genes of the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) play a pivotal role in parasite resistance, and their allelic diversity has been associated with fitness variations in several taxa. However, studies report inconsistencies in the direction of this association, with either positive, quadratic or no association being described. These discrepancies may arise because the fitness costs and benefits of MHC diversity differ among individuals depending on their exposure and immune responses to parasites. Here, we investigated in black-legged kittiwake (Rissa tridactyla) chicks whether associations between MHC class-II diversity and fitness vary with sex and hatching order. MHC-II diversity was positively associated with growth and tick clearance in female chicks, but not in male chicks. Our data also revealed a positive association between MHC-II diversity and survival in second-hatched female chicks (two eggs being the typical clutch size). These findings may result from condition-dependent parasite infections differentially impacting sexes in relation to hatching order. We thus suggest that it may be important to account for individual heterogeneities in traits that potentially exert selective pressures on MHC diversity in order to properly predict MHC-fitness associations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maxime Pineaux
- Laboratoire Évolution & Diversité Biologique (EDB UMR 5174), CNRS, IRD, Université Fédérale de Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées, Toulouse, France
| | - Thomas Merkling
- Laboratoire Évolution & Diversité Biologique (EDB UMR 5174), CNRS, IRD, Université Fédérale de Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées, Toulouse, France
| | - Etienne Danchin
- Laboratoire Évolution & Diversité Biologique (EDB UMR 5174), CNRS, IRD, Université Fédérale de Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées, Toulouse, France
| | - Scott Hatch
- Institute for Seabird Research and Conservation, Anchorage, AK, USA
| | - David Duneau
- Laboratoire Évolution & Diversité Biologique (EDB UMR 5174), CNRS, IRD, Université Fédérale de Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées, Toulouse, France
| | - Pierrick Blanchard
- Laboratoire Évolution & Diversité Biologique (EDB UMR 5174), CNRS, IRD, Université Fédérale de Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées, Toulouse, France
| | - Sarah Leclaire
- Laboratoire Évolution & Diversité Biologique (EDB UMR 5174), CNRS, IRD, Université Fédérale de Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées, Toulouse, France
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8
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Kerry N, Loria RN, Murray DR. Gluttons for Punishment? Experimentally Induced Hunger Unexpectedly Reduces Harshness of Suggested Punishments. ADAPTIVE HUMAN BEHAVIOR AND PHYSIOLOGY 2019. [DOI: 10.1007/s40750-019-00121-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
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9
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Leclaire S, Bourret V, Pineaux M, Blanchard P, Danchin E, Hatch SA. Red coloration varies with dietary carotenoid access and nutritional condition in kittiwakes. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2019; 222:jeb.210237. [PMID: 31597729 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.210237] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2019] [Accepted: 10/04/2019] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Carotenoid-based ornaments are common signaling features in animals. Although the mechanisms that link color-based signals to individual condition is key to understanding the evolution and function of these ornaments, they are most often poorly known. Several hypotheses have been posited. They include: (i) the role of foraging abilities on carotenoid acquisition and thereby carotenoid-based ornaments, and (ii) the role of internal processes linked to individual quality on the allocation and conversion of carotenoids in integuments. Here, we tested the influence of dietary carotenoid access versus internal process on gape coloration in black-legged kittiwakes (Rissa tridactyla). This seabird displays a vibrant red gape, whose coloration varies with individual quality in males and is due to the deposition of red ketocarotenoids, such as astaxanthin. We decreased hydroxycarotenoid and ketocarotenoid levels in plasma, but increased efficiency in internal processes linked to nutritional condition, by supplementing breeding males with capelin, a natural energy-rich fish prey. We found that, despite having lower carotenoid levels in plasma, supplemented birds developed redder coloration than control birds, but only in the year when dietary levels of astaxanthin in the natural diet were low. In contrast, in the astaxanthin-rich year, supplemented males had a less-red gape than unsupplemented birds. These results suggest that inter-individual differences in internal processes may be sufficient to maintain the honesty of gape coloration under conditions of low dietary astaxanthin levels. Nonetheless, when inter-individual variations in dietary astaxanthin levels are elevated (such as in the crustacean-rich year), carotenoid access seems a more limiting factor to the expression of gape coloration than internal processes. Therefore, our study revealed a complex mechanism of gape color production in kittiwakes, and suggests that the main factor maintaining the condition dependency of this ornaments may vary with environmental conditions and diet composition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah Leclaire
- Laboratoire Évolution et Diversité Biologique, UMR5174 (CNRS, Université Paul Sabatier), 118 route de Narbonne, 31062 Toulouse, France
| | - Vincent Bourret
- Cambridge Infectious Diseases Consortium, Department of Veterinary Medicine, University of Cambridge, Madingley Road, Cambridge CB30ES, UK
| | - Maxime Pineaux
- Laboratoire Évolution et Diversité Biologique, UMR5174 (CNRS, Université Paul Sabatier), 118 route de Narbonne, 31062 Toulouse, France
| | - Pierrick Blanchard
- Laboratoire Évolution et Diversité Biologique, UMR5174 (CNRS, Université Paul Sabatier), 118 route de Narbonne, 31062 Toulouse, France
| | - Etienne Danchin
- Laboratoire Évolution et Diversité Biologique, UMR5174 (CNRS, Université Paul Sabatier), 118 route de Narbonne, 31062 Toulouse, France
| | - Scott A Hatch
- Institute for Seabird Research and Conservation, 12850 Mountain Place, Anchorage, AK 99516, USA
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10
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11
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Young RC, Welcker J, Barger CP, Hatch SA, Merkling T, Kitaiskaia EV, Haussmann MF, Kitaysky AS. Effects of developmental conditions on growth, stress and telomeres in black-legged kittiwake chicks. Mol Ecol 2017; 26:3572-3584. [DOI: 10.1111/mec.14121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/03/2016] [Revised: 03/13/2017] [Accepted: 03/21/2017] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Rebecca C. Young
- Instituto de Ecología; UNAM; Ciudad Universitaria; Ciudad de México México
| | - Jorg Welcker
- Institute of Arctic Biology; Department of Biology and Wildlife; University of Alaska Fairbanks; Fairbanks AK USA
| | - Christopher P. Barger
- Institute of Arctic Biology; Department of Biology and Wildlife; University of Alaska Fairbanks; Fairbanks AK USA
| | - Scott A. Hatch
- Institute for Seabird Research and Conservation; Anchorage AK USA
| | - Thomas Merkling
- Université Toulouse 3 Paul Sabatier; CNRS; ENFA; UMR5174 EDB (Laboratoire Évolution & Diversité Biologique); Toulouse France
| | - Evgenia V. Kitaiskaia
- Institute of Arctic Biology; Department of Biology and Wildlife; University of Alaska Fairbanks; Fairbanks AK USA
| | | | - Alexander S. Kitaysky
- Institute of Arctic Biology; Department of Biology and Wildlife; University of Alaska Fairbanks; Fairbanks AK USA
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12
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Merkling T, Perrot C, Helfenstein F, Ferdy JB, Gaillard L, Lefol E, Voisin E, Hatch SA, Danchin E, Blanchard P. Maternal effects as drivers of sibling competition in a parent-offspring conflict context? An experimental test. Ecol Evol 2016; 6:3699-3710. [PMID: 28725354 PMCID: PMC5513303 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.1777] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2015] [Accepted: 09/20/2015] [Indexed: 11/07/2022] Open
Abstract
Maternal effects occur when the mother's phenotype influences her offspring's phenotype. In birds, differential allocation in egg yolk components can allow mothers to compensate for the competitive disadvantage of junior chicks. We hypothesize that the parent-older chick conflict peaks at intermediate conditions: parents benefit from the younger chick(s) survival, but its death benefits the older chick in terms of growth and survival. We thus expect maternal compensation to follow a bell-shaped pattern in relation to environmental conditions. We studied a black-legged kittiwake (Rissa tridactyla) population where previous results revealed increased allocation of yolk testosterone in younger as compared to older chicks in intermediate conditions, in line with our theoretical framework. We therefore predicted a maternally induced increase in aggressiveness, growth, and survival for younger chicks born in intermediate environmental conditions. Controlling for parental effects and chick sex, we manipulated food availability before egg laying to create a situation with intermediate (Unfed group) and good (Fed group) environmental conditions. Within each feeding treatment, we further created experimental broods where the natural hatching order was reversed to maximize our chances to observe an effect of feeding treatment on the younger chicks' aggressiveness. As predicted, we found that chick aggressiveness was higher in younger chicks born from the Unfed group (i.e., in intermediate environmental conditions), but only when they were put in a senior position, in reversed broods. Predictions on growth and survival were not confirmed. Mothers thus seem to favor the competitiveness of their younger chick in intermediate conditions via egg yolk components, but our study also suggests that hatching asynchrony need to be small for maternal compensation to be efficient. We emphasize the need for further studies investigating other chick behaviors (e.g., begging) and focusing on the relative role of different yolk components in shaping parent-offspring conflict over sibling competition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Merkling
- CNRS ENFA UMR 5174 EDB (Laboratoire Évolution & Diversité Biologique) Université Toulouse 3 Paul Sabatier 118 route de Narbonne F-31062 Toulouse France
| | - Charlotte Perrot
- CNRS ENFA UMR 5174 EDB (Laboratoire Évolution & Diversité Biologique) Université Toulouse 3 Paul Sabatier 118 route de Narbonne F-31062 Toulouse France.,Present address: CEFE UMR 5175 CNR SEPHE Université de Montpellier Université Paul-Valéry Montpellier 1919 Route de Mende 34293 Montpellier Cedex 5 France.,Present address: Centre de recherche de La Tour du ValatLe Sambuc 13200 Arles France
| | - Fabrice Helfenstein
- Institute of Biology University of Neuchâtel Rue Emile-Argand 11CH-2000 Neuchâtel Switzerland
| | - Jean-Baptiste Ferdy
- CNRS ENFA UMR 5174 EDB (Laboratoire Évolution & Diversité Biologique) Université Toulouse 3 Paul Sabatier 118 route de Narbonne F-31062 Toulouse France
| | - Laurent Gaillard
- CNRS ENFA UMR 5174 EDB (Laboratoire Évolution & Diversité Biologique) Université Toulouse 3 Paul Sabatier 118 route de Narbonne F-31062 Toulouse France
| | - Emilie Lefol
- CNRS ENFA UMR 5174 EDB (Laboratoire Évolution & Diversité Biologique) Université Toulouse 3 Paul Sabatier 118 route de Narbonne F-31062 Toulouse France
| | - Emmanuelle Voisin
- CNRS ENFA UMR 5174 EDB (Laboratoire Évolution & Diversité Biologique) Université Toulouse 3 Paul Sabatier 118 route de Narbonne F-31062 Toulouse France
| | - Scott A Hatch
- Institute for Seabird Research and Conservation 12850 Mountain Place Anchorage Alaska 99516
| | - Etienne Danchin
- CNRS ENFA UMR 5174 EDB (Laboratoire Évolution & Diversité Biologique) Université Toulouse 3 Paul Sabatier 118 route de Narbonne F-31062 Toulouse France
| | - Pierrick Blanchard
- CNRS ENFA UMR 5174 EDB (Laboratoire Évolution & Diversité Biologique) Université Toulouse 3 Paul Sabatier 118 route de Narbonne F-31062 Toulouse France
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13
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Vincenzi S, Hatch S, Merkling T, Kitaysky AS. Carry-over effects of food supplementation on recruitment and breeding performance of long-lived seabirds. Proc Biol Sci 2016; 282:20150762. [PMID: 26180065 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2015.0762] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Supplementation of food to wild animals is extensively applied as a conservation tool to increase local production of young. However, in long-lived migratory animals, the carry-over effects of food supplementation early in life on the subsequent recruitment of individuals into natal populations and their lifetime reproductive success are largely unknown. We examine how experimental food supplementation early in life affects: (i) recruitment as breeders of kittiwakes Rissa tridactyla born in a colony on Middleton Island (Alaska) between 1996 and 2006 (n = 1629) that bred in the same colony through 2013 (n = 235); and (ii) breeding success of individuals that have completed their life cycle at the colony (n = 56). Birds were raised in nests that were either supplemented with food (Fed) or unsupplemented (Unfed). Fledging success was higher in Fed compared with Unfed nests. After accounting for hatching rank, growth and oceanic conditions at fledging, Fed fledglings had a lower probability of recruiting as breeders in the Middleton colony than Unfed birds. The per-nest contribution of breeders was still significantly higher for Fed nests because of their higher productivity. Lifetime reproductive success of a subset of kittiwakes that thus far had completed their life cycle was not affected by the food supplementation during development. Our results cast light on the carry-over effects of early food conditions on the vital rates of long-lived animals and support food supplementation as an effective conservation strategy for long-lived seabirds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Simone Vincenzi
- Center for Stock Assessment Research, University of California Santa Cruz, 110 Shaffer Road, Santa Cruz, CA 95060, USA Dipartimento di Elettronica, Informazione e Bioingegneria, Politecnico di Milano, Via Ponzio 34/5, Milan 20133, Italy Department of Biology and Wildlife, Institute of Arctic Biology, University of Alaska Fairbanks, 902 North Koyukuk Drive, Fairbanks, AK 99775, USA
| | - Scott Hatch
- US Geological Survey, Alaska Science Center, 4210 University Drive, Anchorage, AK 99508, USA Institute for Seabird Research and Conservation, 12850 Mountain Place, Anchorage, AK 99516, USA
| | - Thomas Merkling
- EDB (Laboratoire Evolution and Diversité Biologique), CNRS, UPS, ENFA, 118 Route de Narbonne, Toulouse 31062, France UMR5174, Université de Toulouse, 118 Route de Narbonne, Toulouse 31062, France
| | - Alexander S Kitaysky
- Department of Biology and Wildlife, Institute of Arctic Biology, University of Alaska Fairbanks, 902 North Koyukuk Drive, Fairbanks, AK 99775, USA
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14
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Maternal condition determines offspring behavior toward family members in the European earwig. Behav Ecol 2015. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arv181] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
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15
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Merkling T, Chastel O, Blanchard P, Trouvé C, Hatch SA, Danchin E. Physiological and fitness correlates of experimentally altered hatching asynchrony magnitude in chicks of a wild seabird. Gen Comp Endocrinol 2014; 198:32-8. [PMID: 24380674 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygcen.2013.12.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2013] [Revised: 12/16/2013] [Accepted: 12/22/2013] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Nest-bound chicks depend entirely on their parents for food, often leading to high sibling competition. Asynchronous hatching, resulting from the onset of incubation before clutch completion, facilitates the establishment of within-nest hierarchy, with younger chicks being subject to lower feeding and growth rates. Because social and nutritional stresses affect baseline stress hormone levels in birds, younger chicks are expected to have higher levels of corticosterone than their siblings. As previous studies showed that hatching asynchrony magnitude influences the course of sibling competition, it should also affect baseline corticosterone. We measured baseline corticosterone at age 5 days in nestling black-legged kittiwakes (Rissa tridactyla) in 3 types of experimental broods: synchronous, asynchronous, and highly asynchronous. Sexual dimorphism takes place during chick-rearing and might also influence baseline corticosterone, we thus included chick sex in our analyses and also monitored chick growth and survival. Baseline corticosterone did not differ among A-chicks, but was higher in B-chicks from highly asynchronous broods compared with the other brood types, in line with the presumed increase in nutritional stress. In asynchronous broods, A-chicks had higher baseline corticosterone than their siblings, contrary to our expectations. We interpret that result as a cost of dominance among A-chicks. In line with previous studies, mass gain was negatively correlated with baseline corticosterone levels. We found that baseline corticosterone predicted survival in a sex-specific way. Regardless of hatching rank, males with higher baseline corticosterone suffered higher mortality, suggesting that males were more sensitive to high level of stress, independently of its cause.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Merkling
- CNRS, UPS, ENFA, UMR5174 EDB (Laboratoire Évolution & Diversité Biologique), F-31062 Toulouse, France; Université Toulouse 3 Paul Sabatier, CNRS, ENFA, UMR5174 EDB, 118 Route de Narbonne, F-31062 Toulouse, France.
| | - Olivier Chastel
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, CNRS, 79360 Villiers en Bois, France
| | - Pierrick Blanchard
- CNRS, UPS, ENFA, UMR5174 EDB (Laboratoire Évolution & Diversité Biologique), F-31062 Toulouse, France; Université Toulouse 3 Paul Sabatier, CNRS, ENFA, UMR5174 EDB, 118 Route de Narbonne, F-31062 Toulouse, France
| | - Colette Trouvé
- Centre d'Etudes Biologiques de Chizé, CNRS, 79360 Villiers en Bois, France
| | - Scott A Hatch
- U.S. Geological Survey, Alaska Science Center, 4210 University Drive, Anchorage, AK 99508, USA
| | - Etienne Danchin
- CNRS, UPS, ENFA, UMR5174 EDB (Laboratoire Évolution & Diversité Biologique), F-31062 Toulouse, France; Université Toulouse 3 Paul Sabatier, CNRS, ENFA, UMR5174 EDB, 118 Route de Narbonne, F-31062 Toulouse, France
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Merkling T, Agdere L, Albert E, Durieux R, Hatch SA, Danchin E, Blanchard P. Is natural hatching asynchrony optimal? An experimental investigation of sibling competition patterns in a facultatively siblicidal seabird. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2013. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-013-1646-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
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Müller MS, Moe B, Groothuis TGG. Testosterone increases siblicidal aggression in black-legged kittiwake chicks (Rissa tridactyla). Behav Ecol Sociobiol 2013. [DOI: 10.1007/s00265-013-1637-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/01/2022]
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Müller MS, Roelofs Y, Erikstad KE, Groothuis TGG. Maternal androgens increase sibling aggression, dominance, and competitive ability in the siblicidal black-legged kittiwake (Rissa tridactyla). PLoS One 2012; 7:e47763. [PMID: 23112843 PMCID: PMC3480423 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0047763] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2012] [Accepted: 09/19/2012] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Animals and plants routinely produce more offspring than they can afford to rear. Mothers can favour certain young by conferring on them competitive advantages such as a leading position in the birth sequence, more resources or hormones. Avian mothers create hatching asynchrony within a clutch and at the same time bestow the eggs with different concentrations of androgens that may enhance or counteract the competitive advantage experienced by early-hatching “core” young. In siblicidal birds, core young assume a dominant social position in the nest due to their size advantage and when threatened with starvation fatally attack subdominant later-hatching “marginal” young. A role for maternal androgens in siblicidal aggression has frequently been suggested but never tested. We studied this in the facultatively siblicidal black-headed kittiwake. We found that marginal eggs contain higher instead of lower concentrations of androgens than core eggs. Surprisingly, exposure to experimentally elevated yolk androgens increased sibling aggression and dominance, even though in nature marginal eggs never produce dominant chicks. We propose the “adoption facilitation hypothesis” to explain this paradox. This cliff-nesting colonial species has a high adoption rate: ejected marginal kittiwake chicks frequently fall into other nests containing chicks of similar or smaller size and exposure to yolk androgens might help them integrate themselves into a foster nest.
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Affiliation(s)
- Martina S Müller
- Centre of Behavioural Neurosciences, University of Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.
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Leclaire S, Bourret V, Wagner RH, Hatch SA, Helfenstein F, Chastel O, Danchin É. Behavioral and physiological responses to male handicap in chick-rearing black-legged kittiwakes. Behav Ecol 2011. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arr149] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
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