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Brand JA, Garcia-Gonzalez F, Dowling DK, Wong BBM. Mitochondrial genetic variation as a potential mediator of intraspecific behavioural diversity. Trends Ecol Evol 2024; 39:199-212. [PMID: 37839905 DOI: 10.1016/j.tree.2023.09.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2023] [Revised: 09/11/2023] [Accepted: 09/11/2023] [Indexed: 10/17/2023]
Abstract
Mitochondrial genes play an essential role in energy metabolism. Variation in the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequence often exists within species, and this variation can have consequences for energy production and organismal life history. Yet, despite potential links between energy metabolism and the expression of animal behaviour, mtDNA variation has been largely neglected to date in studies investigating intraspecific behavioural diversity. We outline how mtDNA variation and interactions between mitochondrial and nuclear genotypes may contribute to the expression of individual-to-individual behavioural differences within populations, and why such effects may lead to sex differences in behaviour. We contend that integration of the mitochondrial genome into behavioural ecology research may be key to fully understanding the evolutionary genetics of animal behaviour.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jack A Brand
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC, Australia; Department of Wildlife, Fish, and Environmental Studies, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Umeå, Sweden.
| | - Francisco Garcia-Gonzalez
- Doñana Biological Station-CSIC, Seville, Spain; Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, Crawley, Western Australia, Australia
| | - Damian K Dowling
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
| | - Bob B M Wong
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, VIC, Australia
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2
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Dittmar EL, Schemske DW. Temporal Variation in Selection Influences Microgeographic Local Adaptation. Am Nat 2023; 202:471-485. [PMID: 37792918 DOI: 10.1086/725865] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/06/2023]
Abstract
AbstractEcological heterogeneity can lead to local adaptation when populations exhibit fitness trade-offs among habitats. However, the degree to which local adaptation is affected by the spatial and temporal scale of environmental variation is poorly understood. A multiyear reciprocal transplant experiment was performed with populations of the annual plant Leptosiphon parviflorus living on adjacent serpentine and nonserpentine soil. Local adaptation over this small geographic scale was observed, but there were differences in the temporal variability of selection across habitats. On serpentine soil, the local population had a consistently large survival advantage, presumably as a result of the temporal stability in selection imposed by soil cation content. In contrast, a fecundity advantage was observed for the sandstone population on its native soil type but only in the two study years with the highest rainfall. A manipulative greenhouse experiment demonstrated that the fitness advantage of the sandstone population in its native soil type depends critically on water availability. The temporal variability in local adaptation driven by variation in precipitation suggests that continued drought conditions have the potential to erode local adaptation in these populations. These results show how different selective factors can influence spatial and temporal patterns of variation in fitness trade-offs.
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3
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Gaona-Gordillo I, Holtmann B, Mouchet A, Hutfluss A, Sánchez-Tójar A, Dingemanse NJ. Are animal personality, body condition, physiology and structural size integrated? A comparison of species, populations and sexes, and the value of study replication. J Anim Ecol 2023; 92:1707-1718. [PMID: 37323075 DOI: 10.1111/1365-2656.13966] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2022] [Accepted: 05/23/2023] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
A major question in behavioural ecology is why behaviour, physiology and morphology are often integrated into syndromes. In great tits, Parus major, for example, explorative males are larger (vs. smaller) and leaner (vs. heavier) compared to less explorative individuals. Unfortunately, considerable debate exists on whether patterns found in specific studies are replicable. This debate calls for study replication among species, populations and sexes. We measured behavioural (exploration), physiological (breathing rate) and morphological traits (body mass, tarsus length, wing length, bill length) in two species (great vs. blue tits Cyanistes caeruleus), two populations (Forstenrieder Park vs. Starnberg) and two sexes (males vs. females). We then tested whether the same pattern of integration characterized all unique combinations of these three biological categories (hereafter called datasets). We used a multi-year repeated measures set-up to estimate among-individual trait correlation matrices for each dataset. We then used structural equation modelling to test for size-dependent behaviour and physiology, size-corrected (i.e. size-independent) behaviour-physiology correlations and size-corrected body mass-dependent behaviour and physiology. Finally, we used meta-analyses to test which structural paths were generally (vs. conditionally) supported (vs. unsupported). We found general and consistent support for size-dependent physiology and size-corrected body mass-dependent physiology across datasets: faster breathers were smaller but heavier for their size. Unexpectedly, condition-dependent behaviour was not supported: explorative birds were neither leaner, nor was this relationship heterogeneous across datasets. All other hypothesized patterns were dataset-specific: the covariance between size and behaviour, and between behaviour and physiology differed in sign between datasets, and both were, on average, not supported. This heterogeneity was not explained by any of our moderators: species, population or sex. The specific pattern of size- and condition-dependent physiology reported for a unique combination of species, population, and sex, thus generally predicted those in others. Patterns of size- or condition-dependent behaviour (i.e. 'personality'), or behaviour-physiology syndromes reported in specific datasets, by contrast, did not. These findings call for studies revealing the ecological background of this variation and highlight the value of study replication to help understand whether patterns of phenotypic integration reported in one study can be generalized.
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Affiliation(s)
- Irene Gaona-Gordillo
- Behavioural Ecology, Department of Biology, Ludwig Maximilians University of Munich, Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
| | - Benedikt Holtmann
- Behavioural Ecology, Department of Biology, Ludwig Maximilians University of Munich, Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
- Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency, Department Management of the Sea, Division Assessment and Monitoring, Section Environmental Assessment, Rostock, Germany
| | - Alexia Mouchet
- Behavioural Ecology, Department of Biology, Ludwig Maximilians University of Munich, Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
- IDEEV UMR EGCE, IRD, CNRS, Paris-Saclay University, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
| | - Alexander Hutfluss
- Behavioural Ecology, Department of Biology, Ludwig Maximilians University of Munich, Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
- Bayerisches Landesamt für Umwelt, Ref. 51 Fachgrundlagen Naturschutz, Augsburg, Germany
| | | | - Niels J Dingemanse
- Behavioural Ecology, Department of Biology, Ludwig Maximilians University of Munich, Planegg-Martinsried, Germany
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Wojczulanis-Jakubas K, Araya-Salas M. Foraging, Fear and Behavioral Variation in a Traplining Hummingbird. Animals (Basel) 2023; 13:1997. [PMID: 37370506 DOI: 10.3390/ani13121997] [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: 05/20/2023] [Revised: 06/11/2023] [Accepted: 06/13/2023] [Indexed: 06/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Traditionally, foraging behavior has been explained as the response to a trade-off between energetic gain from feeding resources and potential costs from concomitant risks. However, an increasing number of studies has shown that this view fails to explain an important fraction of the variation in foraging across a variety of taxa. One potential mechanism that may account for this variation is that various behavioral traits associated with foraging may have different fitness consequences, which may depend on the environmental context. Here, we explored this mechanism by evaluating the foraging efficiency of long-billed hermit hummingbirds (Phaethornis longirostris) with regard to three behavioral traits: (a) exploration (number of feeders used during the foraging visit), (b) risk avoidance (latency to start feeding) and (c) arousal (amount of movements during the foraging visit) in conditions at two different levels of perceived risk (low-control and high-experimental, with a threatening bullet ant model). Foraging efficiency decreased in response to threatening conditions. However, behavioral traits explained additional variation in foraging efficiency in a condition-dependent manner. More exploration was associated with a higher foraging efficiency under control conditions, but this was reversed when exposed to a threat. Regardless of the conditions, arousal was positively associated with foraging efficiency, while risk avoidance was negatively related. Importantly, exploratory behavior and risk avoidance were quite repeatable behaviors, suggesting that they may be related to the intrinsic traits of individuals. Our findings highlight the importance of taking into account additional behavioral dimensions to better understand the foraging strategies of individuals.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Marcelo Araya-Salas
- Centro de Investigación en Neurociencias, University of Costa Rica, San José 11501-2060, Costa Rica
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5
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van Oers K, van den Heuvel K, Sepers B. The Epigenetics of Animal Personality. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2023; 150:105194. [PMID: 37094740 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2023.105194] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2022] [Revised: 04/12/2023] [Accepted: 04/21/2023] [Indexed: 04/26/2023]
Abstract
Animal personality, consistent individual differences in behaviour, is an important concept for understanding how individuals vary in how they cope with environmental challenges. In order to understand the evolutionary significance of animal personality, it is crucial to understand the underlying regulatory mechanisms. Epigenetic marks such as DNA methylation are hypothesised to play a major role in explaining variation in phenotypic changes in response to environmental alterations. Several characteristics of DNA methylation also align well with the concept of animal personality. In this review paper, we summarise the current literature on the role that molecular epigenetic mechanisms may have in explaining personality variation. We elaborate on the potential for epigenetic mechanisms to explain behavioural variation, behavioural development and temporal consistency in behaviour. We then suggest future routes for this emerging field and point to potential pitfalls that may be encountered. We conclude that a more inclusive approach is needed for studying the epigenetics of animal personality and that epigenetic mechanisms cannot be studied without considering the genetic background.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kees van Oers
- Department of Animal Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW), Wageningen, The Netherlands; Behavioural Ecology Group, Wageningen University & Research (WUR), Wageningen, the Netherlands.
| | - Krista van den Heuvel
- Department of Animal Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW), Wageningen, The Netherlands; Behavioural Ecology Group, Wageningen University & Research (WUR), Wageningen, the Netherlands
| | - Bernice Sepers
- Department of Animal Ecology, Netherlands Institute of Ecology (NIOO-KNAW), Wageningen, The Netherlands; Behavioural Ecology Group, Wageningen University & Research (WUR), Wageningen, the Netherlands
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6
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Beukeboom R, Phillips JS, Ólafsdóttir GÁ, Benhaïm D. Personality in juvenile Atlantic cod ecotypes and implications for fisheries management. Ecol Evol 2023; 13:e9952. [PMID: 37091554 PMCID: PMC10116030 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.9952] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2022] [Revised: 02/10/2023] [Accepted: 03/14/2023] [Indexed: 04/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Animals show among-individual variation in behaviors, including migration behaviors, which are often repeatable across time periods and contexts, commonly termed "personality." These behaviors can be correlated, forming a behavioral syndrome. In this study, we assessed the repeatability and correlation of different behavioral traits, i.e., boldness, exploration, and sociality, and the link to feeding migration patterns in Atlantic cod juveniles. To do so, we collected repeated measurements within two short-term (3 days) and two long-term (2 months) intervals of these personality traits and genotypes of the Pan I locus, which is correlated with feeding migration patterns in this species. We found high repeatabilities for exploration behavior in the short- and long-term intervals, and a trend for the relationship between exploration and the Pan I locus. Boldness and sociality were only repeatable in the second short-term interval indicating a possible development of stability over time and did not show a relation with the Pan I locus. We found no indication of behavioral syndromes among the studied traits. We were unable to identify the existence of a migration syndrome for the frontal genotype, which is the reason that the link between personality and migration remains inconclusive, but we demonstrated a possible link between exploration and the Pan I genotype. This supports the need for further research that should focus on the effect of exploration tendency and other personality traits on cod movement, including the migratory (frontal) ecotype to develop management strategies based on behavioral units, rather than treating the population as a single homogeneous stock.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rosanne Beukeboom
- Research Centre of the WestfjordsUniversity of IcelandBolungarvikIceland
- Department of Aquaculture and Fish BiologyHólar UniversitySaudárkrókurIceland
| | - Joseph S. Phillips
- Department of Aquaculture and Fish BiologyHólar UniversitySaudárkrókurIceland
- Department of BiologyCreighton UniversityOmahaNebraskaUSA
| | | | - David Benhaïm
- Department of Aquaculture and Fish BiologyHólar UniversitySaudárkrókurIceland
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7
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Ehlman SM, Scherer U, Wolf M. Developmental feedbacks and the emergence of individuality. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2022; 9:221189. [PMID: 36465682 DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.c.6315476] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2022] [Accepted: 11/07/2022] [Indexed: 05/24/2023]
Abstract
Behavioural individuality is a hallmark of animal life, with major consequences for fitness, ecology, and evolution. One of the most widely invoked explanations for this variation is that feedback loops between an animal's behaviour and its state (e.g. physiology, informational state, social rank, etc.) trigger and shape the development of individuality. Despite their often-cited importance, however, little is known about the ultimate causes of such feedbacks. Expanding on a previously employed model of adaptive behavioural development under uncertainty, we find that (i) behaviour-state feedbacks emerge as a direct consequence of adaptive behavioural development in particular selective environments and (ii) that the sign of these feedbacks, and thus the consequences for the development of behavioural individuality, can be directly predicted by the shape of the fitness function, with increasing fitness benefits giving rise to positive feedbacks and trait divergence and decreasing fitness benefits leading to negative feedbacks and trait convergence. Our findings provide a testable explanatory framework for the emergence of developmental feedbacks driving individuality and suggest that such feedbacks and their associated patterns of behavioural diversity are a direct consequence of adaptive behavioural development in particular selective environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sean M Ehlman
- SCIoI Excellence Cluster, Berlin, Germany
- Humboldt University, Berlin, Germany
- IGB - Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries, Berlin, Germany
| | - Ulrike Scherer
- SCIoI Excellence Cluster, Berlin, Germany
- Humboldt University, Berlin, Germany
- IGB - Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries, Berlin, Germany
| | - Max Wolf
- SCIoI Excellence Cluster, Berlin, Germany
- IGB - Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries, Berlin, Germany
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8
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Ehlman SM, Scherer U, Wolf M. Developmental feedbacks and the emergence of individuality. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2022; 9:221189. [PMID: 36465682 PMCID: PMC9709565 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.221189] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2022] [Accepted: 11/07/2022] [Indexed: 05/08/2023]
Abstract
Behavioural individuality is a hallmark of animal life, with major consequences for fitness, ecology, and evolution. One of the most widely invoked explanations for this variation is that feedback loops between an animal's behaviour and its state (e.g. physiology, informational state, social rank, etc.) trigger and shape the development of individuality. Despite their often-cited importance, however, little is known about the ultimate causes of such feedbacks. Expanding on a previously employed model of adaptive behavioural development under uncertainty, we find that (i) behaviour-state feedbacks emerge as a direct consequence of adaptive behavioural development in particular selective environments and (ii) that the sign of these feedbacks, and thus the consequences for the development of behavioural individuality, can be directly predicted by the shape of the fitness function, with increasing fitness benefits giving rise to positive feedbacks and trait divergence and decreasing fitness benefits leading to negative feedbacks and trait convergence. Our findings provide a testable explanatory framework for the emergence of developmental feedbacks driving individuality and suggest that such feedbacks and their associated patterns of behavioural diversity are a direct consequence of adaptive behavioural development in particular selective environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sean M. Ehlman
- SCIoI Excellence Cluster, Berlin, Germany
- Humboldt University, Berlin, Germany
- IGB – Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries, Berlin, Germany
| | - Ulrike Scherer
- SCIoI Excellence Cluster, Berlin, Germany
- Humboldt University, Berlin, Germany
- IGB – Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries, Berlin, Germany
| | - Max Wolf
- SCIoI Excellence Cluster, Berlin, Germany
- IGB – Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries, Berlin, Germany
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9
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Ehlman SM, Scherer U, Wolf M. Developmental feedbacks and the emergence of individuality. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2022; 9:221189. [PMID: 36465682 DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.7299681] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2022] [Accepted: 11/07/2022] [Indexed: 05/24/2023]
Abstract
Behavioural individuality is a hallmark of animal life, with major consequences for fitness, ecology, and evolution. One of the most widely invoked explanations for this variation is that feedback loops between an animal's behaviour and its state (e.g. physiology, informational state, social rank, etc.) trigger and shape the development of individuality. Despite their often-cited importance, however, little is known about the ultimate causes of such feedbacks. Expanding on a previously employed model of adaptive behavioural development under uncertainty, we find that (i) behaviour-state feedbacks emerge as a direct consequence of adaptive behavioural development in particular selective environments and (ii) that the sign of these feedbacks, and thus the consequences for the development of behavioural individuality, can be directly predicted by the shape of the fitness function, with increasing fitness benefits giving rise to positive feedbacks and trait divergence and decreasing fitness benefits leading to negative feedbacks and trait convergence. Our findings provide a testable explanatory framework for the emergence of developmental feedbacks driving individuality and suggest that such feedbacks and their associated patterns of behavioural diversity are a direct consequence of adaptive behavioural development in particular selective environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sean M Ehlman
- SCIoI Excellence Cluster, Berlin, Germany
- Humboldt University, Berlin, Germany
- IGB - Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries, Berlin, Germany
| | - Ulrike Scherer
- SCIoI Excellence Cluster, Berlin, Germany
- Humboldt University, Berlin, Germany
- IGB - Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries, Berlin, Germany
| | - Max Wolf
- SCIoI Excellence Cluster, Berlin, Germany
- IGB - Leibniz Institute of Freshwater Ecology and Inland Fisheries, Berlin, Germany
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10
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Roth AM, Kent SM, Hobson EA, Kritsky G, Nakagawa S. Personality-mediated speed-accuracy tradeoffs in mating in a 17-year periodical cicada. Behav Ecol 2022. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arac082] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
There exists growing evidence that animal personality (consistent between individual differences in behavior) can influence an individual’s fitness. Furthermore, limitations in behavioral plasticity may cause personality-mediated tradeoffs to occur, for example, between speed and accuracy in decision making. We explored whether various measures of personality could predict speed-accuracy tradeoffs in mate selection using Pharaoh cicadas (Magicicada septendecim) and examined the phenotypic traits predicting male mating performance and advertisement rates. We assessed whether male exploration behavior, boldness, and weight could predict a male’s overall copulation attempt rate (the number of attempted copulations with conspecifics of either sex), the number of errors a male made when selecting a mate (the number of same-sex copulation attempts), and male reproductive performance (whether a male successfully copulated with a female). We also assessed whether personality-dependent variation in male advertisement rate (the number of calling song bouts) might underpin the correlation between exploration behavior and mating performance. Although male exploration behavior did not predict male advertisement rate, we found that faster-exploring males exhibited higher overall rates of attempted copulations while also attempting more same-sex copulations, compared to slower-exploring males, suggesting a personality-mediated speed-accuracy tradeoff. Despite making more mate choice errors, however, faster explorers were more likely to successfully copulate with females, compared to slower explorers, indicating that speed may be favored over accuracy in systems where heavily male-biased sex ratios lead to scramble competition. Overall, this work highlights the role of personality in sexual selection and demonstrates that personality can influence speed-accuracy trade-offs in mating.
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Affiliation(s)
- Allison M Roth
- Department of Biology, McGill University , 1205 Dr Penfield Ave Montréal, Québec, H3A 1B1 , Canada
| | - Sarah M Kent
- Winton Centre, Great Parks of Hamilton County , 10245 Winton Rd, Cincinnati, OH 45231 , USA
| | - Elizabeth A Hobson
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Cincinnati , 318 College Drive, Cincinnati, OH 45221 , USA
| | - Gene Kritsky
- Department of Biology, Mount St. Joseph University , 5701 Delhi Rd, Cincinnati, OH 45233 , USA
| | - Shinichi Nakagawa
- Evolution and Ecology Research Centre and School of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of New South Wales , Sydney, NSW 2052 , Australia
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11
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Galluccio E, Lymbery RA, Wilson A, Evans JP. Personality, sperm traits and a test for their combined dependence on male condition in guppies. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2022. [PMID: 35706668 DOI: 10.5061/dryad.00000005n] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/06/2023]
Abstract
There is evidence that animal personality can affect sexual selection, with studies reporting that male behavioural types are associated with success during pre- and post-copulatory sexual selection. Given these links between personality and sexual traits, and the accumulating evidence that their expression can depend on an individual's dietary status (i.e. condition), a novel prediction is that changes in a male's diet should alter both the average expression of personality and sexual traits, and their covariance. We tested these predictions using the guppy Poecilia reticulata, a species previously shown to exhibit strong condition dependence in ejaculate traits and a positive correlation between sperm production and individual variation in boldness. Contrary to expectation, we found that dietary restriction-when administered in mature adult males-did not affect the expression of either behavioural (boldness and activity) or ejaculate traits, although we did find that males subjected to dietary stress exhibited a positive association between sperm velocity and boldness that was not apparent in the unrestricted diet group. This latter finding points to possible context-dependent patterns of covariance between sexually selected traits and personalities, which may have implications for patterns of selection and evolutionary processes under fluctuating environmental conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edward Galluccio
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, 6009 Western Australia, Australia
| | - Rowan A Lymbery
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, 6009 Western Australia, Australia
| | - Alastair Wilson
- Centre for Ecology and Evolution, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, UK
| | - Jonathan P Evans
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, 6009 Western Australia, Australia
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12
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Galluccio E, Lymbery RA, Wilson A, Evans JP. Personality, sperm traits and a test for their combined dependence on male condition in guppies. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2022. [PMID: 35706668 DOI: 10.6084/m9.figshare.c.6002280] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/06/2023]
Abstract
There is evidence that animal personality can affect sexual selection, with studies reporting that male behavioural types are associated with success during pre- and post-copulatory sexual selection. Given these links between personality and sexual traits, and the accumulating evidence that their expression can depend on an individual's dietary status (i.e. condition), a novel prediction is that changes in a male's diet should alter both the average expression of personality and sexual traits, and their covariance. We tested these predictions using the guppy Poecilia reticulata, a species previously shown to exhibit strong condition dependence in ejaculate traits and a positive correlation between sperm production and individual variation in boldness. Contrary to expectation, we found that dietary restriction-when administered in mature adult males-did not affect the expression of either behavioural (boldness and activity) or ejaculate traits, although we did find that males subjected to dietary stress exhibited a positive association between sperm velocity and boldness that was not apparent in the unrestricted diet group. This latter finding points to possible context-dependent patterns of covariance between sexually selected traits and personalities, which may have implications for patterns of selection and evolutionary processes under fluctuating environmental conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edward Galluccio
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, 6009 Western Australia, Australia
| | - Rowan A Lymbery
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, 6009 Western Australia, Australia
| | - Alastair Wilson
- Centre for Ecology and Evolution, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, UK
| | - Jonathan P Evans
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, 6009 Western Australia, Australia
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13
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Galluccio E, Lymbery RA, Wilson A, Evans JP. Personality, sperm traits and a test for their combined dependence on male condition in guppies. ROYAL SOCIETY OPEN SCIENCE 2022; 9:220269. [PMID: 35706668 PMCID: PMC9156929 DOI: 10.1098/rsos.220269] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2022] [Accepted: 05/11/2022] [Indexed: 05/03/2023]
Abstract
There is evidence that animal personality can affect sexual selection, with studies reporting that male behavioural types are associated with success during pre- and post-copulatory sexual selection. Given these links between personality and sexual traits, and the accumulating evidence that their expression can depend on an individual's dietary status (i.e. condition), a novel prediction is that changes in a male's diet should alter both the average expression of personality and sexual traits, and their covariance. We tested these predictions using the guppy Poecilia reticulata, a species previously shown to exhibit strong condition dependence in ejaculate traits and a positive correlation between sperm production and individual variation in boldness. Contrary to expectation, we found that dietary restriction-when administered in mature adult males-did not affect the expression of either behavioural (boldness and activity) or ejaculate traits, although we did find that males subjected to dietary stress exhibited a positive association between sperm velocity and boldness that was not apparent in the unrestricted diet group. This latter finding points to possible context-dependent patterns of covariance between sexually selected traits and personalities, which may have implications for patterns of selection and evolutionary processes under fluctuating environmental conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Edward Galluccio
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, 6009 Western Australia, Australia
| | - Rowan A. Lymbery
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, 6009 Western Australia, Australia
| | - Alastair Wilson
- Centre for Ecology and Evolution, University of Exeter, Cornwall Campus, Penryn, UK
| | - Jonathan P. Evans
- Centre for Evolutionary Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Western Australia, 6009 Western Australia, Australia
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14
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Hunt AD, Jaeggi AV. Specialised minds: extending adaptive explanations of personality to the evolution of psychopathology. EVOLUTIONARY HUMAN SCIENCES 2022; 4:e26. [PMID: 37588937 PMCID: PMC10426115 DOI: 10.1017/ehs.2022.23] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/07/2022] Open
Abstract
Traditional evolutionary theory invoked natural and sexual selection to explain species- and sex-typical traits. However, some heritable inter-individual variability in behaviour and psychology - personality - is probably adaptive. Here we extend this insight to common psychopathological traits. Reviewing key findings from three background areas of importance - theoretical models, non-human personality and evolved human social dynamics - we propose that a combination of social niche specialisation, negative frequency-dependency, balancing selection and adaptive developmental plasticity should explain adaptation for individual differences in psychology - 'specialised minds' - explaining some variance in personality and psychopathology trait dimensions, which share various characteristics. We suggest that anthropological research of behavioural differences should be extended past broad demographic factors (age and sex) to include individual specialisations. As a first step towards grounding psychopathology in ancestral social structure, we propose a minimum plausible prevalence, given likely ancestral group sizes, for negatively frequency-dependent phenotypes to be maintained as specialised tails of adaptive distributions - below the calculated prevalence, specialisation is highly unlikely. For instance, chronic highly debilitating forms of autism or schizophrenia are too rare for such explanations, whereas attention-deficit-hyperactivity disorder and broad autism phenotypes are common enough to have existed in most hunter-gatherer bands, making adaptive explanations more plausible.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adam D. Hunt
- Institute of Evolutionary Medicine, University of Zürich, Switzerland
| | - Adrian V. Jaeggi
- Institute of Evolutionary Medicine, University of Zürich, Switzerland
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15
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Nicolaus M, Wang X, Lamers KP, Ubels R, Both C. Unravelling the causes and consequences of dispersal syndromes in a wild passerine. Proc Biol Sci 2022; 289:20220068. [PMID: 35506227 PMCID: PMC9065973 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2022.0068] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Evidence accumulates that dispersal is correlated with individual behavioural phenotype (dispersal syndrome). The evolutionary causes and consequences of such covariation depend on the degree of plasticity versus inheritance of the traits, which requires challenging experiments to implement in mobile organisms. Here, we combine a forced dispersal experiment, natural colonization and longitudinal data to establish if dispersal and aggression levels are integrated and to test their adaptive nature in pied flycatchers (Ficedula hypoleuca). We found that (forced) dispersers behaved more aggressively in their first breeding year after dispersal and decreased their aggression in following years. Strength of dispersal syndrome and direction of fecundity selection on aggression in newly colonized areas varied between years. We propose that the net benefits of aggression for dispersers increase under harsh conditions (e.g. low food abundance). This hypothesis now warrants further testing. Overall, this study provides unprecedented experimental evidence that dispersal syndromes can be remodelled via adaptive plasticity depending on the individuals' local breeding experience and/or year-specific ecological conditions. It highlights the importance of individual behavioural variation in population dynamics.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marion Nicolaus
- Conservation Ecology Group, Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), University of Groningen, PO Box 11103, 9700 CC Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Xuelai Wang
- Conservation Ecology Group, Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), University of Groningen, PO Box 11103, 9700 CC Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Koosje P. Lamers
- Conservation Ecology Group, Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), University of Groningen, PO Box 11103, 9700 CC Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Richard Ubels
- Conservation Ecology Group, Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), University of Groningen, PO Box 11103, 9700 CC Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Christiaan Both
- Conservation Ecology Group, Groningen Institute for Evolutionary Life Sciences (GELIFES), University of Groningen, PO Box 11103, 9700 CC Groningen, The Netherlands
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16
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Parthasarathy B, Somanathan H, Wright J. Long‐Term Behavioural Syndrome in Subadult Indian Social Spiders But Not Over the Short‐Term or in Juveniles. Ethology 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/eth.13229] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
| | - Hema Somanathan
- School of Biology Indian Institute of Science Education and Research Thiruvananthapuram India
| | - Jonathan Wright
- Department of Biology Centre for Biodiversity Dynamics (CBD) Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) Trondheim Norway
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17
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Brand JA, Naimo AC, Michelangeli M, Martin JM, Sih A, Wong BBM, Chapple DG. Population differences in the effect of context on personality in an invasive lizard. Behav Ecol 2021. [DOI: 10.1093/beheco/arab102] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Abstract
Within populations, individuals often differ consistently in their average level of behavior (i.e., animal personality), as well as their response to environmental change (i.e., behavioral plasticity). Thus, changes in environmental conditions might be expected to mediate the structure of animal personality traits. However, it is currently not well understood how personality traits change in response to environmental conditions, and whether this effect is consistent across multiple populations within the same species. Accordingly, we investigated variation in personality traits across two ecological contexts in the invasive delicate skink (Lampropholis delicata). Specifically, lizards from three different populations were repeatedly measured for individual activity in group behavioral assays under differing levels of food availability. We found that environmental context had a clear effect on the structure of lizard personality, where activity rates were not repeatable in the absence of food, but were repeatable in the presence of food resources. The difference in repeatability of activity rates across contexts appeared to be largely driven by an increase in among-individual variance when tested in the presence of food resources. However, this was only true for one of the populations tested, with food context having no effect on the expression of personality traits in the other two populations. Our results highlight the important role of environmental context in mediating the structure of animal personality traits and suggest that this effect may vary among populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jack A Brand
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Annalise C Naimo
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Marcus Michelangeli
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
- Department of Environmental Science and Policy, University of California, Davis, CA, USA
| | - Jake M Martin
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Andrew Sih
- Department of Environmental Science and Policy, University of California, Davis, CA, USA
| | - Bob B M Wong
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - David G Chapple
- School of Biological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
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18
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Heterogeneous selection on exploration behavior within and among West European populations of a passerine bird. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2021; 118:2024994118. [PMID: 34234017 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2024994118] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Heterogeneous selection is often proposed as a key mechanism maintaining repeatable behavioral variation ("animal personality") in wild populations. Previous studies largely focused on temporal variation in selection within single populations. The relative importance of spatial versus temporal variation remains unexplored, despite these processes having distinct effects on local adaptation. Using data from >3,500 great tits (Parus major) and 35 nest box plots situated within five West-European populations monitored over 4 to 18 y, we show that selection on exploration behavior varies primarily spatially, across populations, and study plots within populations. Exploration was, simultaneously, selectively neutral in the average population and year. These findings imply that spatial variation in selection may represent a primary mechanism maintaining animal personalities, likely promoting the evolution of local adaptation, phenotype-dependent dispersal, and nonrandom settlement. Selection also varied within populations among years, which may counteract local adaptation. Our study underlines the importance of combining multiple spatiotemporal scales in the study of behavioral adaptation.
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