scholarly journals Environmental conditions but not nest composition affect reproductive success in an urban bird

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (7) ◽  
pp. 3084-3092
Author(s):  
Pablo Capilla‐Lasheras ◽  
Blanca Bondía ◽  
José I. Aguirre
Keyword(s):  
Reproductive Success ◽  
Environmental Conditions ◽  
Urban Bird

scholarly journals Lifetime reproductive success in a population of female red kangaroos Macropus rufus in the sheep rangelands of western New South Wales: Environmental effects and population dynamics

2004 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 45 ◽  
Author(s):  
AD Bilton ◽  
DB Croft
Keyword(s):  
Population Dynamics ◽  
Reproductive Success ◽  
Environmental Conditions ◽  
New South ◽  
New South Wales ◽  
Reproductive Potential ◽  
Lifetime Reproductive Success ◽  
South Wales ◽  
Macropus Rufus ◽  
Initial Starting

Female reproductive success and the recruitment of offspring to the next generation are key components of animal population dynamics. With an annual commercial harvest of between 13 and 22% of the red kangaroo (Macropus rufus) population, it is increasingly important that these processes are understood. We used data on the reproductive success of 33 free-ranging female M. rufus on Fowlers Gap station in far western New South Wales to determine the expected lifetime reproductive success (LRS) of females within an unharvested population. We also designed a model to generate predictions about female LRS incorporating empirical relationships between a mother?s reproductive success and maternal age, environmental conditions and the sex and survivorship of a previous reproductive attempt. Results from observations on female LRS (calculated from annual weaning rates) and those generated by the model predict that female M. rufus on ?Fowlers Gap? wean, on average, 3.7 young in a lifetime (ranges 0 - 11 and 0 - 20, respectively); representing only 41% of their maximum reproductive potential. Manipulation of initial starting conditions allowed the effect of varying environmental conditions on female LRS to be explored. The condition of the environment when females commence breeding does not appear to significantly affect their overall lifetime reproductive output. However, the occurrence of drought does. Females experiencing two droughts in a lifetime did not live as long and weaned fewer offspring and grandoffspring (from their daughters) than those females experiencing only one drought in a lifetime. In addition to the adverse effect of drought on the reproductive success of female M. rufus in this study, we suggest that, given the relatively high and stable population densities of M. rufus on ?Fowlers Gap?, other mechanisms (acting primarily on juvenile survival) must exist which limit population growth.

scholarly journals Environmental conditions during winter predict age- and sex-specific differences in reproductive success of a trans-Saharan migratory bird

2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
C. López-Calderón ◽  
K. A. Hobson ◽  
A. Marzal ◽  
J. Balbontín ◽  
M. Reviriego ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Reproductive Success ◽  
Environmental Conditions ◽  
Migratory Bird ◽  
Age And Sex

scholarly journals Genetic and molecular basis of floral induction in Arabidopsis thaliana

2020 ◽  
Vol 71 (9) ◽  
pp. 2490-2504 ◽  
Author(s):  
Atsuko Kinoshita ◽  
René Richter
Keyword(s):  
Arabidopsis Thaliana ◽  
Reproductive Success ◽  
Environmental Conditions ◽  
Molecular Basis ◽  
Recent Progress ◽  
Molecular Mechanisms ◽  
Floral Induction ◽  
Life Cycles ◽  
Complex Processes ◽  
Technological Advances

Abstract Many plants synchronize their life cycles in response to changing seasons and initiate flowering under favourable environmental conditions to ensure reproductive success. To confer a robust seasonal response, plants use diverse genetic programmes that integrate environmental and endogenous cues and converge on central floral regulatory hubs. Technological advances have allowed us to understand these complex processes more completely. Here, we review recent progress in our understanding of genetic and molecular mechanisms that control flowering in Arabidopsis thaliana.

scholarly journals Do glucocorticoids predict fitness? Linking environmental conditions, corticosterone and reproductive success in the blue tit, Cyanistes caeruleus

2017 ◽  
Vol 4 (10) ◽  
pp. 170875 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. J. Henderson ◽  
N. P. Evans ◽  
B. J. Heidinger ◽  
K. A. Herborn ◽  
K. E. Arnold
Keyword(s):  
Reproductive Success ◽  
Environmental Conditions ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Blue Tit ◽  
Cyanistes Caeruleus ◽  
Free Living ◽  
Brood Rearing ◽  
Fledging Success ◽  
Harsh Conditions ◽  
Blue Tits

Glucocorticoids, including corticosterone (CORT), have been suggested to provide a physiological link between ecological conditions and fitness. Specifically, CORT, which is elevated in response to harsh conditions, is predicted to be correlated with reduced fitness. Yet, empirical studies show that CORT can be non-significantly, positively and negatively linked with fitness. Divergent environmental conditions between years or study systems may influence whether CORT is linked to fitness. To test this, we monitored free-living blue tits ( Cyanistes caeruleus ) during breeding over 3 years. We quantified foraging conditions during brood rearing, and examined whether they were correlated with parental baseline CORT and reproductive success. We then tested whether CORT predicted fitness. Elevated parental CORT was associated with lower temperatures, greater rainfall and lower territory-scale oak density. Whereas asynchrony with the caterpillar food peak was correlated with reduced nestling mass and fledging success, but not parental CORT. Only low temperatures were associated with both reduced nestling mass and elevated parental CORT. Despite this, parents with elevated CORT had lighter offspring in all years. Contrarily, in 2009 parental CORT was positively correlated with the number fledged. The absence of a direct link between the foraging conditions that reduce nestling quality and elevate parental CORT suggests that parental CORT may provide a holistic measure of conditions where parents are working harder to meet the demands of developing young. As the positive correlation between parental CORT and fledging success differed between years, this suggests that contrasting conditions between years can influence correlations between parental CORT and fitness. Ultimately, as CORT concentrations are intrinsically variable and linked to the prevalent conditions, studies that incorporate environmental harshness will improve our understanding of evolutionary endocrinology.

scholarly journals The influence of weather conditions during gestation on life histories in a wild Arctic ungulate

2016 ◽  
Vol 283 (1841) ◽  
pp. 20161760 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mathieu Douhard ◽  
Leif Egil Loe ◽  
Audun Stien ◽  
Christophe Bonenfant ◽  
R. Justin Irvine ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Life History ◽  
Reproductive Success ◽  
Environmental Conditions ◽  
Early Life ◽  
Life Histories ◽  
Weather Conditions ◽  
Later Life ◽  
Svalbard Reindeer ◽  
Long Term Study ◽  
Age Related

The internal predictive adaptive response (internal PAR) hypothesis predicts that individuals born in poor conditions should start to reproduce earlier if they are likely to have reduced performance in later life. However, whether this is the case remains unexplored in wild populations. Here, we use longitudinal data from a long-term study of Svalbard reindeer to examine age-related changes in adult female life-history responses to environmental conditions experienced in utero as indexed by rain-on-snow (ROS utero ). We show that females experiencing high ROS utero had reduced reproductive success only from 7 years of age, independent of early reproduction. These individuals were able to maintain the same annual reproductive success between 2 and 6 years as phenotypically superior conspecifics that experienced low ROS utero . Young females born after high ROS utero engage in reproductive events at lower body mass (about 2.5 kg less) than those born after low ROS utero . The mean fitness of females that experienced poor environmental conditions in early life was comparable with that of females exposed to good environmental conditions in early life. These results are consistent with the idea of internal PAR and suggest that the life-history responses to early-life conditions can buffer the delayed effects of weather on population dynamics.

scholarly journals Causes and consequences of variation in early-life telomere length in a bird metapopulation

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Le Pepke ◽  
Thomas Kvalnes ◽  
Peter Sjolte Ranke ◽  
Yimen G. Araya-Ajoy ◽  
Jonathan Wright ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Reproductive Success ◽  
Population Density ◽  
Telomere Length ◽  
Environmental Conditions ◽  
Early Life ◽  
Morphological Traits ◽  
Weather Conditions ◽  
Population Fluctuations ◽  
Individual Quality ◽  
Pace Of Life

1.Environmental conditions during early-life development can have lasting effects on individual quality and fitness. Telomere length (TL) may correlate with early-life conditions and may be an important mediator or biomarker of individual quality or pace-of-life, as periods of increased energy demands can increase telomere attrition due to oxidative stress. Thus, knowledge of the mechanisms that generate variation in TL, and the relation between TL and fitness, is important in understanding the role of telomeres in ecology and life-history evolution. 2.Here, we investigate how environmental conditions and morphological traits are associated with early-life TL and if TL predicts natal dispersal probability or components of fitness in two populations of wild house sparrows (Passer domesticus). 3.We measured morphological traits and blood TL in 2746 nestlings from 20 cohorts (1994-2013) and retrieved data on weather conditions. We monitored population fluctuations, and individual survival and reproductive output using field observations and genetic pedigrees. We then used generalized linear mixed-effects models to test which factors affected TL in early-life, and if TL predicted dispersal propensity, or was associated with recruitment probability, mortality risk, or reproductive success.4.We found a negative effect of population density on TL, but only in one of the populations. There was a curvilinear association between TL and the maximum daily North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) index during incubation, suggesting that there are optimal weather conditions that result in the longest TL. Dispersers tended to have shorter telomeres than non-dispersers. TL did not predict survival, but we found a tendency for individuals with short telomeres to have higher annual reproductive success.5.Our study showed how early-life TL is shaped by effects of growth, weather conditions and population density, supporting that environmental stressors negatively affect TL in wild populations. In addition, TL may be a mediator or biomarker of individual pace-of-life, with higher dispersal rates and annual reproduction tending to be associated with shorter early-life TL in this study. However, clear associations between early-life TL and individual fitness seems difficult to establish and may differ between different populations in the wild.

scholarly journals Molecular Regulation of Paused Pluripotency in Early Mammalian Embryos and Stem Cells

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Vera A. van der Weijden ◽  
Aydan Bulut-Karslioglu
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Stem Cells ◽  
Reproductive Success ◽  
Environmental Conditions ◽  
Mammalian Species ◽  
Molecular Regulation ◽  
Embryonic Diapause ◽  
Adverse Conditions ◽  
Mammalian Embryos

The energetically costly mammalian investment in gestation and lactation requires plentiful nutritional sources and thus links the environmental conditions to reproductive success. Flexibility in adjusting developmental timing enhances chances of survival in adverse conditions. Over 130 mammalian species can reversibly pause early embryonic development by switching to a near dormant state that can be sustained for months, a phenomenon called embryonic diapause. Lineage-specific cells are retained during diapause, and they proliferate and differentiate upon activation. Studying diapause thus reveals principles of pluripotency and dormancy and is not only relevant for development, but also for regeneration and cancer. In this review, we focus on the molecular regulation of diapause in early mammalian embryos and relate it to maintenance of potency in stem cells in vitro. Diapause is established and maintained by active rewiring of the embryonic metabolome, epigenome, and gene expression in communication with maternal tissues. Herein, we particularly discuss factors required at distinct stages of diapause to induce, maintain, and terminate dormancy.

Stock-recruitment models for Pacific sardine (Sardinops sagax)

1995 ◽  
Vol 52 (3) ◽  
pp. 566-577 ◽  
Author(s):  
Larry D. Jacobson ◽  
Alec D. MacCall
Keyword(s):  
Reproductive Success ◽  
Environmental Conditions ◽  
Statistical Power ◽  
Generalized Additive Models ◽  
Additive Models ◽  
Cold Temperatures ◽  
Pacific Sardine ◽  
Sardinops Sagax ◽  
Spawning Biomass

We used generalized additive models to study the recruitment of Pacific sardine (Sardinops sagax) along western North America and to compare the effects of fishing and environmental factors on the stock. We found significant relationships between the logarithm of sardine reproductive success (recruits per unit of spawning biomass) and average sea surface temperature (SST), as well as between sardine recruitment, spawning biomass, and average SST. Simulation and time series analyses were used to evaluate bias, variance, and statistical power for one of our models. Correlation with log reproductive success was highest when average SST data included temperatures after the period of larval development, indicating that recruitment estimates were affected by environmentally driven changes in availability of older sardine to the fishery. Predicted equilibrium biomass and MSY for sardine are lower under environmental conditions that prevail when temperatures are colder. Long-term fluctuations in the environment may cause long-term fluctuations in sardine productivity, and little or no sardine harvest may be sustainable during periods of adverse environmental conditions and cold temperatures.

scholarly journals The relative contribution of individual quality and changing climate as drivers of lifetime reproductive success in a short-lived avian species

2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisha L. Berzins ◽  
Russell D. Dawson ◽  
Christy A. Morrissey ◽  
Robert G. Clark
Keyword(s):  
British Columbia ◽  
Life History ◽  
Reproductive Success ◽  
Environmental Conditions ◽  
Avian Species ◽  
Life History Trait ◽  
Lifetime Reproductive Success ◽  
Positive Effects ◽  
Changing Climate ◽  
Animal Populations

AbstractAnimal populations are influenced strongly by fluctuations in weather conditions, but long-term fitness costs are rarely explored, especially in short-lived avian species. We evaluated the relative contributions of individual characteristics and environmental conditions to lifetime reproductive success (LRS) of female tree swallows (Tachycineta bicolor) from two populations breeding in contrasting environments and geographies, Saskatchewan and British Columbia, Canada. Female swallows achieved higher LRS by breeding early in the season and producing more fledglings. Other measures of female quality had virtually no influence on LRS. Genetic factors did not predict LRS, as there was no correlation between life-history components for sister pairs nor between mothers and their daughters. Instead, climate variability—indexed by spring pond density (i.e., abundance of wetland basins holding water) during years when females bred—had strong positive effects on female LRS in more arid Saskatchewan but only weak positive effects of moisture conditions were detected in wetter British Columbia. Overall, several life history trait correlates of LRS were similar between populations, but local environmental factors experienced by individuals while breeding produced large differences in LRS. Consequently, variable and extreme environmental conditions associated with changing climate are predicted to influence individual fitness of distinct populations within a species’ range.

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