共查询到10条相似文献,搜索用时 84 毫秒
1.
Rebecca J. Safran Kevin M. Pilz Kevin J. McGraw Stephanie M. Correa Hubert Schwabl 《Behavioral ecology and sociobiology》2008,62(3):427-438
Recently, evidence is mounting that females can adaptively engineer the quality of their offspring via the deposition of yolk
compounds, including carotenoids and androgens. In this study, we simultaneously consider how both carotenoids and androgens
in egg yolk relate to parental quality in barn swallows (Hirundo rustica erythrogaster). First, we found no relationship between concentrations or amounts of yolk androgens and carotenoids. Yolk carotenoids decreased
with laying order, whereas we found no relationship between yolk androgens and laying order. Second, we tested the Investment
Hypothesis, which predicts that high-quality females or females paired to high quality mates, allocate differentially more
of these yolk compounds to their offspring. For carotenoids, we mostly found evidence to counter predictions of the Investment
hypothesis: (1) Carotenoid concentrations varied among females, (2) heavier eggs contained lower carotenoid concentrations,
although heavier yolks contained greater amounts of carotenoids, (3) eggs of earlier-laying females had lower concentrations
in their eggs, and (4) yolk carotenoids were not correlated with clutch size or male plumage ornamentation. For androgens,
we found weak support for the Investment Hypothesis: (1) Yolk androgens varied among females, (2) heavier eggs and yolks contained
greater amounts, although not concentrations of androgens, (3) females paired to more colorful males laid eggs with greater
concentrations of androgens, and (4) no effects of laying date or morphological correlates of female quality on androgen concentrations
in egg yolks. Overall, these findings suggest that each yolk compound may have different functions and therefore may be regulated
by different mechanisms. 相似文献
2.
Fabrice Dentressangle Lourdes Boeck Roxana Torres 《Behavioral ecology and sociobiology》2008,62(12):1899-1908
Females are expected to vary investment in offspring according to variables that may influence the offspring fitness in a way that optimises her inclusive fitness for a particular context. Thus, when sexual ornaments signal the quality of the male, females might invest in reproduction as a function of the attractiveness of their mate. We tested whether breeding conditions and male feet colour influence reproductive decisions of blue-footed booby females. In the blue-footed booby, male feet colour is a dynamic condition-dependent sexually selected trait that is related to paternal effort. During two consecutive years, an El Niño year (poor breeding conditions) and a year with good breeding conditions, we experimentally reduced male attractiveness by modifying their feet colour after the first egg was laid and recorded female investment in the second egg. We found that, relative to the first egg in the clutch, females laid heavier second eggs during the poor year than during the good year. Females paired with males with duller feet colour reduced second-egg mass and volume and delayed the laying of the second egg, independently of the year. Absolute yolk androstenedione (A4) concentration (but not testosterone, T) in second eggs was higher during a poor year than during a good year. Only during a year with poor breeding conditions, females paired with experimental males decreased the relative A4 concentration (but not T) in the second egg compared to control females. Thus, blue-footed booby females probably favour brood reduction by decreasing egg quality and increasing size asymmetry between chicks when the breeding and the mate conditions are poor. 相似文献
3.
Adeline Loyau Michel Saint Jalme Robert Mauget Gabriele Sorci 《Behavioral ecology and sociobiology》2007,61(7):1043-1052
According to the differential investment hypothesis, females paired with attractive mates are expected to invest more in the
current reproduction relative to females paired with unattractive males. We experimentally tested this hypothesis in the peafowl
(Pavo cristatus) by providing females with males that differed in sexual attractiveness. In agreement with the differential allocation hypothesis,
females paired with more ornamented males laid larger eggs, and deposited higher amounts of testosterone into the egg yolk,
independently of the sex of the embryo. These results show that the association between paternal phenotype and offspring quality
could arise via a differential maternal investment. They also suggest that, if ornamented males do transmit good genes to
the progeny, the maternal differential investment can amplify the effect of such good genes on the offspring fitness. 相似文献
4.
It has been proposed that blue colouration in eggs has evolved as a signal of female quality that males can use to modulate
their parental investment. This hypothesis is based in the antioxidant properties of biliverdin whose costly deposition in
the eggshell is expected to signal female antioxidant capacity and egg quality. Since maternally derived androgens are costly
to produce and may adaptively affect offspring phenotype, high-quality females may benefit by signalling their androgen investment
through egg colouration. Our aim was to investigate whether egg colour variation in the spotless starling reflected the amount
of pigments on the eggshell and whether egg pigmentation was related to female and egg quality. Chromatography analyses revealed
that spotless starling eggshells contained two different pigments: biliverdin and protoporphyrin IX with no correlation between
them. Biliverdin contents correlated positively with egg colouration indicating that darker eggs with a higher peak in the
blue–green segment of the spectrum contained higher amounts of biliverdin. Eggs containing more biliverdin were laid by high-quality
females and contained higher yolk testosterone levels. However, despite the strong correlation between biliverdin and colorimetric
variables, egg colouration did not reflect accurately female and egg quality. Our results provide evidence that eggshell pigmentation
in the spotless starling is related to female and egg quality as shown by the yolk testosterone levels. However, the lack
of relation between egg colour and female condition and egg quality do not provide evidence to support the signalling function
of egg colouration. 相似文献
5.
Diego Rubolini Maria Romano Roberta Martinelli Nicola Saino 《Behavioral ecology and sociobiology》2006,59(3):344-352
Androgen hormones of maternal origin contained in the eggs of avian species are considered to have positive effects on offspring
characteristics and performance. However, negative consequences have also been reported, suggesting that mothers may experience
a trade-off between beneficial and detrimental effects of egg androgens to offspring fitness. We studied the effects of elevated
yolk testosterone (T) concentration on survival, development and phenotype of male and female yellow-legged gull (Larus michahellis) chicks by injecting egg yolks with physiological doses of the hormone. Elevated yolk T resulted in a male-biased post-hatching
sex ratio, T-treated clutches producing a greater proportion of males compared to control ones at day 4 post-hatching, likely
resulting from a reduction of female embryonic survival, whereas no effect of hormone treatment on hatching success or short-term
chick survival was observed. In addition, T depressed post-hatching body mass in both sexes but had no effects on the intensity
of the cell-mediated immune response or skeletal growth. No sex differences in egg characteristics or chick phenotype were
detected. Time to hatching was not affected by T, but females originating from first laid eggs hatched earlier than males
of the same laying order, independently of hormone treatment. However, the implications of sex differences in hatching times
are unclear in the study species. Taken together, our results suggest that female yellow-legged gulls may be constrained in
transferring androgens to their eggs by negative consequences on the viability of female offspring and growth of chicks of
the two sexes. 相似文献
6.
Rita Hargitai Kathryn E. Arnold Márton Herényi József Prechl János Török 《Behavioral ecology and sociobiology》2009,63(6):869-882
Offspring survival can be influenced by resources allocated to eggs, which in turn may be affected by the environmental factors
the mother experiences during egg formation. In this study, we investigated whether experimentally elevated social interactions
and number of neighbouring pairs influence yolk composition of collared flycatchers (Ficedula albicollis). Social challenge was simulated by presentation of a conspecific female. Experimental females spent more time near the cage
and produced eggs with higher androgen concentration, but local breeding density did not affect yolk androgen level. Moreover,
we found that females exposed to more intra-specific interactions and those that bred at higher density produced eggs with
smaller yolk. These females may be more constrained in foraging time due to more frequent social encounters, and there might
be increased competition for food at areas of higher density. In contrast, the present study did not reveal any evidence for
the effect of social environment on yolk antioxidant and immunoglobulin levels. However, we found that yolk lutein and immunoglobulin
concentrations were related to the female’s H/L ratio. Also, yolk lutein and α-tocopherol levels showed a seasonal increase
and were positively related to the female’s plasma carotenoid level. Mothers may incur significant costs by transferring these
compounds into the eggs, thus only females in good physiological condition and those that lay eggs later, when food is probably
more abundant, could allocate higher amounts to the eggs without compromising their defence mechanisms. Our results suggest
that environmental circumstances during egg formation can influence conditions for embryonic development. 相似文献
7.
Diego Gil Alfonso Marzal Florentino de Lope Marisa Puerta Anders P. Møller 《Behavioral ecology and sociobiology》2006,60(1):96-100
Female birds deposit in the yolks of eggs substantial amounts of androgens, such as testosterone and androstenedione. These
androgens have been shown to speed up nestling development, induce a fast development of ornaments and increase dominance
in adults. Experiments in several species have reported that females invest greater amounts of androgens in the eggs fathered
by attractive males, suggesting that yolk androgen is a costly investment for either the offspring or the mother. There is
some evidence that nestling immunocompetence may be partially suppressed by high levels of yolk androgens, but it is not known
whether this is also the case for females. We tested this hypothesis in the house martin by inducing an immune challenge through
an injection of sheep red blood cells, a standard challenge of the humoral immune system. Experimental birds laid eggs with
lower amounts of yolk androstenedione than controls, and there was a similar non-significant trend for testosterone. Furthermore,
the probability of laying a replacement clutch was higher for birds that had laid a first clutch with relatively high levels
of yolk testosterone. These results suggest that yolk androgen deposition is limited by immune costs in the female, and that
only females in good condition may afford to invest high levels of androgen in eggs in this species. 相似文献
8.
Dieter Heylen Wendt Müller Ton G. G. Groothuis Erik Matthysen 《Behavioral ecology and sociobiology》2012,66(2):287-293
In birds as in many other taxa, parasites can have deleterious effects on offspring development. Therefore, avian mothers
have evolved responses to counteract parasite virulence in offspring via transgenerational defense mechanisms that is the
transfer of immune-enhancing substances such as antibodies to their eggs. Another maternal pathway is suggested by the finding
that infested great tit mothers produced eggs with lower androgens, since these yolk androgens are immunosuppressive and potentially
affect parasite susceptibility of the nestlings. However, whether this pathway is a specific adaptation to infestation with
parasites that affect the offspring or an epiphenomenon of lower androgen production in the female due to the parasite effects
on the mother itself is as yet unclear. In this study we infested female great tits (Parus major) with sheep ticks (Ixodes ricinus), which are nonnidicolous ectoparasites with low vertical transmission capability, and evaluated the effects on yolk androgen
deposition. Tick-infested females did not significantly reduce their deposition of androgens (androstenedione (A4) and testosterone) compared to tick-reduced females, which is in contrast to a previous study showing a lowered deposition
of A4 and testosterone when females were exposed to the nidicolous hen flea. Thus, females alter their hormone deposition, and
thus likely offspring phenotype, when exposed to parasites that also form the parasitic environment of their offspring, but
not when temporarily infested with the field-dwelling sheep ticks with low transmission capability. This suggests that selection
favored the evolution of an adaptive transgenerational effect by acting mainly on the parasite-induced maternal effect. 相似文献
9.
Vladimír Remeš 《Behavioral ecology and sociobiology》2011,65(6):1257-1266
Females can adaptively adjust phenotype of their offspring via deposition of various compounds into eggs, including androgens
and other hormones. Here, I investigated how egg yolk androgens (testosterone and androstenedione) related to environmental
conditions and parental traits in the great tit (Parus major) across three breeding seasons. Male and female traits studied included age, condition and multiple feather ornaments, both
carotenoid- and melanin-based (carotenoid and UV chroma of yellow breast feathers, area of black breast band and white cheek
immaculateness). Yolk mass increased with laying temperature, laying date and area of male black breast band. Concentration
of androgens increased with breeding density, territory quality and carotenoid chroma of male yellow breast feathers and was
higher in mates of 1 year old as compared to older males. Yolk androgens were not related to any of the female traits analysed.
These patterns were thus consistent with (1) social and environmental effects on yolk mass and composition and (2) both positive
and negative differential allocation strategies of resource allocation in females. Overall, male traits were the most important
predictors of egg yolk characteristics in this socially monogamous songbird. 相似文献
10.
Vertebrate eggs contain maternal steroid hormones in their yolks; and in avian species the concentration of these steroids vary within and among clutches. The organizational actions of these variable doses of maternal steroids in the avian egg, analogous to those regulating the development of sexually dimorphic traits, are little explored. In this study, we examined the organizational effects of yolk testosterone in the house sparrow,
Passer domesticus, a sexually dichromatic passerine bird in which males are characterized by the presence of a throat patch or badge of black feathers that varies in size among males. We injected a physiological dose of testosterone or vehicle into eggs in the field, removed nestlings, and hand-raised them in the laboratory. At 5 months of age, we investigated treatment effects on plumage and behavior. Males that hatched from testosterone-injected eggs developed a larger badge than males that hatched from vehicle-injected (control) eggs. However, testosterone did not induce the expression of a badge in females. In staged dyadic encounters, both males and females hatched from testosterone-injected eggs were more successful at obtaining and defending a food source than individuals of the same sex hatched from control eggs. The results suggest that variable concentrations of maternal testosterone in the eggs of the house sparrow organize the expression of a plumage trait in males and behavior in both sexes.Communicated by J. Graves 相似文献