Ambient temperature effects on photo induced gonadal cycles and hormonal secretion patterns in Great Tits from three different breeding latitudes

Silverin, Bengt; Wingfield, John C.; Stokkan, Karl‐Arne; Massa, R.; Järvinen, Antero; Andersson, Nils-Åke; Lambrechts, Marcel M.; Sorace, Alberto; Blomqvist, Donald

doi:10.1016/j.yhbeh.2008.01.015

Cited by 87 publications

(84 citation statements)

References 30 publications

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“…However, because the annual change in daylength is invariable from year to year, any adjustments in onset of nesting must be triggered by non-photic cues such as temperature (Wingfield and Kenagy 1991;Wingfield et al 1992;Wingfield and Farner 1993). Effects of temperature on photoperiodically-induced gonadal growth provide some support for this hypothesis because higher ambient temperatures speed up photoperiodicallyinduced gonadal growth and may even trigger onset of nesting in some species (see Wingfield and Kenagy 1991;Wingfield et al 1996Wingfield et al , 2003Dawson 2005: Silverin et al 2008. Moreover, lower temperatures slowed down gonadal growth but also prolonged the period with mature gonads and delayed termination of the breeding season, the opposite of what we would have predicted.…”

Section: Multiple Brooding In An Arctic Songbirdmentioning

confidence: 70%

Organism–environment interactions in a changing world: a mechanistic approach

et al. 2011

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Understanding the interactions of an organism and its environment is essential for us to integrate ultimate and proximate causation on a global scale. Organismenvironment interaction includes all organisms including animals, plants, and non-eukaryotes, etc. because all of them are responsive to environmental change including those that are human-induced. A mechanistic approach is important for us to understand why some organisms can cope with change and others cannot. Here, we present three examples of environments (''the three poles'') that are changing rapidly and how avian species typical of these ecosystems are responding. These examples include apparently adaptive responses to change in climate (i.e. the predictable environment) in one species in which a lengthened breeding season now allows multiple breeding attempts. Why other species are unable to respond in a similar way remains unclear. A second example describes how changing weather (i.e. the unpredictable) may have disastrous results for breeding success in a species adapted to an extreme cold environment. Implications for climate change in which weather extremes will become more common again suggest a mechanistic approach will be important to understand how organisms may respond. The third example outlines a scenario in which multiple human-induced rapid changes (a combination of predictable and unpredictable such as development, habitat change, introduction of invasive species and climate change) may influence indigenous species in different ways. Organism-environment interaction is a fundamental concept that may unify ultimate and proximate causation and point the way for future investigations striving to understand coping mechanisms in a world where both predictable and unpredictable components of the environment are changing.

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Section: Multiple Brooding In An Arctic Songbirdmentioning

confidence: 70%

Organism–environment interactions in a changing world: a mechanistic approach

et al. 2011

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“…As an example of the trade-offs involved in regulatory algorithms, many birds use both photoperiod and temperature to cue reproduction, with luteinizing hormone concentrations controlled via the CNS to trigger timing [41], resulting in an algorithm such as "when photoperiod exceeds threshold X and temperature exceeds threshold Y, start breeding." However, availability of key resources fed to nestlings could provide additional information to optimize timing (e.g.…”

Section: Ecological and Evolutionary Implications Of Prnsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This is probably because the resulting algorithm would be too complex to maintain well given the inter-population variation in food resources. Photoperiod, temperature at start of reproduction, and resource availability all vary across populations within species, so the algorithm needs to be (and is [41]) adjusted at short evolutionary timescales. Thus, a globally optimal algorithm might be something like, "If photoperiod less than A do not start reproducing.…”

Section: Ecological and Evolutionary Implications Of Prnsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Physiological regulatory networks: ecological roles and evolutionary constraints

Cohen

Martin

Wingfield

et al. 2012

Trends in Ecology & Evolution

180

160

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Ecological and evolutionary physiology has traditionally focused on aspects of physiology one at a time. Here, we discuss the implications of considering physiological regulatory networks (PRNs) as integrated wholes, a perspective that reveals novel roles for physiology in organismal ecology and evolution. For example, evolutionary response to changes in resource abundance might be constrained by the role of dietary micronutrients in immune response regulation, given a particular pathogen environment. Because many physiological components impact more than one process, organismal homeostasis is maintained, individual fitness is determined, and evolutionary change is constrained (or facilitated) by interactions within PRNs. We discuss how PRN structure and its system-level properties could determine both individual performance and patterns of physiological evolution. GlossaryAlternative physiological structures -Different PRN structures that would produce equivalent functional and fitness outcomes for a given species in a given environment. Which structure evolves might be largely random, but might have consequences for long-term evolution of PRN structure.Cytokines -Small cell-signalling proteins involved in intercellular communication. Regulatory cascades of cytokines are particularly critical in the immune system. Dysregulation -A breakdown over time in the ability of an individual's PRN to maintain homeostasis; possibly in response to chronic stress or infection, and possibly a root cause of aging.3 Homeostasis -A state of healthy physiological equilibrium, including appropriate anticipation of and responses to changing conditions.Integrator -A PRN molecule that has a particularly crucial role in synthesizing information (internal or external) and thereby determining multiple aspects of PRN functioning (e.g., a 'hub' or 'keystone' PRN molecule) Physiological Regulatory Network (PRN) -The network of molecules and their regulatory relationships that maintain and adjust homeostasis and facilitate performance at the wholeorganism level.PRN Molecule -PRN molecules are the subset of molecules that maintain homeostasis at the organism level via their regulatory relationships with other molecules. In most cases, these molecules are the nodes (vertices) in a PRN, and regulatory relationships between them are the links (edges). In some cases, several related molecules (e.g., circulating steroid, receptors, binding globulins) may be grouped together as a single node for measurement purposes, or gene activation may be a node in some contexts. Flexibility of node definition is common in other biological networks-for example, nodes in ecological networks can be species, groups of species, life stages, or other categories (e.g., detritus). PRN state -The concentrations of all PRN molecules at a given moment for a given individual in a particular context (e.g. age, time of year, life history stage). More generally, "changes in PRN state" describe joint adjustments in molecule concentrations in anticipation of or respo...

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“…In avian research, timing of reproduction often refers to the laying date of the first egg in spring [41]. However, the initiation of gonadal growth and the underlying activation of the reproductive endocrine system is also part of the timing mechanism [5,8,13,14,17,20,23,34,37]. This dual vision originates from the fact that evolutionary ecologists are more concerned with behavioral decisions and their fitness consequences, while physiologists are by definition more interested in the proximate mechanisms underlying a certain phenotype, such as gonadal growth and ovulation.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Individual variation in avian reproductive physiology does not reliably predict variation in laying date

Schaper

Dawson

Sharp

et al. 2012

General and Comparative Endocrinology

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Experiments measuring temporal patterns of reproductive hormone concentrations or gonadal size under controlled conditions in response to a cue commonly assume that these proxies are indicative of the timing of egg laying. This assumption often remains untested, with few studies reporting both reproductive development and the onset of laying. We kept in total 144 pairs of great tits (Parus major) in separate climate-controlled aviaries over 4 years to correlate pre-breeding plasma luteinizing hormone (LH), prolactin (PRL) and gonadal growth with the timing of laying.Individuals varied consistently in hormone concentrations over spring, but this was not directly related to the timing of gonadal growth, nor with the laying date of the first egg. The timing of gonadal development in both sexes was similarly not correlated with the timing of laying. This demonstrates the female's ability to adjust the onset of laying to environmental conditions irrespective of substantial differences in pre-laying development. We conclude that stages of reproductive development are regulated by different cues, and therefore egg laying dates need to be studied to measure the influences of environmental cues on timing of seasonal reproduction.

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Ambient temperature effects on photo induced gonadal cycles and hormonal secretion patterns in Great Tits from three different breeding latitudes

Cited by 87 publications

References 30 publications

Organism–environment interactions in a changing world: a mechanistic approach

Organism–environment interactions in a changing world: a mechanistic approach

Physiological regulatory networks: ecological roles and evolutionary constraints

Individual variation in avian reproductive physiology does not reliably predict variation in laying date

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