Corticosterone and stable isotopes in feathers predict egg size in <scp>A</scp>tlantic <scp>P</scp>uffins <i><scp>F</scp>ratercula arctica</i>

Kouwenberg, Amy-Lee; Hipfner, J. Mark; McKay, Donald W.; Storey, Anne E.

doi:10.1111/ibi.12030

Cited by 48 publications

(46 citation statements)

References 53 publications

(90 reference statements)

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“…Thus, egg-yolk corticosterone can serve as an integrated, non-invasive proxy of maternal physiology and may affect offspring development (Bowers et al 2015b). Moreover, conditions experienced prior to breeding are known to affect investment in eggs (Martin 1987; Nooker et al 2005; Ruffino et al 2012), and integrated measures of circulating corticosterone prior to the breeding season, as measured by corticosterone accumulated in feathers, recently have been found to predict egg size (Kouwenberg et al 2013), a trait that by itself has strong and persistent effects on offspring (Whittingham et al 2007; Krist 2011; Love and Williams 2011; Rollinson and Hutchings 2013; but see also Giordano et al 2014). However, effects of experimentally altered corticosterone levels within eggs on offspring development can be dynamic and context-dependent; for example, elevated corticosterone in eggs of the European starling ( Sturnus vulgaris ) can enhance the development of flight muscles after hatching and improve the flight performance of fledglings (Chin et al 2009), but also reduce the survival and growth of male offspring (Love et al 2005).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Elevated corticosterone during egg production elicits increased maternal investment and promotes nestling growth in a wild songbird

Bowers

Bowden

Thompson

et al. 2016

Hormones and Behavior

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Glucocorticoids circulating in breeding birds during egg production accumulate within eggs, and may provide a potent form of maternal effect on offspring phenotype. However, whether these steroids affect offspring development remains unclear. Here, we employed a non-invasive technique that experimentally elevated the maternal transfer of corticosterone to eggs in a wild population of house wrens. Feeding corticosterone-injected mealworms to free-living females prior to and during egg production increased the number of eggs that females produced and increased corticosterone concentrations in egg yolks. This treatment also resulted in an increase in the amount of yolk allocated to eggs. Offspring hatching from these eggs begged for food at a higher rate than control offspring and eventually attained increased prefledging body condition, a trait predictive of their probability of recruitment as breeding adults in the study population. Our results indicate that an increase in maternal glucocorticoids within the physiological range can enhance maternal investment and offspring development.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Elevated corticosterone during egg production elicits increased maternal investment and promotes nestling growth in a wild songbird

Bowers

Bowden

Thompson

et al. 2016

Hormones and Behavior

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“…Bourgeon et al, 2014;Carbajal et al, 2014;Sepp et al, 2014) but these are in the minority. Concentrations of CORT in feathers have been shown to vary in response to life history events (Bortolotti et al, 2008;Crossin et al, 2013), sibling competition (Yosef et al, 2013), health status (Harriman et al, 2014;Meitern et al, 2013;Mougeot et al, 2010;Sild et al, 2014), overwinter survival (Koren et al, 2012), food limitation , reproductive investment (Fairhurst et al, 2012a;Kouwenberg et al, 2013), and with environmental conditions (Carrete et al, 2013;Fairhurst et al, 2011;Fairhurst et al, 2012b;Legagneux et al, 2013). Feather CORT concentrations have also been shown to be related to problem solving and learning (Bókony et al, 2014), and to feather pigmentation (Fairhurst et al, 2014;Kennedy et al, 2013;Lendvai et al, 2013;Martínez-Padilla et al, 2013).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Feather corticosterone content in predatory birds in relation to body condition and hepatic metal concentration

Strong

Pereira

Shore

et al. 2015

General and Comparative Endocrinology

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Article (refereed) -postprintStrong, Rebecca J.; Pereira, M. Gloria; Shore, Richard F.; Henrys, Peter A.; Pottinger, Tom G. 2015. Feather corticosterone content in predatory birds in relation to body condition and hepatic metal concentration.Contact CEH NORA team at noraceh@ceh.ac.ukThe NERC and CEH trademarks and logos ('the Trademarks') are registered trademarks of NERC in the UK and other countries, and may not be used without the prior written consent of the Trademark owner. feather CORT content and condition were observed in only tawny owl and kestrel. In sparrowhawks, feather CORT concentration was found to be positively related to the hepatic concentrations of five metals (Cd, Mn, Co, Cu, Mo) and the metalloid As. There was also a negative relationship between measures of condition and total hepatic metal concentration in males. The results suggest that some factors affecting CORT uptake by feathers remain to be resolved but feather CORT content from archived specimens has the potential to provide a simple effects biomarker for exposure to environmental contaminants.

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“…Work with birds has shown that feathers contain corticosterone (CORT) (Bortolotti et al, 2008;Koren et al, 2012), the primary avian GC. CORT in feathers (CORT f ) has been correlated with variation in parental provisioning (Fairhurst et al, 2012b), nest box microclimate (Fairhurst et al, 2012a), environmental enrichment (Fairhurst et al, 2011), expression of carotenoid-based signals (Bortolotti et al, 2009b;Mougeot et al, 2010;Kennedy et al, 2013), egg mass (Kouwenberg et al, 2013), stable isotopes of carbon (Fairhurst et al, 2013) and components of fitness (Bortolotti et al, 2008;Koren et al, 2012). This biomarker relates to diverse ecological factors, suggesting that it integrates CORT secretion in general, rather than expresses a response to any specific source of environmental variation.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Experimental relationships between levels of corticosterone in plasma and feathers in a free-living bird

Fairhurst

Marchant

Soos

et al. 2013

Journal of Experimental Biology

102

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SUMMARYIntegrated measures of corticosterone (CORT), such as from feathers (CORT f ), have intuitive appeal because they incorporate both the duration and amplitude of glucocorticoid secretion. An association between CORT f and plasma CORT has never been shown in wild birds, and it is unclear as to when and whether these measures should be correlated, given that they are fundamentally different yet related measures of physiology. We hypothesized that CORT f should correlate with instantaneous measurements of plasma CORT when the latter reflect sustained changes in the activity of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. To test this, we experimentally manipulated levels of plasma CORT in wild nestling tree swallows (Tachycineta bicolor) using 5day time-release CORT pellets, and measured plasma CORT and growth parameters before, during and at the end of hormone manipulation (days 7, 9 and 11 post-hatch, respectively). CORT f and plasma CORT were significantly positively related only when the latter was at its highest and most variable among individuals (day 9). A similar relationship was expected at day 11, but plasma CORT had returned to near-original levels. Nestlings with higher CORT f were smaller, lighter and less likely to fledge, but we did not detect seasonal effects on CORT f . Our results clearly demonstrate that CORT f from free-living birds can reflect plasma CORT, but correlations may not always be expected, especially if elevations in plasma CORT are relatively modest and of short duration. Our work suggests that CORT f is best used to study the activity of the HPA axis over relatively long time frames and can be used effectively to advance avian ecology. Supplementary material available online at

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Corticosterone and stable isotopes in feathers predict egg size in Atlantic Puffins Fratercula arctica

Cited by 48 publications

References 53 publications

Elevated corticosterone during egg production elicits increased maternal investment and promotes nestling growth in a wild songbird

Elevated corticosterone during egg production elicits increased maternal investment and promotes nestling growth in a wild songbird

Feather corticosterone content in predatory birds in relation to body condition and hepatic metal concentration

Experimental relationships between levels of corticosterone in plasma and feathers in a free-living bird

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