Developmental stress reduces body condition across avian life-history stages: A comparison of quantitative magnetic resonance data and condition indices

Kraft, Fanny-Linn H.; Driscoll, Stephanie C.; Buchanan, Katherine L.; Crino, Ondi L.

doi:10.1016/j.ygcen.2018.11.008

Cited by 28 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 61 publications

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“…In nestlings, prolonged elevation of CORT levels can have negative effects on body size and condition (e.g. Crino et al" 2014;Kraft et al, 2019) and can cause life-long changes to the hypothalamic-pituitaryadrenal (HPA) axis (the neuroendocrine pathway that modulates the release of CORT; Spencer et al, 2009).…”

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confidence: 99%

Under the weather: Corticosterone levels in wild nestlings are associated with ambient temperature and wind

Crino

Driscoll

Brandl

et al. 2020

General and Comparative Endocrinology

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Animals time reprocluctive events to overlap with periocls of favorable environmental conditions. However, weathet conditions can be unpredictable. Young animals may be particularly susceptible to extreme weather during sensitive developmental periods. Here, we investigated the effects of adverse weather conditions on corticosterone levels {a hormone linked to the avian stress resp0nse) and body condition of wild nestling zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata). We sowght to tease apart the direct versus indirect (i.e. parental) effects of weather on nestling physiology and condition by increasing parental work load with a clutch manipulation experiment. We Found that high temperatures were associated with lower levels of restraint-induced corticosterone and high wind speeds were associated with higher levels of baseline corticosterone. We found no associations between weathet and nestling bocly condition. However, clutch manipulation did affect body condition, with nestlings from experimentally enlarged clutches in worse condition compared to nestlings from experimentally reduced clutches. Our findings suggest that weather can dircctly affect wild nestlings via changes in corticostetonc Ievels. Further research is nceded to understand how changes in corticosterone Ievels affect phenotype and survival in wild nestlings. Understanding how developing animals respond to changes in environmental predictability and extreme weather is vital for unders~anding the p0tential for rapid adaptation in the face of changing climatic conditions. Animals are undcr sclcetion to brecd when cnvironmcntal mnditions are optimal (Visser and Both, 2005). However, weather can be unpredictable and have significant consequences on reproductive outcomes (e.g. Breuner and Hahn, 2003; Martin and Wiehe, 2004). In birds, rainfall, wind, and high or low temperatures can affect nestling development, morphology, body condition, and survival (Conrey et al., 2016; Oberg et al" 2015). Developing animals can be particularly sensitive to perturbations in their environment and developmental effects can have sustained effects on phenotype and fitness across Jifehistory stages and even generations (reviewed in Crino and Breuner, 2015; Monaghan and Haussmann, 2015; Schoech et al" 2011). Consequently, exposure to extreme weather conditions during development could have profound and potentia!Jy long-lasting effects on nestlings via direct and/or indirect mechanisms (i.e. parental effects). Understanding how developing birds respond to extreme weather conditions is of relevance for predicting how they wiJJ cope with rapidly changing global conditions. Although the effects of weather on nestling condition and survival have been we!J described (e.g. Christensen-Dalsgaard et al., 2018; Geiser et al., 2008; Sicurella et al., 2015), the physiological mechanisms that modulate such changes in wild birds are less well-known. The glucocorticoid hormone corticosterone (CORD is an important modulator of the physiological stress response (Romero, 2004) and is thought to be ...

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confidence: 99%

Under the weather: Corticosterone levels in wild nestlings are associated with ambient temperature and wind

Crino

Driscoll

Brandl

et al. 2020

General and Comparative Endocrinology

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“…These results show that prolonged secretion of CORT reduces growth in several bird species. In some species, these negative effects can be compensated for later in life (Grace et al, 2017a,b), whereas in others no compensatory growth has been observed (Kraft et al, 2019). Given that pied flycatchers attain their final body size and mass before fledging (Kern et al, 2001;Mänd and Tilgar, 2003), compensatory growth after leaving the nest is unlikely in this species.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 96%

“…To date, only a few studies have tested whether prolonged activation of the stress axis can affect somatic growth in free-living populations. Daily administration of CORT to nestlings of the house sparrow (Passer domesticus; Loiseau et al, 2008;Grace et al, 2017a,b) and the zebra finch (Kraft et al, 2019) suppressed mass gain, whereas tarsus growth was not affected (Loiseau et al, 2008). CORT implants reduced structural size as well as body mass growth in nestlings of the Eurasian kestrel (Falco tinnunculus) (Müller et al, 2009) and the yellow-legged gull (Noguera et al, 2017).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The pathway from the perception of stressors to fitness consequences involves multifaceted phenotypic and behavioural changes (Schoech et al, 2011). Limited evidence suggests that extended secretion of corticosterone (CORT) can have harmful consequences for offspring growth in reptiles (Morici et al, 1997), birds (Spencer and Verhulst, 2007;Loiseau et al, 2008;Müller et al, 2009;Grace et al, 2017a,b;Kraft et al, 2019; but see Kitaysky et al, 2003;Schmidt et al, 2012) and mammals (Bush et al, 2003). Moreover, chronic stress or GC treatment during development influences the expression of HPA-axis regulatory genes as well as the transcriptome signature within key brain regions (Zimmer and Spencer, 2014;Marasco et al, 2016) and induces structural changes, such as the reduction of neuropil and the number or size of myelinated axons, in various brain regions (Howard and Benjamins, 1975), potentially impairing cognitive functions in birds (Kitaysky et al, 2003), rats (Gregus et al, 2005) and humans (Lupien and McEwen, 1997).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Repeated stimulation of the pituitary–adrenal axis alters offspring phenotype of a wild passerine

Tilgar

2019

Journal of Experimental Biology

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Prolonged stress can have long-lasting effects on an individual's physiology and growth. However, the impact of chronically elevated glucocorticoids on the expression of early antipredator responses is still poorly documented. In this study, I simulated the effect of repeated acute stress on offspring phenotype in free-living pied flycatchers (Ficedula hypoleuca) by administering adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) to nestlings for 6 days. The results showed that frequent induction of stress responses by ACTH injections, independent of parental care, adversely affected offspring final body size, wing length and baseline corticosterone levels. Nestling behavioural activity did not differ between ACTH-and saline-treated groups during exposure to control sounds, whereas behavioural activity during exposure to alarm calls was reduced in manipulated offspring only. I conclude that prolonged physiological stress may have short-term benefits to nestbound offspring, such as more effective antipredator behaviour, but at the expense of negative effects on body size and developmental speed.

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“…At the end of this second acclimation experiment, on the night after the last dehydration period (i.e., Day 14), birds were transported to the Universidad Austral de Chile in Valdivia (∼850 Km from Santiago, 10 h of travel) and inserted into a EchoMRI 500 (Houston, TX, United States) quantitative magnetic resonance (QMR) instrument to directly measure grams of lean mass, fat mass, and total, and free body water. This instrument has been validated in wild animals (Riley et al, 2016;Kraft et al, 2019;Eastick et al, 2020) and has been specifically used to measure changes in lean and fat mass during migration in birds (Guglielmo et al, 2011;Kelsey and Bairlein, 2019). For each measurement, the animal was placed in an acrylic cylinder (5 cm diameter, 60 cm long) and immobilized by a Velcro-secured plunger placed inside the cylinder.…”

Section: Quantitative Magnetic Resonancementioning

confidence: 99%

Integrative Physiological Responses to Acute Dehydration in the Rufous-Collared Sparrow: Metabolic, Enzymatic, and Oxidative Traits

et al. 2021

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Predictions indicate that birds worldwide will be affected by global warming and extreme climatic events which is especially relevant for passerines because the diurnal habits, small body size, and high mass-adjusted metabolic rates of this group make it particularly susceptible to increases in temperature and aridity. Some bird species respond to conditions that stress osmoregulation by increasing their rates of energy expenditure, nevertheless, the effect of dehydration on metabolic rates in birds has produced contrasting results. It also remains unknown whether hydration state may cause shifts in tissue-specific metabolic rates or modify tissue oxidative status. We used the rufous-collared sparrow (Zonotrichia capensis), to experimentally test the effect of dehydration on metabolic enzymes in erythrocytes, tissue oxidative status, basal metabolic rate (BMR), and total evaporative water loss. We found a significant increase in mass-adjusted BMR in water restricted (WR) birds compared to control birds (CT). Activity of cytochrome-c-oxidase (COX) in red blood cells (RBCs) was also significantly higher in the WR group relative to the CT group and this activity was positively correlated with mass-adjusted BMR. We found a moderate effect of water restriction on membrane damage of skeletal muscle. In a second set of individuals subjected to the same experimental conditions, lean mass and total water were tightly correlated and decreased by 10 and 12%, respectively, in birds in the WR group relative to the CT group. Decreases in total water and lean mass leads to an increase in mass-adjusted BMR in WR Z. capensis, suggesting that birds may simultaneously increase protein catabolism and production of metabolic water through oxidation. The significant positive relationship between BMR and COX in RBCs is a finding that requires additional research to determine whether erythrocyte metabolism is affected by dehydration per se and or it more generally reflects rates of energy expenditure in birds.

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Developmental stress reduces body condition across avian life-history stages: A comparison of quantitative magnetic resonance data and condition indices

Cited by 28 publications

References 61 publications

Under the weather: Corticosterone levels in wild nestlings are associated with ambient temperature and wind

Under the weather: Corticosterone levels in wild nestlings are associated with ambient temperature and wind

Repeated stimulation of the pituitary–adrenal axis alters offspring phenotype of a wild passerine

Integrative Physiological Responses to Acute Dehydration in the Rufous-Collared Sparrow: Metabolic, Enzymatic, and Oxidative Traits

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