Egg size and composition in an ageing capital breeder – consequences for offspring performance

Pöykkö, Heikki; Mänttäri, Satu

doi:10.1111/j.1365-2311.2012.01369.x

Cited by 11 publications

(17 citation statements)

References 69 publications

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“…Alternatively, our results may simply indicate a nonadaptive physiological constraint. In other studies, authors have more commonly observed a gradual decrease in egg size, number and absolute provisioning over time in insects (Wiklund & Karlsson, ; Begon & Parker, ; Fox & Czesak, ; Geister et al ., ; Pöykkö & Mänttäri, ). Some have explained this trend as an unavoidable constraint of dwindling reproductive resources (Wiklund & Karlsson, ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Egg and time limitation mediate an egg protection strategy

Deas

Hunter

2014

J of Evolutionary Biology

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The number of mature eggs remaining in the ovaries and the time left for oviposition determine the reproductive decisions of the hyperdiverse guild of insects that require discrete and potentially limiting resources for oviposition (such as seeds, fruits or other insects). A female may run out of eggs before all available oviposition sites are used (egg limitation), or die before using all of her eggs (time limitation). Females are predicted to change clutch size depending on whether eggs or time is the limiting resource. We extend this framework and ask whether the same constraints influence a strategy in which females modify eggs into protective shields. In response to egg parasitism cues, female seed beetles (Mimosestes amicus) lay eggs in vertical groups of 2-4, modifying the top 1-3 eggs into shields in order to protect the bottom egg from attack by parasitoids. We made contrasting predictions of how egg and time limitation would influence egg size and the incidence and level of egg protection. By varying access to seed pods, we manipulated the number of remaining eggs a female had at the time she received a parasitism cue. Although egg size was not affected, our results confirm that egg-limited females protected fewer eggs and time-limited females protected more eggs. Female body size explained the number of eggs in a stack rather than host deprivation or the timing of parasitoid exposure. Our results clearly show that host availability relative to female age influences the incidence of egg protection in M. amicus. Furthermore, our study represents a novel use of life history theory to explain patterns in an unusual but compelling defensive behaviour.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Egg and time limitation mediate an egg protection strategy

Deas

Hunter

2014

J of Evolutionary Biology

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“…In the present study, P. astrigera females of the overwintering generation produced significantly larger eggs than the first generation. It is presumed that egg size is subject to selection, because it has substantial fitness effects on progeny (Pöykkö & Mänttäri, ). Because larger eggs yield larger offspring, mothers often lay larger eggs under stress conditions (Fischer, Bot, et al., ; Fischer, Brakefield, et al., ; Fischer et al., , ; Hassall, Walters, Telfer, & Hassall, ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Seasonal variations in body melanism and size of the wolf spiderPardosa astrigera(Araneae: Lycosidae)

Yang

Xiao

et al. 2018

Ecology and Evolution

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Variations in species morphology and life‐history traits strongly correlate with geographic and climatic characteristics. Most studies on morphological variations in animals focus on ectotherms distributed on a large geographic scale across latitudinal and/or altitudinal gradient. However, the morphological variations of spiders living in the same habitats across different seasons have not been reported. In this study, we used the wolf spider, Pardosa astrigera, as a model to determine seasonal differences in adult body size, melanism, fecundity, and egg diameter both in the overwintering and the first generation for 2010 and 2016. The results showed that in 2010, both females and males of the overwintering generation were significantly darker than the first generation. Moreover, the overwintering females were markedly larger and produced more and bigger eggs than the first generation in both 2010 and 2016. Considering the overwintering P. astrigera experiencing low temperature and/or desiccation stress, these results suggest that substantially darker and larger body of the overwintering generation is adaptive to adverse conditions.

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“…The 20 eggs per female measured for volume were used to estimate average amounts of protein (n = 96) and lipids (n = 101). Lipid content was analysed using a modified sulpho-phospho-vanillin method (Cheng et al, 2011;Pöykkö & Mänttäri, 2012). Egg protein analysis was done using the Bradford method (Bradford, 1976) in comparison with a bovine serum albumin standard.…”

Section: Egg Analysis and Fecundity In Gravid Femalesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Phylloplane bacteria increase the negative impact of food limitation on insect fitness

Olson

Myers

Hemerik

et al. 2017

Ecological Entomology

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1. When populations of herbivorous insects increase in density, they can alter the quantity or quality of their food. The impacts of diet-related stressors on insect fitness have been investigated singly, but not simultaneously.2. Foliage quantity and quality of red alder, Alnus rubra, were manipulated together with the presence of non-entomopathogenic phylloplane bacteria to investigate their impacts, singly and in combination, on survival, pupal mass, growth rate, fecundity and egg quality of a cyclic forest insect, the western tent caterpillar, Malacosoma californicum pluviale.3. Food limitation (half food) had strong negative impacts on all life-history traits. When the larvae were fed continuously, however, neither ingesting phylloplane bacteria nor eating leaves from damaged branches (induced foliage) affected survival. In the half-food treatment, ingesting bacteria further increased mortality, while feeding on induced foliage improved survival.4. Growth rate and pupal mass of both sexes were reduced for larvae with food limitation compared with continuously fed insects and this was exacerbated when the larvae also ate bacteria-treated leaves. A combination of bacteria and induced foliage also reduced larval growth rate by 5% in the full-food treatment.5. Fecundity (eggs per egg mass) was 2.7 times greater in full-food than in food-limited treatments but neither phylloplane bacteria nor plant induction had an effect. Insects fed induced foliage produced smaller eggs. Overall, there was no evidence of a three-way interaction between the three stressors, although there were negative synergistic effects, primarily between food limitation and the ingestion of phylloplane bacteria.

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Egg size and composition in an ageing capital breeder – consequences for offspring performance

Cited by 11 publications

References 69 publications

Egg and time limitation mediate an egg protection strategy

Egg and time limitation mediate an egg protection strategy

Seasonal variations in body melanism and size of the wolf spiderPardosa astrigera(Araneae: Lycosidae)

Phylloplane bacteria increase the negative impact of food limitation on insect fitness

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