Social context mediates the expression of a personality trait in a gregarious lizard

Brand, Jack A.; Naimo, Annalise C.; Michelangeli, Marcus; Martin, Jake M.; Sih, Andrew; Wong, Bob B. M.; Chapple, David G.

doi:10.1007/s00442-022-05269-7

Cited by 5 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 79 publications

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“…ΔV W ) variance between treatment groups to statistically compare how males and females differed in the effect of temperature on behavioural variation (e.g. [46][47][48]). Similarly, we calculated the coefficient of both amongindividual (CV I ) and within-individual (CV W ) variation in locomotor activity for males and females at both temperature treatments.…”

Section: (E) Statistical Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

Temperature change exerts sex-specific effects on behavioural variation

et al. 2023

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Temperature is a key factor mediating organismal fitness and has important consequences for species' ecology. While the mean effects of temperature on behaviour have been well-documented in ectotherms, how temperature alters behavioural variation among and within individuals, and whether this differs between the sexes, remains unclear. Such effects likely have ecological and evolutionary consequences, given that selection acts at the individual level. We investigated the effect of temperature on individual-level behavioural variation and metabolism in adult male and female Drosophila melanogaster ( n = 129), by taking repeated measures of locomotor activity and metabolic rate at both a standard temperature (25°C) and a high temperature (28°C). Males were moderately more responsive in their mean activity levels to temperature change when compared to females. However, this was not true for either standard or active metabolic rate, where no sex differences in thermal metabolic plasticity were found. Furthermore, higher temperatures increased both among- and within-individual variation in male, but not female, locomotor activity. Given that behavioural variation can be critical to population persistence, we suggest that future studies test whether sex differences in the amount of behavioural variation expressed in response to temperature change may result in sex-specific vulnerabilities to a warming climate.

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Section: (E) Statistical Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

Temperature change exerts sex-specific effects on behavioural variation

et al. 2023

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Bolder together: conformity drives behavioral plasticity in eastern gartersnakes

Skinner,

Nagabaskaran,

Gantert

et al. 2024

Anim Cogn

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Personality traits drive individual differences in behaviour that are consistent across time and context. Personality limits behavioural plasticity, which could lead to maladaptive choices if animals cannot adapt their behavior to changing conditions. Here, we assessed consistency and flexibility in one personality trait, boldness, across non-social and social contexts in eastern gartersnakes (Thamnophis sirtalis sirtalis). Snakes explored a novel open arena either alone or in a pair. Pairs were assigned based on the data from the solo trials, such that each snake was paired once with a bolder and once with a less bold partner. We predicted that snakes would conform when in a social context, displaying plasticity in their personality, and causing boldness scores to converge. We found that snakes were consistent within contexts (solo or paired), but changed their behavior across contexts (from solo to paired). Plasticity in boldness resulted from an interaction between conformity and repeatable individual differences in plasticity. In line with some data on other species, snakes conformed more when they were the less bold partner. Personality reflects a consistent bias in decision-making, but our results highlight that the cognitive processes that drive the expression of personality traits in behavior are flexible and sensitive to social context. We show that both consistency and plasticity combine to shape snake social behavior in ways that are responsive to competition. This pattern of behavior may be particularly beneficial for species in which group-living is seasonal.

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Meta-analysis of Behavioural Research in Lizards Reveals that Viviparity Contributes Better to Animal Personality than Secretory Glands

Ruiz-Monachesi,

Martínez

2023

Evol Biol

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Animal personality is defined as an individual's behavioural consistency across contexts, situations, and time. Understanding the evolution of animal personality requires the integration of macroevolutionary patterns with intraspecific promoters of individual behavioural consistency. In this study, we conducted a meta-analysis to assess the association between lizards' animal personality and different indicators of sociability (a personality promotor) in a phylogenetic context. In lizards, the presence of both, secretory glands and viviparity have been associated with higher sociability levels. We analysed behavioural repeatability data, including 490 effect sizes from 37 species and 63 studies, considering five categories (activity, aggressivity, boldness, exploration, sociability) while controlling for phylogenetic constraints. For each species, we obtained data on the number of secretory glands and the reproductive mode (oviparous or viviparous). The results showed similar values of repeatability for species with and without glands and an absence of correlation between the number of glands and repeatability data. However, higher repeatability was present in viviparous species than in oviparous species. When we conducted separate analyses for each behavioural type, we found two contrasting patterns for exploration and boldness. Species without glands were more exploratory, while species with glands were bolder. In general, phylogeny explained the observed patterns of repeatability, but boldness, exploration and sociability were poorly explained by evolutionary history among species. This study represents a first step in disentangling the integration among animal personality, life-history and morphology traits under a broad evolutionary context.

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Social context mediates the expression of a personality trait in a gregarious lizard

Cited by 5 publications

References 79 publications

Temperature change exerts sex-specific effects on behavioural variation

Temperature change exerts sex-specific effects on behavioural variation

Bolder together: conformity drives behavioral plasticity in eastern gartersnakes

Meta-analysis of Behavioural Research in Lizards Reveals that Viviparity Contributes Better to Animal Personality than Secretory Glands

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