Social information use in migratory decision-making depends upon conspecific state

Vernasco, Ben J.; Cornelius, Jamie M.; Watts, Heather E.

doi:10.1007/s00265-022-03229-y

Cited by 2 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 61 publications

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“…In other avian species, social cues can initiate release of sex hormones and development of reproductive physiology (Runfeldt and Wingfield 1985, Dufty and Wingfield 1986, Hahn and Silverman 2006, Hau et al 2008b, Chmura et al 2020. Sexes can differ in their sensitivity to cues from their mates and other conspecifics (Watts et al 2016, Chmura et al 2020, Vernasco et al 2022, which could explain disparate results among sexes in our study. Continued study of how aseasonally breeding species incorporate information from the physical and social environment to time major life-history events is important, especially in the context of climate change.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 75%

Drought disrupts year-round breeding readiness in a tropical songbird

Boersma¹,

Enbody²,

Karubian³

et al. 2022

ACE

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Climate change is expected to increase the prevalence and severity of extreme weather events like drought. For many opportunistically breeding tropical bird species, precipitation serves as a primary cue for onset of breeding, and sustained drought can have major impacts on reproductive fitness. The physiological effects of drought are poorly understood, but understanding physiological responses can help resolve the mechanisms underlying effects of drought on population demography. We used physiological data collected on a year-round breeding New Guinea endemic passerine, the White-shouldered Fairywren (Malurus alboscapulatus), during years with persistent rainfall and during the 2015-2016 El Niño drought event to assess patterns of breeding readiness, body condition, and molt. Many males lost their cloacal protuberances, a sperm storage organ they typically maintain year-round, during the drought period. Body molt, which also occurs year-round in this species, was higher in males during the drought period. Using a sliding-window statistical model approach, we identified a critical precipitation window of 0-40 days prior to capture for cloacal protuberance volume and a window of 8-53 days for molt, with lower precipitation associated with smaller cloacal protuberances and greater molt. Plasma androgens were predictive of variation in male cloacal protuberance volume and molt, thus potentially mediating transitions between life-history stages in response to environmental conditions. Female molt, androgens, and male mass varied with photoperiod, with longer but decreasing day lengths characteristic of the austral summer associated with increasing molt and decreasing androgens. Collectively, our results indicate the potential for photoperiod to cue some life-history stages, whereas reduced rainfall impacts male but apparently not female reproductive physiology and readiness to breed. Improving our understanding of environmental regulation of life-history transitions in tropical taxa is essential for identifying which taxa are most at risk under a changing climate. La sécheresse perturbe la préparation à la nidification tout au long de l'année chez un passereau tropicalRÉSUMÉ. On prévoit que les changements climatiques augmenteront la prévalence et la gravité des phénomènes météorologiques extrêmes tels que la sécheresse. Pour de nombreuses espèces d'oiseaux tropicaux qui nichent de façon opportuniste, les précipitations sont le principal indice du début de la nidification, et une sécheresse prolongée peut avoir des répercussions importantes sur la capacité de reproduction. Les effets physiologiques de la sécheresse sont mal connus, mais la compréhension des réponses physiologiques peut aider à résoudre les mécanismes sous-jacents aux effets de la sécheresse sur la démographie des populations. Nous avons utilisé les données physiologiques recueillies chez un passereau endémique de Nouvelle-Guinée se reproduisant toute l'année, le Mérion à épaulettes (Malurus alboscapulatus), au cours d'années avec des précipitations ...

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 75%

Drought disrupts year-round breeding readiness in a tropical songbird

Boersma¹,

Enbody²,

Karubian³

et al. 2022

ACE

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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Food and social cues modulate reproductive development but not migratory behavior in a nomadic songbird, the Pine Siskin

Vernasco,

Cornelius,

Watts

2024

Ornithology

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Many animals rely on photoperiodic and non-photoperiodic environmental cues to gather information and appropriately time life-history stages across the annual cycle, such as reproduction, molt, and migration. Here, we experimentally demonstrate that the reproductive physiology, but not migratory behavior, of captive Pine Siskins (Spinus pinus) responds to both food and social cues during the spring migratory-breeding period. Pine Siskins are a nomadic finch with a highly flexible breeding schedule and, in the spring, free-living Pine Siskins can wander large geographic areas and opportunistically breed. To understand the importance of non-photoperiodic cues to the migratory-breeding transition, we maintained individually housed birds on either a standard or enriched diet in the presence of group-housed heterospecifics or conspecifics experiencing either the standard or enriched diet type. We measured body condition and reproductive development of all Pine Siskins and, among individually housed Pine Siskins, quantified nocturnal migratory restlessness. In group-housed birds, the enriched diet caused increases in body condition and, among females, promoted reproductive development. Among individually housed birds, female reproductive development differed between treatment groups whereas male reproductive development did not. Specifically, individually housed females showed greater reproductive development when presented with conspecifics compared to heterospecifics. The highest rate of female reproductive development, however, was observed among individually housed females provided the enriched diet and maintained with group-housed conspecifics on an enriched diet. Changes in nocturnal migratory restlessness did not vary by treatment group or sex. By manipulating both the physical and social environment, this study demonstrates how multiple environmental cues can affect the timing of transitions between life-history stages with differential responses between sexes and between migratory and reproductive systems.

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Social information use in migratory decision-making depends upon conspecific state

Cited by 2 publications

References 61 publications

Drought disrupts year-round breeding readiness in a tropical songbird

Drought disrupts year-round breeding readiness in a tropical songbird

Food and social cues modulate reproductive development but not migratory behavior in a nomadic songbird, the Pine Siskin

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