Decreasing body size is associated with reduced calving probability in critically endangered North Atlantic right whales
Body size is key to many life-history processes, including reproduction. Across species, climate change and other stressors have caused reductions in the body size to which animals can grow, called asymptotic size, with consequences for demography. A reduction in mean asymptotic length was documente...
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Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsos.240050 https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rsos.240050 https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full-xml/10.1098/rsos.240050 |
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crroyalsociety:10.1098/rsos.240050 2024-10-06T13:51:02+00:00 Decreasing body size is associated with reduced calving probability in critically endangered North Atlantic right whales Pirotta, Enrico Tyack, Peter L. Durban, John W. Fearnbach, Holly Hamilton, Philip K. Harris, Catriona M. Knowlton, Amy R. Kraus, Scott D. Miller, Carolyn A. Moore, Michael J. Pettis, Heather M. Photopoulou, Theoni Rolland, Rosalind M. Schick, Robert S. Thomas, Len NOAA's Southwest Fisheries Science Center NOAA Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program Office of Naval Research 2024 http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsos.240050 https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rsos.240050 https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full-xml/10.1098/rsos.240050 en eng The Royal Society http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Royal Society Open Science volume 11, issue 2 ISSN 2054-5703 journal-article 2024 crroyalsociety https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.240050 2024-09-09T06:01:21Z Body size is key to many life-history processes, including reproduction. Across species, climate change and other stressors have caused reductions in the body size to which animals can grow, called asymptotic size, with consequences for demography. A reduction in mean asymptotic length was documented for critically endangered North Atlantic right whales, in parallel with declines in health and vital rates resulting from human activities and environmental changes. Here, we tested whether smaller body size was associated with lower reproductive output, using a state-space model for individual health, survival and reproduction that quantifies the mechanistic links between these processes. Body size (as represented by the cube of length) was strongly associated with a female's calving probability at each reproductive opportunity. This relationship explained 62% of the variation in calving among reproductive females, along with their decreasing health (20%). The effects of decreasing mean body size on reproductive performance are another concerning indication of the worsening prospects for this species and many others affected by environmental change, requiring a focus of conservation and management interventions on improving conditions that affect reproduction as well as reducing mortality. Article in Journal/Newspaper North Atlantic The Royal Society Royal Society Open Science 11 2 |
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Open Polar |
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The Royal Society |
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crroyalsociety |
language |
English |
description |
Body size is key to many life-history processes, including reproduction. Across species, climate change and other stressors have caused reductions in the body size to which animals can grow, called asymptotic size, with consequences for demography. A reduction in mean asymptotic length was documented for critically endangered North Atlantic right whales, in parallel with declines in health and vital rates resulting from human activities and environmental changes. Here, we tested whether smaller body size was associated with lower reproductive output, using a state-space model for individual health, survival and reproduction that quantifies the mechanistic links between these processes. Body size (as represented by the cube of length) was strongly associated with a female's calving probability at each reproductive opportunity. This relationship explained 62% of the variation in calving among reproductive females, along with their decreasing health (20%). The effects of decreasing mean body size on reproductive performance are another concerning indication of the worsening prospects for this species and many others affected by environmental change, requiring a focus of conservation and management interventions on improving conditions that affect reproduction as well as reducing mortality. |
author2 |
NOAA's Southwest Fisheries Science Center NOAA Strategic Environmental Research and Development Program Office of Naval Research |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Pirotta, Enrico Tyack, Peter L. Durban, John W. Fearnbach, Holly Hamilton, Philip K. Harris, Catriona M. Knowlton, Amy R. Kraus, Scott D. Miller, Carolyn A. Moore, Michael J. Pettis, Heather M. Photopoulou, Theoni Rolland, Rosalind M. Schick, Robert S. Thomas, Len |
spellingShingle |
Pirotta, Enrico Tyack, Peter L. Durban, John W. Fearnbach, Holly Hamilton, Philip K. Harris, Catriona M. Knowlton, Amy R. Kraus, Scott D. Miller, Carolyn A. Moore, Michael J. Pettis, Heather M. Photopoulou, Theoni Rolland, Rosalind M. Schick, Robert S. Thomas, Len Decreasing body size is associated with reduced calving probability in critically endangered North Atlantic right whales |
author_facet |
Pirotta, Enrico Tyack, Peter L. Durban, John W. Fearnbach, Holly Hamilton, Philip K. Harris, Catriona M. Knowlton, Amy R. Kraus, Scott D. Miller, Carolyn A. Moore, Michael J. Pettis, Heather M. Photopoulou, Theoni Rolland, Rosalind M. Schick, Robert S. Thomas, Len |
author_sort |
Pirotta, Enrico |
title |
Decreasing body size is associated with reduced calving probability in critically endangered North Atlantic right whales |
title_short |
Decreasing body size is associated with reduced calving probability in critically endangered North Atlantic right whales |
title_full |
Decreasing body size is associated with reduced calving probability in critically endangered North Atlantic right whales |
title_fullStr |
Decreasing body size is associated with reduced calving probability in critically endangered North Atlantic right whales |
title_full_unstemmed |
Decreasing body size is associated with reduced calving probability in critically endangered North Atlantic right whales |
title_sort |
decreasing body size is associated with reduced calving probability in critically endangered north atlantic right whales |
publisher |
The Royal Society |
publishDate |
2024 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rsos.240050 https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rsos.240050 https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full-xml/10.1098/rsos.240050 |
genre |
North Atlantic |
genre_facet |
North Atlantic |
op_source |
Royal Society Open Science volume 11, issue 2 ISSN 2054-5703 |
op_rights |
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1098/rsos.240050 |
container_title |
Royal Society Open Science |
container_volume |
11 |
container_issue |
2 |
_version_ |
1812179186431819776 |