Density-dependent effects on reproductive output in a capital breeding carnivore, the northern elephant seal ( Mirounga angustirostris)
All organisms face resource limitations that will ultimately restrict population growth, but the controlling mechanisms vary across ecosystems, taxa, and reproductive strategies. Using four decades of data, we examine how variation in the environment and population density affect reproductive outcom...
Published in: | Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences |
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Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2021.1258 https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rspb.2021.1258 https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full-xml/10.1098/rspb.2021.1258 |
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crroyalsociety:10.1098/rspb.2021.1258 2024-06-02T08:06:00+00:00 Density-dependent effects on reproductive output in a capital breeding carnivore, the northern elephant seal ( Mirounga angustirostris) Holser, Rachel R. Crocker, Daniel E. Robinson, Patrick W. Condit, Richard Costa, Daniel P. Office of Naval Research 2021 http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2021.1258 https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rspb.2021.1258 https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full-xml/10.1098/rspb.2021.1258 en eng The Royal Society https://royalsociety.org/journals/ethics-policies/data-sharing-mining/ Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences volume 288, issue 1960 ISSN 0962-8452 1471-2954 journal-article 2021 crroyalsociety https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2021.1258 2024-05-07T14:16:43Z All organisms face resource limitations that will ultimately restrict population growth, but the controlling mechanisms vary across ecosystems, taxa, and reproductive strategies. Using four decades of data, we examine how variation in the environment and population density affect reproductive outcomes in a capital-breeding carnivore, the northern elephant seal ( Mirounga angustirostris ). This species provides a unique opportunity to examine the relative importance of resource acquisition and density-dependence on breeding success. Capital breeders accrue resources over large temporal and spatial scales for use during an abbreviated reproductive period. This strategy may have evolved, in part, to confer resilience to short-term environmental variability. We observed density-dependent effects on weaning mass, and maternal age (experience) was more important than oceanographic conditions or maternal mass in determining offspring weaning mass. Together these findings show that the mechanisms controlling reproductive output are conserved across terrestrial and marine systems and vary with population dynamics, an important consideration when assessing the effect of extrinsic changes, such as climate change, on a population. Article in Journal/Newspaper Elephant Seal The Royal Society Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences 288 1960 |
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Open Polar |
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The Royal Society |
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crroyalsociety |
language |
English |
description |
All organisms face resource limitations that will ultimately restrict population growth, but the controlling mechanisms vary across ecosystems, taxa, and reproductive strategies. Using four decades of data, we examine how variation in the environment and population density affect reproductive outcomes in a capital-breeding carnivore, the northern elephant seal ( Mirounga angustirostris ). This species provides a unique opportunity to examine the relative importance of resource acquisition and density-dependence on breeding success. Capital breeders accrue resources over large temporal and spatial scales for use during an abbreviated reproductive period. This strategy may have evolved, in part, to confer resilience to short-term environmental variability. We observed density-dependent effects on weaning mass, and maternal age (experience) was more important than oceanographic conditions or maternal mass in determining offspring weaning mass. Together these findings show that the mechanisms controlling reproductive output are conserved across terrestrial and marine systems and vary with population dynamics, an important consideration when assessing the effect of extrinsic changes, such as climate change, on a population. |
author2 |
Office of Naval Research |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Holser, Rachel R. Crocker, Daniel E. Robinson, Patrick W. Condit, Richard Costa, Daniel P. |
spellingShingle |
Holser, Rachel R. Crocker, Daniel E. Robinson, Patrick W. Condit, Richard Costa, Daniel P. Density-dependent effects on reproductive output in a capital breeding carnivore, the northern elephant seal ( Mirounga angustirostris) |
author_facet |
Holser, Rachel R. Crocker, Daniel E. Robinson, Patrick W. Condit, Richard Costa, Daniel P. |
author_sort |
Holser, Rachel R. |
title |
Density-dependent effects on reproductive output in a capital breeding carnivore, the northern elephant seal ( Mirounga angustirostris) |
title_short |
Density-dependent effects on reproductive output in a capital breeding carnivore, the northern elephant seal ( Mirounga angustirostris) |
title_full |
Density-dependent effects on reproductive output in a capital breeding carnivore, the northern elephant seal ( Mirounga angustirostris) |
title_fullStr |
Density-dependent effects on reproductive output in a capital breeding carnivore, the northern elephant seal ( Mirounga angustirostris) |
title_full_unstemmed |
Density-dependent effects on reproductive output in a capital breeding carnivore, the northern elephant seal ( Mirounga angustirostris) |
title_sort |
density-dependent effects on reproductive output in a capital breeding carnivore, the northern elephant seal ( mirounga angustirostris) |
publisher |
The Royal Society |
publishDate |
2021 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2021.1258 https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rspb.2021.1258 https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full-xml/10.1098/rspb.2021.1258 |
genre |
Elephant Seal |
genre_facet |
Elephant Seal |
op_source |
Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences volume 288, issue 1960 ISSN 0962-8452 1471-2954 |
op_rights |
https://royalsociety.org/journals/ethics-policies/data-sharing-mining/ |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.2021.1258 |
container_title |
Proceedings of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences |
container_volume |
288 |
container_issue |
1960 |
_version_ |
1800750881742782464 |