Postnatal growth rate varies with latitude in range‐expanding geese: The role of plasticity and day length
Abstract The postnatal growth period is a crucial life stage, with potential lifelong effects on an animal's fitness. How fast animals grow depends on their life‐history strategy and rearing environment, and interspecific comparisons generally show higher growth rates at higher latitudes. Howev...
Published in: | Journal of Animal Ecology |
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Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1365-2656.13638 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/1365-2656.13638 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full-xml/10.1111/1365-2656.13638 https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/1365-2656.13638 |
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crwiley:10.1111/1365-2656.13638 2024-09-15T17:54:24+00:00 Postnatal growth rate varies with latitude in range‐expanding geese: The role of plasticity and day length Boom, Michiel P. van der Jeugd, Henk P. Steffani, Boas Nolet, Bart A. Larsson, Kjell Eichhorn, Götz Koninklijke Nederlandse Akademie van Wetenschappen Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek 2021 http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1365-2656.13638 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/1365-2656.13638 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full-xml/10.1111/1365-2656.13638 https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/1365-2656.13638 en eng Wiley http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ Journal of Animal Ecology volume 91, issue 2, page 417-427 ISSN 0021-8790 1365-2656 journal-article 2021 crwiley https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2656.13638 2024-07-02T04:13:09Z Abstract The postnatal growth period is a crucial life stage, with potential lifelong effects on an animal's fitness. How fast animals grow depends on their life‐history strategy and rearing environment, and interspecific comparisons generally show higher growth rates at higher latitudes. However, to elucidate the mechanisms behind this gradient in growth rate, intraspecific comparisons are needed. Recently, barnacle geese expanded their Arctic breeding range from the Russian Barents Sea coast southwards, and now also breed along the Baltic and North Sea coasts. Baltic breeders shortened their migration, while barnacle geese breeding along the North Sea stopped migrating entirely. We collected cross‐sectional data on gosling tarsus length, head length and body mass, and constructed population‐specific growth curves to compare growth rates among three populations (Barents Sea, Baltic Sea and North Sea) spanning 17° in latitude. Growth rate was faster at higher latitudes, and the gradient resembled the latitudinal gradient previously observed in an interspecific comparison of precocial species. Differences in day length among the three breeding regions could largely explain the observed differences in growth rate. In the Baltic, and especially in the Arctic population, growth rate was slower later in the season, most likely because of the stronger seasonal decline in food quality. Our results suggest that differences in postnatal growth rate between the Arctic and temperate populations are mainly a plastic response to local environmental conditions. This plasticity can increase the individuals' ability to cope with annual variation in local conditions, but can also increase the potential to re‐distribute and adapt to new breeding environments. Article in Journal/Newspaper Arctic Population Barents Sea Wiley Online Library Journal of Animal Ecology 91 2 417 427 |
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Wiley Online Library |
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English |
description |
Abstract The postnatal growth period is a crucial life stage, with potential lifelong effects on an animal's fitness. How fast animals grow depends on their life‐history strategy and rearing environment, and interspecific comparisons generally show higher growth rates at higher latitudes. However, to elucidate the mechanisms behind this gradient in growth rate, intraspecific comparisons are needed. Recently, barnacle geese expanded their Arctic breeding range from the Russian Barents Sea coast southwards, and now also breed along the Baltic and North Sea coasts. Baltic breeders shortened their migration, while barnacle geese breeding along the North Sea stopped migrating entirely. We collected cross‐sectional data on gosling tarsus length, head length and body mass, and constructed population‐specific growth curves to compare growth rates among three populations (Barents Sea, Baltic Sea and North Sea) spanning 17° in latitude. Growth rate was faster at higher latitudes, and the gradient resembled the latitudinal gradient previously observed in an interspecific comparison of precocial species. Differences in day length among the three breeding regions could largely explain the observed differences in growth rate. In the Baltic, and especially in the Arctic population, growth rate was slower later in the season, most likely because of the stronger seasonal decline in food quality. Our results suggest that differences in postnatal growth rate between the Arctic and temperate populations are mainly a plastic response to local environmental conditions. This plasticity can increase the individuals' ability to cope with annual variation in local conditions, but can also increase the potential to re‐distribute and adapt to new breeding environments. |
author2 |
Koninklijke Nederlandse Akademie van Wetenschappen Nederlandse Organisatie voor Wetenschappelijk Onderzoek |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Boom, Michiel P. van der Jeugd, Henk P. Steffani, Boas Nolet, Bart A. Larsson, Kjell Eichhorn, Götz |
spellingShingle |
Boom, Michiel P. van der Jeugd, Henk P. Steffani, Boas Nolet, Bart A. Larsson, Kjell Eichhorn, Götz Postnatal growth rate varies with latitude in range‐expanding geese: The role of plasticity and day length |
author_facet |
Boom, Michiel P. van der Jeugd, Henk P. Steffani, Boas Nolet, Bart A. Larsson, Kjell Eichhorn, Götz |
author_sort |
Boom, Michiel P. |
title |
Postnatal growth rate varies with latitude in range‐expanding geese: The role of plasticity and day length |
title_short |
Postnatal growth rate varies with latitude in range‐expanding geese: The role of plasticity and day length |
title_full |
Postnatal growth rate varies with latitude in range‐expanding geese: The role of plasticity and day length |
title_fullStr |
Postnatal growth rate varies with latitude in range‐expanding geese: The role of plasticity and day length |
title_full_unstemmed |
Postnatal growth rate varies with latitude in range‐expanding geese: The role of plasticity and day length |
title_sort |
postnatal growth rate varies with latitude in range‐expanding geese: the role of plasticity and day length |
publisher |
Wiley |
publishDate |
2021 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1365-2656.13638 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/1365-2656.13638 https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full-xml/10.1111/1365-2656.13638 https://besjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.1111/1365-2656.13638 |
genre |
Arctic Population Barents Sea |
genre_facet |
Arctic Population Barents Sea |
op_source |
Journal of Animal Ecology volume 91, issue 2, page 417-427 ISSN 0021-8790 1365-2656 |
op_rights |
http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1111/1365-2656.13638 |
container_title |
Journal of Animal Ecology |
container_volume |
91 |
container_issue |
2 |
container_start_page |
417 |
op_container_end_page |
427 |
_version_ |
1810430737681219584 |