Data from: No effect of elevated carbon dioxide on reproductive behaviors in the three-spined stickleback ...

• Main Authors: Sundin, Josefin, Vossen, Laura E., Nilsson-Sköld, Helen, Jutfelt, Fredrik
• Format: Dataset
• Language: English
• Published: Dryad 2017
• Subjects: Teleost; courtship; Sexual ornamentation; Gasterosteus aculeatus; Fanning; Ocean acidification
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.5061/dryad.n99n3; https://datadryad.org/stash/dataset/doi:10.5061/dryad.n99n3

Ocean acidification, the reduction in ocean pH resulting from anthropogenic emissions of carbon dioxide (CO2), has been predicted to alter the behavior of fishes. During experimental exposure to CO2 concentrations projected for the year 2100 (~1000 µatm), fish have been reported to display disturbances in activity, learning, behavioral lateralization, and even attraction to predator cues. Reproductive behaviors have received far less attention, despite an intensive research effort on ocean acidification and its ecological importance. Here, we investigate whether elevated levels of CO2 affect reproduction in breeding pairs of the three-spined stickleback, Gasterosteus aculeatus, a model species in behavioral, evolutionary ecology, and environmental toxicology. We found that males under both present day levels (400 µatm) and future levels (1000 µatm) of CO2 developed normal sexual ornaments, pursued normal nest building activities, exhibited similar levels of courtship behaviors and displacement fanning, and ... : Sundin et al. 2017 Behav Ecol Suppl dataRaw-data ...