Growing up in a crowd : social environment shapes the offspring's early exploratory phenotype in a colonial breeding species
Abstract: In colonial breeding species, the number of adverse social interactions during early life typically varies with breeding density. Phenotypic plasticity can help deal with this social context, by allowing offspring to adjust their behaviour. Furthermore, offspring may not be unprepared sinc...
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ftunivantwerpen:c:irua:192169 2023-10-29T02:37:46+01:00 Growing up in a crowd : social environment shapes the offspring's early exploratory phenotype in a colonial breeding species Salas, Reyes Lens, Luc Stienen, Eric Verbruggen, Frederick Müller, Wendt 2022 https://hdl.handle.net/10067/1921690151162165141 https://repository.uantwerpen.be/docstore/d:irua:15227 eng eng info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/doi/10.1098/RSOS.220839 info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/isi/000873964200003 info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess 2054-5703 Royal Society Open Science Biology Engineering sciences. Technology info:eu-repo/semantics/article 2022 ftunivantwerpen https://doi.org/10.1098/RSOS.220839 2023-10-04T22:24:20Z Abstract: In colonial breeding species, the number of adverse social interactions during early life typically varies with breeding density. Phenotypic plasticity can help deal with this social context, by allowing offspring to adjust their behaviour. Furthermore, offspring may not be unprepared since mothers can allocate resources to their embryos that may pre-adjust them to the post-hatching conditions. Thus, we hypothesize that lesser black-backed gull chicks raised in dense breeding areas, with greater exposure to intra-specific aggression, show higher levels of anxiety and lower levels of exploration compared to chicks in low-density areas, and that this is facilitated by prenatal effects. To test this, we cross-fostered clutches within and across pre-defined high- and low-breeding density areas. We measured chicks' anxiety and exploration activity in an open-field test that included a novel and a familiar object. We found that both pre- and post-natal social environment contributed nearly equally and shaped the offspring's exploratory behaviour, but not its anxiety, in an additive way. Post-natal effects could reflect a learned avoidance of intra-specific aggression, yet identifying the pathways of the prenatal effects will require further study. Article in Journal/Newspaper Lesser black-backed gull IRUA - Institutional Repository van de Universiteit Antwerpen Royal Society Open Science 9 10 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
IRUA - Institutional Repository van de Universiteit Antwerpen |
op_collection_id |
ftunivantwerpen |
language |
English |
topic |
Biology Engineering sciences. Technology |
spellingShingle |
Biology Engineering sciences. Technology Salas, Reyes Lens, Luc Stienen, Eric Verbruggen, Frederick Müller, Wendt Growing up in a crowd : social environment shapes the offspring's early exploratory phenotype in a colonial breeding species |
topic_facet |
Biology Engineering sciences. Technology |
description |
Abstract: In colonial breeding species, the number of adverse social interactions during early life typically varies with breeding density. Phenotypic plasticity can help deal with this social context, by allowing offspring to adjust their behaviour. Furthermore, offspring may not be unprepared since mothers can allocate resources to their embryos that may pre-adjust them to the post-hatching conditions. Thus, we hypothesize that lesser black-backed gull chicks raised in dense breeding areas, with greater exposure to intra-specific aggression, show higher levels of anxiety and lower levels of exploration compared to chicks in low-density areas, and that this is facilitated by prenatal effects. To test this, we cross-fostered clutches within and across pre-defined high- and low-breeding density areas. We measured chicks' anxiety and exploration activity in an open-field test that included a novel and a familiar object. We found that both pre- and post-natal social environment contributed nearly equally and shaped the offspring's exploratory behaviour, but not its anxiety, in an additive way. Post-natal effects could reflect a learned avoidance of intra-specific aggression, yet identifying the pathways of the prenatal effects will require further study. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Salas, Reyes Lens, Luc Stienen, Eric Verbruggen, Frederick Müller, Wendt |
author_facet |
Salas, Reyes Lens, Luc Stienen, Eric Verbruggen, Frederick Müller, Wendt |
author_sort |
Salas, Reyes |
title |
Growing up in a crowd : social environment shapes the offspring's early exploratory phenotype in a colonial breeding species |
title_short |
Growing up in a crowd : social environment shapes the offspring's early exploratory phenotype in a colonial breeding species |
title_full |
Growing up in a crowd : social environment shapes the offspring's early exploratory phenotype in a colonial breeding species |
title_fullStr |
Growing up in a crowd : social environment shapes the offspring's early exploratory phenotype in a colonial breeding species |
title_full_unstemmed |
Growing up in a crowd : social environment shapes the offspring's early exploratory phenotype in a colonial breeding species |
title_sort |
growing up in a crowd : social environment shapes the offspring's early exploratory phenotype in a colonial breeding species |
publishDate |
2022 |
url |
https://hdl.handle.net/10067/1921690151162165141 https://repository.uantwerpen.be/docstore/d:irua:15227 |
genre |
Lesser black-backed gull |
genre_facet |
Lesser black-backed gull |
op_source |
2054-5703 Royal Society Open Science |
op_relation |
info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/doi/10.1098/RSOS.220839 info:eu-repo/semantics/altIdentifier/isi/000873964200003 |
op_rights |
info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1098/RSOS.220839 |
container_title |
Royal Society Open Science |
container_volume |
9 |
container_issue |
10 |
_version_ |
1781062858534027264 |