Improving sneaky-sex in a low oxygen environment: reproductive and physiological responses of male mosquito fish to chronic hypoxia
Few studies have examined the adaptive significance of reversible acclimation responses. The aerobic performance and mating behaviour of the sexually coercive male eastern mosquito fish ( Gambusia holbrooki) offers an excellent model system for testing the benefits of reversible acclimation response...
Published in: | Journal of Experimental Biology |
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Language: | English |
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Company of Biologists
2006
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Online Access: | https://espace.library.uq.edu.au/view/UQ:81423/UQ81423_OA.pdf https://espace.library.uq.edu.au/view/UQ:81423 |
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ftunivqespace:oai:espace.library.uq.edu.au:UQ:81423 2023-05-15T18:15:53+02:00 Improving sneaky-sex in a low oxygen environment: reproductive and physiological responses of male mosquito fish to chronic hypoxia Carter, Alecia J. Wilson, Robbie S. 2006-01-01 https://espace.library.uq.edu.au/view/UQ:81423/UQ81423_OA.pdf https://espace.library.uq.edu.au/view/UQ:81423 eng eng Company of Biologists doi:10.1242/jeb.02531 issn:0022-0949 Acclimation Phenotypic Plasticity Hypoxia Coercive Mating Physiological Plasticity Biology Beneficial Acclimation Hypothesis Aquatic Surface Respiration Scophthalmus-maximus Eastern Mosquitofish Swimming Performance Poecilia-reticulata Gambusia-holbrooki Trinidadian Guppy Body-size Temperature 270799 Ecology and Evolution not elsewhere classified C1 06 Biological Sciences Journal Article 2006 ftunivqespace https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.02531 2020-12-28T23:30:34Z Few studies have examined the adaptive significance of reversible acclimation responses. The aerobic performance and mating behaviour of the sexually coercive male eastern mosquito fish ( Gambusia holbrooki) offers an excellent model system for testing the benefits of reversible acclimation responses to mating success. We exposed male mosquito fish to normoxic or hypoxic conditions for 4 weeks and tested their maximum sustained swimming performance and their ability to obtain coercive matings under both normoxic and hypoxic conditions. We predicted that hypoxia-acclimated males would possess greater swimming and mating performance in hypoxic conditions than normoxic-acclimated males, and vice versa when tested in normoxia. Supporting our predictions, we found the sustained swimming performance of male mosquito fish was greater in a hypoxic environment following long-term exposure to low partial pressures of oxygen. However, the benefits of acclimation responses to mating performance were dependent on whether they were tested in the presence or absence of male-male competition. In a non-competitive environment, male mosquito fish acclimated to hypoxic conditions spent a greater amount of time following females and obtained more copulations than normoxic-acclimated males when tested in low partial pressures of oxygen. When males were competed against each other for copulations, we found no influence of long-term exposure to different partial pressures of oxygen on mating behaviour. Thus, despite improvements in the aerobic capacity of male mosquito fish following long-term acclimation to hypoxic conditions, these benefits did not always manifest themselves in improved mating performance. This study represents one of the first experimental tests of the benefits of reversible acclimation responses, and indicates that the ecological significance of physiological plasticity may be more complicated than previously imagined. Article in Journal/Newspaper Scophthalmus maximus The University of Queensland: UQ eSpace Journal of Experimental Biology 209 24 4878 4884 |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
The University of Queensland: UQ eSpace |
op_collection_id |
ftunivqespace |
language |
English |
topic |
Acclimation Phenotypic Plasticity Hypoxia Coercive Mating Physiological Plasticity Biology Beneficial Acclimation Hypothesis Aquatic Surface Respiration Scophthalmus-maximus Eastern Mosquitofish Swimming Performance Poecilia-reticulata Gambusia-holbrooki Trinidadian Guppy Body-size Temperature 270799 Ecology and Evolution not elsewhere classified C1 06 Biological Sciences |
spellingShingle |
Acclimation Phenotypic Plasticity Hypoxia Coercive Mating Physiological Plasticity Biology Beneficial Acclimation Hypothesis Aquatic Surface Respiration Scophthalmus-maximus Eastern Mosquitofish Swimming Performance Poecilia-reticulata Gambusia-holbrooki Trinidadian Guppy Body-size Temperature 270799 Ecology and Evolution not elsewhere classified C1 06 Biological Sciences Carter, Alecia J. Wilson, Robbie S. Improving sneaky-sex in a low oxygen environment: reproductive and physiological responses of male mosquito fish to chronic hypoxia |
topic_facet |
Acclimation Phenotypic Plasticity Hypoxia Coercive Mating Physiological Plasticity Biology Beneficial Acclimation Hypothesis Aquatic Surface Respiration Scophthalmus-maximus Eastern Mosquitofish Swimming Performance Poecilia-reticulata Gambusia-holbrooki Trinidadian Guppy Body-size Temperature 270799 Ecology and Evolution not elsewhere classified C1 06 Biological Sciences |
description |
Few studies have examined the adaptive significance of reversible acclimation responses. The aerobic performance and mating behaviour of the sexually coercive male eastern mosquito fish ( Gambusia holbrooki) offers an excellent model system for testing the benefits of reversible acclimation responses to mating success. We exposed male mosquito fish to normoxic or hypoxic conditions for 4 weeks and tested their maximum sustained swimming performance and their ability to obtain coercive matings under both normoxic and hypoxic conditions. We predicted that hypoxia-acclimated males would possess greater swimming and mating performance in hypoxic conditions than normoxic-acclimated males, and vice versa when tested in normoxia. Supporting our predictions, we found the sustained swimming performance of male mosquito fish was greater in a hypoxic environment following long-term exposure to low partial pressures of oxygen. However, the benefits of acclimation responses to mating performance were dependent on whether they were tested in the presence or absence of male-male competition. In a non-competitive environment, male mosquito fish acclimated to hypoxic conditions spent a greater amount of time following females and obtained more copulations than normoxic-acclimated males when tested in low partial pressures of oxygen. When males were competed against each other for copulations, we found no influence of long-term exposure to different partial pressures of oxygen on mating behaviour. Thus, despite improvements in the aerobic capacity of male mosquito fish following long-term acclimation to hypoxic conditions, these benefits did not always manifest themselves in improved mating performance. This study represents one of the first experimental tests of the benefits of reversible acclimation responses, and indicates that the ecological significance of physiological plasticity may be more complicated than previously imagined. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Carter, Alecia J. Wilson, Robbie S. |
author_facet |
Carter, Alecia J. Wilson, Robbie S. |
author_sort |
Carter, Alecia J. |
title |
Improving sneaky-sex in a low oxygen environment: reproductive and physiological responses of male mosquito fish to chronic hypoxia |
title_short |
Improving sneaky-sex in a low oxygen environment: reproductive and physiological responses of male mosquito fish to chronic hypoxia |
title_full |
Improving sneaky-sex in a low oxygen environment: reproductive and physiological responses of male mosquito fish to chronic hypoxia |
title_fullStr |
Improving sneaky-sex in a low oxygen environment: reproductive and physiological responses of male mosquito fish to chronic hypoxia |
title_full_unstemmed |
Improving sneaky-sex in a low oxygen environment: reproductive and physiological responses of male mosquito fish to chronic hypoxia |
title_sort |
improving sneaky-sex in a low oxygen environment: reproductive and physiological responses of male mosquito fish to chronic hypoxia |
publisher |
Company of Biologists |
publishDate |
2006 |
url |
https://espace.library.uq.edu.au/view/UQ:81423/UQ81423_OA.pdf https://espace.library.uq.edu.au/view/UQ:81423 |
genre |
Scophthalmus maximus |
genre_facet |
Scophthalmus maximus |
op_relation |
doi:10.1242/jeb.02531 issn:0022-0949 |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1242/jeb.02531 |
container_title |
Journal of Experimental Biology |
container_volume |
209 |
container_issue |
24 |
container_start_page |
4878 |
op_container_end_page |
4884 |
_version_ |
1766189128220672000 |