Parenting in the city: effects of urbanization on incubation behaviour and egg temperature in great tits, Parus major

Animal Behaviour, Journal Year: 2022, Volume and Issue: 194, P. 1 - 11

Published: Oct. 12, 2022

Language: Английский

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Innate immune function and antioxidant capacity of nestlings of an African raptor covary with the level of urbanisation around breeding territories

Journal of Animal Ecology, Journal Year: 2022, Volume and Issue: 92(1), P. 124 - 141

Published: Nov. 10, 2022

Urban areas provide breeding habitats for many species. However, animals raised in urban environments face challenges such as altered food availability and quality, pollution pathogen assemblages. These can affect physiological processes immune function antioxidant defences which are important fitness. Here, we explore how levels of urbanisation influence innate function, response to a mimicked bacterial infection capacity nestling Black Sparrowhawks Accipiter melanoleucus South Africa. We also the effect timing rainfall on physiology since both environmental condition under nestlings raised. Finally, because indirectly, use path analyses direct indirect associations between urbanisation, oxidative stress. obtained measures immunity (haptoglobin, lysis, agglutination, bactericidal capacity), indices (total non-enzymatic (tAOX) total glutathione from 2015 2019. In addition, 2018 2019, by injecting with lipopolysaccharide quantified their response. Increased cover was associated an increase lysis decrease tAOX, but not any other parameters. Furthermore, except no parameters were breeding. Lysis capacity, however, varied consistently annual pattern. Immune decreased nor rainfall. Our suggested some via tAOX results show that early-life development environment is variation functions. The association impact likely factor mediating urban-dwelling animals. Future studies should these linked fitness whether responses adaptive

Language: Английский

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Feather corticosterone reveals that urban great tits experience lower corticosterone exposure than forest individuals during dominance-rank establishment

Conservation Physiology, Journal Year: 2023, Volume and Issue: 11(1)

Published: Jan. 1, 2023

Although the consequences of urbanization for physiological health animals are focus much active research, an overlooked aspect is how physiology could be indirectly modulated by urban environment via changes in intraspecific behavioural interactions, particularly among gregarious species. Both and establishment, as well maintenance, hierarchical rank position processes that incur stress. Measurements glucocorticoids (GCs) relation to urbanization, however, have yielded inconsistent results. In most cases, GCs been measured blood, offering only a 'snapshot' animal's current state. Because circulating incorporated into growing feathers or hair, measurements feather/hair offer longer term measure stress exposure reflecting whole period growth. During two calendar years, we collected tail from 188 forest great tits (

Language: Английский

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Physiological and morphological correlates of blood parasite infection in urban and non-urban house sparrow populations

PLoS ONE, Journal Year: 2020, Volume and Issue: 15(8), P. e0237170 - e0237170

Published: Aug. 19, 2020

In the last decade, house sparrow populations have shown a general decline, especially in cities. Avian malaria has been recently suggested as one of potential causes this and its detrimental effects could be exacerbated urban habitats. It was initially thought that avian parasites would not large negative on wild birds because their long co-evolution with hosts. However, it is now well-documented they can at both primo- chronical infection stages. study, we examined physiological morphological consequences four sparrows (2 2 rural). We did find any relationship between proportions infected individuals urbanisation score calculated for our populations. observed proportion increased during course season, juveniles were less than adults. detect strong effect physiological, condition indexes. Complex parasite dynamics presence confounding factors masked infection. Thus, longitudinal experimental studies are needed to understand evolutionary ecology very common, but still poorly understood, bird parasite.

Language: Английский

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Cooling increases corticosterone deposition in feathers of eastern bluebird chicks

General and Comparative Endocrinology, Journal Year: 2022, Volume and Issue: 320, P. 114001 - 114001

Published: Feb. 17, 2022

Language: Английский

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