Robert Kylie A, Lesku John A, Partecke Jesko, Chambers Brian
Department of Ecology, Environment and Evolution, La Trobe University, Melbourne 3086, Australia
Department of Ecology, Environment and Evolution, La Trobe University, Melbourne 3086, Australia.
Proc Biol Sci. 2015 Oct 7;282(1816):20151745. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2015.1745.
Change in day length is an important cue for reproductive activation in seasonally breeding animals to ensure that the timing of greatest maternal investment (e.g. lactation in mammals) coincides with favourable environmental conditions (e.g. peak productivity). However, artificial light at night has the potential to interfere with the perception of such natural cues. Following a 5-year study on two populations of wild marsupial mammals exposed to different night-time levels of anthropogenic light, we show that light pollution in urban environments masks seasonal changes in ambient light cues, suppressing melatonin levels and delaying births in the tammar wallaby. These results highlight a previously unappreciated relationship linking artificial light at night with induced changes in mammalian reproductive physiology, and the potential for larger-scale impacts at the population level.
白昼时长的变化是季节性繁殖动物生殖激活的重要信号，以确保最大母体投入（如哺乳动物的哺乳）的时间与有利的环境条件（如生产力高峰）相吻合。然而，夜间人造光有可能干扰对这类自然信号的感知。在对两个暴露于不同夜间人为光照水平的野生有袋类哺乳动物种群进行了为期5年的研究之后，我们发现城市环境中的光污染掩盖了环境光信号的季节性变化，抑制了褪黑素水平，并延迟了帚尾袋貂的分娩。这些结果凸显了一种此前未被认识到的夜间人造光与哺乳动物生殖生理诱导变化之间的关系，以及在种群水平上产生更大规模影响的可能性。
