Badás E P, Martínez J, Rivero-de Aguilar J, Ponce C, Stevens M, Merino S
Department of Evolutionary Ecology, National Museum of Natural Sciences, Jose Gutierrez Abascal 2, 28006, Madrid, Spain.
Department of Biomedicine and Biotechnology, University of Alcalá de Henares, Ctra. Madrid-Barcelona km 33600, 28871 Alcalá de Henares, Madrid, Spain.
Naturwissenschaften. 2018 Feb 6;105(1-2):17. doi: 10.1007/s00114-018-1539-z.
Carry-over effects refer to processes that occur in one season and influence fitness in the following. In birds, two costly activities, namely reproduction and moult, are restricted to a small time window, and sometimes overlap. Thus, colour in newly moulted feathers is likely to be affected by the costs of reproduction. Using models of bird vision we investigated male colour change in a free-living population of blue tits (Cyanistes caeruleus) in three sampling occasions: spring 1, winter and spring 2. We related crown, tail, breast and cheek feather colouration after the moult (winter) to the intensity of infections by blood parasites during reproduction (spring 1). In the following spring (spring 2), we explored mating patterns with respect to changes in feather colour (springs 1 vs. 2). Males that were less intensely infected by the malaria parasite Plasmodium while breeding showed purer white cheek feathers in winter, which may indicate higher feather quality. Increased brightness in the white cheek was associated with better body condition during reproduction. In the following season, males with brighter cheeks paired with females that had noticeably brighter cheek patches compared to the male's previous mate. These results suggest that the conditions experienced during reproduction are likely to affect moult and thus feather colouration, at least in the white patch. High quality individuals may allocate resources efficiently during reproduction increasing future reproductive success through variation in mating patterns. Carry-over effects from reproduction might extend not only to the non-breeding phase, but also to the following breeding season.
遗留效应是指在一个季节中发生并影响下一季节适应性的过程。在鸟类中，两项代价高昂的活动，即繁殖和换羽，被限制在一个很短的时间窗口内，而且有时会重叠。因此，新换羽的羽毛颜色很可能受到繁殖成本的影响。我们使用鸟类视觉模型，在三个采样时间点对自由生活的青山雀（Cyanistes caeruleus）种群中的雄性颜色变化进行了调查：春季1、冬季和春季2。我们将换羽后（冬季）的头顶、尾部、胸部和脸颊羽毛颜色与繁殖期间（春季1）血液寄生虫感染强度联系起来。在接下来的春季（春季2），我们探讨了羽毛颜色变化（春季1与春季2）相关的交配模式。在繁殖期间感染疟原虫Plasmodium程度较轻的雄性，在冬季脸颊羽毛更洁白，这可能表明羽毛质量更高。白色脸颊颜色变亮与繁殖期间更好的身体状况有关。在接下来的季节里，脸颊较亮的雄性与脸颊斑块明显比其前配偶更亮的雌性交配。这些结果表明，繁殖期间经历的条件可能会影响换羽，进而影响羽毛颜色，至少在白色斑块处是这样。高质量个体可能在繁殖期间有效地分配资源，通过交配模式的变化提高未来的繁殖成功率。繁殖的遗留效应可能不仅会延伸到非繁殖阶段，还会延伸到下一个繁殖季节。
