Versteeg Melissa A, MacDonald Chancey, Bennett-Smith Morgan F, Buston Peter M, Rueger Theresa
Dove Marine Laboratory, School of Natural and Environmental Science, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne NE30 4PZ, UK.
School of Biology, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK.
Sci Adv. 2025 May 23;11(21):eadt7079. doi: 10.1126/sciadv.adt7079. Epub 2025 May 21.
Vertebrate growth is generally considered to be unidirectional, but challenging environmental conditions, such as heatwaves, may disrupt normal growth patterns and affect individual survival. Here, we investigate the growth of individual clown anemonefish, , during a marine heatwave. We measured the length of 134 wild clown anemonefish every month and monitored temperature at the scale of their anemone for five lunar months. Our results show that clown anemonefish shrink in response to heat stress and individuals that shrink also display relatively more catch-up growth. Further, shrinking is modulated by social rank and size, and individuals that shrink more often and in a coordinated fashion with their breeding partner have higher survival during the heat stress event. In conclusion, a plastic individual growth response to heat stress, constrained by the social environment, can lead to short-term survival benefits. If this plasticity were widespread in fishes, it may have marked consequences for populations and communities as heatwaves become more frequent.
脊椎动物的生长通常被认为是单向的，但诸如热浪等具有挑战性的环境条件可能会扰乱正常的生长模式并影响个体生存。在此，我们研究了海洋热浪期间小丑鱼个体的生长情况。我们每月测量134条野生小丑鱼的体长，并在五个农历月内以其海葵为尺度监测温度。我们的结果表明，小丑鱼会因热应激而体型缩小，而且体型缩小的个体也表现出相对更多的追赶生长。此外，体型缩小受社会等级和大小的调节，在热应激事件中，那些更频繁且与其繁殖伙伴协调一致地缩小体型的个体具有更高的存活率。总之，在社会环境的限制下，个体对热应激的可塑性生长反应可带来短期生存益处。如果这种可塑性在鱼类中广泛存在，随着热浪变得更加频繁，可能会对种群和群落产生显著影响。
