Recently, there has been an explosion of studies focusing on animal “personality”, defined as consistent individual differences in behaviour. Researchers within this field commonly partition phenotypic variation in behavioural traits at the among- and within-individual levels, because significant among-individual variation implies that a behaviour is repeatable and thus can be subject to selection. It is well known that individuals can not only differ in their mean-level behavioural expression, but also in how their phenotype varies over time, known as temporal plasticity. However, another important yet largely overlooked aspect of behavioural variation is that some individuals are consistently more “unpredictable” than others. This level of variance corresponds to (unexplained) variation among successive measurements on a given individual. Personality and behavioural plasticity have both been studied in many different contexts, however research regarding the possible correlations between these two traits and unpredictability is lacking. Here, I repeatedly assayed locomotor activity in wild white-footed mice (Peromyscus leucopus) exposed to a 10-min novel environment test, to determine whether their behavioural reaction norms exhibited consistent among-individual differences in intercept (personality), slope (plasticity), and variance (unpredictability). Using a doubly hierarchical generalized linear mixed model, I found that both the intercept and slope of the temporal reaction norms were significantly repeatable (Rint= 0.39, Rslp= 0.23) and negatively correlated (r=-0.51). Moreover, unpredictability was found to be significantly repeatable (Rsd= 0.20), positively correlated with intercept (r=0.92), and negatively correlated with slope (r=-0.51). To the extent that these correlations reflect the underlying quantitative genetic architecture of behaviour, my results suggest the presence of constraints on the evolution of behaviour across multiple levels of variation.

Exotic species often invade new areas and displace native species. The problems associated with such invasions are well known, but for many exotic species, experimental work has not yet been done to predict which, and under what conditions they may become a problem. Two greenhouse experiments were devised to investigate the plasticity, shade tolerance, and phenotypic differences of full-siblings from 3 populations of Cardamine impatiens, a Eurasian species potentially invasive in North America. Potted plants were subjected to 0, 54, 76, or 91% shade created by neutral density shade cloth application. In addition, the impact of a cold pre-treatment of seedlings on the growth and reproductive output of C. impatiens plants was examined. In our first experiment, we subjected Cardamine impatiens to non-shaded cages, 54%, or 76% shade intensity. Plants died very quickly, so LD50 data were used as a relative measure of fitness, and relative growth indices were calculated over time. Other relative measures of fitness included canopy area, leaf area, number of leaves, number of leaves per canopy area, and final plant weight. Plants in cages with no shade treatment grew faster than those in cages with shade cloth and final plant weight decreased as shade treatment percentage increased. In each population, the number of leaves increased over time and the number of leaves per canopy area decreased over time under shade treatments. Our second experiment involved the application of 54%, 76%, and 91% shade intensity. The additional shade treatment of 91% was applied to determine the extent of plant tolerance and plasticity in response to light reduction. Due to high plant mortality in our first experiment, we treated Cardamine impatiens with a 4 week cold period prior to treatment, which simulates its biennial growth form in its natural western Virginia region habitat. Since this second experiment took place later in the year, day length was extended to more accurately duplicate the conditions during the first experiment. LD50 calculations were not necessary, and 7 of the 135 plants produced seed. Relative measures of fitness included canopy area, leaf area, number of leaves, number of leaves per canopy area, and final plant weights. As in experiment one, the number of leaves per plant increased over time, final plant weight decreased as shade treatment increased, and the number of leaves per canopy area decreased as shade treatment increased. From these two experiments, we determined that Cardamine impatiens is a species that exhibits phenotypic plasticity and therefore may pose a threat as an invasive species. C. impatiens is able to grow and exhibit plasticity of plant architecture under the conditions of very low light. The number of leaves per canopy area decreased as shade increased, suggesting that C. impatiens is highly adaptable to low light conditions, and therefore may be exhibiting phenotypic plasticity by reallocating its resources by producing fewer leaves while maintaining canopy area. This data along with other C. impatiens traits such as high levels needed for seed production, its persistence in seed banks, along with a lack of known major enemies, indicates that they have a great capacity to invade a wide variety of habitats. We also determined that a cold treatment is necessary in order for C. impatiens to obtain optimal growth and reproduction. / Master of Science

Behavioral traits can be remarkably flexible depending on the conditions in which they are expressed, yet, in spite of this flexibility, persistent differences between individuals appear to limit the potential expression of behaviors. For example, despite evidence that parents provide variable amounts of parental care in response to changing environmental conditions, they also differ in the overall level of care they provide. I used a behavioral reaction norm approach to study individual variation in parental care behavior in free-living house sparrows (Passer domesticus). I investigated the nature of this variation by studying the relationship between different forms of parental care, the biological basis of individual variation in care, and the effect of this variation in care on offspring. First, I found a positive covariance between nestling provisioning and nest defense. Parents that provided high levels of care in one context provided high levels of care in the other context, even after accounting for measures of offspring value. Second, I sought to identify the biological sources that create and maintain consistent individual differences in the level of care a parent provides. I found that the likelihood of feeding nestlings large food items was positively associated with genetic heterozygosity, but did not find evidence that nestling provisioning was influenced by additive genetic variation in this population. Parents hatched from larger eggs provisioned offspring at a higher rate than parents hatched from smaller eggs, but there was no effect of other conditions experienced in the nest on the level of care expressed as an adult. I also tested if differences in problem-solving ability were related to differences in parental care behavior. Although I found that problem-solving parents fledged more offspring than parents that could not solve the problem, parental care was not associated with any measure of problem-solving ability. Finally, I found that individual variation in parental care reaction norms predicted the growth rate, size, and immune response of nestlings, which in turn positively affected offspring survival and recruitment. My findings reveal factors maintaining individual differences in parental care behavior and offer new insights into the causes and consequences of individual variation.

No description available.

Orientador: Louis Bernard Klaczko / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Instituto de Biologia / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-08T11:40:37Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Rocha_FelipeBastos_M.pdf: 1521732 bytes, checksum: 2e105d0f1d7044bc42e2f93125f6ac49 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2007 / Resumo: Drosophila mediopunctata é uma espécie pertencente ao grupo tripunctata, que tem como traço marcante um padrão de pigmentação abdominal, sob a forma de três pintas na região mediana dos últimos tergitos. Nesta espécie, este padrão é variável, havendo indivíduos com quatro fenótipos, que vão de zero a três pintas. Já se observou que esta variação tem determinação genética, com marcada influência do cromossomo II, e alta plasticidade fenotípica em resposta à temperatura de desenvolvimento. Neste trabalho, buscou-se caracterizar parte destas duas fontes de variação. Por um lado, foram estudadas as normas de reação da pigmentação a um gradiente térmico, investigando-se classes fenotípicas contrastantes. Devido ao desenho experimental, que buscou separar os efeitos desta variável de um possível papel das inversões do cromossomo II, foi possível evidenciar um forte efeito das classes fenotípicas utilizadas sobre a resposta das estirpes ao gradiente térmico, independente do cariótipo. Foram descritos, por polinômios, dois tipos de norma de reação relacionados ao fenótipo, ambos com forma de parábola, mas diferindo em relação ao coeficiente de curvatura. O grupo de estirpes de pigmentação clara apresentou uma curva côncava e o grupo escuro uma curva convexa. A norma de reação da taxa de desenvolvimento de ovo a adulto foi caracterizada a partir do mesmo procedimento. Entretanto, apesar dos efeitos significativos do cariótipo e da classe fenotípica, a homogeneidade das normas de reação descritas por regressões lineares não possibilitou uma interpretação clara destes efeitos. A plasticidade do caráter também foi investigada quanto ao período de desenvolvimento termo-sensível. Assim, foi possível determinar a porção final da fase de pupa como o período no qual ocorre a influência da temperatura sobre o fenótipo de pintas do adulto. Por outro lado, em relação à determinação genética do caráter, foram obtidas estimativas de herdabilidade para o número de pintas abdominais, em condições quase naturais. Visando estabelecer um parâmetro de comparação com outros trabalhos, foi estimada a herdabilidade do tamanho do tórax a partir do mesmo material. Os resultados deste experimento, apresentaram grande contraste entre os dois traços: as estimativas foram baixas ou não significativas para o tamanho do tórax e, em geral, altas e significativas para o número de pintas / Abstract: Drosophila mediopunctata belongs to the tripunctata species group, which has a typical abdomen pigmentation pattern, consisting of three dark spots in the last tergites. In this species, this pattern is variable, with the phenotypes ranging from zero to three spots. It has been noted that this variation has genetical determination, with strong influence from the second chromosome, and high phenotypic plasticity in response to the developmental temperature. In this work, we attempted to describe part of these two variation sources. On one side, the pigmentation reaction norm to a thermal gradient was studied, by investigating the influence of contrasting phenotypical classes. Given the experimental design, which was planned to separate the effects of this variable from a possible influence of the second chromosome inversions, it was possible to detect a strong effect of the phenotypical classes on the lineages response to the thermal gradient, independent of the kariotype. Two types of reaction norms, related to the phenotype, were detected and described by polynomial adjustment. Both had a parabolic shape, but with different curvature coefficients. The light pigmentation lineage group showed a concave curve, and the dark group had a convex curve. The reaction norm of development rate from egg to adult was described according to the same procedure. However, despite the significant effects of the karyotype and phenotypical classes, the homogeneity of reaction norms, described by linear regression, hindered a clear interpretation of these effects. The character plasticity was also investigated in respect to the developmental thermosensitive period. Thus, it was possible to determine that the period in which the temperature influence on the adult phenotype occurs is the last portion of the pupal phase. On another side, relative to the character genetic determination, heritability estimates for the number of abdominal spots were obtained, in nearly natural conditions. Aiming to establish a comparison parameter with other studies, the heritability of thorax length was estimated based on the same material. The results of this experiment reveal a great contrast between these trait estimates: for the thorax they were low or non-significant, and, in general, for the abdominal spot number, they were high and significant / Mestrado / Genetica Animal e Evolução / Mestre em Genética e Biologia Molecular

This thesis is the first known study to relocate Acropora cervicornis across multiple regions of the Florida Reef Tract. Since 2006, A. cervicornis has been listed as a threatened coral species under the U.S. Endangered Species Act. In response, restoration efforts utilizing coral nursery methods have been implemented throughout the Caribbean. The primary objective of this research was to determine the response of A. cervicornis colonies to being relocated between two coral nurseries separated by approximately 150km along the Florida Reef Tract. To accomplish this, a reciprocal transport was conducted between coral fragments with known genotypes from Broward County and Monroe County, Florida. A subset of coral ramets (fragments of a single genotype) was removed from the nursery of origin and relocated to the opposing coral nursery, while the remaining ramets stayed in their original nursery to serve as controls. Following transplant, both relocated and non-relocated corals were monitored for 14 months and survivorship, growth rates, branching frequency, and coral condition data were collected. In addition, tissue samples were collected twice during the monitoring period to determine zooxanthellae densities. Reaction norms were used to predict the responses of each measured variable for each genotype in response to being relocated. Relocated coral colonies from both nurseries exhibited equal or greater survivorship than the non-relocated corals from their original nursery. Growth rates, branching frequency, and zooxanthellae densities were highest in the corals that were previously in or relocated to Broward County. Within each nursery, relocated and non-relocated corals were not significantly different in any of the measured parameters. Throughout the study period, there were no signs of disease, bleaching, or predation on any of the corals. These findings demonstrate that A. cervicornis colonies can be successfully relocated across regions of the Florida Reef Tract suggesting that colonies throughout the FRT may be used for collaborative restoration efforts. Reaction norm analysis indicated phenotypically plastic responses in each growth parameter with some instances of genotype-by-environment interactions. Finally, these results suggest the need for additional research to investigate regional differences in A. cervicornis populations for proper management and restoration approaches.

Le climat affecte entre autre la phénologie, l’aire de distribution, le comportement et la physiologie des espèces. Le changement climatique a donc des répercussions sur chacun de ces facteurs. L’augmentation globale des températures prévue d’ici 2100 pourrait profondément modifier la biodiversité de l’échelle des espèces jusqu’à celle des écosystèmes. Les ectothermes, et en particulier les reptiles ovipares à détermination du sexe sensible à la température, font partie des organismes susceptibles d’être les plus vulnérables au réchauffement du climat puisque quasiment tous leurs traits d’histoire de vie dépendent de la température. L’origine et le maintien de ce mécanisme de détermination du sexe, pouvant conduire à un sex ratio fortement biaisé à l’échelle d’une population, reste une énigme pour les écologues. Parmi les nombreuses questions soulevées par la présence de ce mécanisme de détermination du sexe, la signification adaptative, s’il y en a une, de ce mécanisme est cruciale.Ce mécanisme de détermination du sexe rend-il les espèces plus vulnérables dans le contexte actuel du changement du climat ? Plusieurs hypothèses évolutives ont été proposées et des modèles de dynamique des populations sont disponibles pour répondre à ces questions. Cependant, prédire le sex ratio primaire en conditions naturelles, c’est-à-dire le sex ratio des nouveaux nés, reste un défi majeur à l’heure actuel. Ce manuscrit vise à apporter de nouveaux outils méthodologiques afin de correctement prédire le sex ratio d’une ponte en fonction de la température ressentie par les embryons au cours de l’incubation. Les tortues marines,quasiment toutes menacées, sont des espèces migratrices présentant toute ce mécanisme de détermination du sexe.Chez ces espèces, la phénologie des pontes est aussi sensible à la température du milieu. Ce type de plasticité phénotypique est probablement la stratégie la plus efficace pour pallier à un changement rapide du climat. Ce manuscrit apporte quelques éléments de réponse quant au potentiel adaptatif des tortues marines face au réchauffement climatique avec l’exemple de plusieurs populations de tortues Caouanne (Caretta caretta). / Climate affects, among other things, species’phenology, distribution range, behavior and physiology.Climate change thus impacts each of these factors. Global warming expected by 2100 might profoundly modify biodiversity from species to ecosystems. Ectotherms, and in particular oviparous reptiles with temperature dependent sex determination, are thought to be among the most vulnerable in the face of global warming because virtually all their life history traits depend on temperature.The origin and the persistence of temperature-dependent sex determination, which could lead to heavily biased population sex ratios, is still an enigma for ecologists. Among numerous issues related to this sex determining mechanism, understanding its adaptive significance, if there is one, is crucial. At another level, does this sex determining mechanism make species more vulnerable in the context of contemporary climate change ? Several evolutionary hypotheses have been proposed and population dynamic models are available to address these issues. However, predicting primary sex ratio, i.e., the sex ratio of hatchlings, in natural conditions currently remainsa challenge. This manuscript aims to bring new methodological tools to properly predict sex ratio of aclutch depending on temperature experienced by embryosthroughout incubation. Marine turtles, almost all being threatened, are migratory species that all exhibit this sex determining mechanism. For those species, nesting phenology is also sensitive to environmental temperature.This type of phenotypic plasticity is probably the most efficient strategy to keep up with rapid climate change.This manuscript provides some elements for understanding the adaptive potential of sea turtles in the face of global warming with the example of several).

Variation in somatic growth rates has interested biologists for decades because of the relationship between growth and other fitness-determining traits (i.e. fecundity, survival, and body size), and the corresponding effect of somatic growth on production of organisms humans use for food. The interaction between genetic variation in growth rates and environmentally induced variation in growth rates shows the pattern of growth across multiple environments (i.e. the reaction norm) that clarifies the history and potential future of evolutionary change in growth rates among populations. Theoretical predictions suggest variation in predator-induced mortality rates can influence mean growth rates and the shape of the reaction norm for growth. The adaptive growth hypothesis predicts that mean growth rates would evolve in response to environmental pressures, such as mortality rates, at different body sizes. Few studies, however, have focused on variation in reaction norms for growth in response to resource availability between high-predation and low-predation environments. We used juvenile Brachyrhaphis rhabdophora from high-predation and low-predation environments to test for variation in mean growth rates and for variation in reaction norms for growth at two levels of food availability in a common-environment experiment, and we compared field somatic growth rates in juveniles from the same two environments (high-predation and low-predation). In the common-environment experiment, mean growth rates did not differ between predation environments, but the interaction between predation environment and food level took the form of a crossing reaction norm for both growth in length and growth in mass. Fish from low-predation environments exhibited no significant variation in growth rate between high and low food amount treatments. In contrast, fish from high-predation environments exhibited wide variation in growth rates between low and high food treatments, with higher food availability resulting in higher growth rates. In the field, individuals in the high-predation environment grow at a faster rate than those in a low-predation environment at the smallest sizes (comparable to sizes in the common-environment experiment). These data provide no evidence for evolved differences in mean growth rates between predation environments. However, fish from high-predation environments exhibited greater plasticity in growth rates in response to resource availability suggesting that increased risk of predation could drive variation in food availability for prey and consequent selection for plasticity.

Temperature is a fundamental environmental force shaping species abundance and distributions through its effects on biochemical reaction rates, metabolism, activity, and reproduction. In light of future climate shifts, mainly driven by temperature increases, how will organisms persist in warmer environments? One molecular mechanism that may play an important role in coping with heat stress is the heat shock response (HSR), which protects against molecular damage. To prevent and repair protein damage specifically, Hsps activate and become up-regulated. However, the functional diversity and relevance of heat shock proteins (Hsps) in extending upper thermal limits in taxonomic groups outside marine and model systems is poorly understood. Ants are a good system to understand the physiological mechanisms for coping with heat stress because they have successfully diversified into thermally stressful environments. To identify and characterize the functional diversity of Hsps in ants, I surveyed Hsp orthologues from published ant genomes to test for signatures of positive selection and to reconstruct their evolutionary history. Within Hymenoptera, ants utilize unique sets of Hsps for the HSR. Stabilizing selection was the prevailing force among Hsp orthologues, suggesting that protein activity is conserved. At the same time, regulatory regions (promoters) governing transcriptional up-regulation diversified: species differ in the number and location of heat shock elements (HSEs). Therefore, Hsp expression patterns may be a target for selection in warm environments. I tested whether Hsp expression corresponded with variation in upper thermal limits in forest ant species within the genus Aphaenogaster. Whole colonies were collected throughout the eastern United States and were lab acclimated. There was a positive relationship between upper thermal limits (Critical Thermal maxima, CTmax) and local temperature extremes. Upper thermal limits were also higher in ant species that lived in open habitats (shrub-oak and long-leaf pine savannah) than species occupying closed habitats (deciduous forest). Ant species with higher CTmax expressed Hsps more slowly, at higher temperatures, and at higher maximum levels than those with low CTmax. Because Hsps sense and repair molecular damage, these results suggest the proteomes of open relative to closed canopy forests are more stable. Although deciduous forest ant species may be buffered from temperature stress, it is likely that temperature interacts with other environmental stressors such as water and nutrient availability that may impact upper thermal limits. I measured the influence of dehydration and nutrition stress on upper thermal limits of forest ants from a single population. Ants that were initially starved were much less thermally tolerant than controls and ants that were initially desiccated. Because ants are likely to experience similar combination of stressors in the wild, upper thermal limits may be severely overestimated in single factor experiments. Therefore, realistic forecasting models need to consider multiple environmental stressors. Overall, adaptive tuning of Hsp expression that reflects better protection and tolerance of protein unfolding may have facilitated ant diversification into warm environments. However, additional stressors and mechanisms may constrain the evolution of upper thermal limits.

Although early reproduction within a breeding season often leads to higher reproductive success in seasonal environments, it is still not well understood how reproductive success can be influenced by climate both indirectly through the timing of breeding or by directly altering parental behaviour. In this thesis, I investigate the role of ambient temperature in reproductive success through its effects on the timing of reproduction and brooding in a population of gray jays, Perisoreus canadensis. In chapter 2, I test whether (i) female gray jays adjust laying date in response to temperature, (ii) individual or environmental characteristics constrain this plasticity, and (iii) laying date influences reproductive success. Females laid earlier in warmer years than in colder years; females partnered with older males laid earlier than females partnered with younger males at colder temperatures, but not at warmer temperatures. Early layers were more likely to rear at least one nestling and have a dominant juvenile survive the summer. These findings suggest that male experience could advance female laying date at cold temperatures and subsequently increase the probability of a positive nesting outcome. Though cold temperatures appear to limit timing of reproduction in gray jays, previous work in this system suggests that cold temperatures could better preserve perishable winter food stores. Thus, in chapter 3, I test whether temperatures during early offspring development interact with timing of reproduction to influence reproductive performance. Colder ambient temperatures during incubation were associated with larger brood sizes than warmer temperatures among late breeders, but temperature did not influence brood size among early layers, indicating that costs of late breeding may be amplified by temperatures that are unfavourable for food storage. This thesis contributes to our understanding of the environmental factors that determine reproductive performance, both through effects on timing of reproduction and after eggs are laid.