Reduced habitat quality increases intrinsic but not ecological costs of reproduction
Abstract Although the costs of reproduction are predicted to vary with the quality of the breeding habitat thereby affecting population dynamics and life‐history trade‐offs, empirical evidence for this pattern remains sparse and equivocal. Costs of reproduction can operate through immediate ecologic...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Wiley
2022-04-01
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| Series: | Ecology and Evolution |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.8859 |
| _version_ | 1797924611148480512 |
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| author | Vanja T. Michel Matthias Tschumi Beat Naef‐Daenzer Herbert Keil Martin U. Grüebler |
| author_facet | Vanja T. Michel Matthias Tschumi Beat Naef‐Daenzer Herbert Keil Martin U. Grüebler |
| author_sort | Vanja T. Michel |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract Although the costs of reproduction are predicted to vary with the quality of the breeding habitat thereby affecting population dynamics and life‐history trade‐offs, empirical evidence for this pattern remains sparse and equivocal. Costs of reproduction can operate through immediate ecological mechanisms or through delayed intrinsic mechanisms. Ignoring these separate pathways might hinder the identification of costs and the understanding of their consequences. We experimentally investigated the survival costs of reproduction for adult little owls (Athene noctua) within a gradient of habitat quality. We supplemented food to nestlings, thereby relieving the parents’ effort for brood provisioning. We used radio‐tracking and Bayesian multistate modeling based on marked recapture and dead recovery to estimate survival rates of adult little owls across the year as a function of food supplementation and habitat characteristics. Food supplementation to nestlings during the breeding season increased parental survival not only during the breeding season but also during the rest of the year. Thus, the low survival of parents of unfed broods likely represents both, strong ecological and strong intrinsic costs of reproduction. However, while immediate ecological costs occurred also in high‐quality habitats, intrinsic costs carrying over to the post‐breeding period occurred only in low‐quality habitats. Our results suggest that immediate costs resulting from ecological mechanisms such as predation, are high also in territories of high habitat quality. Long‐term costs resulting from intrinsic trade‐offs, however, are only paid in low‐quality habitats. Consequently, differential effects of habitat quality on immediate ecological and delayed intrinsic mechanisms can mask the increase of costs of reproduction in low‐quality breeding habitats. Intrinsic costs may represent an underrated mechanism of habitat quality affecting adult survival rate thereby considerably accelerating population decline in degrading habitats. This study therefore highlights the need for a long‐term perspective to fully assess the costs of reproduction and the role of habitat quality in modifying these costs. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-10T15:03:39Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-eb943088b5fc41d68660e7634f5ff6e9 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2045-7758 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-10T15:03:39Z |
| publishDate | 2022-04-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Ecology and Evolution |
| spelling | doaj.art-eb943088b5fc41d68660e7634f5ff6e92023-02-15T09:01:29ZengWileyEcology and Evolution2045-77582022-04-01124n/an/a10.1002/ece3.8859Reduced habitat quality increases intrinsic but not ecological costs of reproductionVanja T. Michel0Matthias Tschumi1Beat Naef‐Daenzer2Herbert Keil3Martin U. Grüebler4Swiss Ornithological Institute Sempach SwitzerlandSwiss Ornithological Institute Sempach SwitzerlandSwiss Ornithological Institute Sempach SwitzerlandForschungsgemeinschaft zur Erhaltung einheimischer Eulen e.V. Oberriexingen GermanySwiss Ornithological Institute Sempach SwitzerlandAbstract Although the costs of reproduction are predicted to vary with the quality of the breeding habitat thereby affecting population dynamics and life‐history trade‐offs, empirical evidence for this pattern remains sparse and equivocal. Costs of reproduction can operate through immediate ecological mechanisms or through delayed intrinsic mechanisms. Ignoring these separate pathways might hinder the identification of costs and the understanding of their consequences. We experimentally investigated the survival costs of reproduction for adult little owls (Athene noctua) within a gradient of habitat quality. We supplemented food to nestlings, thereby relieving the parents’ effort for brood provisioning. We used radio‐tracking and Bayesian multistate modeling based on marked recapture and dead recovery to estimate survival rates of adult little owls across the year as a function of food supplementation and habitat characteristics. Food supplementation to nestlings during the breeding season increased parental survival not only during the breeding season but also during the rest of the year. Thus, the low survival of parents of unfed broods likely represents both, strong ecological and strong intrinsic costs of reproduction. However, while immediate ecological costs occurred also in high‐quality habitats, intrinsic costs carrying over to the post‐breeding period occurred only in low‐quality habitats. Our results suggest that immediate costs resulting from ecological mechanisms such as predation, are high also in territories of high habitat quality. Long‐term costs resulting from intrinsic trade‐offs, however, are only paid in low‐quality habitats. Consequently, differential effects of habitat quality on immediate ecological and delayed intrinsic mechanisms can mask the increase of costs of reproduction in low‐quality breeding habitats. Intrinsic costs may represent an underrated mechanism of habitat quality affecting adult survival rate thereby considerably accelerating population decline in degrading habitats. This study therefore highlights the need for a long‐term perspective to fully assess the costs of reproduction and the role of habitat quality in modifying these costs.https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.8859carry‐over effectsfood supplementation experimenthabitat degradationhabitat qualitylife‐history trade‐offparental care |
| spellingShingle | Vanja T. Michel Matthias Tschumi Beat Naef‐Daenzer Herbert Keil Martin U. Grüebler Reduced habitat quality increases intrinsic but not ecological costs of reproduction Ecology and Evolution carry‐over effects food supplementation experiment habitat degradation habitat quality life‐history trade‐off parental care |
| title | Reduced habitat quality increases intrinsic but not ecological costs of reproduction |
| title_full | Reduced habitat quality increases intrinsic but not ecological costs of reproduction |
| title_fullStr | Reduced habitat quality increases intrinsic but not ecological costs of reproduction |
| title_full_unstemmed | Reduced habitat quality increases intrinsic but not ecological costs of reproduction |
| title_short | Reduced habitat quality increases intrinsic but not ecological costs of reproduction |
| title_sort | reduced habitat quality increases intrinsic but not ecological costs of reproduction |
| topic | carry‐over effects food supplementation experiment habitat degradation habitat quality life‐history trade‐off parental care |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1002/ece3.8859 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT vanjatmichel reducedhabitatqualityincreasesintrinsicbutnotecologicalcostsofreproduction AT matthiastschumi reducedhabitatqualityincreasesintrinsicbutnotecologicalcostsofreproduction AT beatnaefdaenzer reducedhabitatqualityincreasesintrinsicbutnotecologicalcostsofreproduction AT herbertkeil reducedhabitatqualityincreasesintrinsicbutnotecologicalcostsofreproduction AT martinugruebler reducedhabitatqualityincreasesintrinsicbutnotecologicalcostsofreproduction |