TY - JOUR
T1 - Masked expression of life-history traits in a highly variable environment
AU - DeBoer, Jason A.
AU - Fontaine, Joseph J.
AU - Chizinski, Christopher J.
AU - Pope, Kevin L.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
Copyright © 2015 by the Center for Great Plains Studies, University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
Copyright:
Copyright 2016 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.
PY - 2015
Y1 - 2015
N2 - Differing life-history strategies may act as a constraint on reproductive expression that ultimately limits the ability of individual species to respond to changes in the magnitude or frequency of environmental variation, and potentially underlies the variation oft en inherent in phenotypic and evolved responses to anthropogenic change. Alternatively, if there are environmental cues that predict reproductive potential, differential expression of life-history strategies may represent differences in the adaptive capacity to optimize current reproductive value given variation in environmental conditions. We compared several aspects of walleye Sander vitreus spawning ecology at two reservoirs that differ in environmental variability (i.e., annual water-level fluctuation) to identify the capacity of phenotypic expression and the corresponding association with age. Despite significant differences in female body and liver masses between reservoirs that differ in environmental variability, we found no difference in reproductive investment measured by egg size and fecundity. Walleye in a highly variable environment appear to exhibit reproductive traits more typical of a short-lived life-history strategy, which may be resultant from the interaction of environmental and anthropogenic pressures. This finding emphasizes the need to identify the degree to which life-history expression represents physiological constraints versus ecological optimization, particularly as anthropogenic change continues to alter environmental conditions.
AB - Differing life-history strategies may act as a constraint on reproductive expression that ultimately limits the ability of individual species to respond to changes in the magnitude or frequency of environmental variation, and potentially underlies the variation oft en inherent in phenotypic and evolved responses to anthropogenic change. Alternatively, if there are environmental cues that predict reproductive potential, differential expression of life-history strategies may represent differences in the adaptive capacity to optimize current reproductive value given variation in environmental conditions. We compared several aspects of walleye Sander vitreus spawning ecology at two reservoirs that differ in environmental variability (i.e., annual water-level fluctuation) to identify the capacity of phenotypic expression and the corresponding association with age. Despite significant differences in female body and liver masses between reservoirs that differ in environmental variability, we found no difference in reproductive investment measured by egg size and fecundity. Walleye in a highly variable environment appear to exhibit reproductive traits more typical of a short-lived life-history strategy, which may be resultant from the interaction of environmental and anthropogenic pressures. This finding emphasizes the need to identify the degree to which life-history expression represents physiological constraints versus ecological optimization, particularly as anthropogenic change continues to alter environmental conditions.
KW - Environmental variability
KW - Irrigation reservoir
KW - Life-history expression
KW - Sander vitreus
KW - Walleye
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U2 - 10.1353/gpr.2015.0015
DO - 10.1353/gpr.2015.0015
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:84966570067
VL - 25
SP - 25
EP - 38
JO - Great Plains Research
JF - Great Plains Research
SN - 1052-5165
IS - 1
ER -