Age-specific patterns of maternal investment in common gull egg yolk

作者：Urvik Janek; Rattiste Kalev; Giraudeau Mathieu; Okuliarova Monika; Horak Peeter; Sepp Tuul^*

来源：Biology Letters, 2018, 14(7): 20180346.

DOI：10.1098/rsbl.2018.0346

• reproductive senescence
• testosterone
• carotenoids
• maternal effects

While the general patterns of age-specific changes in reproductive success are quitewell established in long-lived animals, we still do not know if allocation patterns of maternally transmitted compounds are related to maternal age. We measured the levels of yolk testosterone, carotenoids and vitamins A and E in a population of known-aged common gulls (Larus canus) and found an age-specific pattern in yolk lutein and vitamin A concentrations. Middle-aged mothers allocated more of these substances to yolk compared to young and old mothers. These results can be explained through differences in age-specific foraging, absorption or deposition patterns of carotenoids and vitamins into yolk. If these molecules play a role in antioxidant defence and immune modulation, our results suggest a possible physiological pathway underlying the age-specific changes in reproductive success of long-lived birds in the wild.

• 出版日期2018-7