NDLI: An experimental study on the causal relationships between (ecto-)parasites, testosterone and sexual signalling

Content Provider	Springer Nature Link
Author	Müller, Wendt Heylen, Dieter Eens, Marcel Rivera Gutierrez, Hector Fabio Groothuis, Ton G. G.
Copyright Year	2013
Abstract	Bird song is considered to have evolved via sexual selection and should as such honestly signal aspects of the quality of its bearer. To ensure honesty, the immunocompetence handicap hypothesis proposed a dual role of testosterone, having positive effects on sexual signalling but suppressive effects on immune function. However, recent studies showed that it is rather an immune activation that suppresses the androgen production. This reversed chain of causation may significantly alter the pathways, which translate the effects of parasites and pathogens into changes in the expression of male sexual traits. We infested male canaries with Ixodes ricinus tick nymphs to investigate the causal relationships between (ecto-)parasites, testosterone and sexual signalling, here singing behaviour. We focused on flexible song traits, which may quickly reflect changes in the infestation status, and tested whether these effects relate to changes in the plasma testosterone levels or health state. The experimental tick infestation altered the males’ song performance by reducing song consistency, a trait that had previously been identified to reflect male quality. The tick infestation lowered the plasma testosterone levels and had a negative effect on the health status in terms of a reduced hematocrit. Our pathway analysis then revealed that it is the parasite-induced reduction of the plasma testosterone levels but not of the health state that caused the changes in song consistency. Thus, our study supports the view that it is the effect of parasites and immune activation on plasma testosterone levels that generates the trade-off between immunocompetence and sexual signalling.
Starting Page	1791
Ending Page	1798
Page Count	8
File Format	PDF
ISSN	03405443
Journal	Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology
Volume Number	67
Issue Number	11
e-ISSN	14320762
Language	English
Publisher	Springer Berlin Heidelberg
Publisher Date	2013-07-10
Publisher Place	Berlin, Heidelberg
Access Restriction	One Nation One Subscription (ONOS)
Subject Keyword	Sexual selection Bird song Immunocompetence handicap hypothesis Parasite Behavioural Sciences Zoology Evolutionary Biology
Content Type	Text
Resource Type	Article
Subject	Animal Science and Zoology Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics

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