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Observational evidence of risk-sensitive reproductive allocation in a long-lived mammal

  • Behavioral ecology - Original Paper
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Abstract

Organisms should adopt a risk-sensitive reproductive allocation when summer reproductive allocation competes with survival in the coming winter. This trade off is shown through autumn female body mass, which acts as an insurance against unpredictable winter environmental conditions. We tested this hypothesis on female reindeer in a population that has experienced a time period of dramatic increase in abundance. Environmental conditions during winter were fairly stable (with the exception of 1 year). We conclude that increased population abundance (perhaps in interaction with winter environmental conditions) could have represented a worsening of winter environmental conditions as both autumn offspring and spring female body mass decreased during the course of the study. Moreover, we found that the cost of reproduction was related to environmental conditions as: (1) autumn body mass was larger for barren than for lactating females, and this difference was temporally highly variable; (2) lactating females produced smaller offspring than barren ones in the following year; and (3) reproductive output (offspring size) decreased over time. We also found evidence of quality effects as lactating females had a higher reproductive success in the following year. In sum, a worsening of winter conditions lead to: (1) decreased reproductive output; (2) lowered autumn body mass for lactating females; and (3) increased body mass for barren females. Since females reduce their reproductive allocation as winter conditions becomes more severe, we conclude that reindeer have adopted a risk-sensitive reproductive allocation.

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Acknowledgments

The present study was funded by the Research Council of Norway, the Norwegian Directorate of Nature Management and the County Authorities of Troms and Finnmark, Norway. We thank Per M. A. Gaup, Anders I. Gaup, Johannes D. Gaup, Per T. A. Gaup and Anders A. T. Gaup, as well as their respective families for allowing us to use their animals in our study and for assisting us in the field. Discussions with John-A. Henden, Audun Stien, Øystein Varpe, Nigel G. Yoccoz, Jan O. Bustnes, Jean-M. Gaillard, Leif E. Loe, Anne Loison, Marius W. Næss, Ingunn M. Tombre and Børge Moe improved the manuscript. David Ingebrigsten, Marius W. Næss, John-A. Henden, Øystein Varpe, Ellen M. Oskal, Ole E. Torland, Audun Stien, Hans Bjella, Tino Schott, Raymond Sørensen, Siw T. Killengreen, Stein E. Eilertsen and Rune Nilsen helped us with the fieldwork. We thank Stefano Focardi and two anonymous referees for valuable comments on the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Arctic Ecology Department, Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA), Polar Environmental Centre, 9296, Tromsø, Norway

    Bård-Jørgen Bårdsen, Torkild Tveraa, Per Fauchald & Knut Langeland

  2. Department of Biology, University of Tromsø (UIT), 9037, Tromsø, Norway

    Bård-Jørgen Bårdsen, Per Fauchald & Knut Langeland

Authors
  1. Bård-Jørgen Bårdsen
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  2. Torkild Tveraa
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  3. Per Fauchald
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  4. Knut Langeland
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Correspondence to Bård-Jørgen Bårdsen.

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Communicated by Jean-Michel Gaillard.

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Bårdsen, BJ., Tveraa, T., Fauchald, P. et al. Observational evidence of risk-sensitive reproductive allocation in a long-lived mammal. Oecologia 162, 627–639 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-009-1537-0

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