Browsing by Subject "Hibernation"

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Causes and consequences of alterations in stress physiology, immunity and oxygen delivery in a small mammalian hibernator
(2017) Havenstein, Nadine; Fietz, Joanna
The different functions and activities of an organism require substantial amounts of energy and thus compete for the limited available resources. During demanding situations, allocation decisions potentially result in trade-offs between physiological processes that can have consequences on the performance and fitness of an individual. Endocrine mediators, especially glucocorticoid hormones (GCs) build the bridge between environmental stimuli and the responses of an individual via regulating energy allocation and numerous other physiological processes as well as behavior and are therefore of special interest in ecophysiological studies. The immune and the oxygen delivery system represent two vital body functions that are essential for survival and respond sensitively to altered environmental conditions, nutrient deficiencies and stress hormone levels, representing therefore further suitable targets of investigation in ecophysiological studies. Our study species, the edible dormouse (Glis glis) is a small arboreal rodent characterized by an extraordinarily long hibernation period. The aim of this study was to elucidate physiological mechanisms underlying the evolution of life history strategies and variations in fitness parameters associated with stressful and demanding situations like hibernation, reproduction, limited food availability and high population density. To achieve these goals urinary GC levels as well as white and red blood cell (WBC and RBC) parameters were investigated and urine samples were examined for haemoglobinuria of free ranging edible dormice in South Western Germany. Results of this study reveal that the post-hibernation period represents an extremely challenging period for edible dormice as their phagocytic cells, the immunological first line of defense, obviously become depleted during the extended hibernation period and recover only slowly at the beginning of the active season. The need to invest into the restoration of regressed organs and body functions directly after hibernation when high quality food is still limited, may explain the delayed recovery of these innate immune cells. Slightly elevated cortisol levels presumably reflect the mobilization of energy from body stores for these restoration processes. As the phenomenon of low phagocyte counts was even more pronounced at the beginning of a low food year and the few neutrophils present in the blood of dormice were primarily immature, preparatory mechanisms occurring during late arousals of the hibernation period seem to determine the regeneration of phagocytes before hibernation is terminated. This, in turn, indicates that dormice are able to predict upcoming food availability and, consequently, future reproductive effort and accordingly invest into physical-physiological recovery. Apparently edible dormice trade off restoration of regressed organs for immunity. Survival probabilities of edible dormice are lowest at that time of the annual cycle, suggesting that this post-hibernation impairment of the innate immune system may entail detrimental effects for their fitness. Elevated cortisol levels during mating and gestation-lactation, respectively, show that reproduction represents a stressful life history event in both sexes. This event furthermore coincides with drastic increases in the ratio of phagocyte to lymphocyte counts (P/L ratio), a stress response of the immune system, as well as distinct impairments in the oxygen delivery system. The latter seems to be in a large part due to energetic and nutrient deficits and large amounts of senescent RBCs. High frequency of haemoglobinuria in females support the notion of a nutrient-deficient anaemia. When all reproductive effort has ended, cortisol levels decrease whereas the strong increases in the P/L ratio persist until the end of the active season which gives notice of the prolonged immunological effects of chronic stress. As mortality is increased during reproductive years, the high cortisol levels measured during reproduction suggest an allostatic overload that has exceeded adaptive levels and the high P/L ratios might represent a pivotal indicator for the beginning of a stress-induced deprivation of immunity that contribute to reduced survival. Prolonged food limitation does not elevate cortisol levels and P/L ratios, supporting the hypothesis that food availability is predictable for edible dormice and that a restriction therefore does not cause considerable stress. During late summer of a low food year the oxygen delivery capacity is decreased. However, erythrocyte parameters furthermore indicate a senescent RBC pool, suggesting that a reduced erythrocyte production is part of the energy saving strategy. As survival is increased during years of low food availability, these findings indicate that dormice are able to perfectly adapt to prolonged periods of limited food availability.
Influence of ambient temperature on the phenology of the greater mouse‐eared bat (Myotis myotis)
(2023) Matthäus, Laura; Kugelschafter, Karl; Fietz, Joanna
In order to assess the consequences of climate change and evaluate its impacts on wildlife, it is essential to do so on a species-specific level. It is assumed that changes in the ambient temperature influence energy consumption as well as food availability and thus foraging behavior, reproduction, survival, and therefore population dynamics in bats. Based on this assumption, the present study aims to gain insights into the roosting and breeding behavior of the greater mouse-eared bat (Myotis myotis) in relation to changes of the ambient temperature. For this purpose, we investigated the effect of ambient temperature on the phenology of the greater mouse-eared bat by using activity data of the bats collected using light barriers at the maternity roosts. The light barrier used in this study is a system that detects the interruption of two light beams, for example, by a flying bat, and displays it as an electrical signal. The investigations have shown that 1. the higher the winter temperatures, the earlier the greater mouse-eared bats returned to the roosts to form the maternity colony; however, this was only true for ambient temperatures below 0.5°C, 2. birth season started earlier at higher spring temperatures, 3. the dissolution of maternity roosts occurred earlier with earlier birth season and at higher ambient temperatures during lactation. The results revealed that ambient temperature has an influence on the phenology of the greater mouse-eared bat. Depending on the respective life history stage, an increase in ambient temperature can have a positive or negative effect on the fitness of the animals. In recent years, mild winters have been recorded more frequently, which can have an influence on the behavior of bats. Warm winters within certain limits seem to lead to an earlier formation of the maternity colony, which can be positive or negative for the bats depending on persistent weather conditions and thus insect availability. In the course of climate change, we can also expect earlier spring events and an increase in spring temperature, as well as hot spells in summer. These warm springs and summers seem to lead to an earlier beginning of births, a faster development of the juveniles and an earlier dissolution of the maternity roost. An advance of reproductive activities can be assumed to increase the chance to survive the following winter in both mothers and their young, as they have more time to build up sufficient energy reserves for hibernation before winter starts. Due to the climatic changes, phenological changes of the bats be expected. This study highlights that in order to understand the impact of climate change on biodiversity, it is necessary to investigate in detail effects on a species-specific level and also to consider direct and indirect effects of ambient temperature on different life history stages.
Overwintering and reproduction biology of Drosophila suzukii Matsumura (Diptera: Drosophilidae)
(2018) Zerulla, Florian Niklas; Zebitz, Claus P. W.
Drosophila suzukii (Matsumura) was introduced to southern Europe and the United States of America in 2008 through fruit imports from Southeast Asia and spread in the following years all over Europe, as well as South and North America. D. suzukii is a polyphagous pest which infests fruits of soft-skinned wild and cultivated plants. In contrast to the well-known D. melanogaster, healthy and ripe fruits are preferred. The infestation is caused by female D. suzukii who damage the fruit skin to deposit eggs underneath with the help of their serrated ovipositor. The feeding of hatching larvae and secondary infections, which can easily penetrate through the damaged fruit, can lead to complete yield losses. A short reproductive period, a large range of host plants and infestation of the fruits, shortly before harvesting makes it extremely difficult to control the pest. Due to comparatively late infestation, the possible period of application during ripening and harvesting is limited. The same applies to the frequency of application of insecticides at this time. Possible residues on the harvested products also carry the risk of rejection of the fruit on the market. Furthermore, an incomplete knowledge of the biology, especially overwintering biology under European environmental conditions makes an effective control of this invasive pest extremely difficult. Therefore, the main research topics are the induction and refraction of the postulated diapause, the detection of any possible hibernation sites and the influence of temperature on the oviposition behaviour of D. suzukii. Based on field experiments it could be shown that successful wintering could probably only take place in forest areas. After freezing, the forest was the only place where D. suzukii could resume its flight activity at warmer temperatures. It has also been confirmed that female flies are more resistant to temperatures below freezing than male flies. Accordingly, after a frost period, hardly any male D. suzukii were caught in bait traps. Similar results have also been obtained in laboratory tests, showing that D. suzukii adapted to low temperatures and shortday conditions had lower temperature preferences and a decreased mortality after changing environmental conditions. It can therefore be assumed that overwintering D. suzukii can spread better in spring due to a lower temperature preference and a higher physical activity under cold environmental conditions than flies without adaptation to winter conditions. Bait traps were also used to determine the developmental status of the ovaries by dissecting the abdomens of weekly captured D. suzukii. This enabled a correlation between microclimatic conditions of individual habitats and the reproductive status of females to be established. In winter, the majority of female D. suzukii had “immature ovaries”, whereas in the summer most females had “mature eggs” in their abdomen. For this reason, it can be assumed that D. suzukii entered a reproductive diapause, which is apparently influenced by winter climatic conditions, nutritional status and the availability of food. In addition, it was found that the developmental status of ovaries correlates positively with oviposition. Laboratory tests were carried out to determine the highest number of egg depositions at 20 °C. Most females with “mature eggs” were also documented under these simulated conditions. We detected that the preferred surface temperature for egg depositing was very similar to the preferred ambient temperature of D. suzukii. Most of the eggs were deposited on fruits with a surface temperature of 22 °C. At this temperature, the highest net reproductive rate and intrinsic rate of population increase was found, too. Temperatures below 15 °C and above 35 °C were not preferred, which represented the thresholds for a successful development of D. suzukii. Temperatures between 10 and 15 °C and shortday conditions were the most important key stimuli for entering the reproductive diapause. Therefore, temperature had a stronger influence on oviposition behaviour than daylength. A complete disruption of diapause occurred at higher temperatures (20 °C) and longday conditions after 72 hours. The data presented in this work on the possibility of adapting D. suzukii to environmental conditions and key temperatures, which influence the development of ovaries and egg deposition, can provide an important contribution to the development of prediction and population dynamics models and can be used for long-term control strategies against D. suzukii. According to current knowledge and observations, overwintering is obviously a critical period for the survival of the populations. Therefore, the characterisation and identification of additional hibernation sites is of great importance. There, a targeted and environmentally friendly control of D. suzukii populations could be particularly efficient.