The association between parental life history and offspring phenotype in Atlantic salmon

Van Leeuwen, T. E., McLennan, D., McKelvey, S., Stewart, D. C., Adams, C. E. and Metcalfe, N. B. (2016) The association between parental life history and offspring phenotype in Atlantic salmon. Journal of Experimental Biology, 219(3), pp. 374-382. (doi: 10.1242/jeb.122531) (PMID:26596536)

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Abstract

In many taxa there is considerable intraspecific variation in life history strategies from within a single population, reflecting alternative routes through which organisms can achieve successful reproduction. Atlantic salmon Salmo salar (Linnaeus) show some of the greatest within-population variability in life history strategies amongst vertebrates, with multiple discrete male and female life histories co-existing and interbreeding on many spawning grounds, although the effect of the various combinations of life histories on offspring traits remains unknown. Using crosses of wild fish we show here that the life history strategy of both parents was significantly associated with a range of offspring traits. Mothers that had spent longer at sea (2 versus 1 year) produced offspring that were heavier, longer and in better condition at the time of first feeding. However, these relationships disappeared shortly after fry had begun feeding exogenously. At this stage, the juvenile rearing environment (i.e. time spent in fresh water as juveniles) of the mother was a better predictor of offspring traits, with mothers that were faster to develop in fresh water (migrating to sea after two rather than three years of age) producing offspring that had higher maximal metabolic rates, aerobic scopes, and that grew faster. Faster developing fathers (1 year old sneaker males) tended to produce offspring that had higher maximal metabolic rates, were in better body condition and grew faster. The results suggest that both genetic effects and those related to parental early and late life history contribute to offspring traits.

Item Type:Articles
Additional Information:T.E.V.L. was funded by the European Union INTERREG IVA Programme project 2859 ‘IBIS’ and a Natural Sciences and Engineering Council of Canada (NSERC) PGS-D3 grant, N.B.M. was funded by European Research Council Advanced Grant 322784 and Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) grant NE/N002865/1, and D.M.L. by NERC PhD studentship NE/K501098/1.
Status:Published
Refereed:Yes
Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID:Van Leeuwen, Dr Travis and Metcalfe, Professor Neil and Adams, Professor Colin
Authors: Van Leeuwen, T. E., McLennan, D., McKelvey, S., Stewart, D. C., Adams, C. E., and Metcalfe, N. B.
College/School:College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Biodiversity, One Health & Veterinary Medicine
Journal Name:Journal of Experimental Biology
Publisher:Company of Biologists
ISSN:0022-0949
ISSN (Online):1477-9145

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Project CodeAward NoProject NamePrincipal InvestigatorFunder's NameFunder RefLead Dept
613121NERC DTG 2012-2016Mary Beth KneafseyNatural Environment Research Council (NERC)NE/K501098/1VICE PRINCIPAL RESEARCH & ENTERPRISE