Carrying eggs uphill: are costs of reproduction stronger on steeper slopes?

Author:

Gilbert Anthony L.1ORCID,Shine Richard23ORCID,Warner Daniel A.12

Affiliation:

1. Department of Biological Sciences, Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849, USA

2. School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney, New South Wales 2006, Australia

3. School of Natural Sciences, Macquarie University, Sydney, New South Wales 2109, Australia

Abstract

Locomotor impairment during pregnancy is a well-documented cost of reproduction, but most empirical studies have not incorporated ecological complexity, such as locomotion on sloping inclines rather than horizontal surfaces. Biomechanical factors suggest that carrying a heavy burden—including shifts in the body's centre of mass—may impair locomotor ability even more when an animal is running uphill. If so, then measuring costs of reproduction on horizontal racetracks may underestimate these costs in nature for arboreal species. To evaluate this prediction, we measured the pregnancy-induced reduction in speed for jacky dragons ( Amphibolurus muricatus ) at inclines ranging from 0 to 45°. Both pregnancy and steeper slopes reduced lizard performance, but pregnancy did not exacerbate the locomotor decrement on steeper racetracks. An ability to maintain mobility on steep slopes during pregnancy may be a target of selection in arboreal taxa. To understand the evolutionary context of locomotion-based costs of reproduction, we also need studies on the relationship between organismal performance and ecologically relevant measures such as predation risk.

Publisher

The Royal Society

Subject

General Agricultural and Biological Sciences,Agricultural and Biological Sciences (miscellaneous)

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