Body Size, Physiological Time, and Longevity of Homeothermic Animals

Lindstedt, Stan L.; Calder, William A.

doi:10.1086/412080

Cited by 366 publications

(248 citation statements)

References 36 publications

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“…Life history factors are often coupled with energetic constraints (see McNab, 1980;Lindstedt and Calder, 1981;Calder, 1984), and it follows that phylogeny may play an important role in setting energetic costs, even at lower taxonomic (familial, generic) levels. For example, Kenagy and Bartholomew's (1985) study of reproductive pat-terns in five coexisting desert rodents shows that, although the diurnal antelope ground squirrel {Ammospermophilus leucurus) is sympatric with four nocturnal heteromyids, its timing of reproduction and reproductive effort are more similar to marmotine squirrels (ground squirrels, marmots, prairie dogs, chipmunks) than to the heteromyids.…”

Section: Problems and Perspectives In The Costs Of Mammalian Reproducmentioning

confidence: 99%

Energy Allocation in Mammalian Reproduction

Gittleman

Thompson

1988

Am Zool

739

523

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SYNOPSIS. On behavioral, hormonal, and physiological grounds, mammalian reproduction can be compartmentalized into the following continuous sequence of events: mating (courtship, estrous), gestation, parturition, lactation, post-lactational parental care, and maternal recovery. We point out that comparing the relative allocation of energy for these events across mammals is difficult because of life history variability (e.g., litter size, birth weight), allometry, phylogeny, and individual variation. We review the empirical and theoretical literature on each of these events with respect to: different methodologies in measuring energy use; broad patterns of energy consumption across diverse mammalian taxa; and, identification of particular reproductive characteristics {e.g., birthing, parental care) which may be costly but have yet to receive energetic measurements. Although most studies have considered gestation and lactation the critical reproductive events for energy expenditure, variation in these events is substantial and almost certainly is a function of relative allocation of time to gestation vs. lactation as well as the presumed energetic costs of mating, birthing and parental care. In addition, repeated observations show that behavioral compensation is an extremely important strategy for minimizing energy requirements during reproduction. From this review, we argue that more complete analyses will come from (1) incorporating energetic measurements in studies of mammalian behavior and (2) including mechanisms of behavioral compensation into physiological studies.

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Section: Problems and Perspectives In The Costs Of Mammalian Reproducmentioning

confidence: 99%

Energy Allocation in Mammalian Reproduction

Gittleman

Thompson

1988

Am Zool

739

523

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“…Maximum lifespan in vertebrates, for example, ranges from up to 211 years in the bowhead whale (Balaena mysticetus; [1]), down to just eight weeks in the pygmy goby (Eviota sigillata; [2]). Like most other life-history traits, lifespan varies strongly with body size such that large species tend to live longer than smaller species [3][4][5][6]. However, many species have far longer, or indeed shorter, lives than expected given their body mass (figure 1).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ecology and mode-of-life explain lifespan variation in birds and mammals

et al. 2014

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Maximum lifespan in birds and mammals varies strongly with body mass such that large species tend to live longer than smaller species. However, many species live far longer than expected given their body mass. This may reflect interspecific variation in extrinsic mortality, as life-history theory predicts investment in long-term survival is under positive selection when extrinsic mortality is reduced. Here, we investigate how multiple ecological and mode-of-life traits that should reduce extrinsic mortality (including volancy (flight capability), activity period, foraging environment and fossoriality), simultaneously influence lifespan across endotherms. Using novel phylogenetic comparative analyses and to our knowledge, the most species analysed to date (n ¼ 1368), we show that, over and above the effect of body mass, the most important factor enabling longer lifespan is the ability to fly. Within volant species, lifespan depended upon when (day, night, dusk or dawn), but not where (in the air, in trees or on the ground), species are active. However, the opposite was true for non-volant species, where lifespan correlated positively with both arboreality and fossoriality. Our results highlight that when studying the molecular basis behind cellular processes such as those underlying lifespan, it is important to consider the ecological selection pressures that shaped them over evolutionary time.

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“…Our measure of reproduction was calculated as annual offspring production, which was simply the product of litter size and the number of litters per year. Body mass was included in the analyses and log-transformed due to its allometric scaling with longevity and aging (e.g., Speakman 2005a, b;Lindstedt and Calder 1981). Maximum longevity was also log-transformed.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Diet mediates the relationship between longevity and reproduction in mammals

Wilder

Couteur

Simpson

2012

AGE

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The disposable soma hypothesis posits a negative correlation between longevity and reproduction, presumably because these aspects of fitness compete for a limited pool of nutrients. However, diet, which varies widely among animals, could affect the availability of key nutrients required for both reproduction and longevity, especially protein. We used a comparative database of mammal life history data to test the hypothesis that carnivores experience less of a negative relationship between reproduction and longevity than herbivores. Annual reproduction and adult mass were significant predictors of longevity among all mammals; although, the relative importance of reproduction and mass for explaining longevity varied among trophic levels. In herbivores, reproduction was a stronger predictor of longevity than mass. Carnivores showed the opposite pattern with reproduction explaining much less of the variation in longevity. Omnivores showed an intermediate pattern with mass and reproduction explaining similar amounts of variation in longevity. In addition, longevity and reproduction were significantly higher in omnivores than herbivores and carnivores, which were not different from each other. Higher dietary protein at higher trophic levels may allow mammals to avoid potential conflicts between reproduction and longevity. However, there may be potential costs of carnivorous diets that limit the overall performance of carnivores and explain the peak in reproduction and longevity for omnivores.

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Body Size, Physiological Time, and Longevity of Homeothermic Animals

Cited by 366 publications

References 36 publications

Energy Allocation in Mammalian Reproduction

Energy Allocation in Mammalian Reproduction

Ecology and mode-of-life explain lifespan variation in birds and mammals

Diet mediates the relationship between longevity and reproduction in mammals

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