Chronic repeated exposure to weather‐related stimuli elicits few symptoms of chronic stress in captive molting and non‐molting European starlings (<i>Sturnus vulgaris</i>)

Bruijn, Robert de; Reed, J. Michael; Romero, L. Michael

doi:10.1002/jez.2134

Cited by 9 publications

(5 citation statements)

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“…In both studies, corticosterone levels decreased over time, potentially indicating that birds were habituating to housing conditions throughout the study. In study 1 there were no detectable effects on corticosterone, replicating earlier studies showing that songbirds can respond to storm cues without modulating glucocorticoid levels (Breuner et al, 2013;de Bruijn et al, 2017). In contrast, in study 2 we found lower corticosterone levels in birds exposed to inclement winter weather cues twice per week.…”

Section: Corticosteronesupporting

confidence: 87%

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High Rates of Exposure to Simulated Winter Storm Cues Negatively Affect White-Throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis) Energy Reserves

Boyer

MacDougall‐Shackleton

2020

Front. Ecol. Evol.

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Birds are often able to cope with, and respond to, inclement weather with physiological and behavioral responses. As storms become more severe or frequent as a result of climate change, the adaptive coping responses of many species may be pushed beyond current tolerance limits. We investigated the effects of experimental recurrent inclement winter weather cues on body composition, glucocorticoid hormones, and behavior of white-throated sparrows (Zonotrichia albicollis). We used a hypobaric climatic wind tunnel to simulate storms by transiently decreasing barometric pressure and temperature, and measured behavioral responses, body composition, and baseline corticosterone levels in birds exposed, or not exposed (control), to different frequencies of simulated storms. In study 1, experimental birds were exposed to one storm per week over 9 weeks. In study 2, experimental birds were exposed to two storms per week over 12 weeks. Birds exposed to one simulated storm per week had higher fat and lean masses than control birds, with no differences in the amount of time groups spent feeding. This change in body composition suggests that birds were coping by increasing energy stores. In contrast, birds exposed to two simulated storms per week had lower fat masses compared to control birds, even though they spent more time feeding. Experimental birds in study 2 also had lower baseline corticosterone levels than controls. These changes suggest that the coping response observed in study 1 was not possible in study 2. These findings provide novel experimental evidence that birds detect and respond to changes in temperature and barometric pressure independent of other storm-related cues. One simulated storm per week resulted in potentially adaptive responses of increased mass. However, increasing the frequency of storm exposure to twice per week exceeded the birds' capacity to maintain these energy reserves. These results also experimentally demonstrate that repeated exposure to inclement weather cues can directly affect birds' energy reserves, even in the absence of a storm itself, with strong implications for survival as severe weather events continue to become more prevalent.

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Section: Corticosteronesupporting

confidence: 87%

“…This may represent a downregulation of the HPA axis under chronic stress conditions (de Bruijn et al, 2017). Indeed, the relationship between environmental stressors and baseline corticosterone levels is not as established as some studies suggest.…”

Section: Corticosteronementioning

confidence: 96%

High Rates of Exposure to Simulated Winter Storm Cues Negatively Affect White-Throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis) Energy Reserves

Boyer

MacDougall‐Shackleton

2020

Front. Ecol. Evol.

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“…It is possible that the ACTH response between the CRH/AVP and shearing challenges differed because the shearing challenge had to be psychologically perceived in order to activate the HPA-axis. The increase in ACTH responding to the shearing challenge, however, is a classic sign of down-regulation of the HPA-axis during chronic stress while maintaining responsivity to novel challenges [45, 48–50]. This down regulation of the HPA-axis may be protective against the detrimental effects of long-term high levels of circulating glucocorticoids in chronically stressed animals.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Chronic stress influences attentional and judgement bias and the activity of the HPA axis in sheep

et al. 2019

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IntroductionEnvironmental challenges are part of everyday life for most domestic animals. However, very little is known about how animals cope emotionally and physiologically with cumulative challenges. This experiment aimed to determine the impact of long-term exposure to environmental challenges on the affective state and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis responses to a subsequent additional acute shearing challenge.MethodsSheep were exposed to either a long-term environmental challenge (rest disruption and individual housing) in order to induce chronic stress (chronic stress group) or control conditions (group housing in a field with low stress handling and daily feed rewards, control group). Judgement and attention bias were assessed as measures of the emotional state following several days of the challenge or control treatment (pre-shearing tests). In addition, the responsiveness of the HPA-axis was evaluated using a combined Corticotropin Releasing Hormone and Arginine Vasopressin (CRH/AVP) challenge. Finally, all animals were exposed to an acute shearing challenge, then judgement bias (post-shearing test), HPA-axis and internal body temperature responses were determined.ResultsIn the pre-shearing judgement bias test, the chronic stress group slightly increased optimism compared to the control treatment. In the attention bias test, the chronic stress group showed reduced vigilance behaviour towards a predator threat and a quicker approach to the food compared to the control treatment. The chronic stress group also had lower plasma ACTH concentrations in response to the CRH/AVP challenge compared to the control group, no differences in cortisol concentrations were found. In the post-shearing judgement bias test, differences in optimism were no longer evident between the chronic stress and control groups. Plasma ACTH concentrations and body temperatures showed a greater increase in response to shearing in the chronic stress group compared to the control group.ConclusionOur results suggest that long-term exposure to challenges biased cognitive measures of the affective state towards an increased expectation of a reward and reduced attention towards a threat. The exaggerated ACTH responses in the chronic stress group may be indicative of HPA-axis dysregulation. Despite a period of challenge exposure in the chronic stress group, judgement bias responses to the shearing challenge were similar in the chronic stress and control groups; the reasons for this need further investigation. The altered affective state together with signs of HPA-axis dysregulation may indicate an increased risk of compromised welfare in animals exposed to long-term environmental challenges.

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“…Birds exposed to two simulated storms per week may lower corticosterone levels to conserve energy. This may represent a downregulation of the HPA axis under chronic stress conditions (de Bruijn et al, 2017). Indeed, the relationship between environmental stressors and baseline corticosterone levels is not as established as some studies suggest.…”

Section: Corticosteronementioning

confidence: 96%

The Impact of Weather on the Behavior and Ecology of Birds

Sharp¹,

Mainwaring²,

Nord³

2021

Frontiers Research Topics

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Frontiers is more than just an open-access publisher of scholarly articles: it is a pioneering approach to the world of academia, radically improving the way scholarly research is managed. The grand vision of Frontiers is a world where all people have an equal opportunity to seek, share and generate knowledge. Frontiers provides immediate and permanent online open access to all its publications, but this alone is not enough to realize our grand goals. Frontiers Journal SeriesThe Frontiers Journal Series is a multi-tier and interdisciplinary set of open-access, online journals, promising a paradigm shift from the current review, selection and dissemination processes in academic publishing. All Frontiers journals are driven by researchers for researchers; therefore, they constitute a service to the scholarly community. At the same time, the Frontiers Journal Series operates on a revolutionary invention, the tiered publishing system, initially addressing specific communities of scholars, and gradually climbing up to broader public understanding, thus serving the interests of the lay society, too. Dedication to QualityEach Frontiers article is a landmark of the highest quality, thanks to genuinely collaborative interactions between authors and review editors, who include some of the world's best academicians. Research must be certified by peers before entering a stream of knowledge that may eventually reach the public -and shape society; therefore, Frontiers only applies the most rigorous and unbiased reviews. Frontiers revolutionizes research publishing by freely delivering the most outstanding research, evaluated with no bias from both the academic and social point of view. By applying the most advanced information technologies, Frontiers is catapulting scholarly publishing into a new generation.

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Chronic repeated exposure to weather‐related stimuli elicits few symptoms of chronic stress in captive molting and non‐molting European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris)

Cited by 9 publications

References 56 publications

High Rates of Exposure to Simulated Winter Storm Cues Negatively Affect White-Throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis) Energy Reserves

High Rates of Exposure to Simulated Winter Storm Cues Negatively Affect White-Throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis) Energy Reserves

Chronic stress influences attentional and judgement bias and the activity of the HPA axis in sheep

The Impact of Weather on the Behavior and Ecology of Birds

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