Individual size, sex, and rearing environment impact on aggression in newly weaned seals

Robinson, Kelly J.; Pomeroy, Patrick P.; Hazon, Neil; Moss, Simon; Twiss, Sean D.

doi:10.1111/mms.12367

Cited by 6 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…Pens were constructed as described by Robinson et al . [ 14 , 16 ], with permission from Scottish National Heritage and in accordance with UK Home Office guidelines on suitable temporary holding facilities for grey seals, and were taken down once the trials were complete. Holding pens measured approximately 15 × 10 m each and contained pools of fresh water.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Pups less than 30 kg initially were excluded from the study. Early release criteria based on mass loss was set in accordance with previous studies to avoid extending the post-weaning fasting period unnaturally [ 14 , 16 , 17 ]. None of the study animals lost sufficient mass to warrant early release.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Whether a trial pair was given the oxytocin or saline manipulation first was randomized to investigate any order effects in giving the manipulation. The same pair of individuals was used for an oxytocin and saline control manipulation as consistent individual differences in investigative [ 23 ] and aggressive behaviour [ 14 , 16 ] are present in both adult and newly weaned grey seals. Newly weaned seals cannot recognize other conspecifics after only one hour of exposure to them, and treat them as if they are novel individuals [ 16 ].…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The same pair of individuals was used for an oxytocin and saline control manipulation as consistent individual differences in investigative [ 23 ] and aggressive behaviour [ 14 , 16 ] are present in both adult and newly weaned grey seals. Newly weaned seals cannot recognize other conspecifics after only one hour of exposure to them, and treat them as if they are novel individuals [ 16 ]. They show no change in the frequency of aggressive, investigative or affiliation behaviour towards each other, and no change in the amount of time in close proximity to each other [ 16 ].…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Positive social behaviours are induced and retained after oxytocin manipulations mimicking endogenous concentrations in a wild mammal

et al. 2017

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The neuropeptide hormone oxytocin modulates numerous social and parental behaviours across a wide range of species, including humans. We conducted manipulation experiments on wild grey seals (Halichoerus grypus) to determine whether oxytocin increases proximity-seeking behaviour, which has previously been correlated with endogenous oxytocin concentrations in wild seal populations. Pairs of seals that had never met previously were given intravenous injections of 0.41 µg kg−1 oxytocin or saline and were observed for 1 h post-manipulation. The dose was designed to mimic endogenous oxytocin concentrations during the observation period, and is one of the lowest doses used to manipulate behaviour to date. Seals given oxytocin spent significantly more time in close proximity to each other, confirming that oxytocin causes conspecifics to seek others out and remain close to one another. Aggressive and investigative behaviours also significantly fell after oxytocin manipulations. Despite using a minimal oxytocin dose, pro-social behavioural changes unexpectedly persisted for 2 days despite rapid dose clearance from circulation post-injection. This study verifies that oxytocin promotes individuals staying together, demonstrating how the hormone can form positive feedback loops of oxytocin release following conspecific stimuli, increased motivation to remain in close proximity and additional oxytocin release from stimuli received while in close proximity.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Positive social behaviours are induced and retained after oxytocin manipulations mimicking endogenous concentrations in a wild mammal

et al. 2017

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“…While the number of nursing attempts, or time spent Presenting/Nursing here, is not an accurate measure for amount of energy transferred (Cameron 1998), a theoretical minimum in Presenting/Nursing effort must exist and is likely strongly selected for in these seals. Given that we are also unable to follow the behaviour of the pup through accelerometry, Presenting/Nursing effort remains a loose approximation of maternal investment and can also be heavily influenced by proximity to the pup, the pup's effort to nurse, milk production capacity, and hormone levels (Robinson et al 2015(Robinson et al , 2016. Likewise, seals should not overexert their energy output during lactation, or they risk jeopardizing subsequent breeding attempts (Pomeroy et al 1999;McMahon et al 2016;Bubac et al 2018).…”

Section: Patterns In Presenting/nursingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Coping styles in capital breeders modulate behavioural trade-offs in time allocation: assessing fine-scale activity budgets in lactating grey seals (Halichoerus grypus) using accelerometry and heart rate variability

Shuert

Pomeroy

Twiss

2019

Behav Ecol Sociobiol

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Balancing time allocation among competing behaviours is an essential part of energy management for all animals. However, trade-offs in time allocation may vary according to the sex of the individual, their age, and even underlying physiology. During reproduction, higher energetic demands and constrained internal resources place greater demand on optimizing these trade-offs insofar that small adjustments in time-activity may lead to substantial effects on an individual's limited energy budget. The most extreme case is found in animals that undergo capital breeding, where individuals fast for the duration of each reproductive episode. We investigated potential underlying drivers of time-activity and describe aspects of trade-offs in time-activity in a wild, capital breeding pinniped, the grey seal Halichoerus grypus, during the lactation period. For the first time, we were able to access full 24-h activity budgets across the core duration of lactation as well as characterize how aspects of stress-coping styles influence time allocation through the use of animal-borne accelerometers and heart rate monitors in situ. We found that there was a distinct trade-off in time activity between time spent Resting and Alert (vigilance). This trade-off varied with the pup's development, date, and maternal stress-coping style as indicated by a measure of heart rate variability, rMSSD. In contrast, time spent Presenting/ Nursing did not vary across the duration of lactation given the variables tested. We suggest that while mothers balance time spent conserving resources (Resting) against time expending energy (Alert), they are also influenced by the inherent physiological drivers of stress-coping styles. Significance statement How animals apportion their time among different behaviours is key to their success. These trade-offs should be finely balanced to avoid unnecessary energy expenditure. Here, we examine how grey seal mothers balance their activity patterns during the short, but energetically demanding, period of pup-rearing. Animal-borne accelerometers provided a uniquely detailed and continuous record of activity during pup-rearing for 38 mothers. We also used heart rate monitors to provide measures of each individual's stress-coping style. We found that mothers balance time Resting against remaining Alert while time Presenting/ Nursing was largely independent of all factors measured. Stress-coping styles were found to drive the balancing and variation of all behaviours. This novel indication that differences in personality-like traits may drive whole activity budgets should be considered when assessing trade-offs in time allocation across a much wider variety of species.

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Pinniped ‘Personality’, or Consistent Individual Differences

DeRango

Schwarz

2021

Ethology and Behavioral Ecology of Otariids and the Odobenid

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Individual size, sex, and rearing environment impact on aggression in newly weaned seals

Cited by 6 publications

References 31 publications

Positive social behaviours are induced and retained after oxytocin manipulations mimicking endogenous concentrations in a wild mammal

Positive social behaviours are induced and retained after oxytocin manipulations mimicking endogenous concentrations in a wild mammal

Coping styles in capital breeders modulate behavioural trade-offs in time allocation: assessing fine-scale activity budgets in lactating grey seals (Halichoerus grypus) using accelerometry and heart rate variability

Pinniped ‘Personality’, or Consistent Individual Differences

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