Integument colouration in relation to persistent organic pollutants and body condition in arctic breeding black-legged kittiwakes (Rissa tridactyla)

Abstract

Vertebrates cannot synthetize carotenoids de novo but have to acquire them through their diet. In birds, carotenoids are responsible for the yellow to red colouration of many secondary sexual traits. They are also involved in physiological functions such as immunostimulation and immunoregulation. Consequently, carotenoid-based colouration is very often considered as a reliable signal for health and foraging abilities. Although a few studies have suggested that carotenoid-based coloured traits could be sensitive to environmental pollution such as persistent organic pollutants (POPs) contamination, the relationships between pollutants and colouration remain unclear. Here, we examined the relationships between the colouration of carotenoid-based integuments and individual POP levels in pre-laying female black-legged kittiwakes from very high latitudes. In this area, these arctic seabirds are exposed to high POPs contamination. Additionally, we investigated the relationships between colouration and body condition, a frequently used index of individual quality. We found a negative relationship between POP levels and several components of integument colouration: saturation of eye-ring, gapes and tongue, suggesting that POPs could disrupt colouration of labile integuments in female kittiwakes. In addition, we found that females in better body condition displayed more orange and brighter gapes and tongue than females in poor body condition. These results demonstrate that hue and brightness are sensitive to the current health and nutritional status of female kittiwakes. Overall, our study shows that carotenoid-based colour integuments can be affected by several environmentaldriven variables.

Coloured ornamental traits could be effective and non-invasive indicators of pollution exposure for wildlife

“…( McGree et al ., 2010 ). ( G ) Gape and tongue colouration of female black-legged kittiwakes ( Rissa tridactyla ) with low ( i ) or high concentrations of pesticides and PCBs in blood ( ii ; Blévin et al ., 2014 ). Photographs by Olivier Chastel.…”

Signaling in a Polluted World: Oxidative Stress as an Overlooked Mechanism Linking Contaminants to Animal Communication

“…We now need experimental work that seeks to assess the extent to which contamination-induced OS impacts on sexual signaling. We also need more studies to fully understand whether sexual signals could reliably be applied to monitor contaminant exposure in natural animal populations (Blévin et al, 2014;Giraudeau et al, 2015). Although in our minireview we have not included literature on the impact of pesticides on OS and signaling, we highlight that our argumentations also apply to this important class of contaminants.…”

“…Reprinted fromVallverdú-Coll et al (2016) with permission from John Wiley and Sons; (B) Wild female black-legged kittiwakes (Rissa tridactyla) with higher blood concentrations of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) had paler carotenoid-based colorations in the gapes. Modified fromBlévin et al (2014). Photographs were courteously provided by Frédéric Angelier.…”

Carotenoids increase immunity and sex specifically affect color and redox homeostasis in a monochromatic seabird

“…RGB components were then converted into hue, saturation, and brightness values. This method has already been investigated on black-legged kittiwakes (Leclaire et al 2011a(Leclaire et al , 2011bBlévin et al 2014), and information obtained from digital pictures is still useful as it reveals patterns of biological meaning (Alonso-Alvarez et al 2004;Mougeot et al 2007b;Leclaire et al 2011aLeclaire et al , 2011bBlévin et al 2014).…”