No association between the melanocortin-1 receptor (<i>MC1R</i>) and black belly stripe size variation in the Great Tit<i>Parus major</i>

Riyahi, Sepand; Björklund, Mats; Ödeen, Andres; Senar, Juan Carlos

doi:10.1080/00063657.2014.988601

Cited by 7 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 20 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…() and suggest that tie size and exploration behaviour are thus not under the joint control of the POMC gene in a way predicted by literature. A recent study in great tits, notably, also failed to find a polymorphism at the melanocortin‐1 receptor ( MC1R ), another important gene known to have a function in melanin coloration, and could not detect an association with tie size (Riyahi et al ., ). The authors thus suggested that variation in tie size may be regulated through genetic variation in other genes or via modification of the gene expression inside the melanocortin system and melanogenesis (Riyahi et al ., ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…A recent study in great tits, notably, also failed to find a polymorphism at the melanocortin‐1 receptor ( MC1R ), another important gene known to have a function in melanin coloration, and could not detect an association with tie size (Riyahi et al ., ). The authors thus suggested that variation in tie size may be regulated through genetic variation in other genes or via modification of the gene expression inside the melanocortin system and melanogenesis (Riyahi et al ., ). As for the role of hormones, testosterone levels in great tits covary positively with tie size (Galván & Alonso‐Alvarez, ) and negatively with speed of exploration (van Oers et al ., ) which suggests that antagonistic pleiotropic effects of hormones constitute a possible explanation for the existence of coloration–behavioural syndromes.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

See 1 more Smart Citation

The correlation between coloration and exploration behaviour varies across hierarchical levels in a wild passerine bird

Nicolaus

Piault

Ubels

et al. 2016

J of Evolutionary Biology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

In vertebrates, darker individuals are often found to be more active and willing to take risks (representing characteristics of a 'proactive' coping style), whereas lighter individuals are instead more cautious and less active (representing characteristics of a 'reactive' coping style). It is thus generally expected that melanin-based coloration and proactivity form a suite of positively integrated traits at the among-individual level. Here, we use a multigenerational pedigree of free-living great tits (Parus major) to partition variation in, and the correlation between, melanin-based breast stripe ('tie') size and exploration behaviour (a proxy for coping style) into its among- and within-individual components. We show that both traits harbour heritable variation. Against predictions, tie size and speed of exploration were negatively correlated at the among-individual level due to the combined influences of permanent environmental and additive genetic effects. By contrast, the two traits were weakly positively correlated within individuals (i.e. individuals increasing in tie size after moult tended to become more explorative). The patterns of among-individual covariance were not caused by correlational selection as we found additive and opposite selection pressures acting on the two traits. These findings imply that testing hypotheses regarding the existence of a 'syndrome' at the among-individual level strictly requires variance partitioning to avoid inappropriate interpretations as the negative 'unpartitioned' phenotypic correlation between exploration and tie size resulted from counteracting effects of within- and among-individual correlations. Identifying sources and levels of (co)variation in phenotypic traits is thus critical to our understanding of biological patterns and evolutionary processes.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

The correlation between coloration and exploration behaviour varies across hierarchical levels in a wild passerine bird

Nicolaus

Piault

Ubels

et al. 2016

J of Evolutionary Biology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Most of these pleiotropic links have been hypothesised for the MC1R pathway (Ducrest et al ). However, recent work highlights that variation at the MC1R locus is not always linked to variation in melanin‐based colours and that other genes are also involved (MacDougall‐Shackleton et al , Dobson et al , Riyahi et al , Bourgeois et al ). Given the taxonomic breadth of the analysed sample it is unlikely that a single genetic mechanism is responsible for the achromatic variation measured in Australian birds.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Darker where cold and wet: Australian birds follow their own version of Gloger's rule

Delhey

2017

Ecography

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Gloger's rule is usually interpreted as predicting darker coloured animals in warmer and more humid/vegetated regions. The relative importance of temperature and rainfall or vegetation is however unclear, and often only one variable is tested at a time, mainly through proxies. Here, I assess the predictions of Gloger's rule for interspecific achromatic plumage variation (dark to light variation) for an entire avifauna (551 species of Australian landbirds). I tested the effects of climatic variables (temperature and rainfall) and vegetation structure on plumage reflectance at species and assemblage level (100 × 100 km cells), controlling for phylogenetic relatedness and spatial autocorrelation. To assess the robustness of these results I compared observed results with those of a null distribution of effects obtained from repeatedly simulating random plumage reflectance evolution on the phylogeny. At both the species and assemblage level, darker coloured birds were found in wetter and colder regions and in more densely vegetated habitats. Simulations confirm results at the species level and the effect of temperature at the assemblage level, but rainfall and vegetation effects at the assemblage level fall within the distribution of simulated effects and should be interpreted with care. Interspecific colour variation in Australian birds supports Gloger's rule for rainfall/vegetation, but shows the opposite pattern for temperature. Darker colours in wet and vegetated environments are consistent with the role of melanin pigmentation in preventing feather degradation by bacteria, but also with background‐matching for camouflage. Darker plumage might be beneficial in colder regions or detrimental in warmer regions if it affects thermoregulation, a selective force often only assumed to be of importance for ectotherms. The data highlight the need to test the generality of biogeographic rules across levels and at broad scale. Experimental work is needed to confirm the mechanisms linking plumage achromatic variation to climate.

show abstract

“…colour polymorphism) were not explained by the variation of the MC1R gene (e.g. Derelle et al 2013;Farrell et al 2015;Riyahi et al 2015;Corti et al 2018), suggesting that other mechanisms can also be important.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Sex-specific signalling of individual personality by a mutual plumage ornament in a passerine

Fülöp

Lukács

Fábián

et al. 2021

Behav Ecol Sociobiol

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The significance of colour signals in species with strong sexual dimorphism and/or elaborated visual ornaments is rather well-understood. Less attention has, however, been devoted to study colour signals in species with weak or no apparent sexual dimorphism. In such species, an interesting possibility arises as both sexes can bear the same colour ornament(s) (i.e. sexes are mutually ornamented), but their signalling value might differ in males and females. We aimed to explore this possibility by investigating the phenotypic correlates of the black bib, a melanin-based plumage ornament, in the Eurasian tree sparrow (Passer montanus). More specifically, we studied the sex-dependent relationships between bib size and three aspects of individuals’ phenotype: body condition (i.e. size-corrected body mass), physiology (i.e. cellular innate immunity/inflammation status, expressed through total leucocyte counts, and chronic physiological stress, expressed through the ratio of heterophils to lymphocytes) and individual personality (i.e. activity in a novel environment). We found that bib size was not associated with body condition and cellular innate immunity/inflammation status, but was positively related to physiological stress levels independent of sex. Furthermore, bib size was negatively associated with activity in males but positively in females. Our findings bring important correlative evidence that mutual ornamental traits may have sex-specific signalling value. Significance statement The signalling role of elaborated colourful ornaments, that are usually possessed only by males in sexually dimorphic species, is well-established. The function of various colour traits which are borne by both sexes (i.e. mutual ornaments), however, is less obvious. Do they have a signalling value in both sexes? If yes, do they signal the same information in males and females? Or, most intriguingly, can they convey different information in the two sexes? To test these alternatives, we studied the signalling value of the black bib, a melanin-based mutual plumage ornament, in Eurasian tree sparrows (Passer montanus). Apart from being correlated with chronic stress in both sexes, bib size was positively related to activity in females but negatively in males. Our results suggest that the information content of the same colour trait in males and females can be different in mutually ornamented species.

show abstract

No association between the melanocortin-1 receptor (MC1R) and black belly stripe size variation in the Great TitParus major

Cited by 7 publications

References 20 publications

The correlation between coloration and exploration behaviour varies across hierarchical levels in a wild passerine bird

The correlation between coloration and exploration behaviour varies across hierarchical levels in a wild passerine bird

Darker where cold and wet: Australian birds follow their own version of Gloger's rule

Sex-specific signalling of individual personality by a mutual plumage ornament in a passerine

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About