Extreme temperatures compromise male and female fertility in a large desert bird

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dc.contributor.authorSchou, M F
dc.contributor.authorBonato, M
dc.contributor.authorEngelbrecht, A
dc.date.accessioned2022-08-04T16:09:35Z
dc.date.available2022-08-04T16:09:35Z
dc.date.issued2021
dc.description.abstractTemperature has a crucial influence on the places where species can survive and reproduce. Past research has primarily focused on survival, making it unclear if temperature fluctuations constrain reproductive success, and if so whether populations harbour the potential to respond to climatic shifts. Here, using two decades of data from a large experimental breeding programme of the iconic ostrich (Struthio camelus) in South Africa, we show that the number of eggs females laid and the number of sperm males produced were highly sensitive to natural temperature extremes (ranging from −5 °C to 45 °C). This resulted in reductions in reproductive success of up to 44% with 5 °C deviations from their thermal optimum. In contrast, gamete quality was largely unaffected by temperature. Extreme temperatures also did not expose trade-offs between gametic traits. Instead, some females appeared to invest more in reproducing at high temperatures, which may facilitate responses to climate change. These results show that the robustness of fertility to temperature fluctuations, and not just temperature increases, is a critical aspect of species persistence in regions predicted to undergo the greatest change in climate volatility.en_US
dc.identifier.citationSchou, Mads Fristrup & Bonato, Maud & Engelbrecht, Anel & Brand, Zanell & Svensson, Erik & Melgar, Julian & Muvhali, Tonny & Cloete, Schalk & Cornwallis, Charlie. (2021). Extreme temperatures compromise male and female fertility in a large desert bird. Nature Communications. 12. 10.1038/s41467-021-20937-7.en_US
dc.identifier.issn2041-1723
dc.identifier.uri10.1038/s41467-021-20937-7
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10566/7684
dc.language.isoenen_US
dc.publisherNature Researchen_US
dc.subjectExtreme temperaturesen_US
dc.subjectcompromiseen_US
dc.subjectmale fertilityen_US
dc.subjectfemale fertilityen_US
dc.subjectlarge desert birden_US
dc.titleExtreme temperatures compromise male and female fertility in a large desert birden_US
dc.typeArticleen_US

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