Seasonal Carryover Effects following the Administration of Cortisol to a Wild Teleost Fish
- 1 November 2010
- journal article
- Published by University of Chicago Press in Physiological and Biochemical Zoology
- Vol. 83 (6), 950-957
- https://doi.org/10.1086/656286
Abstract
Stress can have sublethal effects that are manifested either immediately or at spatial or temporal scales that are removed from the stress event (i.e., carryover effects). We tested whether a short-term elevation of plasma cortisol would result in seasonal carryover effects in wild largemouth bass Micropterus salmoides. Using exogenous hormone implants, we raised circulating cortisol concentrations in a group of wild fish for approximately 5 d in October 2007. We then compared activity (velocity, distance traveled) of cortisol-treated animals with that of sham-treated and control animals throughout the winter using an automated acoustic telemetry array. Immediately following treatment, the cortisol-treated fish showed increased activity relative to controls. However, this difference disappeared following the cessation of the elevation of circulating cortisol. During the winter of 2007 to 2008, the lake experienced a nearly complete winterkill event, providing insight into how a transient stress response can influence the response of wild animals to subsequent challenges. Most fish carrying acoustic transmitters succumbed during this winterkill event, but cortisol-treated fish died earlier than fish in other groups and showed a decrease in activity relative to controls and sham-treated fish before mortality. This study provides preliminary evidence of seasonal carryover effects in wild fish and yields insight into the ecological consequences of stress across broad temporal scales.Keywords
This publication has 42 references indexed in Scilit:
- Effect of water temperature on laboratory swimming performance and natural activity levels of adult largemouth bassCanadian Journal of Zoology, 2009
- Effects of corticosterone pellets on baseline and stress-induced corticosterone and corticosteroid-binding-globulinGeneral and Comparative Endocrinology, 2009
- Predicting the consequences of carry-over effects for migratory populationsBiology Letters, 2005
- Winter Habitat Use by Adult Largemouth Bass in the Pend Oreille River, IdahoNorth American Journal of Fisheries Management, 2004
- Effects of suture material on incision healing, growth and survival of juvenile largemouth bass implanted with miniature radio transmitters: case study of a novice and experienced fish surgeonJournal of Fish Biology, 2003
- Clove Oil as an Anesthetic for Invasive Field Procedures on Adult Rainbow TroutNorth American Journal of Fisheries Management, 2000
- Overwinter Growth and Survival of Largemouth Bass: Interactions among Size, Food, Origin, and Winter SeverityTransactions of the American Fisheries Society, 2000
- Noninvasive Corticosterone Treatment Rapidly Increases Activity in Gambel's White-Crowned Sparrows (Zonotrichia leucophrys gambelii)General and Comparative Endocrinology, 1998
- Largemouth Bass Response to Habitat and Water Quality Rehabilitation in a Backwater of the Upper Mississippi RiverNorth American Journal of Fisheries Management, 1995
- Experimental control of stress hormone levels in fishes: techniques and applicationsReviews in Fish Biology and Fisheries, 1994