Effects of the social environment during adolescence on the development of social behaviour, hormones and morphology in male zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata)

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• 作者：Stefanie Bölting ; Nikolaus von Engelhardt
• 关键词：Social environment ; Adolescence ; Social interactions ; Maturation ; Testosterone ; Corticosterone ; Plumage colouration ; Courtship ; Aggression ; Song
• 刊名：Frontiers in Zoology
• 出版年：2017
• 出版时间：December 2017
• 年：2017
• 卷：14
• 期：1
• 全文大小：1155KB
• 刊物主题：Zoology; Applied Ecology; Biodiversity; Animal Physiology;
• 出版者：BioMed Central
• ISSN：1742-9994
• 卷排序：14

文摘

BackgroundIndividual differences in behaviour are widespread in the animal kingdom and often influenced by the size or composition of the social group during early development. In many vertebrates the effects of social interactions early in life on adult behaviour are mediated by changes in maturation and physiology. Specifically, increases in androgens and glucocorticoids in response to social stimulation seem to play a prominent role in shaping behaviour during development. In addition to the prenatal and early postnatal phase, adolescence has more recently been identified as an important period during which adult behaviour and physiology are shaped by the social environment, which so far has been studied mostly in mammals. We raised zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata) under three environmental conditions differing in social complexity during adolescence - juvenile pairs, juvenile groups, and mixed-age groups - and studied males’ behavioural, endocrine, and morphological maturation, and later their adult behaviour.