McLennan 2023 Abstract IOC160

McLennan D (2023) Maximal rates of mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation predict territorial performance in brown trout. Mitochondr Physiol Network 28.01.

Link: IOC160

McLennan Darryl (2023)

Event: IOC160

In social hierarchies, establishing dominance over competing conspecifics confers better access to food, shelter, and reproductive opportunity. Dominance status has previously been linked to body size and prior residency (i.e., who was there first); however, experimental studies have shown that even when opponents are size- and residency-matched, clear dominance hierarchies often still become established. One explanation for this may be among-individual variation in metabolic rate, since a higher metabolic rate could allow a greater allocation of energy to dominance-related traits, such as aggressive behaviours. In this study, size-matched brown trout (Salmo trutta) were tested for their ability to fight for territories in a landscaped artificial stream tank, based on two days of behavioural observations on colouration, aggressive behaviour and food acquisition. Each individual faced 3 opponents, so that each fish could be ranked from most competitive (winning all three territorial battles) to least (losing all three). We then measured their mitochondrial function. Mitochondrial efficiency (i.e., the number of ATP produced per molecule O₂ consumed) was unrelated to any of our measured dominance-related traits. However, we found that maximal rates of oxidative phosphorylation at the mitochondrial level were positively correlated with an individual’s territorial performance – individuals with higher phosphorylation were better at acquiring food, were more aggressive and were therefore more likely to establish overall dominance. This study exemplifies how there can be clear links between mitochondrial bioenergetics and an individual’s overall performance.

• Bioblast editor: Plangger M • O2k-Network Lab: UK Glasgow Metcalfe NB

Labels: MiParea: Respiration, Comparative MiP;environmental MiP 

Organism: Fishes 

HRR: Oxygraph-2k 

Affiliations

School of Biodiversity, One Health and Veterinary Medicine, College of Medical, Veterinary and Life Sciences, University of Glasgow, UK