Living fast, dying young: Anthropogenic habitat modification influences the fitness and life history traits of a cooperative breeder

Alejandro Alamán, Enrique Casas, Manuel Arbelo, Oded Keynan, Lee Koren

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Anthropogenic habitat modification can indirectly effect reproduction and survival in social species by changing the group structure and social interactions. We assessed the impact of habitat modification on the fitness and life history traits of a cooperative breeder, the Arabian babbler (Argya squamiceps). We collected spatial, reproductive and social data on 572 individuals belonging to 21 social groups over 6 years and combined it with remote sensing to characterize group territories in an arid landscape. In modified resource-rich habitats, groups bred more and had greater productivity, but individuals lived shorter lives than in natural habitats. Habitat modification favoured a faster pace-of-life with lower dispersal and dominance acquisition ages, which might be driven by higher mortality providing opportunities for the dominant breeding positions. Thus, habitat modification might indirectly impact fitness through changes in social structures. This study shows that trade-offs in novel anthropogenic opportunities might offset survival costs by increased productivity.

Original languageEnglish
Article numbere14434
JournalEcology Letters
Volume27
Issue number5
DOIs
StatePublished - May 2024

Keywords

  • agricultural landscapes
  • anthropogenic modification
  • arid ecosystems
  • cooperative breeders
  • fitness
  • habitat modification
  • life history traits
  • natural habitat
  • remote sensing

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics

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