Differential reproductive plasticity under thermal variability in a freshwater fish (Danio rerio)

Abstract

Human-driven increases in global mean temperatures are associated with concomitant increases in thermal variability. Yet, few studies have explored the impacts of thermal variability on fitness-related traits, limiting our ability to predict how organisms will respond to dynamic thermal changes. Among the myriad organismal responses to thermal variability, one of the most proximate to fitness—and, thus, a population's ability to persist—is reproduction. Here, we examine how a model freshwater fish (Danio rerio) responds to diel thermal fluctuations that span the species's viable developmental range of temperatures. We specifically investigate reproductive performance metrics including spawning success, fecundity, egg provisioning and sperm concentration. Notably, we apply thermal variability treatments during two ontogenetic timepoints to disentangle the relative effects of developmental plasticity and reversible acclimation. We found evidence of direct, negative effects of thermal variability during later ontogenetic stages on reproductive performance metrics. We also found complex interactive effects of early and late-life exposure to thermal variability, with evidence of beneficial acclimation of spawning success and modification of the relationship between fecundity and egg provisioning. Our findings illuminate the plastic life-history modifications that fish may undergo as their thermal environments become increasingly variable.