Developmental plasticity of growth and digestive efficiency in dependence of early-life food availability.

ABSTRACT: Nutrition is a potent mediator of developmental plasticity. If food is scarce, developing organisms may invest into growth to outgrow size-dependent mortality (short-term benefit) and/or into an efficient digestion system (long-term benefit). We investigated this potential trade-off, by determining the influence of food availability on juvenile body and organ growth, and on adult digestive efficiency in the cichlid fish Simochromis pleurospilus. We reared two groups of fish at constant high or low food rations, and we switched four other groups between these two rations at an early and late juvenile period. We measured juvenile growth and organ sizes at different developmental stages and determined adult digestive efficiency. Fish kept at constant, high rations grew considerably fas

SUBMITTER: Kotrschal A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4384755 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature