Weak effects on growth and cannibalism under fluctuating temperatures in damselfly larvae.

ABSTRACT: The Earth's climate is changing with a trend towards higher mean temperatures and increased temperature fluctuations. Little attention has been paid to the effects of thermal variation on competition within species. Understanding the temperature-dependence of competition is important since it might affect dynamics within and between populations. In a laboratory experiment we investigated the effects of thermal variation on growth and cannibalism in larvae of a damselfly. The temperature treatments included three amplitudes between 20 and 26 °C with an average of 23 °C, and a constant control at 23 °C. Larvae were also raised at five constant temperatures for an estimation of the thermal performance curve, which showed that the thermal optimum for growth was 26.9 °C. Cannibalism was signifi

SUBMITTER: Holzmann KL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9334275 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature