
Effects of early-life conditions on ageing and lifetime performance
Poor early-life conditions are often associated with increased rates of individual ageing and a reduced lifetime performance. However, the causal pathways behind such effects are poorly known. Experimental manipulations of early-life environmental variables and specific breeding designs, combined with lifelong monitoring of individual performance, are needed to determine the importance of specific variables, and establish whether effects at later age are irreversible. The precociality and relatively short lifespan of Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica) makes them an ideal bird species for such experiments. By experimentally manipulating incubation and chick rearing conditions, and by crossing selection lines with high and low investment in eggs, we are able to exactly quantify how the quality of an individual’s early-life environment translates to lifetime performance as an adult.
Publications
Vedder O, Tschirren B, Postma E, Moiron M (2023) Rapid decline of prenatal maternal effects with age is independent of postnatal environment in a precocial bird. Evolution 77, 2484-2491.
Vedder O, Bichet C, Tschirren B (2022) The effect of manipulated prenatal conditions on growth, survival, and reproduction throughout the complete life course of a precocial bird. Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution 10, 834433.
Core team
- Dr. Oscar Vedder
- Matteo Beccardi