10.5061/DRYAD.WPZGMSBJD
Makin, Douglas Ferguson
0000-0001-7168-4436
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev
Kotler, Burt P.
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev
Brown, Joel S.
University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign
Garrido, Mario
0000-0001-7899-8913
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev
Menezes, Jorge F. S.
Ben-Gurion University of the Negev
Data from: The enemy within: how does a bacterium inhibit the foraging
aptitude and risk management behavior of Allenby’s gerbils?
Dryad
dataset
2020
Behavior:antipredator
Ecology:behavioral
Ecology:microbial
mammal
2020-07-24T00:00:00Z
2020-07-24T00:00:00Z
en
216378 bytes
2
CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication
Microbes inhabiting multi-cellular organisms have complex, often subtle
effects on their hosts. Gerbillus andersoni allenbyi are commonly infected
with the Mycoplasma haemomuris-like bacteria, which may cause mild
nutrient (choline, arginine) deficiencies. However, are there more serious
ecological consequences of infection such as effects on foraging aptitudes
and risk management? We tested alternatives: 1) nutrient compensation
hypothesis, does nutrient deficiency induce infected gerbils to make up
for the shortfall by foraging more and taking greater risks? or
2) lethargy hypothesis, do sick gerbils forage less, and are they
compromised in their ability to detect predators or risky microhabitats?
We compared the foraging and risk management behavior of infected and
non-infected gerbils. We experimentally infected gerbils with the
bacteria, which allowed us to compare between non-infected, acutely
infected (peak infection loads), and chronically infected (low infection
loads) individuals. Our findings supported the lethargy hypothesis over
the nutrient compensation hypothesis. Infected individuals
incurred dramatically elevated foraging costs, including less efficient
foraging, diminished “quality” of time spent vigilant, and increased owl
predation. Interestingly, gerbils that were chronically infected (lower
bacteria load) experienced larger ecological costs than acutely infected
individuals (i.e. peak infection loads). This suggests that the
debilitating effects of infection occur gradually, with a progressive
decline in the quality of time gerbils allocated to foraging and
managing risk. These increased long-term costs of infection demonstrate
how small direct physiological costs of infection can lead to large
indirect ecological costs. The indirect ecological costs of this parasite
appear much greater than the direct physiological costs.