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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 21, 2026

Fecal Glucocorticoid Analysis: Non-invasive Adrenal Monitoring in Equids

Fecal Glucocorticoid Analysis: Non-invasive Adrenal Monitoring in Equids

Published on: April 25, 2016

Do baseline glucocorticoids predict fitness?

Frances Bonier¹, Paul R Martin, Ignacio T Moore

¹Queen's University, Biology Department, Kingston, Ontario, K7L 3N6, Canada. bonierf@queensu.ca

Trends in Ecology & Evolution

|August 15, 2009

Summary

This summary is machine-generated.

Baseline glucocorticoid (cort) levels are not always indicative of poor health or low fitness. Research shows the relationship between cort levels and fitness varies, challenging the Cort-Fitness Hypothesis.

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Last Updated: Jun 21, 2026

Fecal Glucocorticoid Analysis: Non-invasive Adrenal Monitoring in Equids

Fecal Glucocorticoid Analysis: Non-invasive Adrenal Monitoring in Equids

Published on: April 25, 2016

Area of Science:

Physiological ecology
Animal behavior
Evolutionary biology

Background:

Baseline glucocorticoid (cort) levels are used as indicators of individual and population health.
The Cort-Fitness Hypothesis posits that high cort levels signify poor condition and reduced fitness.

Purpose of the Study:

To review empirical evidence supporting the Cort-Fitness Hypothesis.
To investigate the relationship between baseline cort levels and fitness estimates.

Main Methods:

Literature review of studies examining baseline glucocorticoid levels and fitness.
Analysis of the consistency and direction of the relationship between cort and fitness across different contexts.

Main Results:

Empirical support for the Cort-Fitness Hypothesis is mixed; relationships between baseline cort and fitness can be positive, negative, or non-significant.
The association between cort levels and fitness varies within populations and across an individual's life history.

Conclusions:

Baseline cort levels can predict relative fitness, but the relationship is not consistently positive or always present.
The Cort-Fitness Hypothesis requires nuanced interpretation due to variable relationships between glucocorticoids and fitness.