Exercise training has morph-specific effects on telomere, body condition and growth dynamics in a color-polymorphic...

Area of Science:

• Evolutionary biology
• Physiological ecology

Background:

• Alternative reproductive tactics (ARTs) involve suites of sexually selected traits with varying physiological costs.
• Animals in the wild often operate at their physiological limits, especially when employing ARTs.

Purpose of the Study:

• To experimentally test the effects of exercise on body condition, growth, reactive oxygen species (ROS), and telomere dynamics in Australian painted dragons.
• To investigate how color polymorphism (throat patch color) influences the physiological response to exercise.

Main Methods:

• Australian painted dragon lizards with differing throat patch coloration were subjected to controlled exercise regimens.
• Measurements included body condition, growth rates, reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels, and telomere length changes.
• Analysis correlated these physiological markers with exercise intensity and throat patch color.

Main Results:

• Males with yellow throat patches (bibbed males) exhibited higher ROS levels than non-bibbed males.
• At high exercise levels, bibbed males showed telomere loss, while non-bibbed males gained telomere length.
• Growth was linked to food intake, while body condition correlated with telomere length increases.

Conclusions:

• Aggressive, bibbed males incur physiological costs from exercise that may compromise longevity.
• Non-bibbed males, potentially with superior postcopulatory traits, may have better physiological resilience.
• ARTs can lead to divergent physiological capacities and trade-offs impacting long-term survival.