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Understanding spatiotemporal effects of food supplementation on host-parasite interactions using community-based science

View ORCID ProfileSarah A. Knutie, Matthew A. Bertone, Rachel Bahouth, Caroline Webb, Mahima Mehta, Mia Nahom, Rachael M. Barta, Sharan Ghai, Susan L. Balenger, Michael W. Butler, Ashley C. Kennedy, Elizabeth M. Schultz, Conor C. Taff, View ORCID ProfileGregory F. Albery
doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2022.06.02.494595
Sarah A. Knutie
1Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
2Institute for Systems Genomics, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, 06269, USA
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  • For correspondence: saknutie@gmail.com
Matthew A. Bertone
3Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, NC, USA 27695
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Rachel Bahouth
1Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
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Caroline Webb
1Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
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Mahima Mehta
1Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
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Mia Nahom
1Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
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Rachael M. Barta
1Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
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Sharan Ghai
1Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Connecticut, Storrs, CT, USA
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Susan L. Balenger
4Department of Biology, University of Mississippi, University, MS, USA
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Michael W. Butler
5Department of Biology, Lafayette College, Easton, PA, 18042, USA
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Ashley C. Kennedy
6Mosquito Control Section, Delaware Division of Fish and Wildlife, Newark, DE, 19702, USA
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Elizabeth M. Schultz
7Wittenberg University, Department of Biology, Springfield, OH, 45504, USA
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Conor C. Taff
8Lab of Ornithology and Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14850, USA
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Gregory F. Albery
9Department of Biology, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, 20007, USA
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Abstract

Supplemental feeding can increase the overall health of animals but also can have variable effects on animals dealing with parasites. Furthermore, the spatial and temporal effects of food supplementation on host-parasite interactions remain poorly understood, likely because large-scale, coordinated efforts are difficult. Here, we introduce the Nest Parasite Community Science Project (hereafter “Project”), which is a community-based science project that coordinates studies with bird nest box “landlords” from the public and scientific community. The Project was established to understand broad ecological patterns between box-nesting birds and their nest parasite community. The goal of this study was to use data collected by the Project to determine the effect of food supplementation on Eastern Bluebirds (Sialia sialis) and their nest parasite community across the geographic range of the bluebirds from 2018-2020. Nest box landlords either fed their bluebirds mealworms or not, then followed the nesting success of the birds (number of eggs, percent hatched, percent fledged). Nests were sent to our lab where we identified and quantified all nest parasite taxa. Birds from the western range laid more eggs than the eastern range, but this spatial effect was not observed for hatching success. However, food supplementation increased hatching success across years and the study area. We primarily found parasitic blow flies and fleas in the nests, which were restricted to northern latitudes. Within this geographic area, food supplementation affected blow fly abundance, but this effect varied across years, with abundances increasing, decreasing, or not changing, depending on the year. Interestingly, more landlords at southern latitudes fed bluebirds compared to northern latitudes, which contradicted the results of other community-based science projects. Our study demonstrates the importance of coordinated studies across years and locations to understand the effects of environmental heterogeneity on host-parasite dynamics.

Competing Interest Statement

The authors have declared no competing interest.

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The copyright holder for this preprint is the author/funder, who has granted bioRxiv a license to display the preprint in perpetuity. It is made available under a CC-BY-NC-ND 4.0 International license.
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Posted June 04, 2022.
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Understanding spatiotemporal effects of food supplementation on host-parasite interactions using community-based science
Sarah A. Knutie, Matthew A. Bertone, Rachel Bahouth, Caroline Webb, Mahima Mehta, Mia Nahom, Rachael M. Barta, Sharan Ghai, Susan L. Balenger, Michael W. Butler, Ashley C. Kennedy, Elizabeth M. Schultz, Conor C. Taff, Gregory F. Albery
bioRxiv 2022.06.02.494595; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2022.06.02.494595
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Understanding spatiotemporal effects of food supplementation on host-parasite interactions using community-based science
Sarah A. Knutie, Matthew A. Bertone, Rachel Bahouth, Caroline Webb, Mahima Mehta, Mia Nahom, Rachael M. Barta, Sharan Ghai, Susan L. Balenger, Michael W. Butler, Ashley C. Kennedy, Elizabeth M. Schultz, Conor C. Taff, Gregory F. Albery
bioRxiv 2022.06.02.494595; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2022.06.02.494595

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