Sunday, August 10, 2025
Science
No Result
View All Result
  • Login
  • HOME
  • SCIENCE NEWS
  • CONTACT US
  • HOME
  • SCIENCE NEWS
  • CONTACT US
No Result
View All Result
Scienmag
No Result
View All Result
Home Science News Climate

Total energy cost of animal reproduction is higher than previously assumed

May 16, 2024
in Climate
Reading Time: 3 mins read
0
Total energy cost of animal reproduction is higher than previously assumed
70
SHARES
635
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

The energy invested in animal reproduction is as much as 10 times greater than previously estimated when the metabolic load of bearing and caring for offspring is accounted for, according to a new study. The findings fundamentally challenge longstanding theories and biological models of animal growth and life histories. The act of reproduction is one of the largest energy investments an animal can make. This investment includes direct cost, the energy directly invested in the offspring themselves, and indirect costs, the energy expended to create, carry, and care for offspring before they are born. While the direct costs of reproduction are well understood, the indirect costs – the metabolic load of reproduction – have not been previously quantified. Despite this incomplete understanding, different biological theories make conflicting assumptions about the metabolic load of reproduction. For example, most models assume that it is relatively small compared to the direct costs, while others do not distinguish between metabolic loads and the total reproductive energy investments. When applied, these various assumptions yield different conclusions about the fundamental drivers of animal life histories. Samuel Ginther and colleagues developed a quantitative framework for estimating the total energy costs of reproduction across animal taxa by combining data on the energy content of animal offspring and the metabolic load of bearing them. The approach allowed the authors to tease apart the contributors to the overall reproductive energy investment. Through evaluation of 81 species – ranging from microscopic rotifers to humans – Ginther et al. found that direct costs often represent the smaller fraction of energy expended on reproduction. For example, in mammals, only around 10% of the energy expended on reproduction is represented in the offspring themselves, with the other 90% invested on the metabolically intensive processes of gestation. Humans have some of the highest indirect costs at around 96%. Ginther et al.’s analysis also shows that the evolution of live-bearing in ectotherms came with massive increases in metabolic loads, showing that live-bearing ectothermic species pay higher indirect costs than their egg-laying counterparts. What’s more, the authors discovered that indirect costs of reproduction in ectotherms are extremely sensitive to temperature, suggesting that future warming could result in changes in reproductive costs with worrisome implications for population replacement under climate change.

The energy invested in animal reproduction is as much as 10 times greater than previously estimated when the metabolic load of bearing and caring for offspring is accounted for, according to a new study. The findings fundamentally challenge longstanding theories and biological models of animal growth and life histories. The act of reproduction is one of the largest energy investments an animal can make. This investment includes direct cost, the energy directly invested in the offspring themselves, and indirect costs, the energy expended to create, carry, and care for offspring before they are born. While the direct costs of reproduction are well understood, the indirect costs – the metabolic load of reproduction – have not been previously quantified. Despite this incomplete understanding, different biological theories make conflicting assumptions about the metabolic load of reproduction. For example, most models assume that it is relatively small compared to the direct costs, while others do not distinguish between metabolic loads and the total reproductive energy investments. When applied, these various assumptions yield different conclusions about the fundamental drivers of animal life histories. Samuel Ginther and colleagues developed a quantitative framework for estimating the total energy costs of reproduction across animal taxa by combining data on the energy content of animal offspring and the metabolic load of bearing them. The approach allowed the authors to tease apart the contributors to the overall reproductive energy investment. Through evaluation of 81 species – ranging from microscopic rotifers to humans – Ginther et al. found that direct costs often represent the smaller fraction of energy expended on reproduction. For example, in mammals, only around 10% of the energy expended on reproduction is represented in the offspring themselves, with the other 90% invested on the metabolically intensive processes of gestation. Humans have some of the highest indirect costs at around 96%. Ginther et al.’s analysis also shows that the evolution of live-bearing in ectotherms came with massive increases in metabolic loads, showing that live-bearing ectothermic species pay higher indirect costs than their egg-laying counterparts. What’s more, the authors discovered that indirect costs of reproduction in ectotherms are extremely sensitive to temperature, suggesting that future warming could result in changes in reproductive costs with worrisome implications for population replacement under climate change.



Journal

Science

DOI

10.1126/science.adk6772

Article Title

Metabolic loads and the costs of metazoan reproduction

Article Publication Date

17-May-2024

Share28Tweet18
Previous Post

Tool use promotes foraging success and dental health in sea otters

Next Post

Finding quantum order in chaos

Related Posts

blank
Climate

Navigating Energy Transition Amid Minerals Constraints

August 7, 2025
blank
Climate

Warming Speeds Up Arctic Ocean Deoxygenation

August 3, 2025
blank
Climate

Marine Heatwaves Favor Heat-Tolerant Reef Corals

August 3, 2025
blank
Climate

Satellite-Era Sea Surface Temperature Trends Vary Widely

August 3, 2025
blank
Climate

Thermal Adaptation in Ecosystems Reduces Carbon Loss

August 3, 2025
blank
Climate

Antarctic Phytoplankton Shift with Changing Sea Ice

August 3, 2025
Next Post
Finding quantum order in chaos

Finding quantum order in chaos

  • Mothers who receive childcare support from maternal grandparents show more parental warmth, finds NTU Singapore study

    Mothers who receive childcare support from maternal grandparents show more parental warmth, finds NTU Singapore study

    27531 shares
    Share 11009 Tweet 6881
  • University of Seville Breaks 120-Year-Old Mystery, Revises a Key Einstein Concept

    944 shares
    Share 378 Tweet 236
  • Bee body mass, pathogens and local climate influence heat tolerance

    641 shares
    Share 256 Tweet 160
  • Researchers record first-ever images and data of a shark experiencing a boat strike

    507 shares
    Share 203 Tweet 127
  • Warm seawater speeding up melting of ‘Doomsday Glacier,’ scientists warn

    310 shares
    Share 124 Tweet 78
Science

Embark on a thrilling journey of discovery with Scienmag.com—your ultimate source for cutting-edge breakthroughs. Immerse yourself in a world where curiosity knows no limits and tomorrow’s possibilities become today’s reality!

RECENT NEWS

  • Revolutionizing Gravity: Hamiltonian Dynamics in Compact Binaries
  • LHC: Asymmetric Scalar Production Limits Revealed
  • Massive Black Hole Mergers: Unveiling Electromagnetic Signals
  • Dark Energy Stars: R-squared Gravity Revealed

Categories

  • Agriculture
  • Anthropology
  • Archaeology
  • Athmospheric
  • Biology
  • Bussines
  • Cancer
  • Chemistry
  • Climate
  • Earth Science
  • Marine
  • Mathematics
  • Medicine
  • Pediatry
  • Policy
  • Psychology & Psychiatry
  • Science Education
  • Social Science
  • Space
  • Technology and Engineering

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 4,860 other subscribers

© 2025 Scienmag - Science Magazine

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • HOME
  • SCIENCE NEWS
  • CONTACT US

© 2025 Scienmag - Science Magazine

Discover more from Science

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading