Effects of the herbicide atrazine on Ambystoma tigrinum metamorphosis: duration, larval growth, and hormonal response
Physiological Zoology
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Abstract
We exposed larval tiger salamanders (Ambystoma tigrinum) reared in the laboratory from eggs collected from a prairie wetland in North Dakota to three concentrations of atrazine (0, 75, and 250 i??g/L) in a static renewal test to determine the pesticide's effect on (1) plasma corticosterone and thyroxine concentrations, (2) larval size, and (3) days-to-stage at stages 2 and 4 of metamorphic climax. We found significant effects of atrazine on each of these response variables. Plasma thyroxine was elevated in both atrazine-exposed groups compared to the control group; plasma corticosterone was depressed in the 75 i??g/L treatment compared with both the control and 250 i??g/L treatment. Larvae exposed to 75 i??g/L atrazine reached stage 4 later, but at a size and weight comparable to the control group. By contrast, larvae in the 250 i??g/L treatment progressed to stage 4 at the same time but at a smaller size and lower weight than larvae in the control group. These results indicate that the herbicide has the potential to influence tiger salamander life history. We present a model consistent with our results, whereby corticosterone and thyroxine interact to regulate metamorphosis of tiger salamanders based on nutrient assimilation and adult fitness
Suggested Citation
Larson, D.L., McDonald, S., Hamilton, S., Fivizzani, A.J., Newton, W.E., 1998, Effects of the herbicide atrazine on Ambystoma tigrinum metamorphosis: duration, larval growth, and hormonal response: Physiological Zoology, v. 71, no. 6, p. 671-679, https://doi.org/10.1086/515999.
| Publication type | Article |
|---|---|
| Publication Subtype | Journal Article |
| Title | Effects of the herbicide atrazine on Ambystoma tigrinum metamorphosis: duration, larval growth, and hormonal response |
| Series title | Physiological Zoology |
| DOI | 10.1086/515999 |
| Volume | 71 |
| Issue | 6 |
| Year Published | 1998 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | University of Chicago Press |
| Contributing office(s) | Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center |
| Description | 9 p. |
| First page | 671 |
| Last page | 679 |