Repeatability of condition indices in captive greenfinches (<i>Carduelis chloris</i>)

Abstract

Animal ecologists often encounter a major problem when they wish to use individual condition indices measured at some point in an animal's life cycle as a reference to some persistent component of individual phenotypic quality. It is therefore important to know the time period for which a certain measurement is valid. We measured both short-term (4–8 days) and long-term (over 4 months) repeatabilities of 17 condition indices in captive greenfinches (Carduelis chloris). All studied traits (leukocyte counts and serum protein concentration and profile, serum triglyceride concentrations, body mass, basal metabolic rate (BMR), and spontaneous locomotory activity) revealed significant and moderate to high repeatabilities within the 4- and 8-day periods. Hence, all these traits are suitable for detecting short-term experimental effects upon an individual's physiology. Leukocyte variables (total leukocyte count, heterophil and lymphocyte hemoconcentrations, and heterophil/lymphocyte ratio), BMR, and body mass revealed significant individual consistency within the 4-month period. These variables thus reflect relatively long-term components of individual condition and may appear suitable for exploring the relationships between individual phenotypic quality, life-history traits, and signal traits.