Figure 1.
Maternal food availability affects progeny reproduction.
Lifetime fecundity (A) and mean cumulative daily fecundity (B and C) on ad libitum food of the progeny of worms from different maternal food availabilities. Error bars are ±1 standard error and the mean (±1 standard error) maternal length for each food availability is noted above the corresponding bar in A. * Indicates that the cumulative progeny fecundity on that day differs significantly between parental food availabilities (Kruskal-Wallis, p<0.05). Mean fecundities were calculated from at least 21 hermaphrodites (range 21–28, median of 26).
Figure 2.
Maternal size does not explain variation in progeny reproduction.
The mean lifetime fecundity of the progeny of individual four (A) and five (B) day old parents that developed at High food (20% w/v in both cases), where excess food remained, Low food (1.25% and 2.5% w/v for four and five day old worms, respectively), where food had been depleted, and Medium food (2.5% and 5% w/v for four and five day old worms, respectively), where small quantities of food remained. Note that food concentrations differed between age groups due to the differing times that worms had been maintained on the plates. Mean fecundities were calculated from 4–10 progeny/parent (median 8).
Table 1.
Maternal size and progeny reproduction in worms grown at differing temperatures and exposed to heat stress.
Figure 3.
Maternal food availability affects development fate.
Jitter plot showing the proportions of the L1 progeny of mothers from high (H), medium (M) and low (L) maternal food concentrations that developed as dauer larvae in three independent experiments (1–3). The mean proportion (±95% confidence interval) of L1 progeny that developed as dauer larvae is also shown for each treatment. In all cases High maternal food availability was 10% w/v E. coli. Medium maternal food availability was 2.5% w/v E. coli for assays 1 and 3, and a combination of 2.5% and 5% w/v E. coli treatments for assay 2. Low maternal food availability was 1.25% w/v E. coli for assays 2 and 3, and a combination of 1.25% and 0.625% w/v E. coli treatments for assay 2. Mean proportions were calculated from 8–20 plates/treatment (median 12).
Figure 4.
Effects of maternal condition depend on progeny environment.
The mean cumulative daily fecundity at 25°C of (A) control, ad libitum food, progeny, (B) recovered dauer larvae progeny and (C) recovered non-dauer larvae progeny of mothers from a range of maternal food concentrations. Recovered dauer and non-dauer larvae were isolated from a standard dauer larvae assay prior to the onset of reproduction. High maternal food availability was 10% w/v E. coli, Medium maternal food availability was 2.5% w/v E. coli and Low maternal food availability was 1.25% w/v E. coli. Fecundities were calculated from at least 16 hermaphrodites (range 16–40, mean of 24.2). Error bars are ±1 standard error.
Figure 5.
Maternal food availability affects egg size.
Jitter plot showing the cross sectional area of eggs isolated from mothers grown at high (H) and low (L) maternal food concentrations in three independent experiments (1–3). The mean cross sectional area (±95% confidence interval) is also shown for each treatment. In all cases High maternal food availability was 10% w/v E. coli. Low maternal food availability was a combination of 2.5% and 0.125% w/v E. coli for assay 1, 0.3125% w/v E. coli for assay 2 and 1.25% w/v E. coli treatments for assay 3. Mean cross sectional areas were calculated from 49–83 eggs/treatment (median 64).