Oxidative stress in Pacific salmon (Oncorhynchus spp.) during spawning migration.

The energetic and physiological challenges of spawning migrations in semelparous Pacific salmon (Oncorhynchus spp.) have been well characterized. However, the accompanying costs associated with oxidative stress during this nonfeeding migration and the potential connection to senescence have not been explored.

Oxidative stress associated with paternal care in smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu).

In species that provide parental care, care for offspring is often accompanied by an increase in locomotor activity and a decrease in feeding opportunities which can negatively impact endogenous energy reserves. Depletion of parental energy stores and declines in nutritional condition can cause physiological disturbances, such as an imbalance between free radical production and available antioxidants, known as oxidative stress. Using the teleost smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu) as a model, we tested if the energetic challenge associated with sole paternal care was associated with oxidative stress.