Data from: Dietary carotenoids affect the development of individual differences and behavioral plasticity

Nutritional conditions experienced during development are expected to play
a key role in shaping an individual’s behavioral phenotype. The long term,
irreversible effects of nutritional conditions on behavioral variation
among and within individuals remains largely unexplored. This study aimed
to investigate how long-term carotenoid availability (representing low vs.
high quality nutritional conditions) during both larval and adult life
stages influences the expression of among-individual variation (animal
personality) and within-individual variation (behavioral plasticity). We
tested for personality and plasticity along the exploration/avoidance
behavioral axis in the Southern Corroboree frog (Pseudophryne corroboree).
We predicted that treatment groups receiving carotenoids during early
development would be more exploratory and have greater among- and
within-individual variation compared to individuals that did not receive
carotenoids (i.e. silver spoon hypothesis). Superior nutritional
conditions experienced during development are expected to provide
individuals with resources needed to develop costly behaviors, giving them
an advantage later in life irrespective of prevailing conditions.
Unexpectedly, frogs that did not receive carotenoids as larvae expressed
greater among-individual variance in exploration behavior. Additionally,
frogs that did not receive carotenoids at either life stage displayed
greater within-individual variance. Our findings provide no support for
the silver spoon hypothesis but suggest that inconsistent nutritional
conditions between life stages may adversely affect the development of
behavioral phenotypes. Overall, our results indicate that early and late
life nutritional conditions affect the development of personality and
plasticity. They also highlight that nutritional effects on behavior may
be more complex than previously theorized.