(Table 1) Breeding parameters for 60 male Adélie penguins (Pygoscelis adeliae) at station Dumont d'Urville (Antarctica) depending on treatment (control vs. CORT)@en

Corticosterone, the main stress hormone in birds, mediates resource allocation, allowing animals to adjust their physiology and behaviour to changes in the environment. Incubation is a time and energy-consuming phase of the avian reproductive cycle. It may be terminated prematurely, when the parents' energy stores are depleted or when environmental conditions are severe. In this study, the effects of experimentally elevated baseline corticosterone levels on the parental investment of incubating male Adelie penguins were investigated. Incubation duration and reproductive success of 60 penguins were recorded. The clutches of some birds were replaced by dummy eggs, which recorded egg temperatures and rotation rates, enabling a detailed investigation of incubation behaviour. Corticosterone levels of treated birds were 2.4-fold higher than those of controls 18 days post treatment. Exogenous corticosterone triggered nest desertion in 61% of the treated birds; consequently reducing reproductive success, indicating that corticosterone can reduce or disrupt parental investment. Regarding egg temperatures, hypothermic events became more frequent and more pronounced in treated birds, before these birds eventually abandoned their nest. The treatment also significantly decreased incubation temperatures by 1.3 °C and lengthened the incubation period by 2.1 days. However, the number of chicks at hatching was similar among successful nests, regardless of treatment. Weather conditions appeared to be particularly important in determining the extent to which corticosterone levels affected the behaviour of penguins, as treated penguins were more sensitive to severe weather conditions. This underlines the importance of considering the interactions of organisms with their environment in studies of animal behaviour and ecophysiology.皮质酮（corticosterone）是鸟类的主要应激激素，可介导资源分配，使动物能够调整生理与行为以适应环境变化。孵化是鸟类繁殖周期中耗时耗力的阶段，当亲代能量储备耗尽或环境条件严苛时，孵化可能会提前终止。本研究探究了实验性升高基础皮质酮水平对孵卵期雄性阿德利企鹅亲代投入的影响。研究记录了60只企鹅的孵化时长与繁殖成功率。部分个体的卵被替换为可记录卵温与转动频次的模拟卵，借此可细致分析其孵卵行为。处理组鸟类在施加处理后18天的皮质酮水平为对照组的2.4倍。外源性皮质酮触发了61%处理组个体的弃巢行为，进而降低了繁殖成功率，表明皮质酮可削弱或干扰亲代投入。关于卵温，在处理组个体最终弃巢前，其卵温过低事件的发生频率更高、程度更显著。该处理还使孵化温度显著降低1.3℃，并将孵化期延长2.1天。不过，成功孵化的巢中，出壳雏鸟的数量不受处理组别影响。天气条件似乎是决定皮质酮水平对企鹅行为影响程度的关键因素，因处理组企鹅对恶劣天气的敏感性更高。这凸显了在动物行为与生态生理学研究中，考量生物体与环境之间相互作用的重要性。