There are records that Octopus maya adults could experience extreme temperatures during reproductive maturation. So far, there is no data to indicate what kind of consequences an offspring produced by thermally stressed parents might experience. The present study was dedicated to evaluating the effect of thermal stress in female O. maya at the end of their reproductive season on aerobic performance (AS) and antioxidant defense mechanisms (ADM) of juveniles exposed to extreme temperatures. For this, two groups of wild females were managed, some acclimated to 24°C and others to 30°C until spawning, and the juveniles of each group of females were divided into two groups, the first group exposed to 25°C and the other group at 30°C.
In the evaluation of the respiratory metabolism (Oxygen consumption in routine, as well as in the metabolic rate induced by the maximum temperature), it was observed that the juveniles from stressed females had higher metabolic rates than those observed from non-stressed females, mainly in animals at 30°C, suggesting a transgenerational effect of temperature on the energetic physiology of this animal (Fig. 1).
Aerobic scope was evaluated every 5 days until day 20 along with ADM and two indicators of oxidative damage (OD). The results obtained indicate that juveniles from thermally stressed females had limited physiological capacities to compensate for OD, being very sensitive to 30°C. In contrast, juveniles from non-thermally stressed females showed an ADM that, at least for a time, was able to eliminate the OD. These results are discussed in light of the possible consequences of warming between generations and its relationship with the time of exposure to high temperatures (Fig. 2).