Extra-pair paternity results from female preference for high-quality males in the blue tit

Kempenaers, Bart; Verheyen, Geert R.; Broeck, Mira Van den; Burke, Terry; Broeckhoven, Christine Van; Dhondt, André A.

doi:10.1038/357494a0

Cited by 683 publications

(456 citation statements)

References 16 publications

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“…Mate-guarding intensity may even correlate inversely rather than directly with paternity if males increase mate-guarding in response to their mates' receptivity to EPCs (Gowaty and Bridges 1991;Kempenaers et al 1992). Between male age classes, mate-guarding was inversely correlated with paternity: old males achieved high paternity while guarding in relatively low intensities and young males achieved low paternity while guarding in higher intensities.…”

Section: Mate-guarding and Female Receptivity To Epcsmentioning

confidence: 93%

“…"Good genes" is often proposed as a benefit of EPCs to females (Moller 1990;Kempenaers et al 1992;Houtman 1992;Graves et al 1993). The behavior of female martins suggests they may have sought good genes because older males have proven their quality by surviving longer.…”

Section: Female Control and Sex Ratiomentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Whereas most earlier studies assumed that EPCs were forced by males, in many species females solicit or permit EPCs (Smith 1988;Wagner 1991aWagner , 1994Kempenaers et al 1992; Lifjeld and Robertson 1992;Graves et al 1993; Stutchbury et al 1994). When females pursue EPCs, the potential exists for high rates of extra-pair fertilizations (EPFs) to occur.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Whereas mate-guarding is usually considered a male tactic to keep other males from their mates, when females seek EPCs, mate-guarding is also a method to keep the female from other males (Birkhead et al 1990;Gowaty and Bridges 1991;Kempenaers et al 1992;Wagner 1992b). If EPCs are forced, then males should mate-guard to keep other males from their mates.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Condition-dependent control of paternity by female purple martins: implications for coloniality

Wagner

Schug

Morton

1996

Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology

143

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Proposed causal links between extra-pair copulation (EPC) and colony formation in socially monogamous birds hinge on the question of which sex controls fertilizations. We examined in colonial purple martins Progne subis (1) whether EPCs were forced or accepted by females, and (2) the degree to which apparently receptive females were able to obtain EPCs against their mates' paternity defenses. Paternity analyses of multilocus DNA fingerprinting confirmed previous findings of a marked relationship between age class and extra-pair fertilizations (EPFs), with young males losing paternity of 43 % (n = 53) of their putative offspring compared to 4% (n = 85) by old males. All assignable extra-pair offspring were sired by old males, with one male obtaining most EPFs each year. Contrary to the hypothesis that EPCs are forced, EPF frequency within age class did not increase with seasonal increases in the number of males per fertile female. Whereas the male control hypothesis predicted that the male age class that mate-guarded more would be cuckolded less, the reverse was true: young males guarded significantly more intensely. The male age class difference in cuckoldry could not be explained by the possibility that young and inexperienced females (which are usually paired to young males) were more vulnerable to forced copulation because EPFs were unrelated to female age. These findings suggest that females (1) pair with old males and avoid EPCs, or (2) pursue a mixed mating strategy of pairing with young males and accepting EPCs from old males. The receptivity to EPCs by females paired to young males put them in conflict with their mates. Two factors determined the paternity achieved by young males: (1) the relative size of the male to the female, with young males achieving much higher paternity when they were larger than their mates, and (2) the intensity of mate-guarding. Both variables together explained 77% of the variance in paternity and are each aspects of male-female conflict. Given female receptivity to EPCs, mate-guarding can be viewed as male interference with female mating strategies. We conclude that EPCs are rarely or never forced, but the opportunity for females paired to young males to obtain EPCs is relative to the ability of their mates to prevent them from encountering other males. Evidence of mixed mating strategies by females, combined with other features of the martin mating system, is consistent with the female-driven "hidden lek hypothesis" of colony formation which predicts that males are drawn to colonies when females seek extrapair copulations.

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Section: Mate-guarding and Female Receptivity To Epcsmentioning

confidence: 93%

Section: Female Control and Sex Ratiomentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Condition-dependent control of paternity by female purple martins: implications for coloniality

Wagner

Schug

Morton

1996

Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology

143

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“…In many mammal or bird species, larger and/or heavier individuals had better survival or reproduction rates (Andersson, 1994;FestaBianchet et al, 1998). In passerines, key biometric measures such as tarsus, wing and beak length can predict survival prospects or reproductive success and may, therefore, be related to male quality (great tit (Parus major) Garnett, 1981; blue tit (Parus caeruleus), Kempenaers et al, 1992Kempenaers et al, , 1997; red-winged blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus), Weatherhead & Boag, 1995). In great tits and willow tits (Parus montanus), tarsus length does not change after day 14 and is partly heritable, partly depending on nestling condition (Garnett, 1981;Thessing & Ekman, 1994).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Song repertoire size correlates with measures of body size in Eurasian blackbirds

Hesler¹,

Mundry²,

Sacher³

et al. 2012

Behav

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In most oscine bird species males possess a repertoire of different song patterns. The size of these repertoires is assumed to serve as an honest signal of male quality. The Eurasian blackbird's (Turdus merula) song contains a large repertoire of different element types with a flexible song organisation. Here we investigated whether repertoire size in Eurasian blackbirds correlates with measures of body size, namely length of wing, 8th primary, beak and tarsus. So far, very few studies have investigated species with large repertoires and a flexible song organisation in this context. We found positive correlations, meaning that larger males had larger repertoires. Larger males may have better fighting abilities and, thus, advantages in territorial defence. Larger structural body size may also reflect better conditions during early development. Therefore, under the assumption that body size is linked to overall male quality, our results are in accordance with the hypothesis that repertoire size represents an honest signal in Eurasian blackbirds that has evolved in response to sexual selection.

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Newborn's condition at birth does not depend on maternal sexual strategy—evidence against the “hunting for good genes” hypothesis

Pawłowski

Żelaźniewicz

2012

American J Hum Biol

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Extra-pair paternity results from female preference for high-quality males in the blue tit

Cited by 683 publications

References 16 publications

Condition-dependent control of paternity by female purple martins: implications for coloniality

Condition-dependent control of paternity by female purple martins: implications for coloniality

Song repertoire size correlates with measures of body size in Eurasian blackbirds

Newborn's condition at birth does not depend on maternal sexual strategy—evidence against the “hunting for good genes” hypothesis

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