Mating Systems and Multiple Paternity in the Estuarine Crocodile (<i>Crocodylus porosus</i>)

Lewis, Justine L.; FitzSimmons, Nancy N.; Jamerlan, Mona Lisa; Buchan, Jason C.; Grigg, Gordon C.

doi:10.1670/10-303

Cited by 25 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 46 publications

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“…That is, dominant males maximise their reproductive success by defending mating rights with co-habiting females, whilst subordinate males maximise their chance by ‘sneaking’ copulations with unguarded females. Further support for this theory in C. porosus populations comes from the genetic analysis of eggs collected from nests in the wild, which showed multiple-paternity is widespread with some clutches having more than two sires [40].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Home Range Utilisation and Long-Range Movement of Estuarine Crocodiles during the Breeding and Nesting Season

et al. 2013

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The estuarine crocodile (Crocodylus porosus) is the apex-predator in waterways and coastlines throughout south-east Asia and Australasia. C. porosus pose a potential risk to humans, and management strategies are implemented to control their movement and distribution. Here we used GPS-based telemetry to accurately record geographical location of adult C. porosus during the breeding and nesting season. The purpose of the study was to assess how C. porosus movement and distribution may be influenced by localised social conditions. During breeding, the females (2.92±0.013 metres total length (TL), mean ± S.E., n = 4) occupied an area<1 km length of river, but to nest they travelled up to 54 km away from the breeding area. All tagged male C. porosus sustained high rates of movement (6.49±0.9 km d−1; n = 8) during the breeding and nesting period. The orientation of the daily movements differed between individuals revealing two discontinuous behavioural strategies. Five tagged male C. porosus (4.17±0.14 m TL) exhibited a ‘site-fidelic’ strategy and moved within well-defined zones around the female home range areas. In contrast, three males (3.81±0.08 m TL) exhibited ‘nomadic’ behaviour where they travelled continually throughout hundreds of kilometres of waterway. We argue that the ‘site-fidelic’ males patrolled territories around the female home ranges to maximise reproductive success, whilst the ‘nomadic’ males were subordinate animals that were forced to range over a far greater area in search of unguarded females. We conclude that C. porosus are highly mobile animals existing within a complex social system, and mate/con-specific interactions are likely to have a profound effect upon population density and distribution, and an individual's travel potential. We recommend that impacts on socio-spatial behaviour are considered prior to the implementation of management interventions.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Home Range Utilisation and Long-Range Movement of Estuarine Crocodiles during the Breeding and Nesting Season

et al. 2013

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“…Upon hatching, skin tissue samples were taken from all hatched crocodiles (n = 335). Samples were removed from the dorsal section of the base of the tail and stored at 8°C in 95% ethanol, following sampling protocols described in [ 36 ].…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Multiple Paternity in a Reintroduced Population of the Orinoco Crocodile (Crocodylus intermedius) at the El Frío Biological Station, Venezuela

et al. 2016

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The success of a reintroduction program is determined by the ability of individuals to reproduce and thrive. Hence, an understanding of the mating system and breeding strategies of reintroduced species can be critical to the success, evaluation and effective management of reintroduction programs. As one of the most threatened crocodile species in the world, the Orinoco crocodile (Crocodylus intermedius) has been reduced to only a few wild populations in the Llanos of Venezuela and Colombia. One of these populations was founded by reintroduction at Caño Macanillal and La Ramera lagoon within the El Frío Biological Station, Venezuela. Twenty egg clutches of C. intermedius were collected at the El Frío Biological Station for incubation in the lab and release of juveniles after one year. Analyzing 17 polymorphic microsatellite loci from 335 hatchlings we found multiple paternity in C. intermedius, with half of the 20 clutches fathered by two or three males. Sixteen mothers and 14 fathers were inferred by reconstruction of multilocus parental genotypes. Our findings showed skewed paternal contributions to multiple-sired clutches in four of the clutches (40%), leading to an overall unequal contribution of offspring among fathers with six of the 14 inferred males fathering 90% of the total offspring, and three of those six males fathering more than 70% of the total offspring. Our results provide the first evidence of multiple paternity occurring in the Orinoco crocodile and confirm the success of reintroduction efforts of this critically endangered species in the El Frío Biological Station, Venezuela.

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“…Crocodilians, which have widely varying population densities and degrees of male territoriality, provide an excellent system to explore the evolutionary and ecological drivers that underlie the observed variation in the frequency of multiple paternity (Amavet, Rosso, Markariani, & Piña, 2008;Budd, Spotila, & Mauger, 2015;Davis, Glenn, Elsey, Dessauer, & Sawyer, 2001;Lance et al, 2009;Lewis, FitzSimmons, Jamerlan, Buchan, & Grigg, 2013;Mcvay et al, 2008;Muniz et al, 2011;Ojeda, Amavet, Rueda, Siroski, & Larriera, 2017;Oliveira, Marioni, Farias, & Hrbek, 2014;Lafferriere et al, 2016;Wu & Hu, 2010). The frequency of multiple paternity observed across crocodilian taxa ranges from 32% in the Chinese alligator (Alligator sinensis) to 100% in black caiman (Melanosuchus niger) (Muniz et al, 2011;Wu & Hu, 2010).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The frequency of multiple paternity observed across crocodilian taxa ranges from 32% in the Chinese alligator (Alligator sinensis) to 100% in black caiman (Melanosuchus niger) (Muniz et al, 2011;Wu & Hu, 2010). Among crocodilians, it is not clear if the frequency of multiple paternity is driven by population density and/or mate encounter rate (Amavet et al, 2008;Budd et al, 2015;Davis et al, 2001;Lance et al, 2009;Lewis et al, 2013;McVay et al, 2008;Muniz et al, 2011;Oliveira et al, 2014;Lafferriere et al, 2016;Wu & Hu, 2010) though both have been suggested (Budd et al, 2015;Lafferriere et al, 2016).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mating dynamics and multiple paternity in a long‐lived vertebrate

Zajdel

Lance

Rainwater

et al. 2019

Ecology and Evolution

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Multiple paternity is relatively common across diverse taxa; however, the drivers and implications related to paternal and maternal fitness are not well understood. Several hypotheses have been offered to explain the occurrence and frequency of multiple paternity. One set of hypotheses seeks to explain multiple paternity through direct and indirect benefits including increased genetic diversity or enhanced offspring fitness, whereas another set of hypotheses explains multiple paternity as a by‐product of sexual conflict and population‐specific parameters such as density. Here, we investigate mating system dynamics in a historically studied population of the American alligator (Alligator mississippiensis) in coastal South Carolina. We examine parentage in 151 nests across 6 years and find that 43% of nests were sired by multiple males and that male reproductive success is strongly influenced by male size. Whereas clutch size and hatchling size did not differ between singly sired and multiply sired nests, fertility rates were observed to be lower in multiply sired clutches. Our findings suggest that multiple paternity may exert cost in regard to female fitness, and raise the possibility that sexual conflict might influence the frequency of multiple paternity in wild alligator populations.

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Mating Systems and Multiple Paternity in the Estuarine Crocodile (Crocodylus porosus)

Cited by 25 publications

References 46 publications

Home Range Utilisation and Long-Range Movement of Estuarine Crocodiles during the Breeding and Nesting Season

Home Range Utilisation and Long-Range Movement of Estuarine Crocodiles during the Breeding and Nesting Season

Multiple Paternity in a Reintroduced Population of the Orinoco Crocodile (Crocodylus intermedius) at the El Frío Biological Station, Venezuela

Mating dynamics and multiple paternity in a long‐lived vertebrate

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