Ecological constraints on extra-pair paternity in the bluethroat

Johnsen, Arild; Lifjeld, Jan T.

doi:10.1007/s00442-003-1286-4

Cited by 64 publications

(62 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…Eggs in a clutch are usually laid at 24-h intervals. Breeding is quite synchronous (Johnsen and Lifjeld 2003) with most females starting to lay their eggs during the first 2 weeks of June. Incubation takes about 13 days and the nestlings leave the nest 10-13 days after hatching (Anthonisen et al 1997).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A sexual dimorphism in egg size has previously been reported for a few species (see Cordero et al 2000), but we have no a priori expectation of such a dimorphism in bluethroats. Extra-pair paternity occurs at a frequency of around 30% of young and 50% of clutches in this population (Johnsen and Lifjeld 2003). It is a theoretical possibility that females may differentially allocate resources to eggs in a clutch sired by extra-pair males, as these eggs may represent a relatively higher reproductive value (Johnsen et al 2000).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Egg-size variation in the bluethroat (Luscinia s. svecica): constraints and adaptation

2005

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We examined inter-and intra-clutch egg-size variation in the bluethroat (Luscinia s. svecica), an opennesting passerine breeding in the sub-alpine region in southern Norway. By removing first clutches shortly after egg-laying, we induced laying of a repeat clutch. Females significantly reduced the number of eggs from the first to the second nesting attempt, but increased mean egg size. Females in good condition laid significantly larger eggs than those in poor condition. Consistent with predictions of the ''brood survival'' hypothesis, assuming an adaptive investment in last eggs to ensure survival of all eggs in the clutch, we found that the size of the last eggs in first clutches was generally larger than the mean egg size of the clutch, and that the relative size of the last egg increased with clutch size. However, a large last egg reflected a general increase in egg size throughout the laying sequence rather than a specific investment in the last egg only. Egg size was not significantly influenced by sex or paternity (within-pair versus extra-pair) of the embryo. In repeat clutches the last egg was not consistently larger than the mean for the clutch. We conclude that female bluethroats face resource limitations during egg formation early in the season, and that the patterns of increase in egg size with laying order for first clutches, and from first to repeat clutches, can largely be explained by proximate constraints on egg formation.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Egg-size variation in the bluethroat (Luscinia s. svecica): constraints and adaptation

2005

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“…Saino et al 1997;Conrad et al 1998;Strohbach et al 1998), while the vast majority of studies report no association between the synchrony of breeding activities and extra-pair reproductive success (e.g. Chuang-Dobbs et al 2001b;Johnsen and Lifjeld 2003;Arlt et al 2004;Kraaijeveld et al 2004;Westneat and Mays 2005;Stewart et al 2006). How the behavioural strategies adopted by each sex towards male conspecifics influence these links between extra-pair mating rates and local synchrony remain largely unknown.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mate guarding and territorial aggression vary with breeding synchrony in golden whistlers (Pachycephala pectoralis)

Dongen

2008

Naturwissenschaften

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Male paternity assurance behaviour during the female fertile period has been widely documented amongst birds. In contrast, how sex-specific behavioural strategies vary with local breeding synchrony levels remains largely unknown. This is important because, in many species, intra-population patterns of extra-pair fertilisation rates, and hence cuckoldry risk, are known to vary with the number of simultaneously fertile females. Each sex may therefore differ in how they behave towards male conspecifics during different degrees of breeding synchrony. Here I provide evidence of such sex-specific differences in the golden whistler (Pachycephala pectoralis), a species in which within-pair paternity assurance is negatively associated with breeding synchrony. Via simulated territorial intrusions using decoy males, I show that males, but not females, increase levels of aggression to male intruders during periods of low synchrony, possibly because cuckoldry risk is greatest during this period. In addition, males appear to invest more effort into mate guarding after, but not before, territorial intrusions during this period. These inter-sexual differences may reflect conflicts in interest between the sexes, with females consistently showing interest in males during the fertile period regardless of synchrony levels and males investing more resources into expelling intruders when the risk of paternity loss is greatest. This study thus provides evidence that males may be able to detect variation in breeding synchrony and cuckoldry risk and adjust their paternity assurance behaviour accordingly.

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“…Third, adverse conditions may make activities other than attempted usurpation of females a priority for males, their mates, or potential cuckolders. For example, in the bluethroat (Luscinia s. svecica), for those broods that had multiple paternity, mornings with relatively low temperatures were associated with a lower frequency of extra-pair paternity (Johnsen and Lifjeld 2003). Johnsen and Lifjeld (2003) suggested that this lower frequency was because individuals, who might otherwise be engaged in extra-pair copulations, needed to concentrate on foraging during such conditions.…”

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confidence: 99%

Environmental Conditions Affect Sperm Competition Risk in Japanese Beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae)

Switzer¹,

Enstrom²,

Schoenick³

2008

Annals of the Entomological Society of America

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Males of many species guard their mates to prevent rivals from usurping paternity of the potential offspring. Environmental conditions, such as temperature, may affect a male’s ability to guard a female effectively and consequently the amount of sperm competition that occurs. We tested whether temperature and light affected mating behavior in laboratory experiments on the Japanese beetle, Popillia japonica Newman, a species in which males guard females for minutes to many hours after mating. When tested in groups, under conditions of high temperature and high light, males guarded females for shorter periods of time and males and females both mated with more different individuals. The number of mating pairs observed at any one time, however, was lower under conditions of relatively high temperature and light, which agrees with field data and is likely due to a combination of shorter pair durations and a period of time between successive mates. Contests for females were rare, which indicates that these patterns were due to changes in the behavior of the male and/or female of the pair. To tease apart male versus female roles in these patterns, single males were given dead females for copulation and guarding. When single males mated with the dead female, light and temperature still affected guarding behavior (e.g., the shortest durations were under conditions of relatively high temperature and light), indicating that males play a major part in determining the duration of mate guarding, probably due to a change in the costs the males are incurring. However, the patterns in the dead female experiment were not identical to the patterns in the group experiment, implying that female behavior also plays a role in guarding time. Our results demonstrate that environmental conditions can have a major effect on sperm competition risk and suggest that males would benefit greatly from being able to mitigate, either morphologically, physiologically, or behaviorally, the impact of those conditions.

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Ecological constraints on extra-pair paternity in the bluethroat

Cited by 64 publications

References 23 publications

Egg-size variation in the bluethroat (Luscinia s. svecica): constraints and adaptation

Egg-size variation in the bluethroat (Luscinia s. svecica): constraints and adaptation

Mate guarding and territorial aggression vary with breeding synchrony in golden whistlers (Pachycephala pectoralis)

Environmental Conditions Affect Sperm Competition Risk in Japanese Beetles (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae)

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