Female Control of Paternity During Copulation: Inbreeding Avoidance in Feral Cats

Abstract

Although among feral cats, Felis catus, females copulate with multiple males, they do not accept all mounting or copulation attempts by males during their oestrous period. We observed eight female cats over their oestrous periods to examine whether or not female cats control paternity of their offspring in the field. The females were courted by between nine and 19 males, but copulated with only three to nine of them. Firstly, we compared female receptivity to male attempts among the eight females and tested how female traits affect their receptivity. Female receptivity to male attempts varied among the females both at mounting and at copulation. Females were more choosy at the time of copulation than at mounting. Females with a shorter oestrous duration and a lighter body weight tended to accept mounts more frequently than the females with a longer oestrous duration and a higher body weight. Older and lighter females tended to accept copulation more frequently than younger and heavier females. Females courted by fewer males per day also tended to accept copulations more frequently. Secondly, combining behavioural observations and determined kinship, we assessed whether females avoided copulating with their kin. The results showed that female cats avoid inbreeding with their close kin during copulation but not with distant relatives. Copulation attempts by kin males were less frequently accepted than those by nonkin males. Thirdly, we tested whether male age and body weight affect their mating success, but we failed to find any such correlation. These results support the hypothesis that female cats control paternity of their offspring during copulation.

Inbreeding rate and genetic structure of cat populations in Poland

“…Generally animals from natural populations tend to reduce inbreeding by excluding young males thus avoiding mating of close relatives. Moreover, female cats can control paternity to avoid inbreeding, mainly by selecting non-related mating partners (Ishida et al 2001). On the other hand in domesticated populations, breeders decide which cats to mate in order to obtain certain desired characteristics or to create a new breed.…”

Kin Affiliation Across the Ovulatory Cycle

“…Given their generally high levels of parental investment (Trivers, 1972), females should show heightened sensitivity toward potentially costly sexual behaviors, such as inbreeding, especially during periods of peak fertility. In support of this prediction, studies have shown that nonhuman females from a variety of species avoid male kin during estrus (cats: Ishida, Yahara, Kasuya, & Yamane, 2001;horses: Monard, Duncan, & Boy, 1996;voles: Boyd & Blaustein, 1985;mice: Winn & Vestal, 1986). In humans, women report greater disgust toward biologically costly sexual behaviors (e.g., incest and bestiality) during periods of high fertility (Fessler & Navarrete, 14 Lieberman et al 2003), but what is not known is whether these attitudes translate into manifest behavior.…”

Simultaneous polyandry and heteropaternity in tiger (Panthera tigris altaica): Implications for conservation of genetic diversity in captive populations of felids

“…Fragmentary observations by zookeepers showed that copulations between full siblings accounted for only about 5.8% to 16.5% of the total (Wang et al, personal communication). This type of mate selection was also observed in feral cats [5] and cheetah [34] when females avoided mating with close kin but not with more distant relatives. In contrast to the feral cat where only females selected against close relatives, both sexes of Harbin tigers appeared to avoid mating with close relatives.…”

“…Cheetah and domestic cat have also shown high frequencies of heteropaternity litters, 43% and 80% respectively [6,34]. The rate of heteropaternity and number of sires per litter are influenced by many factors, such as capability of males at mate-guarding [37], population structure [6], mate choice [38], and male-female relatedness [5]. It is not difficult for population managers to optimize these influencing factors to favor increased heteropaternity and individual heterozygosity of offspring.…”

“…females mate with multiple males and males mate with multiple females [4]. Females avoid inbreeding by copulating with distant relatives rather than with close kin [5]. This mating system reduces the cost of competition and spreads reproductive chances to all individuals.…”