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Limits to cooperative polyandry in birds

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Limits to cooperative polyandry in birds. / Hartley, I. R.; Davies, N. B.
In: Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, Vol. 257, No. 1348, 22.07.1994, p. 67-73.

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Harvard

Hartley, IR & Davies, NB 1994, 'Limits to cooperative polyandry in birds', Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, vol. 257, no. 1348, pp. 67-73. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.1994.0095

APA

Hartley, I. R., & Davies, N. B. (1994). Limits to cooperative polyandry in birds. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 257(1348), 67-73. https://doi.org/10.1098/rspb.1994.0095

Vancouver

Hartley IR, Davies NB. Limits to cooperative polyandry in birds. Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. 1994 Jul 22;257(1348):67-73. doi: 10.1098/rspb.1994.0095

Author

Hartley, I. R. ; Davies, N. B. / Limits to cooperative polyandry in birds. In: Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. 1994 ; Vol. 257, No. 1348. pp. 67-73.

Bibtex

@article{fe8bda1eeb4d459996895ea6257e6bb7,
title = "Limits to cooperative polyandry in birds",
abstract = "In communally breeding birds the number of helpers at the nest is less when helping depends on shared paternity (cooperative polyandry) rather than on collateral kinship with the brood (helpers are siblings, aunts or uncles). We suggest that this is because a helper's relatedness to the brood decreases with an increasing number of helpers in the first case but not in the second. By using the dunnock, Prunella modularis, as a model system, we investigated why cooperative polyandry in this species rarely involves more than two males by removing females to increase male availability in the population. Females defended by just one male actively solicited matings from a second male who settled on their territory. By contrast, although widowed males also attempted to settle on territories already defended by two males, females usually refused to mate with them even though they had ample opportunity to do so. We show that a female would be unlikely to increase the total parental help she gained by sharing matings between more than two males because of the way males reduce their parental effort in relation to paternity loss, and suggest that mating with more males would also increase sexual harassment. We conclude that female choice may set a limit to cooperative polyandry in birds.",
author = "Hartley, {I. R.} and Davies, {N. B.}",
year = "1994",
month = jul,
day = "22",
doi = "10.1098/rspb.1994.0095",
language = "English",
volume = "257",
pages = "67--73",
journal = "Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences",
issn = "0962-8436",
publisher = "Royal Society",
number = "1348",

}

RIS

TY - JOUR

T1 - Limits to cooperative polyandry in birds

AU - Hartley, I. R.

AU - Davies, N. B.

PY - 1994/7/22

Y1 - 1994/7/22

N2 - In communally breeding birds the number of helpers at the nest is less when helping depends on shared paternity (cooperative polyandry) rather than on collateral kinship with the brood (helpers are siblings, aunts or uncles). We suggest that this is because a helper's relatedness to the brood decreases with an increasing number of helpers in the first case but not in the second. By using the dunnock, Prunella modularis, as a model system, we investigated why cooperative polyandry in this species rarely involves more than two males by removing females to increase male availability in the population. Females defended by just one male actively solicited matings from a second male who settled on their territory. By contrast, although widowed males also attempted to settle on territories already defended by two males, females usually refused to mate with them even though they had ample opportunity to do so. We show that a female would be unlikely to increase the total parental help she gained by sharing matings between more than two males because of the way males reduce their parental effort in relation to paternity loss, and suggest that mating with more males would also increase sexual harassment. We conclude that female choice may set a limit to cooperative polyandry in birds.

AB - In communally breeding birds the number of helpers at the nest is less when helping depends on shared paternity (cooperative polyandry) rather than on collateral kinship with the brood (helpers are siblings, aunts or uncles). We suggest that this is because a helper's relatedness to the brood decreases with an increasing number of helpers in the first case but not in the second. By using the dunnock, Prunella modularis, as a model system, we investigated why cooperative polyandry in this species rarely involves more than two males by removing females to increase male availability in the population. Females defended by just one male actively solicited matings from a second male who settled on their territory. By contrast, although widowed males also attempted to settle on territories already defended by two males, females usually refused to mate with them even though they had ample opportunity to do so. We show that a female would be unlikely to increase the total parental help she gained by sharing matings between more than two males because of the way males reduce their parental effort in relation to paternity loss, and suggest that mating with more males would also increase sexual harassment. We conclude that female choice may set a limit to cooperative polyandry in birds.

U2 - 10.1098/rspb.1994.0095

DO - 10.1098/rspb.1994.0095

M3 - Journal article

AN - SCOPUS:0028573244

VL - 257

SP - 67

EP - 73

JO - Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences

JF - Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences

SN - 0962-8436

IS - 1348

ER -