Personality traits of pair members predict pair compatibility and reproductive success in a socially monogamous parrot breeding in captivity

Zoo Biology ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 33 (3) ◽  
pp. 166-172 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rebecca A. Fox ◽  
James R. Millam
2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (6) ◽  
pp. 190563 ◽  
Author(s):  
Masayo Soma ◽  
Midori Iwama ◽  
Ryoko Nakajima ◽  
Rika Endo

Vocal learners, such as songbirds, must practise singing in a developmentally sensitive period to master songs. Yet, knowledge remains limited about the development of visual displays in birds, even when courtship includes well-coordinated vocalizations (songs) and body motions. The Java sparrow ( Lonchura oryzivora ) is a species of songbird that exhibits a courtship duet dancing exchange between the sexes, with this behaviour driving mating success. In this study, juvenile male Java sparrows were observed in captivity, showing that they repeatedly practise the courtship dance in their early life. We called it ‘practice’, as juvenile birds frequently dance towards family members or other juveniles well before sexual maturation. Based on our observation that dance motor performance increased with age, we propose that the practice is needed for motor learning. In addition, it could also be important for establishing vocal-motional coordination or socialization. Older juveniles gradually became capable of singing and dancing simultaneously, and participated in duet dancing more often. We also found that repeated encounters with the same individual promote dance movement. Though our results do not show how much social experiences account for the development of dance communication, early-life dance practising might influence future reproductive success, like song practising does.


Behaviour ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 143 (10) ◽  
pp. 1241-1262 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maureen L. Cameron-Macmillan ◽  
Carolyn J. Walsh ◽  
Sabina I. Wilhelm ◽  
Anne E. Storey

AbstractWe investigated the behavioural context of pair (PCs) and extra-pair copulations (EPCs) in individually-marked socially-monogamous, long-lived seabirds, common murres (Uria aalge). Since forced EPCs have been documented for this species, we first examined which sex controls successful (cloacal contact achieved) copulation. The finding that all successful copulations required female cooperation and crouching suggested that benefits of successful EPCs accrue primarily to females. In a group of murres for which paternity analyses indicated no extra-pair paternity, behavioural observations over five breeding seasons showed that individual females engaged in EPCs primarily under two circumstances: (1) before they were reunited with their mates, and (2) when they were in the process of re-pairing. There was no such relationship between EPCs and re-pairing for males. Successful EPCs occurred with familiar neighboring males of apparent high quality, indicated by their high ledge attendance and prior reproductive success rates. Thus, EPCs may be used by females to attract potential high quality mates in situations where females are attempting to re-pair as a result of divorce or mate death.


2019 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Magdalena Herdegen-Radwan

Abstract Background Intra-individual stable but inter-individually variable behaviours, i.e. personalities, are commonly reported across diverse animal groups, yet the reasons for their maintenance remain controversial. Therefore, studying fitness consequences of personality traits is necessary to discriminate between alternative explanations. Results Here, I measured boldness, a highly repeatable personality trait, and reproductive success in male guppies, Poecilia reticulata. I found that bolder males had higher reproductive success than their shyer conspecifics and they sired offspring with females who had larger clutches. Conclusions This result provides direct evidence for fitness consequences of boldness in the guppy. It suggests that the effect may be driven by bolder males mating with more fecund females.


The Auk ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 136 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Pedro Diniz ◽  
Regina H Macedo ◽  
Michael S Webster

AbstractDuetting has been intensively studied, but we still have little consensus about its fitness consequences. Some studies suggest that duetting functions in acoustic mate guarding to prevent cuckoldry (acoustic paternity guarding hypothesis), whereas other studies argue that duetting is a cooperative behavior to defend common resources (territory defense hypothesis). We tested these 2 hypotheses by investigating the relationships among song traits, extra-pair paternity, territory quality and reproductive success in the Rufous Hornero (Furnarius rufus), a Neotropical, socially monogamous bird. We found a low rate of extra-pair paternity (3.33% of 120 offspring and 6.52% of 46 broods), which suggests that acoustic paternity guarding is probably not a primary function of duetting behavior in this species. Female song output was positively correlated with territory quality, measured as the availability of territory foraging patches. The number of young that survived post-fledging was positively correlated with duet duration, but not with territory features. Our results support the territory defense hypothesis, suggesting that female song in duets might be used in the defense of food resources within territories. Our study provides the first evidence that song traits correlate with both territory features and reproductive success in a duetting species.


2020 ◽  
Vol 31 (4) ◽  
pp. 1017-1030 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gonzalo Rodríguez-Ruiz ◽  
Jesús Ortega ◽  
José Javier Cuervo ◽  
Pilar López ◽  
Alfredo Salvador ◽  
...  

Abstract Sexual signals can be evolutionarily stable if they are condition dependent or costly to the signaler. One of these costs may be the trade-off between maintaining the immune system and the elaboration of ornaments. Experimental immune challenges in captivity show a reduction in the expression of sexual signals, but it is not clear whether these detrimental effects are important in nature and, more importantly, whether they have reproductive consequences. We designed a field experiment to challenge the immune system of wild male Carpetan rock lizards, Iberolacerta cyreni, with a bacterial antigen (lipopolysaccharide). The immune challenge decreased relative reflectance of ultraviolet structural and melanin-dependent sexual coloration in the throat and the lateral ocelli, whereas the carotenoid-dependent dorsal green coloration was not affected. Immune activation also decreased proportions of ergosterol and cholesta-5,7-dien-3-ol in femoral secretions. These results support a trade-off between the immune system and both visual and chemical sexual ornaments. Moreover, the reproductive success of males, estimated with DNA microsatellites, depended on the expression of some color and chemical traits. However, the immune challenge did not cause overall differences in reproductive success, although it increased with body size/age in control but not in challenged males. This suggests the use of alternative reproductive strategies (e.g., forced matings) in challenged males, particularly in smaller ones. These males might consider that their survival probabilities are low and increase reproductive effort as a form of terminal investment in spite of their “low-quality” sexual signals and potential survival costs.


Behaviour ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 153 (5) ◽  
pp. 551-567 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carrie L. Branch ◽  
Dovid Y. Kozlovsky ◽  
Rebecca Croston ◽  
Angela Pitera ◽  
Vladimir V. Pravosudov

There is little work investigating the relationship between environmental changes and associated hippocampal effects on animal homing. We took advantage of previous studies in which wild, non-migratory mountain chickadees spent six months in captivity prior to being released. Over the following three years, 45.8% of the birds were resighted, and in all cases birds were identified less than 300 m from their initial capture locations at their respective elevation, despite previous studies documentingca30% captivity-related reduction of the hippocampus. Reproductive success of birds that spent six months in captivity did not differ from control birds that did not experience captivity. Our findings suggest that chickadees are highly site faithful and can return to their original capture location after spending time in captivity. Our results also have important implications for animal welfare practices as birds held in captivity bred successfully and may not need to be sacrificed following captivity.


Zoo Biology ◽  
2002 ◽  
Vol 21 (6) ◽  
pp. 525-537 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gary W. Ferguson ◽  
W.H. Gehrmann ◽  
T.C. Chen ◽  
E.S. Dierenfeld ◽  
M.F. Holick

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