Avian Paternal Care Had Dinosaur Origin

Science ◽  
2008 ◽  
Vol 322 (5909) ◽  
pp. 1826-1828 ◽  
Author(s):  
David J. Varricchio ◽  
Jason R. Moore ◽  
Gregory M. Erickson ◽  
Mark A. Norell ◽  
Frankie D. Jackson ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Parental Care ◽  
Mating System ◽  
Paternal Care ◽  
Close Association ◽  
Bone Histology ◽  
Biparental Care ◽  
Care Model ◽  
Ancestral Condition ◽  
Large Clutch ◽  
Care System

The repeated discovery of adult dinosaurs in close association with egg clutches leads to speculation over the type and extent of care exhibited by these extinct animals for their eggs and young. To assess parental care in Cretaceous troodontid and oviraptorid dinosaurs, we examined clutch volume and the bone histology of brooding adults. In comparison to four archosaur care regressions, the relatively large clutch volumes ofTroodon, Oviraptor, andCitipatiscale most closely with a bird-paternal care model. Clutch-associated adults lack the maternal and reproductively associated histologic features common to extant archosaurs. Large clutch volumes and a suite of reproductive features shared only with birds favor paternal care, possibly within a polygamous mating system. Paternal care in both troodontids and oviraptorids indicates that this care system evolved before the emergence of birds and represents birds' ancestral condition. In extant birds and over most adult sizes, paternal and biparental care correspond to the largest and smallest relative clutch volumes, respectively.

Mating system, mate choice and parental care in a bark beetle

2017 ◽  
Vol 107 (5) ◽  
pp. 611-619 ◽  
Author(s):  
O. Baruch ◽  
Z. Mendel ◽  
I. Scharf ◽  
A. R Harari
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Reproductive Success ◽  
Mate Choice ◽  
Parental Care ◽  
Mating System ◽  
Assortative Mating ◽  
Bark Beetle ◽  
Biparental Care ◽  
Male Body ◽  
Male Body Size

AbstractThe cypress bark beetle,Phloeosinus armatus, is a common element of the dying cypress tree system in East-Mediterranean countries. Adult beetles congregate for breeding on this ephemeral resource. We studied three traits that characterize this beetle's sexual behavior and linked them to its reproductive success: mating system, mate choice, and parental care. We found that the females are the ‘pioneering sex’, excavating the mating chamber. The average female is slightly larger than the male, and female and male body size is correlated, demonstrating size-assortative mating. The time it takes for a male to enter the mating chamber is positively correlated with female size and negatively correlated with its own size, which is perhaps responsible for this assortative mating. Males remain in the gallery during the period of oviposition, gradually leaving soon after the eggs hatch. The number of eggs laid and tunnel length are positively correlated with male body size. Finally, in the presence of both parents, more eggs are laid than when the female alone is present, demonstrating the important contribution of biparental care for reproductive success. We suggest that the interaction between a monogamous mating system, assortative mating, and biparental care contributes to reproductive success.

scholarly journals Tri-axial accelerometry shows differences in energy expenditure and parental effort throughout the breeding season in long-lived raptors

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Pascual LÓPEZ-LÓPEZ ◽  
Arturo M PERONA ◽  
Olga EGEA-CASAS ◽  
Jon ETXEBARRIA MORANT ◽  
Vicente URIOS
Keyword(s):  
Energy Expenditure ◽  
Parental Care ◽  
Breeding Season ◽  
Video Recording ◽  
Experimental Manipulation ◽  
Biparental Care ◽  
Breeding Ecology ◽  
Parental Effort ◽  
Ecological Data ◽  
Movement Trajectories

Abstract Cutting-edge technologies are extremely useful to develop new workflows in studying ecological data, particularly to understand animal behaviour and movement trajectories at the individual level. Although parental care is a well-studied phenomenon, most studies have been focused on direct observational or video recording data, as well as experimental manipulation. Therefore, what happens out of our sight still remains unknown. Using high-frequency GPS/GSM dataloggers and tri-axial accelerometers we monitored 25 Bonelli’s eagles (Aquila fasciata) during the breeding season to understand parental activities from a broader perspective. We used recursive data, measured as number of visits and residence time, to reveal nest attendance patterns of biparental care with role specialization between sexes. Accelerometry data interpreted as the Overall Dynamic Body Acceleration, a proxy of energy expenditure, showed strong differences in parental effort throughout the breeding season and between sexes. Thereby, males increased substantially their energetic requirements, due to the increased workload, while females spent most of the time on the nest. Furthermore, during critical phases of the breeding season, a low percentage of suitable hunting spots in eagles’ territories led them to increase their ranging behaviour in order to find food, with important consequences in energy consumption and mortality risk. Our results highlight the crucial role of males in raptor species exhibiting biparental care. Finally, we exemplify how biologging technologies are an adequate and objective method to study parental care in raptors as well as to get deeper insight into breeding ecology of birds in general.

scholarly journals Description of the reproductive behavior of Symphysodon aequifasciatus (Cichlidae) in captivity

2016 ◽  
Vol 46 (4) ◽  
pp. 433-438 ◽  
Author(s):  
Douglas da Cruz MATTOS ◽  
Rafaela SCRENCI-RIBEIRO ◽  
Leonardo Demier CARDOSO ◽  
Manuel Vazquez Vidal JUNIOR
Keyword(s):  
Parental Care ◽  
Reproductive Behavior ◽  
Amazon Basin ◽  
Color Change ◽  
Biparental Care ◽  
Reproductive Process ◽  
Second Stage ◽  
In Captivity ◽  
Two Stages ◽  
Couple Formation

ABSTRACT The blue discus (Symphysodon aequifasciatus) is often sold for ornamental purposes. It is a neotropical cichlid from South America, which is native to the rivers of the Amazon basin of Brazil, Peru and Colombia. The purpose of this study was to characterize the reproductive behavior of S. aequifasciatus and identify features that can later be used by breeders to facilitate the handling and reproduction of this species in captivity. The experiment was divided into two stages: the first dealt with partner selection and couple formation to observe the behaviors of territoriality, pursuing, fleeing, biting, stay, protecting and cleaning of the substrate. The second stage documented mating behavior, nesting and parental care, to observe vibration, spawning, permanence with the offspring, aeration of eggs, cleaning of spawning, color change and shift-taking in parental care. The results of the study allowed identifying disputes for and establishment of territory, as well as the selection and cleaning of the substrate for spawning performed by both sexes. The parental care was observed from spawning in the substrate until the care for the larvae. It was found that the reproductive success of this species is closely linked to biparental care observed during the entire reproductive process and early stages of the hatchings.

A phylogenetic perspective on absence and presence of a sex-limited polymorphism

2008 ◽  
Vol 58 (2) ◽  
pp. 257-273 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michelle. Mattern ◽  
Hans Van Gossum
Keyword(s):  
Mating System ◽  
North American ◽  
Phylogenetic Trees ◽  
Evolutionary Perspective ◽  
Ancestral Condition ◽  
End Point ◽  
Subsequent Loss ◽  
Phylogenetic Perspective

AbstractSex-limited polymorphism is widely distributed among animal taxa, but has only rarely been studied from a macro-evolutionary perspective. We investigate the evolution of female-limited polymorphism by mapping presence or absence of multiple discrete morphs on published phylogenetic trees for North American representatives of two damselfly genera. The results indicate that female polymorphy represents the ancestral condition based on the species included with subsequent loss and monomorphy representing the evolutionary end-point in most cases. According to one phylogeny, character optimization suggests that expression of the polymorphism may be lost (to a state of monomorphy) and gained again (back to polymorphy). Earlier work indicated that changes from polymorphy to monomorphy might be coupled with evolution of the mating system from polyandry to monandry. The results presented here, however, do not convincingly support such view.

Parental Behavior

2020 ◽  
pp. 4-13
Author(s):  
Michael Numan
Keyword(s):  
Breeding System ◽  
Cooperative Breeding ◽  
Maternal Care ◽  
Parental Behavior ◽  
Mammalian Species ◽  
Biparental Care ◽  
Dominant Form ◽  
Paternal Behavior ◽  
Alloparental Behavior ◽  
Care System

Chapter 2 describes the types of parental behavior that can occur in vertebrates: maternal, paternal, and alloparental behavior. The dominant form of parental behavior in mammals is a uniparental maternal care system, where the mother raises her offspring by herself. A mother can form either a nonselective or selective bond with her infants, depending on the maturity of her infants at birth. A biparental care system, in which both maternal and paternal behavior occur, is present in about 5% of mammalian species. Approximately 3% of mammalian species exhibit a cooperative breeding system, where some offspring remain in their social group and help their parents raise subsequent offspring. The parental behavior of these helpers is referred to as alloparental behavior. The occurrence of paternal and alloparental behavior shows that alternative mechanisms, not requiring pregnancy and parturition, can evolve which allow for these forms of parental behavior.

scholarly journals Females prefer the calls of better fathers in a Neotropical frog with biparental care

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Beth A Pettitt ◽  
Godfrey R Bourne ◽  
Mark A Bee
Keyword(s):  
Paternal Care ◽  
Biparental Care ◽  
Offspring Survival ◽  
Differential Allocation ◽  
Secondary Sexual Traits ◽  
Trade Off ◽  
Good Parent ◽  
Direct Benefits ◽  
Male Care ◽  
Sexual Traits

Abstract Male secondary sexual traits potentially function as indicators of direct or indirect fitness benefits to females. Direct benefits, such as paternal care, may be especially important to females in species with biparental care. In an experimental field study of the golden rocket frog (Anomaloglossus beebei), a Neotropical species with biparental care, we tested predictions from four hypotheses proposed to explain the evolutionary relationship between male secondary sexual traits and paternal care quality (the “good parent,” “differential allocation,” “trade-off,” and “essential male care” hypotheses). We examined: 1) the influence of paternal care on offspring survival, 2) the relationships between male calls and paternal care, maternal care, and opportunities for males to acquire multiple mates, and 3) female preferences for three acoustic properties of male advertisement calls. Our results reveal that paternal care positively impacts offspring survival, that males producing longer calls also provide higher-quality paternal care in the form of greater egg attendance and territory defense, and that females prefer longer calls. Females did not discriminate among potential mates based on differences in dominant frequency or call rate. These findings, which suggest male advertisement calls are indicators of potential direct benefits to females in the form of paternal care, are consistent with the good parent hypothesis and inconsistent with the trade-off, differential allocation, and essential male care hypotheses.

Show me you care: female mate choice based on egg attendance rather than male or territorial traits

2020 ◽  
Vol 31 (4) ◽  
pp. 1054-1064 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anyelet Valencia-Aguilar ◽  
Kelly R Zamudio ◽  
Célio F B Haddad ◽  
Steve M Bogdanowicz ◽  
Cynthia P A Prado
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Parental Care ◽  
Paternal Care ◽  
Genetic Relatedness ◽  
Female Mate Choice ◽  
Male Reproductive Success ◽  
Offspring Survival ◽  
Territory Quality ◽  
Female Mate

Abstract Female mate choice is often based on male traits, including signals or behaviors, and/or the quality of a male’s territory. In species with obligate paternal care, where care directly affects offspring survival, females may also base their mate choices on the quality of a sire’s care. Here, we quantified male reproductive success in a natural population of the glass frog Hyalinobatrachium cappellei, a species with male parental care, to determine the influence of territory quality, male traits, and paternal care behaviors on female mate choice. We found that attending males have a higher chance of gaining new clutches than nonattending males. Our results indicate that females do not select males based only on body condition, calling persistence, or territory traits. Instead, our findings support the hypothesis that females choose males based on care status. Indeed, males already attending a clutch were 70% more likely to obtain another clutch, and the time to acquire an additional clutch was significantly shorter. We also found that males adjust their parental care effort in response to genetic relatedness by caring only for their own offspring; however, remaining close to unrelated clutches serves as a strategy to attract females and increase chances of successful mating. Thus, males that establish territories that already contain clutches benefit from the signal eggs provide to females.

scholarly journals The evolution of parental care diversity in amphibians

2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrew I. Furness ◽  
Isabella Capellini
Keyword(s):  
Parental Care ◽  
Developmental Stages ◽  
Comparative Methods ◽  
Biparental Care ◽  
Phylogenetic Comparative Methods ◽  
Amphibian Species ◽  
Full Spectrum

Abstract Parental care is extremely diverse across species, ranging from simple behaviours to complex adaptations, varying in duration and in which sex cares. Surprisingly, we know little about how such diversity has evolved. Here, using phylogenetic comparative methods and data for over 1300 amphibian species, we show that egg attendance, arguably one of the simplest care behaviours, is gained and lost faster than any other care form, while complex adaptations, like brooding and viviparity, are lost at very low rates, if at all. Prolonged care from the egg to later developmental stages evolves from temporally limited care, but it is as easily lost as it is gained. Finally, biparental care is evolutionarily unstable regardless of whether the parents perform complementary or similar care duties. By considering the full spectrum of parental care adaptations, our study reveals a more complex and nuanced picture of how care evolves, is maintained, or is lost.

scholarly journals Spawning and parental care in Hoplias malabaricus (Teleostei, Characiformes, Erythrinidae) in the Southern Pantanal, Brazil

2006 ◽  
Vol 66 (2b) ◽  
pp. 697-702 ◽  
Author(s):  
C. P. A. Prado ◽  
L. M. Gomiero ◽  
O. Froehlich
Keyword(s):  
Normal Form ◽  
Parental Care ◽  
Biparental Care ◽  
Mato Grosso ◽  
Hoplias Malabaricus ◽  
Mean Diameter ◽  
Egg Guarding ◽  
The Mean ◽  
Mato Grosso Do Sul ◽  
Flooded Areas

Herein we describe spawning and egg guarding in the erythrinid fish Hoplias malabaricus observed in the southern Pantanal (19° 34' S and 57° 00' W), state of Mato Grosso do Sul, Brazil. Nests were depressions built on sandy soil in flooded areas, and contained a mean of 8,197 ± 2,204 eggs (N = 4); the mean diameter of eggs was 1.44 ± 0.09 mm (N = 400). Among 11 nests observed, eight were guarded by males and three by the pair. One male remained in the nest for six days, and two pairs remained guarding the eggs for at least three days before being captured. Females (N = 2) captured in the nest contained oocytes in their ovaries. Our observations suggest that male parental care is the normal form of parental care in H. malabaricus, but biparental care also seems to occur.

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