Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: http://hdl.handle.net/1959.14/105123
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- Title
- Low level of extrapair parentage in wild Zebra Finches
- Related
- Animal behaviour, Vol. 79, Issue 2 (2010), p.261-264
- Related
- doi:10.1016/j.anbehav.2009.11.031
- Publisher
- Elsevier
- Date
- 2010
- FoR/RFCD Code(s)
-
060201 Behavioural Ecology
060801 Animal Behaviour
060308 Life Histories
- Author/Creator
- Griffith, Simon C
- Author/Creator
- Holleley, Clare E
- Author/Creator
- Mariette, Mylene M
- Author/Creator
- Pryke, Sarah R
- Author/Creator
- Svedin, Nina
- Description
- The captive zebra finch, Taeniopygia guttata, has become one of the key vertebrate model systems for studying a range of behavioural, physiological and neurological phenomena. In particular, this species has played a key role in developing our understanding of sexual selection and sperm competition. In contrast with the large number of studies using domesticated zebra finches, relatively few studies have focused on free-living populations of wild zebra finches. Investigating the incidence of extrapair paternity in zebra finches in the Australian desert, we found a very low level; 1.7% of 316 offspring from four of 80 broods fathered outside the pair bond. These numbers contrast with the high levels of extrapair paternity observed in domesticated aviary populations, and suggest a low level of sperm competition and sexual selection in natural populations. Our finding of such a low rate of extrapair paternity in the wild zebra finch suggests that it is one of the most genetically monogamous of all passerine species and that has important implications for future studies of this model organism in studies of sexual selection and reproductive biology. In addition, we found that 5.4% of 316 offspring were not related to either putative parent and hatched from eggs that had been dumped by intraspecific brood parasites.
- Description
- 4 page(s)
- Subject Keyword
- 060201 Behavioural Ecology
- Subject Keyword
- 060801 Animal Behaviour
- Subject Keyword
- 060308 Life Histories
- Subject Keyword
- extrapair paternity
- Subject Keyword
- intraspecific brood parasitism
- Subject Keyword
- sexual conflict
- Subject Keyword
- sexual selection
- Subject Keyword
- sperm competition
- Subject Keyword
- Taeniopygia guttata
- Subject Keyword
- zebra finch
- Resource Type
- journal article
- Organisation
- Macquarie University. Dept. of Brain, Behaviour and Evolution
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/1959.14/105123
- Identifier
- ISSN:0003-3402
- Identifier
- mq-rm-2009010968
- Language
- eng
- Reviewed
