Condition-dependent nesting in bluegill sunfish Lepomis macrochirus

1. There are two prominent, nonmutually exclusive hypotheses to explain the timing of reproduction in animals: energetic constraint and adaptive behaviour. 2. We tested these hypotheses by quantifying the costs and benefits of nesting at different times in the season for male bluegill sunfish Lepomis macrochirus, a species with paternal care, in Lake Opinicon (Ontario, Canada). 3. The value of nesting at different times during the breeding season (RSb) was determined from spawning individuals as RSb = Pb x Cb x Sb x Ob, where Pb is the probability of spawning during each bout b, Cb is the expected brood size, Sb is the expected brood survivorship to 'swim-up', and Ob is the survivorship of free-swimming fry to age 1 year. 4. The results show that the value of nesting peaks during the middle of the season. However, nesting patterns varied with male condition and not all males nested at the peak. 5. Larger males, which were able to nest multiple times, first nested early in the season when overwinter survivorship of offspring and renesting opportunities later in the season were maximized. These males had the highest seasonal reproductive success. 6. Smaller males, which nested a single time, delayed nesting until the middle of the season when spawning opportunities and brood sizes were greatest. 7. These data suggest that both energetics and adaptive behaviour play roles in determining the timing of reproduction.     

Large-scale spatial variation in the breeding performance of song thrushes Turdus philomelos and blackbirds T. merula in Britain

1.  Spatial variation in breeding performance is of critical importance in understanding the large-scale distribution and abundance of living species, and in understanding species conservation. We studied the large-scale spatial variation in reproductive output of two species of declining British bird, the song thrush Turdus philomelos and the blackbird Turdus merula .
2.  We developed a method to predict spatial variation in reproductive output. Brood size and nest failure rates during the incubation and nestling periods were related to environmental factors using generalized linear models. Predicted values obtained from these models were combined to give values of number of fledglings produced per nesting attempt for 10-km squares throughout Britain.
3.  We observed substantial spatial variation in reproductive output for both species; the component that varied most was nest failure rate during incubation. We were more successful in relating environmental factors to spatial variation in reproductive output for song thrush than for blackbird.
4.  Reproductive output in both species was affected mainly by factors that vary on a small spatial scale. Nest failure rate during incubation increased significantly where corvids were more abundant, suggesting a role for avian nest predators in determining spatial variation in reproductive output.
5.  Our approach can be extended readily to other species of birds, to other taxonomic groups and to finer spatial scales. Such models could be used to evaluate the implications of current and proposed wider countryside management for spatial variation in breeding performance. Evaluations based on breeding success as well as numbers are likely to be more robust than those based solely on abundance.     

Application of paternity discrimination by DNA polymorphism to the analysis of the social behavior of primates

Paternity in many primate species cannot be established reliably on behavioral grounds. For instance, Japanese macaques (Macaca fuscata) have a multi-male group structure and promiscuous mating patterns. On the other hand, accurate evaluation of male reproductive success is needed to analyze primate behavior. DNA finger-printing techniques were applied to 2 captive groups of Japanese macaques in the Primate Research Institute of Kyoto University for identification of paternity. Also, mating behavior of a captive group was observed in order to compare the reproductive success of each male with that expected on the basis of his observed mating activity. The number of offspring of full adult males was not related to their social rank although the number of copulations with ejaculation was highly correlated with their social rank. Monitoring of the female sexual cycles from the plasma profiles of gonadotropins and ovarian hormones suggested that males could not choose females at days of ovulation. The results of two-free-ranging wild troops, like those of the captive groups, indicated that high-ranking males could not monopolize the paternity of offspring. The results of paternity discrimination in Japanese macaques were compared with results from patas monkeys (Erythrocebus patas) in a discussion of social structure and male reproductive success. Some aspects of polymorphism detection techniques are also discussed.     

Lifetime fitness components in female colour morphs of a damselfly: density‐ or frequency‐dependent selection?

In many damselfly species mature females exhibit colour polymorphism: one female morph resembles the conspecific male (androchrome) while the others do not (gynochromes). Hypotheses for the maintenance of such polymorphisms differ mainly as to whether they are based on density- and/or frequency-dependent selection and on the nature of the frequency dependence. We collected lifetime fitness data (individual lifespan, number of copulations and number of ovipositions) for female morphs of the damselfly Ischnura elegans from 15 insectaries differing in population parameters (density, sex ratio and ratio of andro- to gynochromes). Both density and frequency affected a specific set of the studied fitness components. While morph frequency influenced lifespan, sex ratio influenced the number of copulations, and density affected lifespan and the number of ovipositions. Clearly, discrepancies among studies may be generated if the studied fitness components differ. Our final fitness estimate, the number of ovipositions, was only influenced by density, thereby not supporting frequency-based hypotheses. Contrary to expectation under the current density-based hypothesis, androchromes compared to gynochromes had a lower number of ovipositions at high density. We discuss our findings in the light of mechanisms maintaining the female polymorphism.  © 2005 The Linnean Society of London, Biological Journal of the Linnean Society , 2005, 86 , 515–523.     

The influence of persistent individual differences and age at maturity on effective population size

Ratios of effective populations size, N(e), to census population size, N, are used as a measure of genetic drift in populations. Several life-history parameters have been shown to affect these ratios, including mating system and age at sexual maturation. Using a stochastic matrix model, we examine how different levels of persistent individual differences in mating success among males may affect N(e)/N, and how this relates to generation time. Individual differences of this type are shown to cause a lower N(e)/N ratio than would be expected when mating is independent among seasons. Examining the way in which age at maturity affects N(e)/N, we find that both the direction and magnitude of the effect depends on the survival rate of juveniles in the population. In particular, when maturation is delayed, lowered juvenile survival causes higher levels of genetic drift. In addition, predicted shifts in N(e)/N with changing age at maturity are shown to be dependent on which of the commonly used definitions of census population size, N, is employed. Our results demonstrate that patterns of mating success, as well as juvenile survival probabilities, have substantial effects on rates of genetic drift.     

Individual variation in parental workload and breeding productivity in female European starlings: is the effort worth it?

We analyzed individual variation in work load (nest visit rate) during chick‐rearing, and the consequences of this variation in terms of breeding productivity, in a highly synchronous breeder, the European starling (Sturnus vulgaris) focusing on female birds. There was marked (10‐ to 16‐fold) variation in total, female and male nest visit rates, among individuals, but individual variation in female nest visit rate was independent of environment (rainfall, temperature) and metrics of individual quality (laying date, clutch size, amount of male provisioning help), and was only weakly associated with chick demand (i.e., day 6 brood size). Female nest visit rate was independent of date and experimentally delayed birds provisioned at the same rate as peak‐nesting birds; supporting a lack of effect of date per se. Brood size at fledging was positively but weakly related to total nest visit rate (male + female), with >fivefold variation in nest visit rate for any given brood size, and in females brood size at fledging and chick mass at fledging were independent of female nest visit rate, that is, individual variation in workload was not associated with higher productivity. Nevertheless, nest visit rate in females was repeatable among consecutive days (6–8 posthatching), and between peak (first) and second broods, but not among years. Our data suggest that individual females behave as if committed to a certain level of parental care at the outset of their annual breeding attempt, but this varies among years, that is, behavior is not fixed throughout an individual's life but represents an annually variable decision. We suggest females are making predictable decisions about their workload during provisioning that maximizes their overall fitness based on an integration of information on their current environment (although these cues currently remain unidentified).