Maternal care in the Tasmanian echidna (Tachyglossus aculeatus setosus)

2012 ◽  
Vol 60 (5) ◽  
pp. 289 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gemma E. Morrow ◽  
Stewart C. Nicol
Keyword(s):  
Maternal Care ◽  
Wild Population ◽  
Reproductive Behaviour ◽  
Similar Amount ◽  
External Temperature ◽  
Lactating Mothers ◽  
Males And Females ◽  
Infrared Cameras ◽  
Reproductive Events ◽  
Tachyglossus Aculeatus

Parental care is central to the differences in reproductive behaviour and energy expenditure between males and females, and it is therefore crucial for understanding animal mating systems. We investigated post-gestation maternal care in a wild population of short-beaked echidnas (Tachyglossus aculeatus) in the Tasmanian midlands using a combination of external temperature loggers and motion-triggered infrared cameras. For the first few weeks of early lactation mothers do not leave their nursery burrow, which they keep at a stable and warm temperature, resulting in a greater rate of maternal mass loss during the period of maternal burrow confinement than during hibernation. However, after lactating mothers recommence feeding, they raise a young to ~1.5 kg on a diet of their milk while increasing their own body mass by a similar amount. Weaning in our population appears not to be abrupt as there is a period where young echidnas begin exploratory foraging while their mother is still lactating. After young are weaned and abandon the nursery burrow, there appear to be no further associations between mothers and young despite young echidnas remaining within their mother’s home range for the first 12 months of their life. Female echidnas time reproductive events with increases in ecosystem productivity, so that young are weaned at a time of maximum food abundance.

Female control of reproductive behaviour in the platypus (Ornithorhynchus anatinus), with notes on female competition for mating

Behaviour ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 155 (1) ◽  
pp. 27-53 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jessica L. Thomas ◽  
Marissa L. Parrott ◽  
Kathrine A. Handasyde ◽  
Peter Temple-Smith
Keyword(s):  
Mating Behaviour ◽  
Reproductive Behaviour ◽  
Female Competition ◽  
Time Investment ◽  
Ornithorhynchus Anatinus ◽  
In Captivity ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Males And Females ◽  
Infrared Cameras ◽  
And Control

Abstract Opportunities for studying platypus courtship and mating behaviours in the wild are limited due to the nocturnal and cryptic nature of this species. We report on platypus courtship and mating behaviour from a successful breeding program at Healesville Sanctuary, Victoria, in which platypuses were held as either breeding pairs or trios over seven years. Behaviour was recorded daily on infrared cameras resulting in over 80,000 h of footage that was analysed for activity periods, and courtship and mating behaviours including non-contact and contact courtship, mating and avoidance. Our aims were to describe and quantify courtship and mating interactions between males and females, and to determine if either sex controlled the initiation and continuation of the behaviours. From our observations, we describe a new courtship behaviour, non-contact courtship, which constituted the majority of all mating season interactions between males and females. The time between first and last appearance of a courtship and mating behaviour was 41.0 ± 6.6 days, with the females showing behavioural receptivity for 29.6 ± 5.1 days. Female platypuses used three evasive strategies in relation to approaches by males: avoidance, flight and resistance. Females controlled the duration of 79% of encounters using resistance. For the first time, two females were seen competing with each other over access to the male platypus in their enclosure and for nesting material. Time investment in courtship and mating behaviours was a poor indicator of receptivity and breeding success, and we suggest that breeding failure is more likely to be associated with failure of fertilisation, nest building, embryonic development or incubation. We describe how female platypuses demonstrate evasiveness and control of courtship and mating behaviours, and the importance of providing these opportunities in captivity to promote successful breeding.

Body size, not age, predicts parasite load in Clark’s Spiny Lizards (Sceloporus clarkii)

2019 ◽  
Vol 97 (3) ◽  
pp. 220-224 ◽  
Author(s):  
H.V. Watkins ◽  
G. Blouin-Demers
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Surface Area ◽  
Intraspecific Variation ◽  
Wild Population ◽  
Parasite Load ◽  
Older Individuals ◽  
Fundamental Goal ◽  
Males And Females ◽  
Ectoparasite Load

Determining the factors that influence parasite load is a fundamental goal of parasitology. Body size often influences parasite load in reptiles, but it is unclear whether higher levels of parasitism are a result of greater surface area of individuals (a function of size) or of longer periods of exposure to parasites (a function of age). Using skeletochronology in a wild population of Clark’s Spiny Lizards (Sceloporus clarkii Baird and Girard, 1852), we tested the hypotheses that (i) larger individuals have higher parasite loads due to increased surface area available for colonization by parasites and their vectors and that (ii) older individuals have higher parasite loads because they have had longer exposure to parasites and their vectors. Males harboured more ectoparasites than females. Males and females differed in how body size influenced chigger (Acari: Trombiculidae) load; larger males harboured more chiggers than smaller males, but this was not the case in females. Age did not affect ectoparasite load in either sex. These results emphasize the importance of disentangling the effects of size and age in models of parasitism to gain a clearer understanding of intraspecific variation in parasite load.

Space use, cave choice, and spatial learning in the dendrobatid frog Colostethus palmatus

2003 ◽  
Vol 24 (1) ◽  
pp. 37-46 ◽  
Author(s):  
Horst Lüddecke
Keyword(s):  
Spatial Learning ◽  
Daily Activity ◽  
Visual Cues ◽  
Search Time ◽  
Reproductive Behaviour ◽  
Habitat Choice ◽  
Test Area ◽  
Learning Performance ◽  
Males And Females ◽  
Similar Search

AbstractMoving in and out of small cavelike structures is a common daily activity of Colostethus palmatus. Such sites are used for shelter and spawning. Therefore, cave quality is important to survival and reproductive success. The frogs' association with caves was studied in a 24-cave communal paludarium. Adult frogs recognised cave quality, and chose large damp caves for spawning, but large, wet and dark caves were preferred for shelter, while small ones were used less or ignored. The search time needed to find an available cave gradually shortened over trials, reaching a minimum in about eight days, indicating that frogs learned cave position. Males and females had similar search times. Frogs less familiar with the test area had longer initial search times than frogs with more experience, but achieved equally short search times after about eight days. In conjunction with previous findings the results suggest that visual cues are important in habitat choice and spatial learning, and that territorial and reproductive behaviour are intimately associated with learning performance.

Mating experience influences mate choice and reproductive output in an aphidophagous ladybird, Menochilus sexmaculatus

2018 ◽  
Vol 68 (3) ◽  
pp. 247-263 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ankita Dubey ◽  
Swati Saxena ◽  
Geetanjali Mishra ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Reproductive Output ◽  
Mating Behaviour ◽  
Reproductive Behaviour ◽  
Mating Status ◽  
Mating Experience ◽  
Males And Females

AbstractInformation about mating status can be used to decide about whether to invest resources in mating with a particular partner. In the present study, we evaluated mate choice in relation to the mating experience of males and females ofMenochilus sexmaculatus. We subjected both unmated and multiply mated males and females to different mate choice trials. The mating experience of the adults includes unmated, once-mated, twice-mated and multiply mated. The mate choice trials revealed that unmated adults were preferred over mated adults by both unmated and multiply mated partners. This preference for unmated partners also had consequences for mating behaviour and reproductive output. Unmated and multiply mated females commenced mating with unmated males earlier. In addition, unmated and multiply mated males invested more time in copula with unmated females. Moreover, females mated with unmated males were more fecund than those mated with previously mated males. This suggests that mating experience of mates may influence mating and reproductive behaviour in this species.

Is it risky to be a father? Survival assessment depending on sex and parental status in the water bug Abedus breviceps using multistate modelling

2007 ◽  
Vol 85 (1) ◽  
pp. 49-55 ◽  
Author(s):  
R. Munguía-Steyer ◽  
R. Macías-Ordóñez
Keyword(s):  
Life Span ◽  
Wild Population ◽  
Decision Rules ◽  
Adult Life ◽  
Parental Status ◽  
Adult Life Span ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Capture Recapture ◽  
Males And Females ◽  
Modelling Approach

We carried out a capture–recapture multistate modelling approach to estimate survival and recapture probabilities and transition rates between parental and nonparental status in an adult wild population of the water bug Abedus breviceps Stål, 1862 (Hemiptera: Belostomatidae). The global model included the following parameters: sex, male parental status (brooding or not), and transience (individual’s permanent movement from the site after first capture). Models were selected by means of the information-theory paradigm. The best supported model shows no difference in survival between males and females regardless of male parental status. Thus, the frequently assumed cost of parental care in terms of survival is not supported by our data. Furthermore, during the study, male expected adult life span in the wild was lower than the time needed to brood a batch of eggs from oviposition to hatching. We discuss potential consequences of such a short male expected adult life span in terms of parental behaviour decision rules related to fitness maximization.

Social Organisation in the Rufous Bettong, Aepyprymnus Rufescens

1996 ◽  
Vol 44 (1) ◽  
pp. 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
H Frederick ◽  
CN Johnson
Keyword(s):  
Mating System ◽  
Close Contact ◽  
Reproductive Behaviour ◽  
Social Organisation ◽  
Overt Aggression ◽  
Association Patterns ◽  
Intimate Knowledge ◽  
Males And Females ◽  
Almost All

This study examined association patterns and reproductive behaviour in a sexually monomorphic potoroid marsupial, the rufous bettong, Aepyprymnus rufescens. A total of 29 individuals was marked, and 22 of these were observed regularly over a six-month period; these 22 individuals accounted for almost all the animals using the study area. Rufous bettongs at this site were predominantly solitary (71% of sightings were of single animals) and groups, when they formed, were generally small (maximum of six individuals). Most groups of two were male-female pairs, and unisex groups occurred significantly less often than expected. These male-female groups formed as a result of sexual investigations of females by males, and were shore-lived. Analysis of the frequency with which particular males and females were seen together (excluding occasions when females were in oestrus) showed that most males did not persistently associate with any particular female. Instead, they appeared to maintain transitory contact with as many females as possible. However, three pairs were regularly seen together, suggesting that some males may maintain especially close contact with particular females. Females as they approached oestrus were followed continually by several males, with one male following very closely and preventing others from approaching. In two well-studied cases, the male who defended priority of access to the female was the same individual who had most often associated with that female when not in oestrus. These males demonstrated intimate knowledge of the nesting locations of the females and were able to join them very early each evening, and defended them against other males with little overt aggression. The mating system in this population appears to be promiscuous, but with a hint of monogamy arising from the tendency of some males to persistently investigate and ultimately to guard sexual access to certain individual females.

scholarly journals The population determines whether and how life-history traits vary between reproductive events in an insect with maternal care

Oecologia ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 182 (2) ◽  
pp. 443-452 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tom Ratz ◽  
Jos Kramer ◽  
Michel Veuille ◽  
Joël Meunier
Keyword(s):  
Life History ◽  
Maternal Care ◽  
Life History Traits ◽  
Reproductive Events

Courtship-Like Tracking Behaviour in Wild-Type Female Drosophila melanogaster

1981 ◽  
Vol 36 (5-6) ◽  
pp. 475-483 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert Cook
Keyword(s):  
Drosophila Melanogaster ◽  
Control System ◽  
Functional Relationship ◽  
Reproductive Behaviour ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Wild Type Female ◽  
Males And Females ◽  
Sex Specificity ◽  
Relationship Of

Abstract Both male and female Drosophila melanogaster possess systems which enable them to track other walking flies visually. Males use this system predominantly in courtship; females, when of sufficient age but still unmated, have been observed to track other flies, at rates of up to 18 bouts per hour. This behaviour is most conveniently studied in groups of females. Although similar to the courtship tracking of males, fem ale/female tracking lacks the “circling” component of courtship. The data suggest a functional relationship of female/female tracking to reproductive behaviour, although none has yet been identified. Bouts of tracking by females are most frequently terminated by the following female, especially when the target female remains motionless. Comparison of the tracking parameters of males and females has revealed differences in the velocity and pathlength of tracking bouts, and in the position of the fly with respect to the target. Males of Canton and Kapelle strains differ in the translatory component of their courtship tracking, but such a difference was not evident between females of these strains. Furthermore, tracking females do not allow their distance to the target to rise to that permissible in males, which suggests some sex-specificity in a part of the control system for tracking.

scholarly journals Mating avoidance in female olive baboons (Papio anubis) infected by Treponema pallidum

2019 ◽  
Vol 5 (12) ◽  
pp. eaaw9724 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. M. D. Paciência ◽  
J. Rushmore ◽  
I. S. Chuma ◽  
I. F. Lipende ◽  
D. Caillaud ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Wild Population ◽  
Treponema Pallidum ◽  
Infection Risk ◽  
Papio Anubis ◽  
Mating Partner ◽  
Sexually Transmitted ◽  
Olive Baboons ◽  
Behavioral Avoidance ◽  
Animal Populations ◽  
Males And Females

Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) are ubiquitous within wild animal populations, yet it remains largely unknown whether animals evolved behavioral avoidance mechanisms in response to STI acquisition. We investigated the mating behavior of a wild population of olive baboons (Papio anubis) infected by the bacterium Treponema pallidum. This pathogen causes highly conspicuous genital ulcerations in males and females, which signal infectious individuals. We analyzed data on 876 mating attempts and associated acceptance or rejection responses in a group of about 170 baboons. Our findings indicate that females are more likely to avoid copulation if either the mating partner or females themselves have ulcerated genitals. We suggest that this outcome is linked to the overall higher choosiness and infection-risk susceptibility typically exhibited by females. Our results show that selection pressures imposed by pathogens induce individual behavioral modifications, leading to altered mate choice and could reduce promiscuity in a wild nonhuman primate population.

scholarly journals Observations of breeding behaviour and possible infanticide in a wild population of Tasmanian echidnas (Tachyglossus aculeatus setosus)

2014 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
pp. 108 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rachel L. Harris ◽  
Stewart C. Nicol
Keyword(s):  
Wild Population ◽  
Early Stage ◽  
Reproductive Season ◽  
Field Observations ◽  
Breeding Behaviour ◽  
Tachyglossus Aculeatus

We describe field observations of Tasmanian echidna behaviour, including possible infanticide, where males damaged and entered nursery burrows. We also present the second report of a female producing a second offspring within a single reproductive season after the loss of her first young at an early stage.

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