MULTI-MALE MATING BY PAIRED AND UNPAIRED FEMALE PRAIRIE VOLES (MICROTUS OCHROGASTER)

Behaviour ◽  
2002 ◽  
Vol 139 (9) ◽  
pp. 1147-1160 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen Mech ◽  
Aimee Dunlap ◽  
Karen Hodges ◽  
Jerry Wolff
Keyword(s):  
Social Preference ◽  
Post Partum ◽  
Mate Guarding ◽  
Microtus Ochrogaster ◽  
Male Mating ◽  
Prairie Voles ◽  
Multiple Partners ◽  
New Novel ◽  
Socially Monogamous ◽  
Male Mate

AbstractPromiscuous mating is common in female rodents; however what role the female plays in this choice of mates is not clear. Also, whether MMM occurs in the reportedly socially monogamous prairie vole, Microtus ochrogaster, and what role mate-guarding plays in deterring MMM is not known. We conducted two experiments to determine if female prairie voles that were not mate-guarded would copulate with multiple males during a given oestrous period. In experiment 1 using females that were unpaired, we allowed females to choose among three males that were tethered and unable to interact with one another, thus eliminating male-male competition and mate guarding. MMM occurred in 55% of 47 trials. Females mated most often with males with whom they spent the most time, thus social preference was a good predictor of sexual preference. The tendency to mate with multiple males increased over time, thus the length of time a male mate guards can affect paternity. In experiment 2 with females that had been paired with a male and were in post-partum oestrus, 5 of 12 (42%) females mated with more than one male and 3 of 12 (25%) females deserted their paired mate and paired with a new novel male. Thus multi-male mating was similar for paired and unpaired females. Our results suggest that female prairie voles that are not mate-guarded will mate with multiple partners.

Male mate guarding in a socially monogamous mammal, the round-eared sengi: on costs and trade-offs

2009 ◽  
Vol 64 (2) ◽  
pp. 257-264 ◽  
Author(s):  
Melanie Schubert ◽  
Carsten Schradin ◽  
Heiko G. Rödel ◽  
Neville Pillay ◽  
David O. Ribble
Keyword(s):  
Mate Guarding ◽  
Trade Offs ◽  
Socially Monogamous ◽  
Male Mate

Familiarity and gender influence social preferences in prairie voles (Microtus ochrogaster)

1997 ◽  
Vol 75 (2) ◽  
pp. 295-301 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Courtney DeVries ◽  
Camron L. Johnson ◽  
C. Sue Carter
Keyword(s):  
Social Preference ◽  
Social Preferences ◽  
Group Cohesion ◽  
Gonadal Hormones ◽  
Microtus Ochrogaster ◽  
Same Sex ◽  
Prairie Voles ◽  
Male And Female ◽  
Sex Preferences ◽  
Opposite Sex

The physiological mechanisms influencing group cohesion and social preferences are largely unstudied in prairie voles (Microtus ochrogaster). In nature, prairie vole family groups usually consist of an adult male and female breeding pair, one or more litters of their offspring, and occasionally unrelated adults. Pair bonds, defined by heterosexual preferences, develop in male and female prairie voles following cohabitation or mating. However, social preferences between members of the same sex also may be important to the maintenance of communal groups. In the present study we compared the development of social preferences for conspecific strangers of the same sex versus preferences for the opposite sex, and examined the effect of the gonadal status of the stimulus animal on initial social preference. The present study revealed that reproductively naive males, but not females, showed initial preferences for partners of the opposite sex. In both sexes preferences for the opposite sex were not influenced by the presence or absence of gonadal hormones. Heterosexual and same-sex preferences for a familiar individual formed following 24 h of nonsexual cohabitation in both males and females. Male and female same-sex preferences, however, were no longer stable when the stranger in the preference test was of the opposite sex to the experimental animal. The development of same-sex preferences may help to maintain group cohesion, but same-sex preferences formed by cohabitation do not withstand the challenge of an opposite-sex stranger.

scholarly journals Breeding patterns of female prairie voles (Microtus ochrogaster) displaying alternative reproductive tactics

2020 ◽  
Vol 101 (4) ◽  
pp. 990-999
Author(s):  
James B Lichter ◽  
Connor T Lambert ◽  
Nancy G Solomon ◽  
Brian Keane
Keyword(s):  
Multiple Paternity ◽  
Mate Guarding ◽  
Alternative Reproductive Tactics ◽  
Microtus Ochrogaster ◽  
Social Partner ◽  
Prairie Voles ◽  
Reproductive Tactics ◽  
Resident Male ◽  
Primary Determinant ◽  
Alternative Behaviors

Abstract Individuals of either sex may display alternative behaviors to obtain copulations, but few studies have examined the breeding patterns of females and males in populations where individuals of both sexes exhibit alternative reproductive tactics (ARTs). In prairie voles (Microtus ochrogaster), most adults are territorial, residing at a single nest site either as male–female pairs or as solitary individuals. However, some adults adopt nonterritorial, wandering tactics. During two field seasons monitoring prairie vole populations maintained in seminatural enclosures, we found evidence that females exhibiting different ARTs bred differentially with resident and wandering males. Females residing at a nest with a male bred significantly more often with a paired resident male, primarily their social partner, and significantly less often with male wanderers compared to single resident females or wandering females. These patterns were not due to chance, because paired resident females produced offspring with paired resident males significantly more than expected based on the relative abundance of these males in the population, whereas single resident females produced offspring with male wanderers significantly more than expected based on the proportion of male wanderers in the population. We did not find any evidence that multiple paternity was greater in the litters of single resident females and wanderer females even though these females lacked a male social partner to limit mating access by multiple males. This suggests that mate guarding by a female’s male social partner was not the primary determinant of multiple paternity in the litters of females exhibiting different reproductive tactics. However, male ART did affect the likelihood of multiple paternity. Females that produced offspring with single resident or wanderer males had an increased likelihood of multiple paternity relative to females producing offspring with paired resident males. The results of this study show that female and male ARTs can affect breeding patterns.

Sex differences in temporal parameters of partner preference in prairie voles (Microtus ochrogaster)

1999 ◽  
Vol 77 (6) ◽  
pp. 885-889 ◽  
Author(s):  
A Courtney DeVries ◽  
C Sue Carter
Keyword(s):  
Sex Differences ◽  
Reproductive Strategies ◽  
Social Preferences ◽  
Mate Guarding ◽  
Microtus Ochrogaster ◽  
Prairie Voles ◽  
Temporal Parameters ◽  
Partner Preferences ◽  
Males And Females

Prairie voles (Microtus ochrogaster) are monogamous rodents in which both sexes form social preferences for a familiar partner. This species exhibits many of the characteristics of monogamy, including long-term social bonds, mate guarding, and biparental care. Although the behaviors associated with the development of partner preferences are superficially similar in males and females, the present study documents sex differences in the temporal parameters of partner preferences in prairie voles. Following nonsexual cohabitation, female prairie voles formed partner preferences more quickly and these preferences lasted longer than in males. These data indicate that sex differences exist in the development and maintenance of social preferences and may reflect differences in the reproductive strategies of male and female prairie voles.

Mating increases male's interest in other females: A cognitive study in socially monogamous prairie voles (Microtus ochrogaster)

2011 ◽  
Vol 88 (2) ◽  
pp. 127-134 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jamie T. Parker ◽  
Natalia Rodriguez ◽  
Basirat Lawal ◽  
Christine J. Delevan ◽  
Maryam Bamshad
Keyword(s):  
Microtus Ochrogaster ◽  
Prairie Voles ◽  
Socially Monogamous ◽  
Cognitive Study

scholarly journals Genetic Parentage and Mate Guarding in the Arctic-Breeding Western Sandpiper

The Auk ◽  
2002 ◽  
Vol 119 (1) ◽  
pp. 228-233 ◽  
Author(s):  
Donald Blomqvist ◽  
Bart Kempenaers ◽  
Richard B. Lanctot ◽  
Brett K. Sandercock
Keyword(s):  
Paternal Care ◽  
Mate Guarding ◽  
The Arctic ◽  
Calidris Mauri ◽  
Extrapair Paternity ◽  
Western Sandpiper ◽  
Socially Monogamous ◽  
Divorce Rates ◽  
Western Sandpipers ◽  
Male Mate

Abstract Extrapair copulations and fertilizations are common among birds, especially in passerines. So far, however, few studies have examined genetic mating systems in socially monogamous shorebirds. Here, we examine parentage in the Western Sandpiper (Calidris mauri). Given that Western Sandpipers nest at high densities on the Arctic tundra, have separate nesting and feeding areas, and show high divorce rates between years, we expected extrapair paternity to be more common in this species compared to other monogamous shorebirds. However, DNA fingerprinting of 98 chicks from 40 families revealed that only 8% of broods contained young sired by extrapair males, and that 5% of all chicks were extrapair. All chicks were the genetic offspring of their social mothers. We found that males followed females more often than the reverse. Also, cuckolded males were separated from their mates for longer than those that did not lose paternity. Although these results suggest a role for male mate guarding, we propose that high potential costs in terms of reduced paternal care likely constrain female Western Sandpipers from seeking extrapair copulations.

scholarly journals Mate-guarding duration is mainly influenced by the risk of sperm competition and not by female quality in a golden orb-weaver spider

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lygia A. Del Matto ◽  
Renato Chaves de Macedo Rego ◽  
Eduardo S. A. Santos
Keyword(s):  
Mate Choice ◽  
Sperm Competition ◽  
Body Condition ◽  
Female Body ◽  
Mate Guarding ◽  
Male Mating ◽  
Male Mate Choice ◽  
High Quality ◽  
Female Quality ◽  
Male Mate

Males are expected to mate with as many females as possible, but can maximize their reproductive success through strategic mating decisions. For instance, males can increase their own fitness by mating with high quality females that produce more offspring. Additionally, males can adjust mating effort based on the relative distribution of females and male competitors. To test factors that influence male mate choice, we assessed male mating decisions in the golden-web spider, Trichonephila clavipes (Nephilidae), a species in which females are polyandrous and males guard females before and after copulation occurs. We tested the hypothesis that males spend more time guarding high quality females that are spatially isolated, and when the risk of sperm competition is higher. We assessed solitary and aggregated female webs in the field and quantified female quality (i.e. female body condition), the risk of sperm competition (i.e. number of males in each female web), and mate-guarding duration (i.e. number of days each male spent in each web). We found that mate-guarding behaviour is influenced by the presence of male competitors. In addition, the type of web seems to moderately influence male mating decisions, with males spending more time guarding a female when on solitary webs. Finally, female body condition seems to play a small role in mate-guarding behaviour. As mate-guarding duration considerably increased per each additional male competitor in the web, and guarding behaviour prevents males from seeking additional mates, it seems that males do benefit from guarding females. We conclude that failing to guard a sexual partner promotes high costs derived from sperm competition, and a male cannot recover his relative loss in fertilization success by seeking and fertilizing more females. In addition, the search for more sexual partners can be constrained by possible high costs imposed by predators and fights against other males, which may explain why the type of web only moderately influenced male mate choice. Following the same rationale, if high-quality females are not easy to find and/or mating with a high-quality female demands much effort, males may search females and guard them regardless of female quality. In conclusion, the factor that most influences male mate-guarding behaviour among T. clavipes in the field is the risk of sperm competition.

Effects of breeding density and plumage coloration on mate guarding and cuckoldry in blue grosbeaks (Passerina caerulea)

2005 ◽  
Vol 83 (9) ◽  
pp. 1143-1148 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laura K Estep ◽  
Herman Mays, Jr. ◽  
Amber J Keyser ◽  
Barbara Ballentine ◽  
Geoffrey E Hill
Keyword(s):  
Mate Guarding ◽  
Pair Bond ◽  
Plumage Coloration ◽  
Breeding Density ◽  
Guarding Behavior ◽  
Socially Monogamous ◽  
Context Dependent ◽  
Male Mate ◽  
Time And Energy

For species in which females mate outside of the pair bond, selection should favor male mate-guarding behaviors that minimize investment in genetically unrelated offspring. Mate guarding may impose costs by diverting time and energy from activities such as foraging and seeking extra-pair copulations, so males should adjust their mate-guarding behavior according to the risk of cuckoldry. In this study, we investigated cuckoldry and mate guarding in the blue grosbeak (Passerina caerulea L., 1758), a socially monogamous, territorial songbird. Fifty-three percent of nestlings were extra-pair, and 70% of nests had at least one extra-pair fertilization. Males with dull plumage coloration were more likely to be cuckolded than males with more brightly colored plumage, but duller males did not guard their mates more. Instead, males appeared to adjust mate-guarding behavior according to the attractiveness of neighbors. Males with more brightly colored neighbors guarded their mates more intensely than males with fewer colorful neighbors. These observations suggest that in the blue grosbeak, mate guarding is a context-dependent strategy that is adjusted according to the density and ornamentation of neighboring males.

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