Multiple hypotheses explain variation in extra-pair paternity at different levels in a single bird family

TY - JOUR

T1 - Multiple hypotheses explain variation in extra-pair paternity at different levels in a single bird family

AU - Brouwer, Lyanne

AU - van de Pol, Martijn

AU - Aranzamendi, Nataly Hidalgo

AU - Bain, Glen

AU - Baldassarre, Daniel T.

AU - Brooker, Lesley C.

AU - Brooker, Michael G.

AU - Colombelli-Négrel, Diane

AU - Enbody, Erik

AU - Gielow, Kurt

AU - Hall, Michelle L.

AU - Johnson, Allison E.

AU - Karubian, Jordan

AU - kingma, Sjouke A.

AU - Kleindorfer, Sonia

AU - Louter, Marina

AU - Mulder, Raoul A.

AU - Peters, Anne

AU - Pruett-Jones, Stephen

AU - Tarvin, Keith A.

AU - Thrasher, Derrick J.

AU - Varian-Ramos, Claire W.

AU - Webster, Michael S.

AU - Cockburn, Andrew

N1 - 6420, AnE; Data archiving: data archived as supplementary data

PY - 2017

Y1 - 2017

N2 - Extra-pair paternity (EPP), where offspring are sired by a male other than the social male, varies enormously both within and among species. Trying to explain this variation has proved difficult because the majority of the interspecific variation is phylogenetically-based. Ideally, variation in EPP should be investigated in closely related species, but clades with sufficient variation are rare. We present a comprehensive multifactorial test to explain variation in EPP among individuals in 20 populations of nine species over 89 years from a single bird family (Maluridae). Females had higher EPP in the presence of more helpers, more neighbours, or if paired incestuously. Furthermore, higher EPP occurred in years with many incestuous pairs, populations with many helpers, and species with high male density or in which males provide less care. Altogether, these variables accounted for 48% of the total and 89% of the interspecific and inter-population variation in EPP. These findings indicate why consistent patterns in EPP have been so challenging to detect and suggest that a single predictor is unlikely to account for the enormous variation in EPP across levels of analysis. Nevertheless, it also shows that existing hypotheses can explain the variation in EPP well and that the density of males in particular is a good predictor to explain variation in EPP among species when a large part of the confounding effect of phylogeny is excluded.

AB - Extra-pair paternity (EPP), where offspring are sired by a male other than the social male, varies enormously both within and among species. Trying to explain this variation has proved difficult because the majority of the interspecific variation is phylogenetically-based. Ideally, variation in EPP should be investigated in closely related species, but clades with sufficient variation are rare. We present a comprehensive multifactorial test to explain variation in EPP among individuals in 20 populations of nine species over 89 years from a single bird family (Maluridae). Females had higher EPP in the presence of more helpers, more neighbours, or if paired incestuously. Furthermore, higher EPP occurred in years with many incestuous pairs, populations with many helpers, and species with high male density or in which males provide less care. Altogether, these variables accounted for 48% of the total and 89% of the interspecific and inter-population variation in EPP. These findings indicate why consistent patterns in EPP have been so challenging to detect and suggest that a single predictor is unlikely to account for the enormous variation in EPP across levels of analysis. Nevertheless, it also shows that existing hypotheses can explain the variation in EPP well and that the density of males in particular is a good predictor to explain variation in EPP among species when a large part of the confounding effect of phylogeny is excluded.

KW - fairy-wrens

KW - Malurus

KW - polyandry

KW - promiscuity

KW - international

U2 - 10.1111/mec.14385

DO - 10.1111/mec.14385

M3 - Article

SN - 0962-1083

VL - 26

SP - 6717

EP - 6729

JO - Molecular Ecology

JF - Molecular Ecology

IS - 23

ER -