Male phenotypic quality influences offspring sex ratio in a polygynous ungulate.

ABSTRACT: Evolutionary models of sex ratio adjustment applied to mammals have ignored that females may gain indirect genetic benefits from their mates. The differential allocation hypothesis (DAH) predicts that females bias the sex ratio of their offspring towards (more costly) males when breeding with an attractive male. We manipulated the number of available males during rut in a polygynous ungulate species, the reindeer (Rangifer tarandus), and found that a doubling of average male mass (and thus male attractiveness) in the breeding herd increased the proportion of male offspring from approximately 40 to 60%. Paternity analysis revealed indeed that males of high phenotypic quality sired more males, consistent with the DAH. This insight has consequences for proper management of large mammal popula

SUBMITTER: Roed KH 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2197213 | biostudies-literature | 2007 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature