Experimental extra-pair copulations provide proof of concept for fertility insurance in a socially monogamous bird.

ABSTRACT: Extra-pair paternity is common among socially monogamous birds, but whether females benefit from having extra-pair copulations remains unresolved. In this study, I staged single extra-pair copulations in captive pairs of socially monogamous Japanese quail (Coturnix japonica) and used extra-pair males of a different colour to identify extra-pair fertilizations. This eliminated among-female variation in extra-pair copulations as a source of variation in extra-pair fertilizations and tested whether a single extra-pair copulation would insure against infertility of the social male. Overall, the probability of extra-pair fertilization was 0.46 for the first egg that was fertilized after extra-pair copulation, but this rapidly declined over consecutive eggs in the laying sequence. However

SUBMITTER: Vedder O 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9156919 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature