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Long-term analysis on the variance of extra-group paternities in rhesus macaques

ABSTRACT: Extra-group paternity (EGP) has been described in various mammalian species; however, little is known about which factors contribute to the variation in EGP, as the majority of studies were restricted in time and the number of groups considered. Using longitudinal demographic and genetic d...

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Autores principales: Ruiz-Lambides, Angelina V., Weiß, Brigitte M., Kulik, Lars, Stephens, Colleen, Mundry, Roger, Widdig, Anja
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Springer Berlin Heidelberg 2017
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5355504/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28360453
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00265-017-2291-7
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author Ruiz-Lambides, Angelina V.
Weiß, Brigitte M.
Kulik, Lars
Stephens, Colleen
Mundry, Roger
Widdig, Anja
author_facet Ruiz-Lambides, Angelina V.
Weiß, Brigitte M.
Kulik, Lars
Stephens, Colleen
Mundry, Roger
Widdig, Anja
author_sort Ruiz-Lambides, Angelina V.
collection PubMed
description ABSTRACT: Extra-group paternity (EGP) has been described in various mammalian species; however, little is known about which factors contribute to the variation in EGP, as the majority of studies were restricted in time and the number of groups considered. Using longitudinal demographic and genetic data, we aim to investigate which factors predict rates of EGP in the free-ranging rhesus macaque population of Cayo Santiago, Puerto Rico (USA). Of the 1649 infants considered which were born into six social groups over 9 years, we identified an average of 16% of infants resulting from EGPs. We tested the influence of group size, breeding group sex ratio, female reproductive synchrony, and group instability on the occurrence of EGPs. Our results suggest a tendency for EGPs to increase as the proportion of females increased in larger groups, but no such effect in smaller groups. Furthermore, as group instability and female reproductive synchrony decreased, the number of EGPs tended to increase. Our results support the hypothesis that group structure affects the occurrence of EGPs, which might be mediated by male mating opportunities, male monopolization potential, and/or female choice. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT: In several species, both sexes seek alternative reproductive strategies to enhance their reproductive success. For instance, females may pursue EGPs to potentially increase genetic compatibility with males, or males may seek EGPs to improve their mating opportunities. Our longitudinal analysis, including demographic and genetic data over 9 years of six social groups of rhesus macaques, revealed high variation in the occurrence of EGPs across groups and years, and this variation tended to depend on group characteristics such as breeding group size, sex ratio, female synchrony, and group instability. The data suggest that group structure affects the number of EGPs in this group-living primate. Our results show that EGPs can affect the distribution of paternity within social groups and should be taken into account when assessing reproductive success. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s00265-017-2291-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
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spelling pubmed-53555042017-03-28 Long-term analysis on the variance of extra-group paternities in rhesus macaques Ruiz-Lambides, Angelina V. Weiß, Brigitte M. Kulik, Lars Stephens, Colleen Mundry, Roger Widdig, Anja Behav Ecol Sociobiol Original Article ABSTRACT: Extra-group paternity (EGP) has been described in various mammalian species; however, little is known about which factors contribute to the variation in EGP, as the majority of studies were restricted in time and the number of groups considered. Using longitudinal demographic and genetic data, we aim to investigate which factors predict rates of EGP in the free-ranging rhesus macaque population of Cayo Santiago, Puerto Rico (USA). Of the 1649 infants considered which were born into six social groups over 9 years, we identified an average of 16% of infants resulting from EGPs. We tested the influence of group size, breeding group sex ratio, female reproductive synchrony, and group instability on the occurrence of EGPs. Our results suggest a tendency for EGPs to increase as the proportion of females increased in larger groups, but no such effect in smaller groups. Furthermore, as group instability and female reproductive synchrony decreased, the number of EGPs tended to increase. Our results support the hypothesis that group structure affects the occurrence of EGPs, which might be mediated by male mating opportunities, male monopolization potential, and/or female choice. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT: In several species, both sexes seek alternative reproductive strategies to enhance their reproductive success. For instance, females may pursue EGPs to potentially increase genetic compatibility with males, or males may seek EGPs to improve their mating opportunities. Our longitudinal analysis, including demographic and genetic data over 9 years of six social groups of rhesus macaques, revealed high variation in the occurrence of EGPs across groups and years, and this variation tended to depend on group characteristics such as breeding group size, sex ratio, female synchrony, and group instability. The data suggest that group structure affects the number of EGPs in this group-living primate. Our results show that EGPs can affect the distribution of paternity within social groups and should be taken into account when assessing reproductive success. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s00265-017-2291-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. Springer Berlin Heidelberg 2017-03-17 2017 /pmc/articles/PMC5355504/ /pubmed/28360453 http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00265-017-2291-7 Text en © The Author(s) 2017 Open Access This article is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made.
spellingShingle Original Article
Ruiz-Lambides, Angelina V.
Weiß, Brigitte M.
Kulik, Lars
Stephens, Colleen
Mundry, Roger
Widdig, Anja
Long-term analysis on the variance of extra-group paternities in rhesus macaques
title Long-term analysis on the variance of extra-group paternities in rhesus macaques
title_full Long-term analysis on the variance of extra-group paternities in rhesus macaques
title_fullStr Long-term analysis on the variance of extra-group paternities in rhesus macaques
title_full_unstemmed Long-term analysis on the variance of extra-group paternities in rhesus macaques
title_short Long-term analysis on the variance of extra-group paternities in rhesus macaques
title_sort long-term analysis on the variance of extra-group paternities in rhesus macaques
topic Original Article
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5355504/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/28360453
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s00265-017-2291-7
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