ultimate drivers of forced extra-pair copulations in birds lacking penises: jackdaws as a case-study

Forced copulation is common, presumably because it can increase male reproductive success. Forced extra-pair copulation (FEPC) occurs in birds, even though most species lack a penis and are widely thought to require female cooperation for fertilisation. How FEPC persists, despite a presumed lack of siring success and likely non-negligible costs to the male, is unknown. Using the jackdaw (Corvus monedula) as a case study, we use SNPs to quantify extra-pair paternity rate through FEPC and evaluate explanations for the persistence of FEPC in species without a penis. We then collate evidence for FEPC across penis-lacking birds. Combining genetic and behavioural analyses, our study suggests that the most likely explanations for the maintenance of FEPC in jackdaws are that it provides a selective advantage to males, or that it is a relic. Our literature review shows that across birds lacking a penis, FEPC is taxonomically widespread, yet little is known about its evolution. Broader implementa..., Behavioural data
We fitted cameras with microphones (380TVL CMOS camera, Handykam, Redruth, U.K.) inside jackdaw nest-boxes during the 2014, 2015, 2018 and 2019 breeding seasons. Cameras were set to record starting from between 6AM and 11AM BST (n = 575 recordings). This captures the period when our previous observations, and other studies (Gill et al. 2020), indicate the majority of sexual behaviour occurs. In addition, a small subset set to record in the afternoon (n = 8 recordings; 13:30PM - 14:30PM BST). Videos were recorded at three different stages of the breeding season: the nest building stage, the incubation stage, and the nestling stage, with one to three videos per pair per stage (total number of pairs = 130). The nest building stage was filmed from when building had begun and a nest ‘cup’ was becoming apparent (Hahn et al., 2021) until the nest was complete; the incubation stage was filmed 2 – 10 days after the female’s fertility window until hatching, and the nestling stage..., , # Data from: ultimate drivers of forced extra-pair copulations in birds lacking penises: jackdaws as a case-study

Author: \"Beki Hooper\"
Date: '2024-01-07'

GENERAL INFORMATION

1. Title of Dataset: Ultimate drivers of forced extra-pair copulations in birds lacking penises: jackdaws as a case-study
2. Author Information
A. Principal Investigator Contact Information
Name: Alex Thornton
Institution: University of Exeter
Email:
B. Associate or Co-investigator Contact Information
Name: Beki Hooper
Institution: NA
Email:
3. Date of data collection (single date, range, approximate date): 2014 – 2019
4. Geographic location of data collection: Cornwall, UK
5. Information about funding sources that supported the collection of the data: Natural Environment Research Council GW4 Studentship (NERC 107672G), NERC biomolecular analysis facility (NBAF1152), British Ornithologists’ Union (BOU), BBSRC David Phillips Fellowship (BB/H021817/2), Leverhulme Grant (RGP-2...