Parental response to intruder females altered by ornamentation and mate quality in a biparental fish

In many monogamous species females behave aggressively toward other females, as they may threaten their exclusive access to paternal resources. However, in species with a high degree of breeding asynchrony not all females are true reproductive rivals. Female ornamentation that advertises sexual receptivity is a possible mechanism whereby parental females could assess the potential threat of rival females and attack only those which could challenge their mating status. Convict cichlids (Amatitlania siquia) are sexually dichromatic, monogamous fish that exhibit biparental care. Females develop gold ventral coloration when reproductively receptive and actively court males. We presented breeding pairs of convict cichlids with confined conspecific females to investigate whether parental response was affected by the intruder’s reproductive status. We also investigated whether differences in partner quality within breeding pairs mediated the response to intruders, as mate quality influences bo...在诸多一夫一妻制（monogamous）物种中，雌性个体常会对其他雌性展现攻击行为，因为后者可能会威胁其独占父方抚育资源的权利。然而，在繁殖高度异步（breeding asynchrony）的物种中，并非所有雌性都是真正的繁殖竞争者（reproductive rivals）。雌性的求偶装饰（female ornamentation）可彰显其性接受状态（sexual receptivity），这或许是一种机制，使得育幼中的雌性能够评估对手雌性的潜在威胁，仅攻击那些可能挑战其交配地位的个体。九间慈鲷（Convict cichlids，*Amatitlania siquia*）是具性二色性（sexually dichromatic）的一夫一妻型鱼类，且展现出双亲抚育（biparental care）行为。当处于繁殖接受态时，雌性会发育出金色的腹面体色，并主动向雄性求偶。本研究将被限制活动的同种雌性个体（conspecific females）放置于已配对的九间慈鲷繁殖对旁，以探究育幼双亲的行为反应是否会受入侵者繁殖状态的影响。本研究同时探究了繁殖对中配偶质量（partner quality）的差异是否会调节其对入侵者的行为反应，因为配偶质量会影响……