Sexual selection favours small and symmetric males in the polygynous greater sac-winged bat Saccopteryx bilineata (Emballonuridae, Chiroptera) |
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Authors: | Christian C. Voigt Gerald Heckel Frieder Mayer |
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Affiliation: | (1) Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, Alfred-Kowalke-Str. 17, 10315 Berlin, Germany;(2) Computational and Molecular Population Genetics Laboratory, Zoologisches Institut, Universität Bern, Baltzerstr. 6, 3012 Bern, Switzerland;(3) Institut für Zoologie II, Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Staudtstr. 5, 91058 Erlangen, Germany |
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Abstract: | We investigated how morphological traits of territorial males in the polygynous bat Saccopteryx bilineata were related to their reproductive success. Because of the frequency of aerial courtship displays and defence manoeuvres, and the high energetic costs of flight, we expected small and symmetric males to be better able to court females on the wing and to monopolize copulations with females in their harems. We predicted that small and symmetric males would sire more offspring within the colony and a larger portion of the young born within their harem than large or asymmetric males. We measured size and fluctuating asymmetry of 21 territorial males and analysed their reproductive success in 6 offspring cohorts (n=209 juveniles) using 11 microsatellite loci. As predicted, small and symmetric males had, on average, a higher reproductive success in the colony than large and asymmetric males. The percentage of young sired by males within their harem increased as males decreased in size, but was not influenced by fluctuating asymmetry. As fluctuating asymmetry of males correlated with their reproductive success within the colony but not within their harems, we infer that fluctuating asymmetry is probably related to female choice, whereas male size is probably important for harem defence on the wing.Communicated by G. Wilkinson |
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Keywords: | Size Fluctuating asymmetry Bats Saccopteryx bilineata Polygyny |
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