Insights from complete-incomplete brood sex-ratio disparity |
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Authors: | Sven Krackow Markus Neuhäuser |
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Institution: | 1.Institut für Biologie,Humboldt-Universit?t zu Berlin,Berlin,Germany;2.Fachbereich Mathematik und Technik,RheinAhrCampus,Remagen,Germany |
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Abstract: | An assertion deeply rooted in the ornithological literature holds that sex-specific mortality causes a sex ratio disparity
(SRD) between complete and incomplete broods. Complete broods are thought to reflect the primary sex ratio before any bias
introduced by developmental mortality. Contrary to this view, however, complete and incomplete broods should exhibit identical
sex ratio distributions even when the sexes experience differential mortality, as shown in the classic paper of Fiala (Am
Nat 115: 442–444, 1980). Therefore, in partially unsexed samples, primary sex ratio biases cannot be distinguished from biases
caused by differential mortality. In addition, complete broods do not represent primary sex ratio more accurately than incomplete
ones and might even be misleading. Despite Fiala’s prediction, SRD does occur in some empirical studies. We show that this
pattern could arise if (1) primary sex ratio affects chick mortality rates independently of sex (direct effect), (2) primary
sex ratio covaries with a variable that also affects mortality rate, or (3) sex differential mortality covaries with overall
mortality rate (indirect effects). Direct effects may cause stronger SRD than indirect ones with a smaller and opposite bias
in the overall sex ratio and could also lead to highly inconsistent covariate effects on brood sex ratios. These features
may help differentiate direct from indirect effects. Most interestingly, differences in covariate effects between complete
and incomplete broods imply that influential variables are missing from the analysis. |
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Keywords: | Sex-differential survival Sex ratio-specific mortality Primary sex bias Fiala (1980) |
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