Sex-specific effects of the local social environment on juvenile post-fledging dispersal in great tits |
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Authors: | Stephanie P M Michler Marion Nicolaus Richard Ubels Marco van der Velde Jan Komdeur Christiaan Both Joost M Tinbergen |
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Institution: | (1) Animal Ecology Group, Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Studies, University of Groningen, PO Box 11103, 9700 CC Groningen, The Netherlands;(2) Department of Behavioural Ecology and Evolutionary Genetics, Max Plank Institute for Ornithology, Eberhard-Gwinner-Strasse 7–8, 82305 Starnberg, Germany;(3) Behavioural Ecology and Self-Organisation (BESO), Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Studies, University of Groningen, PO Box 11103, 9700 CC Groningen, The Netherlands;(4) Aarauerstrasse 44, 5033 Buchs, Switzerland |
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Abstract: | An individual’s decision to disperse from the natal habitat can affect its future fitness prospects. Especially in species
with sex-biased dispersal, we expect the cost–benefit balance for dispersal to vary according to the social environment (e.g.,
local sex ratio and density). However, little is known about the social factors affecting dispersal decisions and about the
temporal and spatial patterns of the dispersal process. In our study, we investigated experimentally the effects of the social
environment on post-fledging dispersal of juvenile great tits by simultaneously manipulating the density and sex ratio of
fledglings within forest plots. We expected young females in the post-fledging period mainly to compete for resources related
to food and, as they are subordinate to males, we predicted higher female dispersal from male-biased plots. Juvenile males
compete for vacant territories already in late summer and autumn; thus, we predicted increased male dispersal from high density
and male-biased plots. We found that juvenile females had a higher probability to leave male-biased plots and had dispersed
further from male-biased plots in the later post-fledging phase when juvenile males start to become territorial and more aggressive.
Juvenile males were least likely to leave male-biased plots and had smallest dispersal distances from female-biased plots
early after fledging. The results suggest that the social environment differentially affected the costs and benefits of philopatry
for male and female juveniles. The local sex ratio of individuals is thus an important social trait to be considered for understanding
sex-specific dispersal processes. |
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