Scientists monitored the fate of every single egg laid by inspecting each nest every day. This graph shows the fitness of males and females from chosen and assigned pairs. Birds could freely choose a mate in a situation somewhat similar to a speed-dating event. Scientists formed groups of 20 females and 20 potential male partners. And, if this was the case, they wanted to know what caused these differences. In this experiment scientists wanted to find out if zebra finches that were allowed to mate with the partner of their choice would raise more young (i.e., reach higher fitness) than those that had to settle with a partner they did not choose. We will refer to the ways two parents interact directly as ‘behavioral compatibility’. What about direct compatibility benefits? For instance, coordinating and sharing tasks could be easier with one male than with another. Therefore, one possibility is that the genes of a female work better with the genes of one male than with those of another - an indirect benefit. This means the father’s and the mother’s genes have to work well with each other.
The genes of a father and a mother mix in their offspring. There are four different benefits an animal can get from choosing a mate. How can one male be more compatible with a female than another? This suggests that females may choose males that match them best, because they are most compatible. Yet, in some species, females do not share their preferences. Overall, females prefer higher quality partners. A wisely chosen partner can pass on good genes that allow offspring to survive better. But benefits of mate choice can also be indirect. For instance, if a chosen male brings a lot of food to the nest, this makes the work easier for his female partner. A specific partner can give direct benefits.
Picking the right partner can be important in many ways. They choose their partners in a way that is specific to each individual, meaning different birds do not agree on which bird is most attractive. The zebra finch is similar to humans in some of their relationships. These birds bond with one partner for life and share the duty of caring for their offspring.
But some birds aren't as different as you might think. Click for more information.īirds have beaks and wings they use to fly, which makes them seem very different from humans. The female is on the left and the male is on the right.
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