Lecture 8: Adelie sperm competition seminar

Question 1

sperm competition:

Answer 1

the competition between the sperm of two or more males inside the females reproductive tract

Question 2

mallards and sperm competition & what happens if males can’t mate guard

Answer 2

male mallards mate guard to prevent their female copulating with an extra-pair male
–if males can’t mate guard, timing and frequency of copulation will determine who gain paternity

Question 3

American Kestrel number of copulations per clutch

Answer 3

up to 690

Question 4

do all behaviourally successful copulations result in sperm transfer? Zebra finches:

Answer 4

36% of copulations fail

Question 5

do all behaviourally successful copulations result in sperm transfer? chickens?

Answer 5

50% of copulations fail