Ecology of Alternative Inversion Alleles and Reproductive Strategies of Ruff Sandpipers
Talk David B. Lank, Seewiesen
- Date: Dec 1, 2016
- Time: 01:00 PM - 02:00 PM (Local Time Germany)
- Speaker: David B. Lank
- Simon Fraser University, Canada
- Location: Seewiesen
- Room: Seminar Room House 4, Tea & Coffee 12:30h
- Host: Dr. Clemens Küpper
- Contact: ckuepper@orn.mpg.de
The maintenance of ecologically significant genetic polymorphisms remains a challenging field within evolutionary ecology. I will present genetic, physiological, ethological, and behavioural ecological mechanisms involved in maintaining three behavioural male morphs and individually distinctive breeding plumage polymorphism in the ruff, Philomachus pugnax, a lekking sandpiper. I will concentrate on: behavioural mating tactics of male morphs based on field and captive studies, field estimates of annual morph-specific mating success, and factors maintaining equilibrium levels among morphs, including considerations of lek size, differential fitness of female morphs, and potential mate-specific sex allocation by females. I conclude that strong sexually antagonistic intralocus conflict is likely operating at the morph-determining inversion.