Evasive behaviours of female dusky dolphins (Lagenorhynchus obscurus) during exploitative scramble competition
In: BehaviourSearch for other papers by Dara N. Orbach in
Current site
Google Scholar
Search for other papers by Jane M. Packard in
Current site
Google Scholar
Search for other papers by Theresa Kirchner in
Current site
Google Scholar
bDepartment of Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
Search for other papers by Bernd Würsig in
Current site
Google Scholar
When males engage in scramble competition, are females non-evasive recipients of male coercion or evasive? Small groups of male dusky dolphins (Lagenorhynchus obscurus) engage in exploitative (non-interference) scramble competition for access to oestrous females near Kaikoura, New Zealand. We conducted behavioural sequence analyses of videos of 48 mating groups with continuous records and focal individual follows of females. We determined (1)Â the frequency and type of behaviours (non-evasive vs. evasive), (2)Â the variation in simple transition probabilities of behaviours leading to a copulatory position associated with female resistance and non-resistance and (3)Â the variation in female responses to male behaviours throughout focal follows. Females exhibited frequent active evasive manoeuvers following male behaviours. Copulation sequences were highly variable and most complex when terminated by females. Females altered responses to male signals, one aspect of mate choice potentially favouring male endurance.
Purchase
Buy instant access (PDF download and unlimited online access):
Institutional Login
Log in with Open Athens, Shibboleth, or your institutional credentials
Personal login
Log in with your brill.com account
-
Bakeman R., Gottman J.M. (1986). Observing interaction: an introduction to sequential analysis. â Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
-
Beach F.A. (1976). Sexual attractivity, proceptivity and receptivity in female mammals. â Horm. Behav. 7: 105-138.
-
Benoit-Bird K.J., Dahood A.D., Würsig B. (2009). Using active acoustics to compare lunar effects on predator-prey behavior in two marine mammal species. â Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 395: 119-135.
-
Benoit-Bird K.J., Würsig B., McFadden C.J. (2004). Dusky dolphin (Lagenorhynchus obscurus) foraging in two different habitats: active acoustic detection of dolphins and their prey. â Mar. Mammal. Sci. 20: 215-231.
-
Bishop Y.M., Fienberg S.E., Holland P.W. (1975). Discrete multivariate analysis: theory and practice. â MIT Press, Cambridge, MA.
-
Blumstein D.T., Daniel J.C. (2007). Quantifying behaviour the JWatcher way. â Sinauer Associates, Sunderland, MA.
-
Boness D., Clapham P.J., Mesnick S.L. (2002). Life history and reproductive strategies. â In: Marine mammal biology: an evolutionary approach ( Hoelzel A.R., ed.). Blackwell, Oxford, p. 278-324.
-
Bro-Jørgensen J. (2011). Intra- and intersexual conflicts and cooperation in the evolution of mating strategies: lessons learnt from ungulates. â Evol. Biol. 38: 28-41.
-
Byers J.A., Waits L. (2006). Good genes sexual selection in nature. â Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 103: 16343-16345.
-
Childerhouse S., Baxter A. (2010). Human interactions with dusky dolphins: a management perspective. â In: The dusky dolphin: master acrobat off different shores ( Würsig B., Würsig M., eds). Elsevier Science, Amsterdam, p. 245-275.
-
Chilvers B.L., Robertson B.C., Wilkinson I.S., Duignan P.J., Gemmell N.J. (2005). Male harassment of female New Zealand sea lions, Phocarctos hookeri: mortality, injury, and harassment avoidance. â Can. J. Zool. 83: 642-648.
-
Clutton-Brock T., McAuliffe K. (2009). Female mate choice in mammals. â Q. Rev. Biol. 84: 3-27.
-
Clutton-Brock T.H., Parker G.A. (1995). Sexual coercion in animal societies. â Anim. Behav. 49: 1345-1365.
-
Connor R.C., Krützen M. (2015). Male dolphin alliances in Shark Bay: changing perspectives in a 30-year study. â Anim. Behav. 103: 223-235.
-
Connor R.C., Smolker R.A. (1996). âPopâ goes the dolphin: a vocalization male bottlenose dolphins produce during consortships. â Behaviour 133: 643-662.
-
Connor R.C., Richards A.F., Smolker R.A., Mann J. (1996). Patterns of female attractiveness in Indian Ocean bottlenose dolphins. â Behaviour 133: 37-69.
-
Connor R.C., Smolker R.A., Richards A.F. (1992a). Two levels of alliance formation among male bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops sp.). â Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 89: 987-990.
-
Connor R.C., Smolker R.A., Richards A.F. (1992b). Dolphin coalitions and alliances. â In: Coalitions and alliances in humans and other animals ( Harcourt A.H., de Waal F.B.M., eds). Oxford University Press, Oxford, p. 415-443.
-
Connor R.C., Wells R.S., Mann J., Read A.J. (2000). The bottlenose dolphin: social relationships in a fissionâfusion society. â In: Cetacean societies: field studies of dolphins and whales ( Mann J., Connor R.C., Tyack P.L., Whitehead H., eds). University of Chicago Press, Chicago, IL, p. 91-126.
-
Cotton S., Small J., Pomiankowski A. (2006). Sexual selection and condition-dependent mate preferences. â Curr. Biol. 16: R755-R765.
-
Couvillon M.J., Hughes W.O., Perez-Sato J.A., Martin S.J., Roy G.G., Ratnieks F.L. (2010). Sexual selection in honey bees: colony variation and the importance of size in male mating success. â Behav. Ecol. 21: 520-525.
-
Dahood A.D., Benoit-Bird K.J. (2010). Dusky dolphins foraging at night. â In: The dusky dolphin: master acrobat off different shores ( Würsig B., Würsig M., eds). Elsevier Academic Press, Amsterdam, p. 99-114.
-
Darling J.D. (1983). Migrations, abundance and behavior of Hawaiian humpback whales (Megaptera novaeangliae (Boroski)). â PhD thesis, University of California, Santa Cruz, CA.
-
Dudzinski K.M. (1998). Contact behavior and signal exchange in Atlantic spotted dolphins (Stenella frontalis). â Aquat. Mammal. 24: 129-142.
-
Eberhard W.G. (1996). Female control: sexual selection by cryptic female choice. â Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ.
-
Jennions M.D., Petrie M. (1997). Variation in mate choice and mating preferences: a review of causes and consequences. â Biol. Rev. 72: 283-327.
-
Kappeler P.M., Barrett L., Blumstein D.T., Clutton-Brock T.H. (2013). Constraints and flexibility in mammalian social behaviour: introduction and synthesis. â Phil. Trans. Roy. Soc. B: Biol. Sci. 368: 20120337.
-
Koprowski J.L. (1993). Alternative reproductive tactics in male eastern gray squirrels: âmaking the best of a bad jobâ. â Behav. Ecol. 4: 165-171.
-
Koprowski J.L. (2007). Reproductive strategies and alternative reproductive tactics of tree squirrels. â In: Rodent societies: an ecological and evolutionary perspective ( Wolff J., Sherman P., eds). University of Chicago Press, Chicago, IL, p. 86-95.
-
Krützen M., Barré L.M., Möller L.M., Heithaus M.R., Simms C., Sherwin W.B. (2002). A biopsy system for small cetaceans: darting success and wound healing in Tursiops spp. â Mar. Mammal. Sci. 18: 863-878.
-
Laake J.L., Calambokidis J., Osmek S.D., Rugh D.J. (1997). Probability of detecting harbor porpoise from aerial surveys: estimating g(0). â J. Wildl. Manage. 61: 63-75.
-
Lehner P.N. (1996). Handbook of ethological methods, 2nd edn. â Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.
-
Lundquist D., Gemmell N.J., Würsig B. (2012). Behavioural responses of dusky dolphin groups (Lagenorhynchus obscurus) to tour vessels off Kaikoura, New Zealand. â PloS ONE 7: e41969.
-
Markowitz T.M. (2004). Social organization of the New Zealand dusky dolphin. â PhD thesis, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX.
-
Markowitz W.J. (2012). Comparative socioecology of the dusky dolphin (Lagenorhynchus obscurus) in New Zealand. â PhD thesis, Massey University, Manawatu.
-
Markowitz T.M., DuFresne S., Würsig B. (2009). Tourism effects on dusky dolphins at Kaikoura, New Zealand. â New Zealand Department of Conservation, Nelson.
-
Markowitz T.M., Markowitz W.J., Morton L.M. (2010). Mating habits of New Zealand dusky dolphins. â In: The dusky dolphin: master acrobat off different shores ( Würsig B., Würsig M., eds). Elsevier Science, Amsterdam, p. 151-176.
-
Marshall G., Bakhtiari M., Shepard M., Tweedy J. III, Rasch D., Abernathy K., Joliff B., Carrier J.C., Heithaus M.R. (2007). An advanced solid-state animal-borne video and environmental data-logging device (âCRITTERCAMâ) for marine research. â Mar. Technol. Soc. 41: 31-38.
-
Mattila D.K., Clapham P.J., Katona S.K., Stone G.S. (1988). Population composition of humpback whales, Megaptera novaeangliae, on Silver Bank, 1984. â Can. J. Zool. 67: 281-285.
-
Mesnick S.L. (1997). Sexual alliances: evidence and evolutionary implications. â In: Feminism and evolutionary biology: boundaries, intersections, and frontiers ( Gowaty P., ed.). Chapman & Hall, New York, NY, p. 207-260.
-
Mesnick S.L., Ralls K. (2009). Mating systems. â In: Encyclopedia of marine mammals, 2nd edn. ( Perrin W.F., Thewissen J.G.M., Würsig B., eds). Elsevier Science, Amsterdam, p. 712-719.
-
Muller M.N., Wrangham R.W. (2009). Sexual coercion in primates and humans: an evolutionary perspective on male aggression against females. â Harvard University Press, Cambridge, MA.
-
Orbach D.N., Packard J.M., Würsig B. (2014). Mating group size in dusky dolphins (Lagenorhynchus obscurus): costs and benefits of scramble competition. â Ethology 120: 804-815.
-
Orbach D.N., Packard J.M., Piwetz S., Würsig B. (2015a). Sex-specific variation in conspecific-acquired marking prevalence among dusky dolphins (Lagenorhynchus obscurus). â Can. J. Zool. 93: 383-390.
-
Orbach D.N., Rosenthal G.G., Würsig B. (2015b). Copulation rate declines with mating group size in dusky dolphins (Lagenorhynchus obscurus). â Can. J. Zool. 93: 503-507.
-
Payne R. (1995). Among whales. â Scribner, New York, NY.
-
Pearson H.C. (2008). Fissionâfusion sociality in dusky dolphins (Lagenorhynchus obscurus), with comparisons to other dolphins and great apes. â PhD thesis, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX.
-
Robeck T.R., Curry B.F., McBain J.F., Kraemer D.C. (1994). Reproductive biology of the bottlenose dolphin (Tursiops truncatus) and the potential application of advanced reproductive technologies. â J. Zoo Wildl. Med. 25: 321-336.
-
Rolland R.M., Hunt K.E., Kraus S.D., Wasser S.K. (2005). Assessing reproductive status of right whales (Eubalaena glacialis) using fecal hormone metabolites. â Gen. Comp. Endocrinol. 142: 308-317.
-
Sakai M., Hishii T., Takeda S., Kohshima S. (2006). Flipper rubbing behaviors in wild bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops aduncus). â Mar. Mammal. Sci. 20: 966-978.
-
Schaeff C.M. (2007). Courtship and mating behavior. â In: Reproductive biology and phylogeny of cetacean ( Miller D.L., ed.). Science Publishers, Enfield, NH, p. 349-370.
-
Smolker R.A., Richards A.F., Connor R.C., Pepper J.W. (1992). Sex differences in patterns of association among Indian Ocean bottlenose dolphins. â Behaviour 123: 38-69.
-
Srinivasan M., Markowitz T. (2010). Predator threats and dusky dolphin survival strategies. â In: The dusky dolphin: master acrobat off different shores ( Würsig B., Würsig M., eds). Elsevier Academic Press, Amsterdam, p. 133-150.
-
Steinman K.J., OâBrien J.K., Monfort S.L., Robeck T.R. (2012). Characterization of the estrous cycle in female beluga (Delphinapterus leucas) using urinary endocrine monitoring and transabdominal ultrasound: evidence of facultative induced ovulation. â Gen. Comp. Endocrinol. 175: 389-397.
-
Tyack P., Whitehead H. (1982). Male competition in large groups of wintering humpback whales. â Behaviour 83: 32-154.
-
Watson J.J. (2005). Female mating behavior in the context of sexual coercion and female ranging behavior of bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops sp.) in Shark Bay, Western Australia. â PhD thesis, Georgetown University, Washington, DC.
-
Whitehead H., Mann J. (2000). Female reproductive strategies of cetaceans: life histories and calf care. â In: Cetacean societies: field studies of dolphins and whales ( Mann J., Connor R.C., Tyack P.L., Whitehead H., eds). The University of Chicago Press, Chicago, IL, p. 219-246.
-
Wiley R.H., Poston J. (1996). Perspective: indirect mate choice, competition for mates, and coevolution of the sexes. â Evolution 50: 1371-1381.
-
Würsig B., Pearson H.C. (2014). Dusky dolphins: flexibility in foraging and social strategies. â In: Primates and cetaceans: field research and conservation of complex mammalian societies ( Yamagiwa J., Karczmarski L., eds). Springer, Tokyo, p. 25-42.
-
Würsig B., Würsig M. (1980). Behavior and ecology of the dusky dolphin, Lagenorhynchus obscurus, in the South Atlantic. â Fish. Bull. 77: 871-890.
-
Würsig B., Duprey N., Weir J. (2007). Dusky dolphins (Lagenorhynchus obscurus) in New Zealand waters. Present knowledge and research goals. New Zealand Dep. Cons. Res. Dev. Ser. 270. â New Zealand Department of Conservation, Nelson.
-
Zahavi A. (1975). Mate selection â a selection for a handicap. â J. Theor. Biol. 53: 205-214.
| All Time | Past 365 days | Past 30 Days | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abstract Views | 929 | 133 | 32 |
| Full Text Views | 291 | 17 | 0 |
| PDF Views & Downloads | 113 | 31 | 0 |
Evasive behaviours of female dusky dolphins (Lagenorhynchus obscurus) during exploitative scramble competition
In: BehaviourSearch for other papers by Dara N. Orbach in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
Search for other papers by Jane M. Packard in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
Search for other papers by Theresa Kirchner in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
bDepartment of Wildlife and Fisheries Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
Search for other papers by Bernd Würsig in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
When males engage in scramble competition, are females non-evasive recipients of male coercion or evasive? Small groups of male dusky dolphins (Lagenorhynchus obscurus) engage in exploitative (non-interference) scramble competition for access to oestrous females near Kaikoura, New Zealand. We conducted behavioural sequence analyses of videos of 48 mating groups with continuous records and focal individual follows of females. We determined (1)Â the frequency and type of behaviours (non-evasive vs. evasive), (2)Â the variation in simple transition probabilities of behaviours leading to a copulatory position associated with female resistance and non-resistance and (3)Â the variation in female responses to male behaviours throughout focal follows. Females exhibited frequent active evasive manoeuvers following male behaviours. Copulation sequences were highly variable and most complex when terminated by females. Females altered responses to male signals, one aspect of mate choice potentially favouring male endurance.
| All Time | Past 365 days | Past 30 Days | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abstract Views | 929 | 133 | 32 |
| Full Text Views | 291 | 17 | 0 |
| PDF Views & Downloads | 113 | 31 | 0 |
