How Does Relatedness of Breeders Affect Reproductive Partitioning in the Acorn Woodpecker
Faculty Sponsor
Dr. Joseph Haydock
haydock@gonzaga.edu
Session Type
Poster Presentation
Research Project Abstract
Our current research looks at Acorn Woodpeckers as species whose mating behaviors involve cooperative breeding with distinct reproductive partitioning within various groups. Generally, this species avoids incestuous relationships to increase fitness despite the complexity of these social groups. However, incestuous mating relationships occasionally occurs due to the absence within a breeding position that is eventually filled by an individual related to the breeder of the opposite sex increasing the homozygosity within the breeding groups. We are currently looking at the instance that incestuous mating has occurred between several breeding groups over the span of 30 years using microsatellite data to determine parentage with the goal of evaluating the fitness of the offspring produced by two related individuals compared to the population in total.
Session Number
PS2
Location
HUB Multipurpose Room
Abstract Number
PS2-l
How Does Relatedness of Breeders Affect Reproductive Partitioning in the Acorn Woodpecker
HUB Multipurpose Room
Our current research looks at Acorn Woodpeckers as species whose mating behaviors involve cooperative breeding with distinct reproductive partitioning within various groups. Generally, this species avoids incestuous relationships to increase fitness despite the complexity of these social groups. However, incestuous mating relationships occasionally occurs due to the absence within a breeding position that is eventually filled by an individual related to the breeder of the opposite sex increasing the homozygosity within the breeding groups. We are currently looking at the instance that incestuous mating has occurred between several breeding groups over the span of 30 years using microsatellite data to determine parentage with the goal of evaluating the fitness of the offspring produced by two related individuals compared to the population in total.
