Journal
ANIMAL BEHAVIOUR
Volume 81, Issue 3, Pages 609-618Publisher
ACADEMIC PRESS LTD- ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD
DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2010.12.006
Keywords
aggression; behavioural syndrome; cross-fostering; exploration; negotiation; parental care; sexual selection; Taeniopygia guttata; temperament; zebra finch
Categories
Funding
- European Social Fund
- NERC [NE/C002199/1]
- Natural Environment Research Council [NE/C002199/2, NE/C002199/1] Funding Source: researchfish
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Although behavioural plasticity should be an advantage in a varying world, there is increasing evidence for widespread stable individual differences in the behaviour of animals: that is, 'personality'. Here we provide evidence suggesting that sexual selection is an important factor in the evolution of personality in species with biparental care. We carried out a cross-fostering breeding experiment on zebra finches, Taeniopygia guttata, and found that parental personality traits and the combination of personalities within breeding pairs had positive effects on correlates of (foster) offspring fitness (body mass and condition). Furthermore, these nongenetic parental effects were pervasive and carried over into the next generation. Our results suggest that similarity in behavioural traits of biparental species can have important, long-lasting effects on reproductive success, probably because of reduced sexual conflict over the provision of parental investment. (C) 2010 The Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
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