Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Multiple signals predict male mating success in the lek-mating lesser prairie-chicken (Tympanuchus pallidicinctus)

  • Original Article
  • Published:
Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Sexual selection theory maintains that traits under selection honestly advertise qualities of signaling individuals and that only individuals in the best condition can survive while displaying maximally elaborated secondary sexual ornaments. Recent trends in mate choice studies have favored the consideration of the effects of multiple traits on mating success, including suites of traits transmitted in different sensory modalities. Sexual selection is expected to be especially strong in lek-mating species. The lesser prairie-chicken (Tympanuchus pallidicinctus) is a grouse species which breeds on leks. Males of this species perform audio and locomotor displays and exhibit two pairs of brightly colored ornaments. We performed an observational study of mate choice in spring 2016–2018 and noted 40 copulations on seven leks. We quantified behavioral, territorial, and morphological characteristics of males along with ornament color properties. We found that variables from all categories considered predicted female choice. Age had the strongest effect, with adult males experiencing higher female choice relative to yearlings. Allocation of aggressive behavior and comb color properties were also strongly correlated with female choice. Our results show that modulating behavior depending on whether females are present contributes to male mating success and highlight the importance of the size and color properties of secondary ornaments. Further research is required to determine how the variables most strongly associated with mate choice relate to one another and which aspects of individual quality, if any, are signaled by color ornaments. Future studies could also incorporate variables related to females to determine if selection on females occurs.

Significance statement

The choice of a mate can help determine the survival and reproductive success of offspring. In species where males do not care for offspring, mate choice can be highly consistent among females, and mate choice decisions are often based on the evaluation of multiple traits such as vocalizations, behavior, and morphological trait size. Based on measurements of captured males and observations of breeding behavior, we demonstrate that mate choice in lesser prairie-chickens (Tympanuchus pallidicinctus) correlates with male behavior, morphology, skin patch color, and territorial characteristics. Our findings represent a rare demonstration of mating success being influenced by how male behavior (including aggression) changes when females are present or absent. Our results show how multiple traits can transmit information about individual quality and support theoretical links between mate choice and increased male age or male-male competition.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1

Similar content being viewed by others

Data availability

All data used in this manuscript has been archived in Dryad.

https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.3xsj3txdr

References

  • Aguilar TM, Maia R, Santos ESA, Macedo RH (2007) Parasite levels in blue-black grassquits correlate with male displays but not female mate preference. Behav Ecol 19:292–301

    Google Scholar 

  • Alatalo RV, Burke T, Dann J, Hanotte O, Höglund J, Lundberg A, Moss R, Rintamäki PT (1996a) Paternity, copulation disturbance and female choice in lekking black grouse. Anim Behav 52:861–873

    Google Scholar 

  • Alatalo RV, Höglund J, Lundberg A, Rintamäki PT, Silverin B (1996b) Testosterone and male mating success on the black grouse leks. Proc R Soc Lond B 263:1697–1702

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Alonso JC, Magaña M, Palacín C, Martín CA (2010) Correlates of male mating success in great bustard leks: the effects of age, weight, and display effort. Behav Ecol Sociobol 64:1589–1600

    Google Scholar 

  • Andersson M (1986) Evolution of condition-dependent sex ornaments and mating preferences: sexual selection based on viability differences. Evolution 40:804–816

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Anglestam P (1984) Sexual and seasonal differences in mortality of black grouse Tetrao tetrix in boreal Sweden. Ornis Scand 15:123–124

    Google Scholar 

  • Applegate RD (2000) Use and misuse of prairie chicken lek surveys. Wildlife Soc B 28:457–459

    Google Scholar 

  • Arak A (1983) Sexual selection by male-male competition in natterjack toad choruses. Nature 306:261–262

    Google Scholar 

  • Augustine JK, Trauba DR (2015) Potential for behavioral reproductive isolation between greater prairie-chickens and sharp-tailed grouse in west-central Minnesota. J Ethol 33:15–24

    Google Scholar 

  • Bain MR, Farley GH (2002) Display by apparent hybrid prairie-chickens in a zone of geographic overlap. Condor 104:683–687

    Google Scholar 

  • Barry KL, Holwell GI, Herberstein ME (2010) Multimodal mate assessment by male praying mantids in a sexually cannibalistic mating system. Anim Behav 79:1165–1172

    Google Scholar 

  • Beauprez G (2008) Survey for active lesser prairie-chicken leks: Spring 2007. New Mexico Department of Game and Fish, Santa Fe

    Google Scholar 

  • Beehler BM, Foster MS (1988) Hotshots, hotspots, and female preference in the organization of lek mating systems. Am Nat 131:203–219

    Google Scholar 

  • Behney AC, Grisham BA, Boal CW, Whitlaw HA, Haukos DA (2012) Sexual selection and mating chronology of lesser prairie-chickens. Wilson J Ornithol 124:96–105

    Google Scholar 

  • Ben-Akiva ME, Lerman SR (1985) Discrete choice analysis: theory and application to travel demand, vol 9. MIT Press, Cambridge

    Google Scholar 

  • Bentsen CL, Hunt J, Jennions MD, Brooks R (2006) Complex multivariate sexual selection on male acoustic signaling in a wild population of Teleogryllus commodus. Am Nat 167:E102–E116

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Berenstain L, Wade TD (1983) Intrasexual selection and male mating strategies in baboons and macaques. Int J Primatol 4:201–235

    Google Scholar 

  • Berglund A, Bisazza A, Pilastro A (1996) Armaments and ornaments: an evolutionary explanation of traits of dual utility. Biol J Linn Soc 58:385–399

    Google Scholar 

  • Blows MW (2006) A tale of two matrices: multivariate approaches in evolutionary biology. J Evol Biol 20:1–8

    Google Scholar 

  • Bowmaker JK, Heath LA, Wilkie SE, Hunt DM (1997) Visual pigments and oil droplets from six classes of photoreceptor in the retinas of birds. Vis Res 37:2183–2194

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Bro-Jørgenson J (2009) Dynamics of multiple signalling systems: animal communication in a world in flux. Trends Ecol Evol 25:292–300

    Google Scholar 

  • Brooks R, Hunt J, Blows MW, Smith MJ, Bussière LF, Jennions MD (2005) Experimental evidence for multivariate stabilizing selection. Evolution 59:871–880

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Brooks R, Kemp DJ (2001) Can older males deliver the good genes? Trends Ecol Evol 16:308–313

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Brown ME (1996) Assessing body condition in birds. Curr Ornithol 13:67–135

    Google Scholar 

  • Butler MJ, Ballard WB, Holt RD, Whitlaw HA (2010) Sound intensity of booming in lesser prairie-chickens. J Wildl Manag 74:1160–1162

    Google Scholar 

  • Candolin U (2003) The use of multiple cues in mate choice. Biol Rev 78:575–595

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Chaine AS, Lyon BE (2008) Intrasexual selection on multiple plumage ornaments in the lark bunting. Anim Behav 76:657–667

    Google Scholar 

  • Clutton-Brock TH, Isvaran K (2007) Sex differences in ageing in natural populations of vertebrates. Proc R Soc Lond B 274:3097–3104

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Copelin F (1963) The lesser prairie-chicken in Oklahoma. Oklahoma Wildlife Conservation Department Technical Bulletin 6, Oklahoma City

    Google Scholar 

  • Cox CR, LeBoeuf BJ (1977) Female incitation of male competition: a mechanism in sexual selection. Am Nat 111:317–335

    Google Scholar 

  • Croissant Y (2012) Estimation of multinomial logit models in R: the mlogit packages. R package version 0.2–2, https://cran.r-project.org/web/packages/pglm/index.html. Accessed 30 August 2019

  • Doucet SM, Montgomerie R (2003) Multiple sexual ornaments in satin bowerbirds: ultraviolet plumage and bowers signal different aspects of male quality. Behav Ecol 14:503–509

    Google Scholar 

  • Doutrelant C, McGregor PK, Oliveira RF (2001) The effect of an audience on intrasexual communication in male Siamese fighting fish Betta splendens. Behav Ecol 12:283–286

    Google Scholar 

  • DuVal EH, Kempenears B (2008) Sexual selection in a lekking bird: the relative opportunity for selection by female choice and male competition. Proc R Soc Lond B 275:1995–2003

    Google Scholar 

  • Dzieweczynski TL, Earley RL, Green TM, Rowland WJ (2005) Audience effect is context dependent in Siamese fighting fish, Betta splendens. Behav Ecol 16:1025–1030

    Google Scholar 

  • Evans CS, Marler P (1991) On the use of video images as social stimuli in birds: audience effects on alarm calls. Anim Behav 41:17–26

    Google Scholar 

  • Figuerola J, Muñoz E, Gutiérrez R, Ferrer D (1999) Blood parasites, leucocytes and plumage brightness in the cirl bunting, Emberiza cirlus. Funct Ecol 13:594–601

    Google Scholar 

  • Fisher HS, Mascuch SJ, Rosenthal GG (2009) Multivariate male traits misalign with multivariate female preferences in the swordtail fish, Xiphophorus birchmanni. Anim Behav 78:265–269

    Google Scholar 

  • Forstmeier W (2002) Factors contributing to male mating success in the polygynous dusky warbler (Phylloscopus fuscatus). Behaviour 139:1361–1381

    Google Scholar 

  • Foster MS (1981) Cooperative behavior and social organization of the swallow-tailed manakin (Chiroxiphia caudata). Behav Ecol Sociobiol 9:167–177

    Google Scholar 

  • Fusani L, Hutchison RE, Hutchison JB (1997) Vocal-postural co-ordination of a sexually dimorphic display in a monomorphic species: the barbary dove. Behaviour 134:321–335

    Google Scholar 

  • Gibson RM (1996) Female choice in sage grouse: the roles of attraction and active comparison. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 39:55–59

    Google Scholar 

  • Gibson RM, Aspbury AS, McDaniel LL (2002) Active formation of mixed-species grouse leks: a role for predation in lek evolution? Proc R Soc Lond B 269:2503–2507

    Google Scholar 

  • Gibson RM, Bradbury JW (1985) Sexual selection in lekking sage grouse: phenotypic correlates of male mating success. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 18:117–123

    Google Scholar 

  • Gibson RM, Bradbury JW (1987) Lek organization in sage grouse: variations on a territorial theme. Auk 104:77–84

    Google Scholar 

  • Gibson RM, Bradbury JW (1983) Leks and mate choice. In: Bateson P (ed) Mate choice. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, pp 109–138

    Google Scholar 

  • Gibson RM, Bradbury JW, Vehrencamp SL (1991) Mate choice in lekking sage grouse revisited: the roles of vocal display, female site fidelity, and copying. Behav Ecol 2:165–180

    Google Scholar 

  • Gould GM, Carter GC, Augustine JK (2019) Divergent color signals from homologous unfeathered ornaments in two congeneric grouse. Ecol Evol 9:11833–11847

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Grafen A (1990) Biological signals as handicaps. J Theor Biol 144:517–546

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Gratson MW (1993) Sexual selection for increased male courtship and acoustic signals and against large male size at sharp-tailed grouse leks. Evolution 47:691–696

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Gratson MW, Gratson GK, Bergerud AT (1991) Male dominance and copulation disruption do not explain variance in male mating success on sharp-tailed grouse. Behaviour 118:187–213

    Google Scholar 

  • Gregory AJ, Wisely SM, McNew LB, Sandercock BK (2018) A landscape perspective on rates of multiple paternity and brood parasitism among greater prairie-chickens across Kansas, USA. Wilson J Ornithol 130:626–638

    Google Scholar 

  • Guilford T, Dawkins MS (1991) Receiver psychology and the evolution of animal signals. Anim Behav 42:1–14

    Google Scholar 

  • Hagen CA, Giesen KM (2020) Lesser prairie-chicken (Tympanuchus pallidicinctus), version 1.0. In: Poole AF (ed) Birds of the world. Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca https://birdsoftheworld.org/bow/species/lepchi/cur/introduction

    Google Scholar 

  • Hämäläinen A, Alatalo RV, Lebigre C, Siitari H, Soulsbury CD (2012) Fighting behavior as a correlate of male mating success in black grouse Tetrao tetrix. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 66:1577–1586

    Google Scholar 

  • Hansen TF, Price DK (1995) Good genes and old age: do old mates provide superior genes? J Evol Biol 8:759–778

    Google Scholar 

  • Hart NS, Partridge JC, Cuthill IC (1999) Visual pigments, cone oil droplets, ocular media and predicted spectral sensitivity in the domestic turkey (Meleagris gallopavo). Vis Res 39:3321–3328

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Haukos DA, Boal C (2016) Ecology and conservation of lesser prairie-chickens, vol 48. CRC Press, Boca Raton

    Google Scholar 

  • Haukos DA, Smith LM, Broda GS (1990) Spring trapping of lesser prairie-chickens. J Field Ornithol 61:20–25

    Google Scholar 

  • Hebets E, Papaj DR (2005) Complex signal function: developing a framework of testable hypotheses. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 57:197–214

    Google Scholar 

  • Hedrick AV, Temeles EJ (1989) The evolution of sexual dimorphism in animals: hypotheses and tests. Trends Ecol Evol 4:136–138

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Hess BD, Dunn PO, Whittingham LA (2012) Females choose multiple mates in the lekking greater prairie-chicken (Tympanuchus cupido). Auk 129:133–139

    Google Scholar 

  • Hill GE (1990) Female house finches prefer colourful males: sexual selection for a condition-dependent trait. Anim Behav 40:563–572

    Google Scholar 

  • Hoffman SD, Duncan GJ (1988) Multinomial and conditional logit discrete-choice models in demography. Demography 25:415–427

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Höglund J, Alatalo RV (2014) Leks. Princeton University Press, Princeton

    Google Scholar 

  • Höglund J, Johansson T, Pelabon C (1997) Behaviourally mediated sexual selection: characteristics of successful male black grouse. Anim Behav 54:255–264

    Google Scholar 

  • Holder K, Montgomerie R (1993) Context and consequences of comb displays by male rock ptarmigan. Anim Behav 45:457–470

    Google Scholar 

  • Hovi M, Alatalo RV, Höglund J, Lundberg A, Rintamäki PT (1994) Lek Centre attracts black grouse females. Proc R Soc Lond B 258:303–305

    Google Scholar 

  • Hovi M, Alatalo RV, Rintamäki PT (1996) Habitat differences and variability in the lek mating system of black grouse. Behaviour 133:561–578

    Google Scholar 

  • Iverson ENK, Karubian J (2017) The role of bare parts in avian signaling. Auk 134:587–611

    Google Scholar 

  • Iwasa Y, Pomiankowski A (1995) The evolution of mate preferences for multiple sexual ornaments. Evolution 48:853–867

    Google Scholar 

  • Iwasa Y, Pomiankowski A, Nee S (1991) The evolution of costly mate preferences II. The ‘Handicap Principle’. Evolution 45:1431–1442

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Johnstone RA (1996) Multiple displays in animal communication: ‘backup signals’ and ‘multiple messages. Philos Trans R Soc B 351:329–338

    Google Scholar 

  • Karsten KB, Andriamandimbiarisoa LN, Fox SF, Raxworthy CJ (2009) Sexual selection on body size and secondary sexual characters in 2 closely related, sympatric chameleons in Madagascar. Behav Ecol 20:1079–1088

    Google Scholar 

  • Kervinen M, Lebigre C, Soulsbury CD (2016) Simultaneous age-dependent and age-independent sexual selection in the lekking black grouse (Lyrurus tetrix). J Anim Ecol 85:715–725

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Kokko H (1998) Good genes, old age and life-history trade-offs. Evol Ecol 12:739–750

    Google Scholar 

  • Labocha MK, Hayes JP (2012) Morphometric indices of body condition in birds: a review. J Ornithol 153:1–22

    Google Scholar 

  • Lande R (1980) Sexual dimorphism, sexual selection, and adaptation in polygenic characters. Evolution 34:292–305

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lebigre C, Alatalo RV, Siitari H (2013) Physiological costs enforce the honesty of lek display in the black grouse (Tetrao tetrix). Oecologia 172:983–993

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lebigre C, Alatalo RV, Siitari H, Parri S (2007) Restrictive mating by females on black grouse leks. Mol Ecol 16:4380–4389

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Lindén M, Gustafsson L, Pärt T (1992) Selection on fledging mass in the collared flycatcher and the great tit. Ecology 73:336–343

    Google Scholar 

  • Lindenfors P, Gittleman JL, Jones KE (2007) Sexual size dimorphism in mammals. In: Fairbairn DJ, Blanckenhorn WU, Székely T (eds) Sex, size, and gender roles: evolutionary studies of sexual dimorphism. Oxford University Press, Oxford, pp 16–26

    Google Scholar 

  • Loehle C (1997) The pathogen transmission avoidance theory of sexual selection. Ecol Model 103:231–250

    Google Scholar 

  • López P, Aragón P, Martín J (2003) Responses of female lizards, Lacerta monticola, to males’ chemical cues reflect their mating preference for older males. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 55:73–79

    Google Scholar 

  • Loyau A, Saint Jalme M, Sorci G (2005) Intra- and intersexual selection for multiple traits in the peacock (Pavo cristatus). Ethology 111:810–820

    Google Scholar 

  • Maia R, Eliason CM, Bitton P, Doucet SM, Shawkey MD (2013) Pavo: an R package for the analysis, visualization and organization of spectral data. Methods Ecol Evol 4:906–913

    Google Scholar 

  • Manning JT (1985) Choosy females and correlates of male age. J Theor Biol 116:349–354

    Google Scholar 

  • McClain DK (1993) Cope’s rules, sexual selection, and the loss of ecological plasticity. Oikos 68:490–500

    Google Scholar 

  • Møller AP (1990) Sexual selection in the monogamous barn swallow (Hirundo rustica). I Determinants of tail ornament size. Evolution 45:1823–1836

    Google Scholar 

  • Møller AP, Pomiankowski A (1993) Why have birds got multiple sexual ornaments? Behav Ecol Sociobiol 32:167–176

    Google Scholar 

  • Montroy K, Loranger MJ, Bertram SM (2016) Male crickets adjust their aggressive behavior when a female is present. Behav Process 124:108–114

    Google Scholar 

  • Mougeot F, Martínez-Padilla J, Pérez-Rodriguez L, Bortolotti GR (2007) Carotenoid-based colouration and ultraviolet reflectance of the sexual ornaments of grouse. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 61:741–751

    Google Scholar 

  • Nooker JK, Sandercock BK (2008) Phenotypic correlates and survival consequence of male mating success in lek-mating greater prairie-chickens (Tympanuchus cupido). Behav Ecol Sociobiol 62:1377–1388

    Google Scholar 

  • Oh KP, Shaw KL (2013) Multivariate sexual selection in a rapidly evolving speciation phenotype. Proc R Soc B 280:20130482

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Ower GD, Judge KA, Steiget S, Caron KJ, Smith RA, Hunt J, Sakaluk SK (2013) Multivariate sexual selection on male song structure in wild populations of sagebrush crickets, Cyphoderris strepitans (Orthoptera:Haglidae). Ecol Evol 3:3590–3603

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Papke RS, Kemp DJ, Rutowski RL (2006) Multimodal signalling: structural ultraviolet reflectance predict male mating success better than pheromones in the butterfly Colias eurytheme L. (Pieridae). Anim Behav 73:47–54

    Google Scholar 

  • Partan S, Marler P (1999) Communication goes multimodal. Science 283:1272–1273

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Patricelli GL, Coleman SW, Borgia G (2006) Male satin bowerbirds, Ptilonorhynchus violaceus, adjust their display intensity in response to female startling: an experiment with robotic females. Anim Behav 71:49–59

    Google Scholar 

  • Patricelli GL, Krakauer A (2009) Tactical allocation of effort among multiple signals in sage grouse: an experiment with a robotic female. Behav Ecol 21:97–106

    Google Scholar 

  • Patricellli G, Uy AJC, Walsh G, Borgia G (2002) Male displays adjusted to female’s response. Nature 415:279–280

  • Payne RB (1984) Sexual selection, lek and arena behavior, and sexual size dimorphism in birds. Ornithol Monogr 33:11–52

    Google Scholar 

  • Petrie M, Kempenears B (1998) Extra-pair paternity in birds: explaining variation between species and populations. Trends Evol Ecol 13:52–58

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Pomiankowski A (1988) The evolution of female mating preferences for male genetic quality. Oxf Surv Evol Biol 5:136–184

    Google Scholar 

  • Potapov RL, Sale R (2014) Grouse of the world. New Holland Publishers, London

    Google Scholar 

  • Price T, Schluter D, Heckman NE (1993) Sexual selection when the female directly benefits. Biol J Linn Soc 48:187–211

    Google Scholar 

  • Rodríguez RL, Hallett AC, Kilmer JT, Fowler-Finn KD (2013) Curves as traits: genetic and environmental variation in male preference functions. J Evol Biol 26:434–442

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • QGIS Development Team (2019) QGIS geographic information system. Open Source Geospatial Foundation Project, http://qgis.osgeo.org. Accessed 23 June 2016

  • Real L (1990) Search theory and mate choice. I. Models of single-sex discrimination. Am Nat 136:376–405

    Google Scholar 

  • Reynolds JD, Gross MR (1990) Costs and benefits of female mate choice: is there a lek paradox? Am Nat 136:230–243

    Google Scholar 

  • Riebel K (2009) Song and female mate choice in zebra finches: a review. Adv Study Behav 40:197–238

    Google Scholar 

  • Rigaill L, Higham JP, Lee PC, Blin A, Garcia C (2013) Multimodal sexual signaling and mating behavior in olive baboons (Papio anubis). Am J Primatol 74:774–787

    Google Scholar 

  • Rintamäki PT, Alatalo RV, Höglund J, Lundberg A (1995) Male territoriality and female choice on black grouse leks. Anim Behav 49:759–767

    Google Scholar 

  • Rintamäki PT, Höglund J, Alatalo RV, Lundberg A (2001) Correlates of male mating success on black grouse (Tetrao tetrix L.) leks. Ann Zool Fenn 38:99–109

    Google Scholar 

  • Rintamäki PT, Höglund J, Karvonen E, Alatalo RV, Björklund N, Lundberg A, Rätti O, Vouti J (2000) Combs and sexual selection in black grouse (Tetrao tetrix). Behav Ecol 11:465–471

    Google Scholar 

  • Rintamäki PT, Lundberg A, Alatalo RV, Höglund J (1998) Assortative mating and female clutch investment in black grouse. Anim Behav 56:1399–1403

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Robel RJ (1966) Booming territory size and mating success of the greater prairie chicken (Tympanuchus cupido pinnatus). Anim Behav 14:328–331

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Robel RJ (1970) Possible role of behavior in regulating greater prairie chicken populations. J Wildl Manag 34:306–312

    Google Scholar 

  • Romano A, Nodari R, Bandi C, Caprioli M, Costanzo A, Ambosini R, Rubolini D, Parolini M, Epis S, Saino N (2019) Haemosporidian parasites depress breeding success and plumage coloration in female barn swallows Hirundo rustica. J Avian Biol 50:e01889

    Google Scholar 

  • Ronald KL, Fernández-Juricic E, Lucas JR (2012) Taking the sensory approach: how individual differences in sensory perception can influence mate choice. Anim Behav 84:1283–1294

    Google Scholar 

  • Rowe C (1999) Receiver psychology and the evolution of multicomponent signals. Anim Behav 58:921–931

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Scheffer SJ, Uetz GW, Stratton GE (1996) Sexual selection, male morphology, and the efficacy of courtship signalling in two wolf spiders (Arnae: Lycosidae). Behav Ecol Sociobiol 38:17–23

    Google Scholar 

  • Semple K, Wayne RK, Gibson RM (2001) Microsatellite analysis of female mating behaviour in lek-breeding sage grouse. Mol Ecol 10:2043–2048

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Sijbranda DC, Campbell J, Gartrell BD, Howe L (2016) Avian malaria in introduced, native and endemic New Zealand bird species in a mixed ecosystem. New Zeal J Ecol 40:72–79

    Google Scholar 

  • Smith CL, Evans CS (2013) A new heuristic for capturing the complexity of multimodal signals. Behav Ecol Sociobiol 67:1389–1398

    Google Scholar 

  • Somashekar K, Krishna MS (2011) Evidence of female preference for older males in Drosophila bipectinata. Zool Stud 50:1–15

    Google Scholar 

  • Spurrier MF, Boyce MS, Manly BF (1994) Lek behaviour in captive sage grouse Centrocercus urophasianus. Anim Behav 47:303–310

    Google Scholar 

  • Stafstrom JA, Hebets EA (2013) Female mate choice for multimodal courtship and the importance of the signaling background for selection on male ornamentation. Curr Zool 59:200–209

    Google Scholar 

  • Stange N, Page RA, Ryan MJ, Taylor RC (2017) Interactions between complex multisensory signal components result in unexpected mate choice responses. Anim Behav 134:239–247

    Google Scholar 

  • Stoddard MC, Prum RO (2008) Evolution of avian plumage color in a tetrahedral color space: a phylogenetic analysis of new world buntings. Am Nat 171:755–776

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Stoffer B, Walker SE (2012) The use of multimodal communication in mate choice decisions by female house crickets Acheta domesticus. Anim Behav 83:1131–1138

    Google Scholar 

  • Taff CC, Steinberger D, Clark C, Belinsky K, Sacks H, Freeman-Gallant CR, Dunn PO, Whittingham LA (2012) Multimodal sexual selection in a warbler: plumage and song are related to direct fitness components. Anim Behav 84:813–821

    Google Scholar 

  • Tanner JC, Ward JL, Shaw RG, Bee MA (2017) Multivariate phenotypic selection on a complex sexual signal. Evolution 71:1742–1754

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Taylor RC, Buchanan BW, Doherty JL (2007) Sexual selection in the squirrel treefrog Hyla squirella: the role of multimodal cue assessment in female choice. Anim Behav 74:1753–1763

  • Train K (1986) Qualitative choice analysis: theory, econometrics, and an application to automobile demand, vol 10. MIT Press, Cambridge

    Google Scholar 

  • Trivers RL (1972) Parental investment and sexual selection. In: Campbell B (ed) Sexual selection and the descent of man, 1871–1971. Adline, Chicago, pp 136–179

    Google Scholar 

  • Ung D, Amy M, Leboucher G (2011) Heaven it’s my wife! Male canaries conceal extra-pair courtships but increase aggression when their mate watches. PLoS One 6:e22686

    PubMed  PubMed Central  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Vehrencamp SL, Bradbury JW, Gibson RM (1989) The energetic cost of display in male sage grouse. Anim Behav 38:885–896

    Google Scholar 

  • Vignal C, Mathevon N, Mottin S (2004) Audience drives male songbird response to partner’s voice. Nature 430:448–451

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Votýpka J, Šimek J, Tryjanowski P (2003) Blood parasites, reproduction and sexual selection in the red-backed shrike (Lanius collurio). Ann Zool Fenn 40:431–439

    Google Scholar 

  • Ware HE, McClure CJW, Carlisle JD, Barber JR (2015) Phantom road experiment reveals traffic noise is an invisible source of habitat degradation. P Natl Acad Sci USA 112:12105–12109

    CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Weatherhead PJ (1984) Mate choice in avian polygyny: why do females prefer older males? Am Nat 123:873–875

    Google Scholar 

  • Weatherhead PJ, Bennett GF, Shutler D (1991) Sexual selection and parasites in wood-warblers. Auk 108:147–152

    Google Scholar 

  • Wiley RH (1973) Territoriality and non-random mating in sage grouse Centrocercus urophasianus. Anim Behav Monogr 6:85–169

    Google Scholar 

  • Wiley RH (1974) Evolution of social organization and life-history patterns among grouse. Q Rev Biol 49:201–227

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Wortel JF, Rugenbrink H, Nuboer JFW (1987) The photopic spectral sensitivity of the dorsal and ventral retinae of the chicken. J Comp Physiol 160:151–154

    Google Scholar 

  • Zahavi A (1975) Mate selection – a selection for a handicap. J Theor Biol 53:205–214

    PubMed  CAS  Google Scholar 

  • Zeng H, Wee SSE, Painting CJ, Zhang S, Li D (2018) Equivalent effect on UV coloration and vibratory signal on mating success in a jumping spider. Behav Ecol 30:313–321

    Google Scholar 

  • Zuk M, Thornhill R, Ligon JD, Johnson K (1990) Parasites and mate choice in red jungle fowl. Am Zool 30:235–244

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

The authors thank the landowners for allowing access to their property and the following field volunteers who assisted with data collection: Jacqueline Menzies, Zach Slick, and Audrey Curtis. The paper has benefitted from valuable comments and suggestions provided by two anonymous referees and the editor, Dr. Andrea Pilastro.

Funding

Funding was provided by grants awarded to JKA from The Ohio State University at Lima and the College of Arts and Sciences at The Ohio State University in Columbus.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Evolution, Ecology and Organismal Biology, The Ohio State University, Aronoff 378, 318 W. 12th Ave, Columbus, OH, 43210, USA

    Geoffrey M. Gould

  2. Department of Evolution, Ecology and Organismal Biology, The Ohio State University at Lima, Lima, OH, USA

    Jacqueline K. Augustine

Authors
  1. Geoffrey M. Gould
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Jacqueline K. Augustine
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Contributions

GMG and JKA designed and executed the study. Both authors contributed substantially to the manuscript.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Geoffrey M. Gould.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethics approval

All experimental procedures were conducted under the approval and guidance of The Ohio State University’s Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC protocol no. 2013A00000013) and under permits issued by the Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism (permit nos. SC-048-2016, SC-038-2017, and SC-060-2018).

Consent to participate

Not applicable

Consent for publication

Not applicable

Additional information

Communicated by A. Pilastro

Publisher’s note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Gould, G.M., Augustine, J.K. Multiple signals predict male mating success in the lek-mating lesser prairie-chicken (Tympanuchus pallidicinctus). Behav Ecol Sociobiol 74, 137 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-020-02920-2

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Revised:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00265-020-02920-2

Keywords

Search

Navigation