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RESEARCH ARTICLE
Contents Vol 56(2)

Low levels of extra-pair paternity in southern emu-wrens (Aves : Maluridae)

Grainne S. Maguire A B and Raoul A. Mulder A
+ Author Affiliations
- Author Affiliations

A Department of Zoology, The University of Melbourne, Vic. 3010, Australia.

B Corresponding author. Present address: Birds Australia, Suite 2-05, 60 Leicester Street, Carlton, Vic. 3053, Australia. Email: g.maguire@birdsaustralia.com.au

Australian Journal of Zoology 56(2) 79-84 https://doi.org/10.1071/ZO08047
Submitted: 1 May 2008  Accepted: 12 August 2008   Published: 9 September 2008

Abstract

The frequency of extra-pair paternity (EPP) among birds varies considerably, with the highest rates (56–76%) reported in several species of fairy-wren (Maluridae). According to the ‘constrained female’ hypothesis, such high frequencies arise when females are emancipated from constraints on mate choice because they have access to alternative sources of parental care (cooperative breeding). We investigated the genetic mating system of a close relative of the fairy-wrens within the Maluridae, the southern emu-wren (Stipiturus malachurus). Southern emu-wrens share several life-history attributes with the fairy-wrens, but show relatively low levels of cooperation, providing an opportunity to assess how the frequency of cooperative breeding correlates with the frequency of EPP. We assessed paternity for 50 offspring within 27 emu-wren broods using species-specific microsatellite markers. Overall, only 12% of genotyped offspring resulted from extra-pair paternity, and 15% of broods contained at least one extra-pair offspring. We argue that opportunities for mate choice by female emu-wrens are restricted by their dependence on paternal care for offspring survival, as suggested by the constrained female hypothesis. The low occurrence of cooperative breeding in the southern emu-wren may thus help explain the extreme variation in the frequency of extra-pair paternity within this family.


Acknowledgements

We thank Josh van Buskirk, Peter Dunn, Mark Elgar and Linda Whittingham for comments on the manuscript. We also thank Greg Adcock, Patrick Jean Guay and Wouter van Dongen for assistance in the laboratory. The assistance of Khalid Al-Dabbagh, Adam Wargon, Richard Parker, Elisa Martinez and many other field assistants is gratefully acknowledged. This research was supported by grants from Portland Aluminium, the Stuart Leslie Bird Research Award (Birds Australia), the Department of Zoology (University of Melbourne), the Norman Wettenhall Foundation, the Bird Observers Club of Australia (BOCA) and The David Hay Memorial Fund. Blood samples were collected under Animal Experimentation and Ethics Committee Register 00055 and permit 10001755 from the Department of Sustainability and Environment, Victoria.


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