Neff B D, Gross M R
Department of Zoology, University of Toronto, 25 Harbord Street,Toronto, Ontario, Canada M5S 3G5.
Proc Biol Sci. 2001 Aug 7;268(1476):1559-65. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2001.1678.
Theories of parental care evolution predict that genetic relatedness will be an important variable in the amount of care a parent provides. However, current inferences of relatedness-based parental investment from studies in humans and birds remain challenged. No study has yet demonstrated parental care adjustment in a manner uncomplicated by life-history correlates or experimental design. We now present a unique test that controls for individual life histories and demonstrates paternity-related dynamic adjustments in parental care. Brood-rearing male bluegill sunfish (Lepomis macrochirus) that are cuckolded to a varying degree will either increase or decrease their parental investment in response to changing information on paternity during brood development. Specifically, as parental males detect paternity lost to cuckolders and, hence, a reduction in the value of their brood, they adaptively lower their level of parental care. Conversely, if they detect that their paternity is higher than previously assessed, they adaptively raise their level of parental care. This dynamic adjustment during brood rearing indicates the importance of genetic relatedness in parental investment decisions and provides needed empirical support for theoretical predictions.
亲代抚育进化理论预测，基因关联性将是亲代提供抚育量的一个重要变量。然而，目前从人类和鸟类研究中基于关联性的亲代投资推断仍面临挑战。尚无研究以不受生活史相关性或实验设计影响的方式证明亲代抚育的调整。我们现在提出一项独特的测试，该测试控制个体生活史，并证明亲代抚育中与父权相关的动态调整。在育雏过程中被戴绿帽程度不同的雄性蓝鳃太阳鱼（Lepomis macrochirus）会根据育雏发育过程中父权信息的变化，增加或减少它们的亲代投资。具体而言，当亲代雄性察觉到父权被戴绿帽者夺走，从而其育雏价值降低时，它们会适应性地降低亲代抚育水平。相反，如果它们察觉到自己的父权高于先前评估的水平，就会适应性地提高亲代抚育水平。育雏过程中的这种动态调整表明基因关联性在亲代投资决策中的重要性，并为理论预测提供了所需的实证支持。
