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Female sexual preferences toward conspecific and hybrid male mating calls in two species of polygynous deer, Cervus elaphus and C. nippon

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posted on 2023-06-21, 06:02 authored by Megan T Wyman, Yann Locatelli, Benjamin D Charlton, David Reby
The behavioral processes at the basis of hybridization and introgression are understudied in terrestrial mammals. We use a unique model to test the role of sexual signals as a reproductive barrier to introgression by investigating behavioral responses to male sexual calls in estrous females of two naturally allopatric but reproductively compatible deer species, red deer and sika deer. Previous studies demonstrated asymmetries in acoustic species discrimination between these species: most but not all female red deer prefer conspecific over sika deer male calls while female sika deer exhibit no preference differences. Here, we extend this examination of acoustic species discrimination to the role of male sexual calls in introgression between parent species and hybrids. Using two-speaker playback experiments, we compared the preference responses of estrous female red and sika deer to male sexual calls from conspecifics versus red × sika hybrids. These playbacks simulate early secondary contact between previously allopatric species after hybridization has occurred. Based on previous conspecific versus heterospecific playbacks, we predicted that most female red deer would prefer conspecific calls while female sika deer would show no difference in their preference behaviors toward conspecific and hybrid calls. However, results show that previous asymmetries did not persist as neither species exhibited more preferences for conspecific over hybrid calls. Thus, vocal behavior is not likely to deter introgression between these species during the early stages of sympatry. On a wider scale, weak discrimination against hybrid sexual signals could substantially contribute to this important evolutionary process in mammals and other taxa.

History

Publication status

  • Published

File Version

  • Published version

Journal

Evolutionary Biology

ISSN

0071-3260

Publisher

Springer Verlag

Issue

2

Volume

43

Page range

227-241

Department affiliated with

  • Psychology Publications

Full text available

  • Yes

Peer reviewed?

  • Yes

Legacy Posted Date

2017-07-07

First Open Access (FOA) Date

2017-07-07

First Compliant Deposit (FCD) Date

2017-07-07

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