CONSEQUENCES OF MATE SHARING FOR FIRST-MATED FEMALES IN A POLYGYNOUS SONGBIRD, THE HOUSE WREN

摘要

We investigated whether male parental assistance, reproductive output, and overwinter survival differed for female House Wrens (Troglodytes aedon) that did not have to share their mate's territories with a later-settling female during the nestling stage of breeding. During first breeding attempts of the season, when mate sharing occurred, primary females in polygynous trios and females from monogamous pairs fledged equal numbers of offspring and fledged offspring of similar mass. Rates at which males fed broods of primary females were not significantly different than rates at which males fed broods of monogamous females. Primary females did not make significantly more trips to nests to feed offspring than did monogamous females.