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Age-dependent sexual selection in bighorn rams.

D W Coltman1, M Festa-Bianchet, J T Jorgenson

  • 1Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Western Bank, Sheffield S10 2TN, UK. d.coltman@sheffield.ac.uk

Proceedings. Biological Sciences
|January 19, 2002
PubMed
Summary

Younger bighorn sheep rams sire nearly half of all offspring, challenging assumptions about horn size and age in sexual selection. Alternative mating tactics allow smaller rams to achieve reproductive success.

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Area of Science:

  • Animal Behavior
  • Evolutionary Biology
  • Genetics

Background:

  • Mating systems and sexual selection are key in ungulate research.
  • Few studies integrate genetic paternity with long-term phenotypic data.

Purpose of the Study:

  • Determine parentage in bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis) using genetic analysis.
  • Investigate the relationship between age, horn size, and reproductive success over multiple breeding seasons.

Main Methods:

  • Microsatellite paternity analysis was used to assign parentage for 64 lambs.
  • Mixed-effects models analyzed the correlation between age, horn length, and mating success.

Main Results:

  • A single dominant ram sired 26.1% of all lambs over six seasons.

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  • Younger rams (under 8 years) sired approximately 50% of the lambs.
  • Mating success showed a nonlinear increase with age, with horn length positively correlating in older rams.

    • Conclusions:

    • Sexual selection in bighorn sheep is age-dependent, not solely reliant on horn size.
    • Younger rams may utilize alternative mating tactics (e.g., coursing, blocking) to achieve success.
    • Agility, body size, and horn size are likely influenced by age-dependent sexual selection.