DISSERTATION RESEARCH: Cooperation and Conflict within Reproductive Coalitions of Wild Turkeys (Meleagris Gallopavo)

DDIG：野生火鸡繁殖联盟中的合作与冲突- pi: Walter D. KoenigCo-PI: Eileen A. lacey博士生：Alan H. krakauer雄性野生火鸡在繁殖季节形成稳定的联盟，合作向雌性求爱。这种合作行为令人费解，因为雄性之间对雌性的竞争非常激烈。该项目将确定雄性火鸡联盟之间的遗传关系，并提供一个全面的观点，即在群体中保持从属的雄性火鸡的好处。所使用的理论框架将是生殖倾斜理论，这是一个快速发展的领域，旨在解释生殖是如何在社会群体中分配的。地位低的雄性可以通过直接繁殖、间接繁殖（通过帮助相关群体成员）或在未来某个时候继承支配地位来获利。生殖倾斜模型提供了定量预测，以确定这三种利益的哪种组合对雄性联盟的形成和维持是重要的。这些预测将通过结合加利福尼亚中部沿海地区自由放养的野生火鸡种群的行为和基因数据进行测试。

DDIG: Cooperation and Conflict within Reproductive Coalitions of Wild TurkeysCo-PI: Walter D. KoenigCo-PI: Eileen A. LaceyDoctoral student: Alan H. KrakauerMales wild turkeys form stable coalitions during the breeding season that cooperatively court females. This cooperative behavior is puzzling because of the intense competition among males for females. The project will determine genetic relatedness among coalitions of male turkeys and provide a comprehensive view of the benefits keeping subordinate males in groups. The theoretical framework used will be reproductive skew theory, a rapidly evolving field that seeks to explain how reproduction is partitioned within social groups. Low status males may profit through direct reproduction, through indirect reproduction by helping a related group member, or by inheriting the dominant position at some time in the future. Reproductive skew models provide quantitative predictions to determine what combination of these three benefits are important for the formation and maintenance of male coalitions. These predictions will be tested by combining behavioral and genetic data on a free-ranging wild turkey population in central coastal California.