DISSERTATION RESEARCH: Why do dominant individuals cooperate? Fitness consequences of cooperative courtship in a system with variable cooperative partnerships

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Understanding cooperation has long interested humans, but the majority of research in this field has focused on why helpers help, because to us helping is a paradox because helpers appear to be sacrificing their own reproductive opportunities to increase others' reproductive success. However, it is equally important to understand whether and how cooperation benefits the recipients of this help (dominant individuals), as cooperation results from the interaction of individuals that may have very different reasons for participating. This research investigates the causes and consequences of cooperation by dominant males, those that have an option to cooperate or not. Using variation in cooperative mating displays within a population of a neotropical bird, the White-ruffed Manakin, this project addresses three objectives: (1) quantify the costs of cooperation for dominant males, (2) quantify the reproductive consequences of cooperation for dominant males, and (3) evaluate potential mechanisms that result in indirect reproductive benefits for dominant individuals. The research will be completed by combining traditional field techniques of behavioral observations and experiments with modern genetic techniques. This research addresses a previously unexplored aspect of cooperative display behavior, and therefore represents a significant contribution to the general understanding of the costs and benefits of cooperation. The research activities include active mentorship of high school students, undergraduates, recent graduates, and graduate students. The field component of this research is conducted at Rara Avis Reserve in Costa Rica, an eco-tourism establishment that puts researchers in contact with international and US tourists on a daily basis where they explain this research and its importance. Understanding how manakin groups function cooperatively sheds light on how cooperation may have evolved and continues to function in other animal groups and in human societies.